I do think it's a good idea to ban phones & laptops when possible (sometimes they're need for presenting, note-taking, etc). Daydreams really aren't comparable

I do think it's a good idea to ban phones & laptops when possible (sometimes they're need for presenting, note-taking, etc). Daydreams really aren't comparable to the other things we're talking about. I agree it's important for meetings to be concise and focused on issues that are relevant to the attendees. However, I don't think the presenter should have to be flashy. If someone has their phone/laptop out, they might not even give the presenter the initial few minutes of attention it takes to get engaged with the topic. Also, I'm in favor of banning devices at meetings because IME it leads to improvements in the meeting structure. If there's a long, boring meeting I might be relatively OK with it if I can spend the time doing something else on my laptop. If the only option is to pay attention to the useless meeting, however, then I'm more likely to provide suggestions and pressure to make the meeting better.