Which one is for me
Perchi vs Perchi Matrix: a face that reacts to your phone, or a display that shows your numbers
Perchi (₹2,999) is for the person whose phone is the problem: a face that holds the phone, starts a focus block and celebrates real wins. Perchi Matrix (₹4,499) is for the person who wants numbers on the desk: 70+ apps, Home Assistant and a local API. They share one dashboard and one app library, so buying both is common.
Perchi vs Perchi Matrix at a glance
Prices are the vendor's or the listing's figures on the date shown, in the currency they were shown in. Our own price, warranty and returns come from the same configuration as the pricing page.
| Feature | Perchi desk companion | Perchi Matrix LED desk display |
|---|---|---|
| Price | ₹2,999 incl. GST (MRP ₹3,499), sold direct in India with a GST invoice | ₹4,499 incl. GST (MRP ₹4,999), sold direct in India with a GST invoice |
| What it shows | A 128x64 OLED face with ten moods, a focus arc, a project beside the face and moment cards | 24x8 RGB pixels: numbers, icons, text, 14 celebration effects, a pixel desk pet |
| Focus feature | Phone Nap: rest the phone, a 25-minute block starts (5 to 120 minutes) | A visual focus timer app; nothing tied to your phone |
| Reacts to your phone | Yes: the back electrode is designed to detect a phone resting on it | No touch or phone detection |
| Apps | The same library; every app renders as a card beside the face | 70+ apps from 60+ integrations; 37 work with zero setup beyond a handle or a location |
| Home Assistant and local API | Platform integration and a mood.set command from any automation; local API draws in the card area | MQTT with Home Assistant discovery out of the box (bearer mode): a light, a text entity, an app selector and sensors |
| Sound | None | None |
| Power | USB-C 5 V, no battery | 5 V supply, 3 A or more recommended for 24x8; no battery |
| Size | Palm-sized; dimensions confirmed after the hardware bench pass | Desk-sized: three 8x8 panels in a row at launch; larger sizes later |
| Two-unit features | Perchi link taps, well-done nods, focus rooms of up to 4 (₹5,499 for two) | Team workspaces; one dashboard runs every display you own |
| Best for | Students, remote workers and creators whose phone is the problem | Creators, developers, sellers and Home Assistant users who want numbers on the desk |
Who should buy which?
Choose Perchi if
- Your phone is what breaks your focus and you work at a desk
- You want a companion that reacts, not a counter that scrolls
- You want a phone stand that earns its place
- You study or work in a room where silence matters
- You want to link two units across cities (Perchi for two)
Choose Perchi Matrix if
- You want live numbers you can read from across the room: sales, subscribers, builds, the next meeting
- You run Home Assistant or Node-RED and want an authenticated local API and MQTT
- You film at your desk and want a counter with celebrations in frame
- You own a Ulanzi TC001 or an AWTRIX flow and want the AWTRIX 3 API kept alive with support
Choose both if
- A creator who wants Perchi in the room for focus and Perchi Matrix on the shelf for the count
- A small studio: one dashboard, one app library, every integration set up once
What Perchi is
Perchi is a palm-sized, silent desk companion with a 128x64 OLED face that doubles as a phone stand. Rest your phone on it and, after a 3-second confirmation ring, a focus block starts: 25 minutes by default, any length from 5 to 120. While the phone stays down Perchi knits a scarf, grows a sprout or builds a tower in five visible stages; lift the phone and it pauses with a look. It is ₹2,999 including GST, USB-C powered, with no battery, no speaker, no microphone, no camera and no AI. The full loop is on How Phone Nap works and the product page is /perchi.
Between blocks Perchi is a companion: a calm clock after ten quiet minutes, a resting counter beside the face if you want one, and moments from your apps, where the face changes mood first and a small card with the value slides in beside it. A green build makes it proud, a red one makes it worry, a Razorpay payment makes it party.
What Perchi Matrix is
Perchi Matrix is a connected LED desk display: 24x8 RGB pixels at launch (192 LEDs), driven by an ESP32-S3 running Perchi OS, with 70+ apps for creator counts, sales, deploys, calendars, weather and Home Assistant. It is ₹4,499 including GST, pairs from a browser in under a minute, and has an authenticated AWTRIX-3-compatible local API with MQTT and Home Assistant discovery. The 32x8, 64x16 and 64x32 sizes are built on the same firmware and open later on the waitlist; see sizes.
It has no face and no touch loop. What it has instead is a playlist of apps with pixel-exact previews, 14 celebration effects, milestone rules, a no-code builder, a REST API, webhooks, an MCP server for AI assistants and an SDK and CLI, all covered on Developers. The product page is /perchi-matrix.
What they share
Both devices run on one dashboard and one app library, so an integration you set up for one shows up on the other. Both celebrate real events rather than looping random animations. Both pair from a browser with no app to install and no account wall before the first smile. Both get signed firmware updates with automatic rollback, and both keep their core working when the internet drops: Perchi's face, Phone Nap, streaks and clock run on the device, and Perchi Matrix keeps its clock, timers, cached apps and local API. Neither needs a subscription to do what it does on the day you bought it.
Both are designed and assembled in Bengaluru, India, sold with a GST invoice, a 12-month warranty serviced in India and 14-day returns. Every unit is bench-tested before it leaves; see Shipping for how the batches work.
Which one for a student, a developer, a creator, a seller?
A student whose phone is the problem wants Perchi: the phone's resting place is the timer, the projects make progress visible, and the report cards show the week. A student who wants a study timer with no phone involved at all can use either, but Perchi's head-press timer works with the phone in another room.
A developer who runs Home Assistant, watches CI and wants a build light on the shelf wants Perchi Matrix; a developer who wants a small colleague on the desk that worries when the build goes red wants Perchi. A creator with a camera on the desk usually wants Perchi Matrix for the count in frame and Perchi for the focus loop off camera. A seller on Razorpay, Stripe or Shopify wants Perchi Matrix as the subscription-free soundbox for online sales, silent by design, with a cha-ching animation per payment.
Can the two work together?
Yes. They are separate devices on the same account, so a room can have Perchi on the desk and Perchi Matrix on the shelf, sharing integrations. A Home Assistant automation can set Perchi's mood and push a value to Perchi Matrix from the same event. There is no bundle of one of each at launch; each is reserved on its own on Reserve, and Pricing has both prices side by side.
When neither is the right fit
If you want a robot that moves and talks, neither device does: both are silent and still by design, and the desk-robot comparisons on Compare name the products that do. If you want a wall-sized ticker, Perchi Matrix is a desk device even at 64x32. If you want a device that blocks apps, Perchi never does; it rewards the phone being down and nothing more.
Questions about Perchi vs Perchi Matrix
Should I buy Perchi or Perchi Matrix?
Pick Perchi (₹2,999) if your phone is the problem: it is a phone stand with a face that starts a focus block when the phone lands. Pick Perchi Matrix (₹4,499) if you want live numbers on your desk: 70+ apps, Home Assistant and a local API. They share one dashboard, so many people end up with both.
Can Perchi show a subscriber count too?
Yes, as a moment card beside its face and as an optional resting screen between moments, not as a large permanent counter. Set the resting screen to a counter app and Perchi shows it beside the face, celebrating milestones as they happen. Perchi Matrix is the device for a count you read from across the room.
Can Perchi Matrix start a focus block from my phone?
No. Perchi Matrix has no touch or phone detection; that is Perchi's loop. Perchi Matrix has a visual focus timer app you start from the dashboard or the button, which is useful, but nothing on it reacts to where your phone is.
Do both need the same dashboard account?
One account runs both. Devices, apps, automations and public links live in one workspace, and an integration set up once (a YouTube channel, a Razorpay webhook) is available to every device in it.
Is there a bundle of one Perchi and one Perchi Matrix?
Not at launch. Each is reserved separately; Perchi is ₹2,999 and Perchi Matrix is ₹4,499, both including GST. The only bundle today is Perchi for two at ₹5,499: two Perchis with a pairing card to link them.
Does Perchi Matrix have a face like Perchi?
No. Perchi Matrix has a pixel desk pet app that cheers wins and sulks on failures, but no parametric face, no moods and no touch. Perchi's face has ten moods and reacts to your phone, your touch and your apps.
More questions, answered on the page that owns them
Related comparisons
- Perchi vs Focus Friend
Focus Friend is the best-loved software version of the idea, and it lives inside the phone you are trying to avoid. Perchi moves the same loop onto the desk and makes the phone's resting place the timer.
- Perchi Matrix vs Ulanzi TC001
The TC001 is the pixel clock everyone flashes with AWTRIX: cheaper in dollars, with a battery. Perchi Matrix is cheaper in India, arrives with 70+ apps, and keeps the AWTRIX 3 API with auth and signed updates.
- Physical pomodoro timers compared
Five physical timers, from a ₹899 cube to an AUD 99 Flow Timer, on what starts the block, whether they tick, how they treat interruptions and whether you ever see a total.
- Subscriber counter devices compared
Six devices that put a subscriber count on a desk or wall, compared on platforms, refresh, rounding and what they cost in India. Every YouTube counter is rounded; every Instagram counter needs a Business account.
Every comparison we publish is listed on Compare; the ranked guides live under Alternatives.
Sources and last check
Competitor facts, prices and review counts were read from the pages below on the dates shown in the table; this page was last checked on and is re-checked quarterly. Our own figures come from Pricing.
Batch 2 - estimated 2 to 3 weeks, no payment today
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Perchi is ₹2,999 incl. GST (MRP ₹3,499). No subscription needed.
No payment today. We email a checkout link when your unit is bench-tested; current estimated wait 2 to 3 weeks from the day you reserve. Cancel any time before then.