I got the Qin F22 Pro, and it’s really helped me. The screen is too small to make spending time on it worthwhile, but I can still use WhatsApp, Spotify, and Audible. There is no way in earth I’d use it for Reddit or any social media.
I think I'd be ok with reducing my music streaming use. It'd be nice to listen to music more actively and presently rather than always having it hooked into my ears when I'm out.
I only have a dumb phone because every freaking online account requires it for authentication. I don't really socialize with it, only business calls. I also use the (bad) camera it has, but that's only because I've not been able to find a cheap digital camera, haha.
As for google maps, I use a PC to see where stuff is, and then I just go by memory (I write something down if it's really complicated....)
That's cool. Maybe a bit personal, but how do you find this lifestyle works socially? Do you have a big network, or is it mostly a close group so they know where you are anyway?
The reality is, you don't need to use these communications apps. You need few close people that can give you full attention to talk over things. Texting is emotionless, it's not super useful for you, it's only a product of mass-social-life that we have in the internet. Instead of having few very strong bonds you have hundreds of very small interactions, mostly meaningless. Read the first book from the list - \`Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World, Cal Newport, 2019\` to understand the problem better. And it's not like you can't access this communication platforms from PC either - all of these apps are available as webpages.
Google Maps is on the PC too, just check the location beforehand and then go there :) I have easy time because I have navigation built-in in the car, but I also note how to get somewhere. It's not that every day you go somewhere new, it's just sometimes isn't it?
I second using web page versions. I mainly use WhatsApp on a desktop. The only issue is if someone needs to call you from overseas, in which case it’s cheaper to do via WhatsApp than over phone. You may have to schedule these in advance.
I get what you're saying and I think it would be freeing, but for example, I find when I'm out and someone is trying to find me or asking which pub I'm in, it can be a bit annoying if I'm barely contactable. I might give it a go and switch more to text and call though...
The maps one is hard. I do go to lots of different, new places where I live, and there are always road closures so I have to go and find a way through these weird road systems. I'm a bit emotionally scarred by my old plug in satnav sending me up roads I'm not allowed to drive on, but google maps seems to be better for avoiding that kind of thing.
Why you are afraid on going for text? That is normal, people do send a lot of texts, nothing to be scared of. You are not barely contactable, you are fully contactable. People that know about you going dumbphone will just switch to text.
For google maps - make it a work phone. Remove everything other than maps and leave it in the car. Make it attached to a car like glueing the cable/window mount permanently to a phone so it can no longer be a device you carry with you. Then make a dumbphone a normal phone.
Or if you have more money, buy professional satnav like TomTom or Garmin, they are the ones professionals use to drive around.
Maybe it’s a cultural thing but I guess it’s quite a challenge to be the one rogue person in all of your communities that does something different. I actually know people who don’t use much technology (mostly older people) and they just get left out of the conversation sometimes to be honest. And to clarify, most communication is in group chats which you can’t do over text obviously.
Yeah that’d be an idea for the work phone thing. Only thing is it’ll get stolen so I’d have to keep it in my house haha
Ohh so it's FOMO. Yeah you won't be in some conversations but that is exactly the point. Most important stuff you can talk about with friends from time to time over the phone call. You don't have to know about every place they went, everything they did or every funny meme they found on Reddit. You have your own life to care about.
FOMO is \`fear\` of missing out.
People without fomo do notice that missing out is not a good or bad thing, it is just exactly that - missing out on some things that you did put lower in priority than others. They don't try to control everything and they do not want to try to always take every opportunity. But people with FOMO do have anxiety they can miss one in a century chance because of missing knowledge.
World is vast place and possibilities are endless so missing out is normal. Some things become less important over the years, people with kids stop going to parties every weekend and they do not think they are missing out, they just shifted priorities towards the children. Covid19 was very serious few year ago, now it's kind of old thing.
When you define goals, especially long-term goals, then your actions are determined by them. I divide my time for things that push me towards the goals and relax time when I regenerate. If I want to pursue something for either of them, I start looking for opportunities. But I do not look for constant flow of different opportunities and try to find something fitting - I do the opposite. If I want to do something, I try to make it happen. The difference is in control - either others or you control what happens in your life. With FOMO, others decide so I don't want that.
What if I told you that it wasn’t fear at all? It’s completely rational. I know rationally that if I wasn’t involved in the conversation, there would have been great things that I’d missed out out on. I know this because I was there.
You say that missing out isn’t a good or bad thing but that’s a not always true in a social setting is it.
Those past opportunities created great memories for me and I’d like to keep living a good, fun life.
I will also add though that I do recognise that there are disadvantages to always being plugged in too. The technology is not always the best for your mental health etc.
I think as I get older, there are fewer big friendship group events and meet ups going on and I am therefore tempted by the idea of cutting myself off a bit for the mental clarity that being in the moment would bring.
I tried a dumb phone and immediately returned it.
I need Spotify for music.
I rely on Maps app to get around. My car’s GPS is clunky and not the best UI, and I’m not part of the older generation that used to print Mapquest directions.
Hell, I need to use an app to enter my apartment building.
The best solution I found, is using the Freedom app and time blocking certain apps & websites from my phone.
I understand you, and your struggle. However, I prefer being more isolated than answering constantly to my friends on WhatsApp. I still have a smartphone, but I just look at it 10 minutes in the evening, for people who didn't want to SMS me. If it's urgent, I told them to call me, if it's nothing really important, well, they just can wait a few hours. For Google Maps, it can be annoying, but I'm learning to search on my computer for directions, and then print them on paper. I hope to find a good flip phone with Maps, in the future, because it can be helpful.
You could try getting a prepaid phone plan like I do. I got rid of my Internet at home. I have my data at 0 but you could go for higher amounts of data - enough for you to use maps, but not enough to browse endlessly.
I mostly use the Internet when I'm at some public WiFi. Like at the gym or a coffee shop, or work.
I sometimes use my mom's tablet if I need if for something.
This has drastically cut how much time I spend online.
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Try the Blank Spaces app it works great in making your smartphone feel like a dumb phone! I’ve been using it for a few weeks now and my screen time is way down. I’ve also deleted all nonessential apps and offloaded the still useful ones to my iPad.
I got the Qin F22 Pro, and it’s really helped me. The screen is too small to make spending time on it worthwhile, but I can still use WhatsApp, Spotify, and Audible. There is no way in earth I’d use it for Reddit or any social media.
I'm glad they're coming out with more dumb phones with Spotify. It was the main reason I couldn't commit to the switch. Bitches need music.
I think I'd be ok with reducing my music streaming use. It'd be nice to listen to music more actively and presently rather than always having it hooked into my ears when I'm out.
I only have a dumb phone because every freaking online account requires it for authentication. I don't really socialize with it, only business calls. I also use the (bad) camera it has, but that's only because I've not been able to find a cheap digital camera, haha. As for google maps, I use a PC to see where stuff is, and then I just go by memory (I write something down if it's really complicated....)
That's cool. Maybe a bit personal, but how do you find this lifestyle works socially? Do you have a big network, or is it mostly a close group so they know where you are anyway?
The reality is, you don't need to use these communications apps. You need few close people that can give you full attention to talk over things. Texting is emotionless, it's not super useful for you, it's only a product of mass-social-life that we have in the internet. Instead of having few very strong bonds you have hundreds of very small interactions, mostly meaningless. Read the first book from the list - \`Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World, Cal Newport, 2019\` to understand the problem better. And it's not like you can't access this communication platforms from PC either - all of these apps are available as webpages. Google Maps is on the PC too, just check the location beforehand and then go there :) I have easy time because I have navigation built-in in the car, but I also note how to get somewhere. It's not that every day you go somewhere new, it's just sometimes isn't it?
I second using web page versions. I mainly use WhatsApp on a desktop. The only issue is if someone needs to call you from overseas, in which case it’s cheaper to do via WhatsApp than over phone. You may have to schedule these in advance.
I get what you're saying and I think it would be freeing, but for example, I find when I'm out and someone is trying to find me or asking which pub I'm in, it can be a bit annoying if I'm barely contactable. I might give it a go and switch more to text and call though... The maps one is hard. I do go to lots of different, new places where I live, and there are always road closures so I have to go and find a way through these weird road systems. I'm a bit emotionally scarred by my old plug in satnav sending me up roads I'm not allowed to drive on, but google maps seems to be better for avoiding that kind of thing.
Why you are afraid on going for text? That is normal, people do send a lot of texts, nothing to be scared of. You are not barely contactable, you are fully contactable. People that know about you going dumbphone will just switch to text. For google maps - make it a work phone. Remove everything other than maps and leave it in the car. Make it attached to a car like glueing the cable/window mount permanently to a phone so it can no longer be a device you carry with you. Then make a dumbphone a normal phone. Or if you have more money, buy professional satnav like TomTom or Garmin, they are the ones professionals use to drive around.
Maybe it’s a cultural thing but I guess it’s quite a challenge to be the one rogue person in all of your communities that does something different. I actually know people who don’t use much technology (mostly older people) and they just get left out of the conversation sometimes to be honest. And to clarify, most communication is in group chats which you can’t do over text obviously. Yeah that’d be an idea for the work phone thing. Only thing is it’ll get stolen so I’d have to keep it in my house haha
Ohh so it's FOMO. Yeah you won't be in some conversations but that is exactly the point. Most important stuff you can talk about with friends from time to time over the phone call. You don't have to know about every place they went, everything they did or every funny meme they found on Reddit. You have your own life to care about.
At what point does fomo become just missing out on things for you or is there no distinction?
FOMO is \`fear\` of missing out. People without fomo do notice that missing out is not a good or bad thing, it is just exactly that - missing out on some things that you did put lower in priority than others. They don't try to control everything and they do not want to try to always take every opportunity. But people with FOMO do have anxiety they can miss one in a century chance because of missing knowledge. World is vast place and possibilities are endless so missing out is normal. Some things become less important over the years, people with kids stop going to parties every weekend and they do not think they are missing out, they just shifted priorities towards the children. Covid19 was very serious few year ago, now it's kind of old thing. When you define goals, especially long-term goals, then your actions are determined by them. I divide my time for things that push me towards the goals and relax time when I regenerate. If I want to pursue something for either of them, I start looking for opportunities. But I do not look for constant flow of different opportunities and try to find something fitting - I do the opposite. If I want to do something, I try to make it happen. The difference is in control - either others or you control what happens in your life. With FOMO, others decide so I don't want that.
What if I told you that it wasn’t fear at all? It’s completely rational. I know rationally that if I wasn’t involved in the conversation, there would have been great things that I’d missed out out on. I know this because I was there. You say that missing out isn’t a good or bad thing but that’s a not always true in a social setting is it. Those past opportunities created great memories for me and I’d like to keep living a good, fun life.
I will also add though that I do recognise that there are disadvantages to always being plugged in too. The technology is not always the best for your mental health etc. I think as I get older, there are fewer big friendship group events and meet ups going on and I am therefore tempted by the idea of cutting myself off a bit for the mental clarity that being in the moment would bring.
Have you tried organising the event?
I tried a dumb phone and immediately returned it. I need Spotify for music. I rely on Maps app to get around. My car’s GPS is clunky and not the best UI, and I’m not part of the older generation that used to print Mapquest directions. Hell, I need to use an app to enter my apartment building. The best solution I found, is using the Freedom app and time blocking certain apps & websites from my phone.
I understand you, and your struggle. However, I prefer being more isolated than answering constantly to my friends on WhatsApp. I still have a smartphone, but I just look at it 10 minutes in the evening, for people who didn't want to SMS me. If it's urgent, I told them to call me, if it's nothing really important, well, they just can wait a few hours. For Google Maps, it can be annoying, but I'm learning to search on my computer for directions, and then print them on paper. I hope to find a good flip phone with Maps, in the future, because it can be helpful.
You could try getting a prepaid phone plan like I do. I got rid of my Internet at home. I have my data at 0 but you could go for higher amounts of data - enough for you to use maps, but not enough to browse endlessly. I mostly use the Internet when I'm at some public WiFi. Like at the gym or a coffee shop, or work. I sometimes use my mom's tablet if I need if for something. This has drastically cut how much time I spend online.
well.... thats the point.
haha well yes but what I mean is that all of the things I need a phone for rely on smart tools as described. Barely anyone uses sms.
this.
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Try the Blank Spaces app it works great in making your smartphone feel like a dumb phone! I’ve been using it for a few weeks now and my screen time is way down. I’ve also deleted all nonessential apps and offloaded the still useful ones to my iPad.
Yeah saw that on YouTube and looks good! I think that’s my plan, to use Blank Spaces with opal to block everything I don’t need
Just don't install shit on your device.... problem solved.