11 ms·

The science behind an iPhone dumb phone

61 points by hbroadbent 2y ago

dash2 2y ago
I've really enjoyed having greyscale on my iPhone. I have some apps (maps, photos etc.) automatically go into colour using a Shortcut automation. You can set up greyscale in the Accessibility settings.
weinzierl 2y ago
For years I had a 50% grey background on all of my devices. People asked me if I am depressed (jokingly) but in fact a calm clutter free background makes me happy.
shinycode 2y ago
When the tool is too powerful for our capacities of self-control, maybe some people should roll back to the was things were before. - a simple phone with SMS - a desk computer in the living room for internet and email, shared between everyone - a camera - an ebook reader (or just books and newspaper)
- amelius 2y ago
  Maybe a map for navigation. And banking apps. Music player.
  - shinycode 2y ago
    I have multiple iPods and it’s a shame I can’t use them with subscription services. It’s too expensive to buy all the music I like because it’s just the perfect use case. You highlight 2 important use case though that are almost impossible to have without a smartphone (but an alternative can be done on the desktop computer and the map with a paper map). They are just the collateral because it’s not those that cause addiction …
    - tines 2y ago
      Get an Android phone and uninstall the Play Store and built-in web browser via adb. Gets you Maps, Spotify, banking etc. and nothing more.
- littlecranky67 2y ago
  I created lockmeout.online for that specific purpose - change your phones unlock code to a randomly generated one and time-lock it away for a period of time you want to be free of distractions. Carrying a locked phone is still pretty usefull: Emergency calls, take photos using camera, taking/making regular calls using Siri, Music, Background GPX tracker etc.
- wlindley 2y ago
  I have a kitchen phone and a desk phone (both VOIP), a Linux workstation, a DSLR camera, a radio, and read real books and play CDs. Also an RCA Orthophonic High Fidelity phonograph for 78, 45, and 33⅓. After the last Star Trek went off the air, and Jeopardy! went woke, there was nothing to watch on TV and it got left behind somewhere. Computers are nothing but free software. Had a mobile phone (a flip-phone with real buttons) for years but never used it, and just let it lapse, as being unnecessary. Never understood why so many folks bought into being abused by their handheld pocket computers, and paying for the "privilege." Anyone who gives MS/Apple/Google/Amazon (the evil MAGA) money is being an enabler for the abuse of others.
cryptoboy2283 2y ago
I'd also add: - writing everything in lowercase - helps reduce depression and anxiety
- shmeeed 2y ago
  Meanwhile, for some OCD people writing or reading lowercase where it doesn't belong only raises anxiety and depression.
- jraph 2y ago
  What do you mean? Do you have evidences? Or are you just making fun of the article's lowercase titles?
robertlagrant 2y ago
I've uninstalled all social media, which is the main notifications hook. I really think the power of apps is in notifications, and it's best to cut them out. If I want to see a Tweet or a Facebook post, probably because someone I know on Whatsapp sent me it, I'll use the website. I don't want to be dragged in by notifications. Anyone else the same?
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]
- j_bum 2y ago
  Save a hacker news app (Hacki), I am the same way. HN doesn’t have the same addiction cycle that Twitter does for me, so I uninstalled the Twitter app from my phone and only use the site. I still find myself scrolling on Twitter longer than I wish I would, but usually after about 5 mins of scrolling, I encounter some bugginess that snaps me out of the loop and helps me question whether or not I really want to be spending my time on the site. What’s funny is that the bugginess is intentional to try to make you download the app, but it has the opposite effect for me.
- whoitwas 2y ago
  Yes. Additionally, am not notified by messaging only phone calls.
- kenoh 2y ago
  Yes! I have 2 personal emails. One that I want to be alerted for, and one where I check it once a day. Other than phone calls, the only time my phone reaches out to me is for calendar alerts/reminders, which I set myself, and texts and messanger apps for people I allow. Everything else can eat shit.
- rob74 2y ago
  Agree 100%! It's really annoying how games (yeah, I confess, I installed a "free-to-play" game recently, I should have known better) and over-gamified apps (looking at you Duolingo) want to "engage" you by flooding you with notifications. "You're back at full hearts, use Duolingo now!" "Only 00:59 left to continue your streak!" (with a live countdown in the notification no less) and so on...
volatilecarbon 2y ago
The grayscale suggestion is pretty interesting. I was skeptical it would make any difference, but I tried it and my home screen instantly felt more calming to look at at. It seems like we really underestimate how much visual complexity exhausts us. Not sure how long I'll keep it like that, but I think I'll leave it for now as I've been trying to minimize my phone for a while now (biggest difference was removing social media apps and disabling most notifications). If you're a busy person with a lot of demands on your attention, I highly recommend it.
- dotcoma 2y ago
  I have only 4 apps on my home screen —- calendar, phone, camera and Safari. I deleted all social media apps years ago. I’m doing fine most days.
  - sgarland 2y ago
    Same-ish, except my dock is Phone, Messages, Camera, and Safari. I never liked any apps on the screen when I had Android, and liked (and still like) its swipe-for-app-drawer mechanism. It’s unfortunate that on iOS it’s more difficult to have a clean Home Screen, and no options that I’m aware of to get the Android launcher actions.
- philshem 2y ago
  Can someone explain on an iPhone how to set grayscale? The article doesn’t and I’ve been through the Accessibility settings without any success.
  - deleted 2y ago
    [deleted]
  - jlongman 2y ago
    Accessibility> Display & Text Size> Color Filters> On then top option is Grayscale. Color Filters also has a true no blue mode for night.
  - BigJ1211 2y ago
pcdoodle 2y ago
Why is it impossible to reduce color saturation on all apple products? I still like a slight hint of color context but don't want these CASINO looking MacOS and iOS experiences.
- subjectsigma 2y ago
  On iOS, go to Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size > Color Filters > Greyscale and then adjust the intensity level as needed. I think that's what you're asking for? I don't know how to do it on macOS but I'm sure if it's possible, Google knows
  - Luc 2y ago
    Yup, on macOS there's an adjustable greyscale filter under Accessibility > Display in System Settings.
    - pcdoodle 2y ago
      A+ Thank you
  - pcdoodle 2y ago
    Thank you. I missed the slider.
seba_dos1 2y ago
iPhone is already dumb. It's a toy that's not within the control of its user, and Android is only marginally better. I'm using GNU/Linux on my phone and while it offers me the power of a full unrestricted computing device in my pocket, it only ever distracts me with things I explicitly opted into. Despite of some of its shortcomings, it really ends up being a much calmer and more usable experience overall.
- nottorp 2y ago
  Tbh it's much easier to turn off all notifications on iOS than other platforms. But say, what happened to Ubuntu? I haven't used desktop linux in quite a few years (in spite of doing headless linux projects 2/3 of the time), now I have a project that requires that I see the desktop and it feels... spammy. What's with all those notifications and auto downloading of updates? Do they want to remind me why my main desktop is a Mac?
  - sgarland 2y ago
    Canonical has a poor track record of freedom in general, IMO, at least for desktop. Ubuntu Server is pretty straightforward, but unless you need the extended security updates or Livepatch, I don’t see the point. Between telemetry enabled by default, pushing everything to Snap, and their brief “let’s send searches to Amazon” experiment, it’s a no from me. I’m not a purist who refuses to use non-free things, but I don’t particularly like being herded towards a single way of doing something (Snap). systemd is nearly at my breaking point as it is.
  - seba_dos1 2y ago
    > it's much easier to turn off all notifications on iOS than other platforms. ...and much harder to make it notify in exactly the way you want, to make it run what you want, to customize system behaviors. Taming user-hostile applications is a completely different experience to running things that aren't hostile in the first place. > But say, what happened to Ubuntu? tbh it completely left my mind about a decade ago. I don't see any reason to use it over, say, Debian these days.
cocoflunchy 2y ago
I have in my backlogs of projects (one day I will have time for them...) an extreme "dumb smartphone". I want to have maps, whatsapp, chatgpt, a document scanner, my banking app, a guitar tuner... these are tools. So I need both an app whitelist (there are only so many apps that I actually use on my phone) and a website blacklist (no more HN, reddit, twitter, facebook, news websites, etc). I can use those on my computer but it won't be a mindless scroll whenever I have 5 minutes. Unfortunately I don't think this is feasible on iOS (I have tried Opal but it was so buggy I gave up). A custom Android launcher seems promising, but I have not found how to install a system wide firewall yet. Maybe creating a custom Android OS is the only way to have enough control?
- littlecranky67 2y ago
  An iPhone has this (not widely-known) feature already: Assistive Access Mode [0]. It is meant for elderly or people with disabilities. You can specify which apps to show in a simple grid, no access to any settings and dumbed down rights for the apps. Exiting the assistive access mode requires a 4-digit PIN. You can ask a friend to set the pin for you and write it down on a piece of paper store it in a safe space, or use an online time-lock service [1]. This is NOT the parental control mode where you need to setup stuff from another iCloud account. [0]: https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/assistive-access-iphone/welcome/ios https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/assistive-access-iphon... [1]: https://lockmeout.online https://lockmeout.online
  - em500 2y ago
    You don't need Assistive Access Mode, even without parental control or another iCloud account you can disable pretty much any app (including Safari and App Store) via Screen Time -> Content & Privacy Restrictions. You do indeed need a trusted person to set a Screen Time Passcode and keep it safe.
- tines 2y ago
  I went down this path, it's actually very easy to uninstall the built-in web browser and the Play Store via adb, which actually got me exactly what I wanted in my dumb phone without too much technical work.
skadamat 2y ago
For me, there was a hierarchy of habits I had to kick. 1. Being pulled IN to apps and my phone through notifications Solutions for me: - Disabling notifications mostly (minus important ones like Uber arriving) - Customizing Personal focus mode so only family can reach me and keeping phone in this mode by default 2. Being bored in line or while waiting somewhere, so I open Mail or Safari app to click common news / community websites. Solution for me: - Clearing history / browser cache from time to time so I have to manually type in these websites. A bit more friction. - Deleting YouTube or other unlimited content websites but keeping high quality leisure apps (Kindle or Podcasts) For me, grayscale didn't work
tines 2y ago
I found that Android was better for dumbing down. If you have enough technical sophistication to run adb over a USB cable, you can run a single command to uninstall any app, including the built-in web browser app. Super nice for getting exactly what you want on your phone.
breck 2y ago
I ditched my smart phone 2 years ago. Huge life improvement. I'm on the computer or iPad a lot, but when I close the lid, I'm in the real world, like the old days. Highly recommend. (It does help to have burners though, because you do require them on occasion)
em500 2y ago
There is no science behind this, and the article spends far too many words for something that's very simple to accomplish: 1. Hard reset your iPhone 2. Remove Safari and AppStore (via Settings -> Screentime restrictions -> Content & Privacy Restrictions) and have someone trusted set a Screen Time password. That's all. You still have weather reports, agendas, alarm clocks, maps, translators, phone+messenger, email, a music player, a camera, but zero time wasters. With this setup you can give an iPhone to a 6 year old with zero anxiety about "screen time" (which in reality is really internet time: disable internet access and they're bored with the phone in less than a day). Pretty much everything that we tell ourselves we really need instantly are lies: almost nothing is really so time sensitive that it can't wait till you're behind a desktop/laptop.
- valicord 2y ago
  Do you really need a $600 device for this?
  - em500 2y ago
    You don't, a $150 refurbished iPhone SE is fine for this, so you're saving both time and money :)
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
nunez 2y ago
This is great advice but mostly ineffectual without addressing the root of the problem here. Phone apps are designed to be addicting, and that addiction has been socially normalized (I.e. it's totallly normal to momentarily zone out and browse Instagram on your phone while out with friends).
bianca33 2y ago
[flagged]
MARK1947 2y ago
Are having issues accessing your social media or experiencing social media account issues? I recommend you contact Angelina for any type of issues concerning your social media account, she work's with META and i can assure you that she is very much reliable also she's always available to attend to you as regarding your account issues. I suggest you feel free to contact her through email at AngelinaChristopher1738@gmail.com or you can also contact her on instagram at Angelina_Christopher1738 she’s the ultimate solution. Her prompt and reliable service turned my frustration into relief. Don't hesitate to contact her for swift assistance!
RWfjh 2y ago
[flagged]

61 points by hbroadbent 2y ago

I've really enjoyed having greyscale on my iPhone. I have some apps (maps, photos etc.) automatically go into colour using a Shortcut automation. You can set up greyscale in the Accessibility settings.

weinzierl 2y ago

For years I had a 50% grey background on all of my devices. People asked me if I am depressed (jokingly) but in fact a calm clutter free background makes me happy.

shinycode 2y ago

When the tool is too powerful for our capacities of self-control, maybe some people should roll back to the was things were before. - a simple phone with SMS - a desk computer in the living room for internet and email, shared between everyone - a camera - an ebook reader (or just books and newspaper)

amelius 2y ago
Maybe a map for navigation. And banking apps. Music player.
- shinycode 2y ago
  I have multiple iPods and it’s a shame I can’t use them with subscription services. It’s too expensive to buy all the music I like because it’s just the perfect use case. You highlight 2 important use case though that are almost impossible to have without a smartphone (but an alternative can be done on the desktop computer and the map with a paper map). They are just the collateral because it’s not those that cause addiction …
  - tines 2y ago
    Get an Android phone and uninstall the Play Store and built-in web browser via adb. Gets you Maps, Spotify, banking etc. and nothing more.
littlecranky67 2y ago
I created lockmeout.online for that specific purpose - change your phones unlock code to a randomly generated one and time-lock it away for a period of time you want to be free of distractions. Carrying a locked phone is still pretty usefull: Emergency calls, take photos using camera, taking/making regular calls using Siri, Music, Background GPX tracker etc.
wlindley 2y ago
I have a kitchen phone and a desk phone (both VOIP), a Linux workstation, a DSLR camera, a radio, and read real books and play CDs. Also an RCA Orthophonic High Fidelity phonograph for 78, 45, and 33⅓. After the last Star Trek went off the air, and Jeopardy! went woke, there was nothing to watch on TV and it got left behind somewhere. Computers are nothing but free software. Had a mobile phone (a flip-phone with real buttons) for years but never used it, and just let it lapse, as being unnecessary. Never understood why so many folks bought into being abused by their handheld pocket computers, and paying for the "privilege." Anyone who gives MS/Apple/Google/Amazon (the evil MAGA) money is being an enabler for the abuse of others.

cryptoboy2283 2y ago

I'd also add: - writing everything in lowercase - helps reduce depression and anxiety

shmeeed 2y ago
Meanwhile, for some OCD people writing or reading lowercase where it doesn't belong only raises anxiety and depression.
jraph 2y ago
What do you mean? Do you have evidences? Or are you just making fun of the article's lowercase titles?

robertlagrant 2y ago

I've uninstalled all social media, which is the main notifications hook. I really think the power of apps is in notifications, and it's best to cut them out. If I want to see a Tweet or a Facebook post, probably because someone I know on Whatsapp sent me it, I'll use the website. I don't want to be dragged in by notifications. Anyone else the same?

deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
j_bum 2y ago
Save a hacker news app (Hacki), I am the same way. HN doesn’t have the same addiction cycle that Twitter does for me, so I uninstalled the Twitter app from my phone and only use the site. I still find myself scrolling on Twitter longer than I wish I would, but usually after about 5 mins of scrolling, I encounter some bugginess that snaps me out of the loop and helps me question whether or not I really want to be spending my time on the site. What’s funny is that the bugginess is intentional to try to make you download the app, but it has the opposite effect for me.
whoitwas 2y ago
Yes. Additionally, am not notified by messaging only phone calls.
kenoh 2y ago
Yes! I have 2 personal emails. One that I want to be alerted for, and one where I check it once a day. Other than phone calls, the only time my phone reaches out to me is for calendar alerts/reminders, which I set myself, and texts and messanger apps for people I allow. Everything else can eat shit.
rob74 2y ago
Agree 100%! It's really annoying how games (yeah, I confess, I installed a "free-to-play" game recently, I should have known better) and over-gamified apps (looking at you Duolingo) want to "engage" you by flooding you with notifications. "You're back at full hearts, use Duolingo now!" "Only 00:59 left to continue your streak!" (with a live countdown in the notification no less) and so on...

volatilecarbon 2y ago

The grayscale suggestion is pretty interesting. I was skeptical it would make any difference, but I tried it and my home screen instantly felt more calming to look at at. It seems like we really underestimate how much visual complexity exhausts us. Not sure how long I'll keep it like that, but I think I'll leave it for now as I've been trying to minimize my phone for a while now (biggest difference was removing social media apps and disabling most notifications). If you're a busy person with a lot of demands on your attention, I highly recommend it.

dotcoma 2y ago
I have only 4 apps on my home screen —- calendar, phone, camera and Safari. I deleted all social media apps years ago. I’m doing fine most days.
- sgarland 2y ago
  Same-ish, except my dock is Phone, Messages, Camera, and Safari. I never liked any apps on the screen when I had Android, and liked (and still like) its swipe-for-app-drawer mechanism. It’s unfortunate that on iOS it’s more difficult to have a clean Home Screen, and no options that I’m aware of to get the Android launcher actions.
philshem 2y ago
Can someone explain on an iPhone how to set grayscale? The article doesn’t and I’ve been through the Accessibility settings without any success.
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]
- jlongman 2y ago
  Accessibility> Display & Text Size> Color Filters> On then top option is Grayscale. Color Filters also has a true no blue mode for night.
- BigJ1211 2y ago

pcdoodle 2y ago

Why is it impossible to reduce color saturation on all apple products? I still like a slight hint of color context but don't want these CASINO looking MacOS and iOS experiences.

subjectsigma 2y ago
On iOS, go to Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size > Color Filters > Greyscale and then adjust the intensity level as needed. I think that's what you're asking for? I don't know how to do it on macOS but I'm sure if it's possible, Google knows
- Luc 2y ago
  Yup, on macOS there's an adjustable greyscale filter under Accessibility > Display in System Settings.
  - pcdoodle 2y ago
    A+ Thank you
- pcdoodle 2y ago
  Thank you. I missed the slider.

seba_dos1 2y ago

iPhone is already dumb. It's a toy that's not within the control of its user, and Android is only marginally better. I'm using GNU/Linux on my phone and while it offers me the power of a full unrestricted computing device in my pocket, it only ever distracts me with things I explicitly opted into. Despite of some of its shortcomings, it really ends up being a much calmer and more usable experience overall.

nottorp 2y ago
Tbh it's much easier to turn off all notifications on iOS than other platforms. But say, what happened to Ubuntu? I haven't used desktop linux in quite a few years (in spite of doing headless linux projects 2/3 of the time), now I have a project that requires that I see the desktop and it feels... spammy. What's with all those notifications and auto downloading of updates? Do they want to remind me why my main desktop is a Mac?
- sgarland 2y ago
  Canonical has a poor track record of freedom in general, IMO, at least for desktop. Ubuntu Server is pretty straightforward, but unless you need the extended security updates or Livepatch, I don’t see the point. Between telemetry enabled by default, pushing everything to Snap, and their brief “let’s send searches to Amazon” experiment, it’s a no from me. I’m not a purist who refuses to use non-free things, but I don’t particularly like being herded towards a single way of doing something (Snap). systemd is nearly at my breaking point as it is.
- seba_dos1 2y ago
  > it's much easier to turn off all notifications on iOS than other platforms. ...and much harder to make it notify in exactly the way you want, to make it run what you want, to customize system behaviors. Taming user-hostile applications is a completely different experience to running things that aren't hostile in the first place. > But say, what happened to Ubuntu? tbh it completely left my mind about a decade ago. I don't see any reason to use it over, say, Debian these days.

cocoflunchy 2y ago

I have in my backlogs of projects (one day I will have time for them...) an extreme "dumb smartphone". I want to have maps, whatsapp, chatgpt, a document scanner, my banking app, a guitar tuner... these are tools. So I need both an app whitelist (there are only so many apps that I actually use on my phone) and a website blacklist (no more HN, reddit, twitter, facebook, news websites, etc). I can use those on my computer but it won't be a mindless scroll whenever I have 5 minutes. Unfortunately I don't think this is feasible on iOS (I have tried Opal but it was so buggy I gave up). A custom Android launcher seems promising, but I have not found how to install a system wide firewall yet. Maybe creating a custom Android OS is the only way to have enough control?

littlecranky67 2y ago
An iPhone has this (not widely-known) feature already: Assistive Access Mode [0]. It is meant for elderly or people with disabilities. You can specify which apps to show in a simple grid, no access to any settings and dumbed down rights for the apps. Exiting the assistive access mode requires a 4-digit PIN. You can ask a friend to set the pin for you and write it down on a piece of paper store it in a safe space, or use an online time-lock service [1]. This is NOT the parental control mode where you need to setup stuff from another iCloud account. [0]: https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/assistive-access-iphone/welcome/ios https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/assistive-access-iphon... [1]: https://lockmeout.online https://lockmeout.online
- em500 2y ago
  You don't need Assistive Access Mode, even without parental control or another iCloud account you can disable pretty much any app (including Safari and App Store) via Screen Time -> Content & Privacy Restrictions. You do indeed need a trusted person to set a Screen Time Passcode and keep it safe.
tines 2y ago
I went down this path, it's actually very easy to uninstall the built-in web browser and the Play Store via adb, which actually got me exactly what I wanted in my dumb phone without too much technical work.

skadamat 2y ago

For me, there was a hierarchy of habits I had to kick. 1. Being pulled IN to apps and my phone through notifications Solutions for me: - Disabling notifications mostly (minus important ones like Uber arriving) - Customizing Personal focus mode so only family can reach me and keeping phone in this mode by default 2. Being bored in line or while waiting somewhere, so I open Mail or Safari app to click common news / community websites. Solution for me: - Clearing history / browser cache from time to time so I have to manually type in these websites. A bit more friction. - Deleting YouTube or other unlimited content websites but keeping high quality leisure apps (Kindle or Podcasts) For me, grayscale didn't work

tines 2y ago

I found that Android was better for dumbing down. If you have enough technical sophistication to run adb over a USB cable, you can run a single command to uninstall any app, including the built-in web browser app. Super nice for getting exactly what you want on your phone.

breck 2y ago

I ditched my smart phone 2 years ago. Huge life improvement. I'm on the computer or iPad a lot, but when I close the lid, I'm in the real world, like the old days. Highly recommend. (It does help to have burners though, because you do require them on occasion)

em500 2y ago

There is no science behind this, and the article spends far too many words for something that's very simple to accomplish: 1. Hard reset your iPhone 2. Remove Safari and AppStore (via Settings -> Screentime restrictions -> Content & Privacy Restrictions) and have someone trusted set a Screen Time password. That's all. You still have weather reports, agendas, alarm clocks, maps, translators, phone+messenger, email, a music player, a camera, but zero time wasters. With this setup you can give an iPhone to a 6 year old with zero anxiety about "screen time" (which in reality is really internet time: disable internet access and they're bored with the phone in less than a day). Pretty much everything that we tell ourselves we really need instantly are lies: almost nothing is really so time sensitive that it can't wait till you're behind a desktop/laptop.

valicord 2y ago
Do you really need a $600 device for this?
- em500 2y ago
  You don't, a $150 refurbished iPhone SE is fine for this, so you're saving both time and money :)

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

nunez 2y ago

This is great advice but mostly ineffectual without addressing the root of the problem here. Phone apps are designed to be addicting, and that addiction has been socially normalized (I.e. it's totallly normal to momentarily zone out and browse Instagram on your phone while out with friends).

bianca33 2y ago

[flagged]

MARK1947 2y ago

Are having issues accessing your social media or experiencing social media account issues? I recommend you contact Angelina for any type of issues concerning your social media account, she work's with META and i can assure you that she is very much reliable also she's always available to attend to you as regarding your account issues. I suggest you feel free to contact her through email at AngelinaChristopher1738@gmail.com or you can also contact her on instagram at Angelina_Christopher1738 she’s the ultimate solution. Her prompt and reliable service turned my frustration into relief. Don't hesitate to contact her for swift assistance!

RWfjh 2y ago

[flagged]