Rotary phones were simple in that their implementation was fairly clear and self-contained. Though I'll grant you, that didn't often make them simpler to use.

Rotary phones were simple in that their implementation was fairly clear and self-contained. Though I'll grant you, that didn't often make them simpler to use. Also "there's a way to do that, even if you have to hunt for it and it's weird" isn't necessarily simpler than "don't do that."