I’ve been using a flip phone as my daily driver for a while now. The smartphone is still around, but it mostly sits in a drawer until bureaucracy or banking apps force me to use it.
For me, the benefits are clear: less distraction, more focus, better sleep. But I know for many people it’s not so easy. Essential apps, social pressure, work requirements… these are real blockers.
I’d like to start a discussion (almost like an informal poll):
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If you thought about switching, what’s the single biggest thing that holds you back?
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Is it banking? Messaging? Maps? Something else?
I’m genuinely curious because if we can identify the main pain points, maybe it’s possible to work on solutions or even start a small project around it.
So: what would need to change for you to actually give a flip phone a try?
I don’t make phone calls and rarely use SMS. All the features I need/want from a phone would be missing.
Maybe I’m in the minority here, but I genuinely love my phone. It makes my life better.
I’ve been using a flip phone as my actual phone for a while now. I just find the tactility of being able to flip open the phone to answer, and flip shut the phone to hang up, is so much more satisfying that swiping on a screen. I do have my smartphone because I need WhatsApp and MFA for work related reasons, but I have no desire to be accessible 24/7, so if I’m out and about you can fuck off until I get back.
Whatsapp. That’s the only fucking reason I’m not using a dumbphone. In Brazil, everyone uses it. Need to talk to a company? Whatsapp. Friends and family? Wpp. Book a medical checkup? Wpp.
There’s also the problem of cell phone fees being abusive when calling/messaging people from a different company.
That sounds dystopian
Dumb phones with KaiOS can have WhatsApp installed
Eh, I see no reason to switch to a dumb phone, because I don’t think I’m that bad with my current phone. My main User profile on GrapheneOS is pretty minimal when it comes to apps, it’s mostly messaging, banking, navigation, workout and music (I should probably move Lemmy and Pixelfed to a different profile, but they both have pretty little potential for scrolling for too long since the new content is naturally limited).
The only game on this profile is the one I’m developing as a hobby project lolAll the annoying Apps (Secondary Email, Amazon, Aliexpress, Linkedin, Smartlife, Grocery store coupon apps etc) are banished to a secondary profile that has no permission to run in the background or send any notifications.
Let’s start with the price
Having a software authentication that can hold multiple keys for MFA. I’d love to switch to a dumb phone but that’s pretty much a requirement and I’ve never found a device for MFA that is as convenient for MFA
I was gonna buy one of those Lite phones, but it was expensive so I just deleted time-wasting apps and now my smartphone respects my time. Hardest part was getting people to just text me instead of various social media messenger apps. In the end, I deleted my accounts and now everyone from school thinks I’m dead, but those close to me can reach me easily. Sometimes I still binge YouTube via Firefox on my phone though, so I installed “Unhook” which blocks recommended videos, so I can only see what I search for.
I guess just remember that your smartphone can be dumb too. And still a lot more convenient than a flip phone.
Navigation and manga
i have only ever had basic phones, dating back to my first nokia ~ 25 years ago. i don’t have the need or desire to have an android or iphone. one time. just once, ever–i enabled cellular data on my phone so i could look something up–the current weather forecast (in the kai weather ‘app’) because it started to look like i might get stranded out in a bad storm and i forgot to check the forecast before i left.
I’m not a toddler so don’t need help with “distractions” so nothing. That’s like reverting computers to windows 95 just because modern operating systems can run Steam.
There are many reasons including neurodivergence that someone could benefit from external limitations. Infantalizing poor impulse control is ableist and condescending.
Nah I said nothing about disability. This notion that healthy adults need mental herding is very pervasive and has absolutely captured the pop tech culture.
This notion that healthy adults need mental herding is very pervasive
Need is a strong word, but it is very true that the environment you put people in will influence their behavior. Grocery stores filled with attractively packaged highly processed foods will drive more highly processed food consumption than if you had to show proof of age ID and sign a disclosure before being allowed into the back room to buy those same foods in plain brown wrapper containers blazoned with all the health warnings that apply to them.
Handheld screen tech delivers dopamine release as powerful as most recreational drugs / experiences. People are definitely “herded” by how that tech is delivered, default settings that most of them never take the time to learn how to change, other settings that annoyingly constantly reset themselves to undesired PAY ATTENTION TO ME configurations, etc.
So, yeah, mindfulness of how your devices are shaping your behavior is a “higher level of awareness” that we as a society should be collectively trying to attain.
Skill issue
I don’t even know where to begin. And I am not even going to bother, I am to old to keep explaining this shit. Don’t even know why I replied as long as its clear you’re giving mad neckbeard vibes
I’d like to be able to use Signal.
Pretty much because my smartphone is basically my digital Swiss army knife. Like even if I got a separate digital camera and MP3 Player, I also use it for navigation and to communicate with my parents and friends over signal, and like hell I am gonna give up signal. Add to that it’s also my portable wifi hotspot when I’m out, my train tickets, and how I pay for things when I’m sans-purse, I don’t know if I can give up my smartphone.
Would it be good for me to get off social media and to stop doomscrolling the news? Yes, but I can do that by going out and touching grass.
Keep in mind that doom scrolling while laying on grass is also an option. I will come back later for more uninteresting tips.
The one reason I have a nice, relatively new phone is that I want a fairly large, OLED screen for reading after dark. Yeah, I use it for a bunch of other stuff, but I wouldn’t really miss any of those. The only thing I really need is the ability to make it look like text is floating in the dark over my head in bed.
I will switch to a dumb phone or even a pager for sms and phone calls the day i can offload all the rest to a VR headset i wear all day everyday XD
Exclusively Internet calls and texts. Most of my communication is split between regular and texting and discord or Whatsapp.
Doesn’t have to be those apps but something I can make a call with internationally
