#dumb phone

[itscolossal]

Giant Crocheted ‘Dumb Phones’ by Nicole Nikolich Tap into Millennial Nostalgia

[xanaxfarts]

Phones from Gossip Girl (2007)

[orchidblack]

I've just learned Caterpillar, the venerable heavy machinery manufacturer, makes a flip phone, and I'm in genuine danger of getting one.

[codileef]

breaking down the dumb phone lifestyle because it's consumed my life and i need to share

i watched eddy burback's video about not using his phone for a month and it absolutely captivated me. so i looked into r/dumphone and have been fantasizing about getting rid of my phone, but am unable to just yet, so i'm sharing what i found useful :)

tldr; almost everything you do on your phone that's online, you can do in a web browser. and if you don't have a laptop or PC, get a library card and use your public library's resources.

first things first, evaluate what your current smartphone is to you. is it a way of communication? entertainment? banking? think of everything it is for you. you can now begin to find alternatives. below are some suggestions for the major uses of a smartphone.

for communication: get something that isn't a smartphone. look into all forms of basic phones: flip phones, slider phones, brick phones, etc., and figure out which style will best suit your communication needs. if you need/want something closer to the design of a smartphone, check out the light phone.

you can also look into getting a landline. either way, you will have to find a provider compatible with your choice phone. each provider website should include a "bring your own phone" option and you can look up phone compatibility. you will also likely need to keep track of your contact, so get a rolodex or an address book.

for music: mp3 player. no seriously. mp3 player. this is the closest thing to streaming music you will be able to get. if an mp3 player isn't your style, you can get a portable cd player or a portable cassette player and begin collecting physical media. (you can also burn your own cd playlists btw). also, get a radio.

for entertainment: there are so many alternatives to this. first, you can always stream movies and tv on a smart tv and not your phone. other than this, you can get a dvd player and begin collecting dvds of movies and tv shows you enjoy. you can go even further and get a vcr and collect vhs tapes. many movie theaters offer a subscription service that allows you to see multiple movies a week for a much cheaper cost overall.

you can also take a full turn away from screen-based entertainment. you can read, and i mean really read. get a library card. learn a new skill, start a new hobby, go into the community, etc. these things are generally better for you, so even if you don't want a dumbphone lifestyle, try to integrate these into your life as is.

for banking: write down your banking login information and log in on a web browser. you don't need apple or samsung pay, most cards these days have tap to pay. carry cash on you. learn how to balance a checkbook. keep track of your expenses on your own. opt in for email or snail mail notifications from your bank so you can receive any alerts necessary.

for telling time/alarms: girl be serious. get an alarm clock and a watch.

for camera: get a digital cam!! they are incredibly cheap, especially if you buy them secondhand. you can get any type of physical camera, really, but a digital cam is the most user friendly, portable, affordable, and has the same capability to take a quick picture that a smartphone does.

for navigation: if you use navigation in your car and it doesn't already have one built in, get a GPS. if you bike, get a GPS and a bike mount. if you walk or use public transit, you can use map websites to plan your course and print it off (like mapquest or public transit websites), or you can write down the directions if you prefer that.

i've picked out what my alternatives would be and i have crunched the numbers and it would cost me just over half of what it would cost for the lowest-cost new iphone. so not only will you be simplifying and making your life better, you will overall save an incredible amount of money.

[sycker]

A year ago I uninstalled TikTok and Twitter.

2 or 3 months ago I uninstalled Instagram.

Right now I'm preparing myself to cancel my Spotify subscription.

And I gotta say, once you detox, you realize all these things are actually boring af. They're made to rot you, to keep your brain focused on quick stuff. When you're constantly being bombed with ads, having a million options being shoved down your throat, reading all the hate online, all the absurd opinions of Internet addicted people, being fed the illusion of a perfect life and perfect routines, podcasts about rich people saying life is easy, etc; you tend to rot with it as well.

I don't think internet and phones are the bad guys, I actually believe they're great tools for humanity. But I believe they're just great tools.

The Swiss Knife analogy. Buy an ipod, mp3 player, hell, buy a walkman, cd player, an old, crappy camera, anything! Connect with yourselves again, learn about things you like. I promise you, life will get better at least 5% /j

Anyways, I needed to say things I've been thinking about lately. Love u guys

[fleshcoloredskies]

trying to satisfy the brainworms without falling to consumerism

[refinedtaste]