But if we can’t change our behaviors, maybe we can change our devices. Enter the minimalist phone: a phone that does less. Over the course of a few weeks, I tried out four different phones – the Unihertz Jelly, the Nokia 3310 3G, the Punkt MP01, and the Light Phone – in an effort to curb how much time I spend needlessly scrolling and refreshing. Not every one of these phones is intentionally minimalist, but each came with unique limitations, built-in throttles that would effectively discourage anyone from wallowing in the stupor of infinite feeds. I was looking for a change. I was looking for salvation.
But when it was all over, I came crawling back to my iPhone.
It shouldn’t be this hard to find a good feature phone. I’m pretty sure we have more readers longing for a good feature phone than most websites, and those of you who have that longing should be able to pick up a good feature phone – not some crappy fashion statement that is frustrating to use.
Those who are looking for a reduced set of smartphone capabilities have one basic problem – they still have the same need for security, so they still need something relatively up to date.
It’s easier for someone who *only* needs/wants calls and SMS. Any old smartphone with unwanted apps removed, and mobile data, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth all switched off, should be fine. With no IP-based traffic, most security issues disappear. As long as VoLTE-only networks are avoided, 4G is obviously not needed, so a hand-me-down 3G-only device can see out its life being useful.
Exactly!
I’m in this exact boat. I want a phone that can do calling and SMS well, but I need a few smartphone features, like GPS/maps, WhatsApp (it’s a popular app, and I want to communicate with people), maybe a note taking app, and Firefox Focus (or another privacy conscious browser). That’s it. A feature phone cannot give me what I need (maps and WhatsApp are must haves for me). My phone plan also allows for unlimited tethering (real unlimited, I was grandfathered in), so I also do not have internet connection at home, since I can just put my phones in hotspot mode.
I ended up honing in on the Moto G as my go-to phone. All generations were released around the $200 range, unlocked (a reasonable value). They are not fast or fancy, but they get the job done.
They have dedicated GPS devices you can put on your dash. That won’t solve your Whatsapp problem, but it’s a step in the right direction
Have a HTC Evo 3D (but without data plan) or my Nokia N95 that still perform like day one (that’s to say sluggish thanks to Symbian). Frankly, instead to “buy” a limited phone, just remove the annoyance by yourself, stop registering to gazilions of feeds and block notifications. Educate yourself. Be a gentle-man. Not a He-man.
Sigh. You guys are *SO* clueless. The phones you want are still being sold by stores Like Dollar General and other places in the USA which work on networks like Tracfone. Suspect they are similar stores in Europe. They are the cheap non-smartphones like the AT&T Go Phone Z432 I use as the phone I carry to work which has something the high end smartphones like Thom’s Crapple phones never had- A damn nice keyboard for SMS.
(Yes,the AT&T Go Phone Z432 is a Crackberry)
Another advantage of the AT&T Go Phone Z432 is that it will basically accept any GSM simcard from Tracfone or other provider off the shelf if you know what you are doing, (I use Tracfone with it.)
As for battery life? I go over a week without recharging the phone sometimes.
I really liked my Motorola F3. It was thin, had an e-ink display, excellent reception, and great battery life. Only one problem: text messaging was cumbersome because it only displayed 6 characters on the screen at a time.
Yes!!! I still have mine!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motorola_Fone
Get a Blackberry Classic with Blackberry OS 10.3. These currently sell for around 60€ refurbished or 90€ new. Blackberry Hub is great for Email, SMS and calendar notifications. The OS is modern enough to support calender and addressbook sync with CalDAV and CardDAV.
There is an Android runtime that’s compatible to Android 4.3. This will run no distracting social media tools and the small display (720×720) won’t make surfing the web too comfortable.
After reading this and thinking about it, to me the definitions of minimalist phone, feature phone and dumb phone are not clear.
Maybe someone could clarify this? My previous mobile phone was a Nokia 3410. Now I’m using a Sony Ericsson J120i. Would the Nokia be a feature phone and my current one be a dumb phone?
It’s really about $$$. Once upon a time your dumb phone *WAS* a feature phone. If you notice in the article,the features of the 100-200 US dollar minimalist phone are basically the same as a phone selling for 10-30 US dollars in retail stores like Dollar General.
All you’re basically buying with the phones mentioned in the article is a plastic case.
Edited 2018-05-05 19:23 UTC
I’m not familiar with Dollar General or what kind of phones it sells for those prices. I guess it’s a store in the US?
It a one of a number of major retail chains in the US that focuses on the lower-income consumer. You really won’t find Apple or other “high-end” phones or tablets or other products in these stores as they basically focus on prepaid providers like Tracfone and the like.
I’m sure that are such retailers where you are from if it isn’t the US.
I don’t think anyone can really clarify this – the definitions seem to depend on what somebody has used or is using; or maybe just what ~marketing agrees on / claims for their products. Possibly the only hope, more or less a reflection of collective conciousness, are Wikipedia pages…
I don’t know about other places, but Canada is losing its 2G networks in 2020. So the old minimalist phones aren’t going to work here for much longer.