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> Nowadays, you can no longer exist in society without a phone Hyperbole doesn’t help. I’m a 44 year old former software engineer now with a modest social medi
by dandandandan2 5mo ago
> Nowadays, you can no longer exist in society without a phone
Hyperbole doesn’t help. I’m a 44 year old former software engineer now with a modest social media following (100k per platform). I don’t have a phone.
I’ve never had a smart phone, last dumb phone gone in 2015.
I have to hassle my bank to let me use email instead of SMS for 2FA, and I hand jot notes for driving directions sometimes.
Otherwise, I’m immensely happy not to have one.
- slumberlust 5mo agoHow could it be hyperbole when you give two examples of the increasing pain?
- j_bum 5mo agoGP said “can no longer exist”. Listing a few challenges of a phoneless life doesn’t negate the point that one can still exist without a phone, even in 2026.
- manincharge 5mo ago[dead]
- abc123abc123 5mo agoBecause these two examples are tiny in comparison with the decrease in surveillance you will get, and the example you set for your fellow men, and just spreading the norm in society that ubiquitous surveillance is wrong and that we can live ethical lives without being slaves and chained to the government and corporations.
- cromka 5mo agoYou still use the internet. Just avoiding a mobile phone is not a magic pill against surveillance.
- aleph_minus_one 5mo ago> You still use the internet. Just avoiding a mobile phone is not a magic pill against surveillance. Very true. But it is a huge first step.
- cromka 5mo agoWell, true as well
- dandandandan2 5mo agoUndoubtedly having a phone would increase convenience in my life. I’d also have to go to work more to pay for it which would seriously inconvenience my snowboarding time. I’d also spend more of my life staring at a small device instead of talking to people or just enjoying the trees, mountains and rivers. On the whole, I much prefer it this way.
- abc123abc123 5mo agoThis is the way! I do not have a smartphone. I print maps, use email, print boarding cards, do my banking and shopping with a web browser, pay with cash or a debit card. I think people have been brain washed to believe they can no longer live life without being enslaved by a surveillance device. Lost? Ask for directions. Need a map? Go to a hotel or a tourist center, or print one in advance.
- aembleton 5mo agoWhen you go on holiday, do you have to find an Internet café to print off your boarding pass for the flight home? Or do you select destinations covered by airlines that allow you to get a boarding pass more than 48 hours in advance?
- deleted 5mo ago[deleted]
- deaux 5mo agoThey said they don't use a phone. You can do online check-in on any device with a browser. I'm sure you can point to a single airline that only offers it through a native mobile app but that'd be an extreme exception.
- medvidek 5mo agoMost hotels would be happy to print your boarding pass for free.
- aleph_minus_one 5mo agoThis is actually exactly what I it when I was in this kind of situation. I really have the impression that using a smartphone makes a lot people much more dumb with respect to seeing obvious solutions for their problems.
- com2kid 5mo agoMost airports have kiosks to print boarding passes. It isn't the end of the world. Also luggage check-in counters will print a boarding pass.
- nerdsniper 5mo agoI mean, I cant rent city bicycles without a phone in a lot of cities or use uber or lyft but okay.
- rixed 5mo agoOr pay for parking in many european cities. So I guess you are not forced into a hermit life as long as... you are already happy with your hermit life.
- nerdsniper 5mo agoUS cities as well, now that you mention it. Open lots often require scanning a QR code to pay. They watch cameras and tow your car very quickly if you don't. Maybe the reason this guy gets away with not having a smartphone is that his friends use their smartphones for him whenever things like this pop up?
- dandandandan2 5mo agoI live in a small town with no such nonsense
- nerdsniper 5mo agoYou're incredibly, even astoundingly dismissive and judgemental towards the 80% of Americans who do not live in rural areas. Again - 80%. > Hyperbole doesn’t help. For MANY Americans, it's not possible to function normally in society without a smartphone. That's not hyperbole, but your argument was.
- dandandandan2 5mo agoI live in a small town. There is no uber or Lyft, or QR code parking. I ride my bike a lot. Snowboard nearly everyday in the winter and there is cell service in the mountains. I lived in mega cities for 10 years, I’ll never do it again. Call in hermit life if you want, I call it the simple life where enjoyment and happiness are the priority
- tabiv 5mo agoA big issue for me was events that require digital only tickets. I haven't been able to work around that yet.
- sillyfluke 5mo agoIf I have an issue with my phone when travelling I usually tell them beforehand and luckily all of them have figured out a workaround thus far.
- selfhoster1312 5mo agoHere in France, my bank won't let me 2FA into my account (i have to physically go to the bank every single time i need something), and i can't get car ownership papers for a car i legally bought from the registered owner 2 years ago due to the administration closing down 100% of their offices in favor of online forms (tried the online forms many times, as well as registered letter to the headquarters). This anecdata probably says more about french techno-fascism and politics of destroying public services than about how phones have somehow become mandatory because of society evolving in general. I'm still very happy not to have a phone.
- ShinyLeftPad 5mo agoHow do you post on social media without a phone?
- lproven 5mo ago[dead]