Dumbing down a Smartphone

Healthy Body and Mind
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Whilst I await the release of the Kompakt I have minimalised my iPhone as much as possible.

So far I have not managed to get used to a greyscale colour filter (which undeniably makes the phone less addictive), but I am trialing it at times.

The things I have done successfully are:

  1. A white background
  2. Notifications on for Phone and Messages only
  3. Only 5 key (non-addictive) apps on the desktop, everything else squirrelled away
  4. Reduced apps to 17x (see below list)

Curious what anyone else has done to dumb down their smartphone (i.e. make it less addictive)!

Apps

Useful tools (not addictive):

  • Calculator
  • Calendar
  • Camera
  • Clock
  • Maps
  • Messages
  • Notes
  • Phone
  • Settings

Nice to have (not addictive):

  • Music
  • Wallet
  • Weather

Unable to delete:

  • App Store - for me this is not addictive as I don’t use it
  • Photos - nice to have but scrolling can be addictive
  • Safari - would prefer to delete then have option of downloading in an emergency only

Under review:

  • Kindle - an ebook reader is essential for me, but I have some privacy concerns about Amazon and this can tempt me to (doom)scroll for new books; keeping for now as I have a large library [open to suggestions if anyone can suggest a better alternative]
  • Mail - I’ve deleted and reinstalled several times; currently on device with notifications off and I’m checking it 2-3 times a day, which stops me firing up my laptop “just to check email” and getting side-tracked (note I’ve spent the last 2 years removing myself from newsletters etc so get less than 10 emails a day)
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I emptied my iPhone also… I have it in my backpack with me.
I deleted all of the communication apps… ( calling, messaging, mail…etc ) All of the social media apps and browsing ( Safari ) are also deleted.
What I have left:
Banking
Navigation
Photo
Government apps
Postal apps ( FedEx, DHL etc )
Safety camera, heating and lights apps
I removed the sim… and I only can use this Phone when I use my Punkt as a wifihotspot.
And also the screen is in black and white

https://www.reddit.com/r/dumbphones/comments/1awdfks/dumb_iphone_a_guide/

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I had left banking app on mine originally, but found I used to open it and scroll through transactions constantly so removed it.

I also used to have Punkt and used to hot spot as well; I found the MP02 used to get really warm and the battery would run down too fast to be usable long term (although did encourage me to be quick!).

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PS Good article from techlockdown :+1:

Just removed the App Store and Safari using Content Restrictions :star_struck:

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We actually covered this topic a while back on our blog:

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