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):

  • If you thought about switching, what’s the single biggest thing that holds you back?

  • 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?

  • bryndos@fedia.io
    7·
    2 days ago

    I second this. No one forced me. Even when work tried to force me to use smartphone 2FA it was easy enough to say “I’m not putting any f-ing micrsoft crap on my phone”, they found a workaround - magically they could just use the basic telephone network to do the 2FA.

    I chose to get one because it’s more convenient than having phone, walkman, camera, book, torch , map, compass etc. I still carry many of those things from time to time when I want them, or when I want extra resilience. But I’s choose the phone most times because it is a cheap, lightweight, small, convenient alternative that makes so many things just a bit easier.

    Bloody hell just faffing around with walkman batteries and recording compilation tapes was annoying enough.

    It’s also very easy to just leave your phone behind and use the alternatives, they pretty much all still exist in some form. I mean that happens to me regularly whenever I lose my phone of when I forget to charge it or (partly) when I’m just out of range of the celluar network. I don’t remember either dying or having any police jump on me and force me to buy a new one or charge it up immediately.