On the one hand, you're right, the price seems absurd. On the other hand, I've only ever heard this argument from people who don't really want such a device anyway.

I don't own this phone, but I paid $500 for a Boox Note Air 2, which is an eink tablet that I use for notetaking and reading and replaced my ipad with it. The limited usability of these devices is a selling point, not a downside. But just because I want a device that does less doesn't mean that I want a device that feels cheap. I still want something sleek, well built and snappy. And eink screens aren't particularly cheap either. So $500 it is.