![]() Others want it to have a camera.īut that brings up an important question: How many features can you stuff onto a “dumb” phone without it simply becoming another version of a smartphone? If you examine the companies highlighted in the post, you’ll find each one has a different answer to that question. One blogger describes the Light Phone II as a “flawed revolution” and would like it to include a flashlight, voice recorder, pedometer, reminders/calendar, voice-to-text, among other features. Light Phone has been leading the way in developing a candy bar-style phone for people who have no interest in carrying around a smartphone.Ī few critics say the Light Phone doesn’t come with enough features. The age of poor-quality ‘dumb’ phones is coming to an end. It also incorporates an e-ink interface, giving the phone a calming appearance. There’s also an alarm clock, podcast tool, and, new for 2021, navigation. ![]() (It isn’t, by the way, a flip phone but a “candy bar”-style phone.) It comes with no social media apps and performs basic functions, namely texting and talking. In 2018, it released Light Phone II, an improvement on the original. The New York-based company released a phone in 2017 after raising funds through a Kickstarter campaign. A lot of people want to simplify their lives, they’re looking for a no-nonsense, functional “dumb” phone like the ones made before the smartphone’s arrival.Ī company called Light Phone was perhaps the first to recognize this emerging demand for devices that delivered less. Entrepreneurs offer hope with new minimalist phonesįortunately, my research led me to information about a select group of companies that recognize smartphones have become a problem. We collectively longed for the days when flip phones were more dependable. I then did some research and encountered online other people who expressed similar disappointments with new dumb phones. On the contrary, its operating system took too long to transition between different functions and often would get “hung up,” requiring me to restart the phone. This phone had more features than my little LG, but they didn’t add to the user experience. Without giving the matter much consideration, I bought an Alcatel flip phone. I didn’t want to part with it, but I had no choice because it ran on a 3G network, and my carrier at the time, Verizon, announced it would be shuttering its 3G network. I didn’t realize how far the dumb phone had slipped in quality until 2019 when I needed to replace a little LG flip phone that I had been using for nearly seven years. ![]() In this post, I highlight five companies (Light Phone, Techless, Mudita, Punkt, and Sunbeam) that have designed devices for people who want less, not more. ![]() A wider, better selection of “dumb” phones is coming. The final insult is their slow, glitchy operating systems.īut fear not: There’s an emerging market for people like you and me. These phones try to replicate the smartphone experience by featuring apps ill-suited for the flip-phone design. Too many flip phones on the market today seem like they were designed by companies who think the only reason people buy flip phones is because 1) smartphone technology intimidates them or 2) they can’t afford a smartphone. Product selection and quality have suffered in recent years. Just be warned: Many flip phones aren’t made like they used to be. You’ve made a bold decision, one that comes with long-term rewards. To my readers who feel they’re ready to switch to a flip phone (aka “dumb” phone), I salute you. This post was last updated on August 7th, 2023 at 08:45 am
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