There was a period a few years ago, where I went without a smartphone, and used a flip phone instead. (My iPhone 4 became too slow after upgrading iOS too many

There was a period a few years ago, where I went without a smartphone, and used a flip phone instead. (My iPhone 4 became too slow after upgrading iOS too many times, and before I got an iPhone 6.) Phone service without a data plan is a lot cheaper too. From the article: “A phone-free weekend involved some complications. Without Google Maps, I got lost and had to pull over for directions. Without Yelp, I had trouble finding open restaurants.” I these types of cases, researching, planning ahead, and writing things down are the solutions. That’s what we used to do, and it still works. What eventually made me justify getting a smart phone again was Uber (Lyft now), particularly when traveling. Funny, that’s 1% of 1% of what I actually use it for. (I don’t travel often.) So that might be an interesting thing to figure out: how to have a smart phone available for short periods of times when the benefits really call for it. I recently read Cal Newport’s book, Digital Minimalism, which isn’t about breaking phone addictions. (It’s not decide-specific.) It’s about choosing the specific things we do on all digital platforms. It might not be the phone that’s the problem. For example, YouTube seems to be designed for maximum engagement, and it is an issue for me on phone, tablet, and Roku/Chromcast. It didn’t seem to be a problem on a PC, which I used before discovering the apps (which I originally installed in order to cast YouTube videos on a Chromecast). Newport’s main philosophy is to get rid of most of the apps, websites, social media and then choosing (or tweaking) specific tools among those only if they are the best way to do something in support of what you value most. This is the opposite of the approach of using a digital technology just because it might have a benefit.