Flip-phones!

[akbatten]

I recently pulled the trigger on a dumb-phone. One of my top picks was the Sunbeam F1. It can do hotspot, so my thought was I could carry around my old Sony Z5 Compact in my backpack. It would have Google Auth, Snapchat, and other apps I would need maybe a couple times per day but I could keep it physically away and hard to get to.


Sunbeam is backordered for a while so I ordered a Light Phone II since it would ship sooner, plus they are running a 20% off promotion for the holidays. It doesn't have a camera and it's not a flip phone, but it does mostly the same things otherwise.


When I talk to other people about getting a phone with less features, people in their 20s usually react with "oh cool" and a couple say they're trying to do the same thing. It's people in their 40s and up that usually react with surprise and some confusion. For how much my grandmother wanted us kids to get off our phones/Game Boys on large family vacations, she's the one who is always pulling her iPhone out during dinner now.

[pistachio]

I've been a dumbphone user full-time since August and absolutely LOVE it. Currently using the Nokia 6300 4G, but unfortunately I bought a used unit that seems to have incurable battery problems lol. I was always intending on the Nokia being a kind of transition device to see if I could actually commit to the lifestyle, since it was so cheap, and as such I'm not overly bummed about having to replace it with a more durable phone now. Currently stuck between the Sunbeam F1 Orchid, Kyocera Digno 903kc and Kyocera Dura XV Extreme.

My ideal phone can call, text, navigate, and hold a charge for longer than a day. Ideally it's also durable and will last me at least 3 years. In terms of actual capabilities I really don't need bells and whistles other than mentioned. Needs to work on TMobile, but most dumbphones do as I understand it. If anyone reading this has any advice or recommendations, let me know!

[caracalled]

Ohhh I've been looking into flip phones so it's so good to see the topic being brought up here! Currently looking for a Nokia 2720 in white or maybe a kyocera 902kc in silver (this one is kinda out of my budget tho ) later if I think I wanna stay with it like you @pistachio :D

I would love something that I can customize to be as privacy forward as possible and otherwise also find open source stuff to customize it with (mainly want a notes app and a private messenger like signal/telegram), but I'm guessing that's pretty unlikely to find :( But if anyone knows anything about this please send any info my way bwahaha I would love to make my flip phone into a little project!

I recently also got an old ipod nano 7 and i've been loving it! getting off spotify and sorta "hunting" for music i like at the library, second hand stores and on bandcamp (and also other websites yarr) and I feel like being able to do something as simple as listening to music without looking at my phone seems so nice and i'd love continuing that with a flip phone hehe

[JackFrost]

I got a 902kc and it works! However, none of the apps do... Anyone have reccomendations on what to use with it and what android launcher looks most old school? I want to eventually switch to it entirely and replace my phone, but not for a long time. Its kinda disappointing that it has no headphone jack, but it does have a SD card!

[3lsie]

I recently got a Nokia 2660 Flip! Honestly it doesn't feel much smaller than my smartphone because it's kind of chunky. All the flip phones I could find were like this though - I think they are perhaps geared to an older audience and all have large buttons, so they're bigger than I remember flip phones being when I was a kid.

There are some things I can't figure out a way round needing a smartphone for, like 2FA and train tickets, which is a real shame, but I like having the option to ditch my smartphone in some scenarios and just carry around the dumb flip phone.

I thought it'd be met with some scepticism from my friends and family but they actually all said it sounded like a good idea when I told them I was doing it. It makes me think there must have been a shift in a lot of people's attitudes towards smartphones.

[kzuich]

I have two different dumbphones I've used recently. One is the Light Phone II, which is honestly a wonderful phone and really thoughtfully designed. However, the battery life is reeeeally bad (I live in an area with meh signal), which was a dealbreaker for me after I had to keep charging it constantly.  Without a SIM card in it, though, it's great to carry around as little companion- timer, alarm, etc. It's just such a cute little phone. I wish it worked better for me!

I now have the Sunbeam Horizon F1, which is a flipphone. I almost got the Pro, but it looked really bulky (which is why I didn't go with the Kyocera DuraXV) and I'm so glad I went with the Horizon! ^^

It is a wonderful flip phone if you can get it. It only works here in the US, and maybe Canada? But I heard Sunbeam is working on an international version of their phones, so that'll be awesome for people who want to switch! It's very basic, but I'd say the build quality is good. The cases are nice, too. Plus, most importantly, it has a phone strap slot, so I can hang charms on it! :) Once I've used it for a bit longer I'll probably do a more comprehensive write-up on it.

[caracalled]

I just checked in on this thread again and I completely forgot I wrote in here! I did get the kyocera a couple months ago and it's been wonderful!! I love the option to completely leave my smartphone at home and just be able to choose to make it hard for people to reach me unless it's urgent enough for them to call! (I'm also super excited that it actually has full network AND mobile data functionality in Europe (at least in all the EU countries I've been to since getting it which are like? five or so? I live near a border cluster so it gets a lil foggy LMAO)
Unfortunately I do still need Whatsapp for Uni group chats and some online banking apps as well as some 2fa stuff so the smartphone has to stay for now, but I love my flip phone!! Plus my friend got me the cutest little phone charms (one with a Nintendogs wiener dog one and one with Gin from Detective Conan :DD)

There are some things I can't figure out a way round needing a smartphone for, like 2FA and train tickets, which is a real shame, but I like having the option to ditch my smartphone in some scenarios and just carry around the dumb flip phone.

I thought it'd be met with some scepticism from my friends and family but they actually all said it sounded like a good idea when I told them I was doing it. It makes me think there must have been a shift in a lot of people's attitudes towards smartphones.

THIS exactly! The train tickets and the 2FA are my poison too! My public transit ticket I get through my uni only works if you display the pdf QR code on a smartphone or ipad screen (not printed out for some reason???) and it's so annoying. I usually also carry around a ps vita, an ipod classic and a kindle so I think I'll experiment with those and see if they get accepted LMAO
It's kind of crazy how you just can't take part in some stuff without a phone anymore . . .

I feel like you're right with the shift though! Most people find it cool and ask where I got it from and how it's been working for me! I wonder if the awareness of how unhappy it makes a lot of people has something to do with it?
However I do sometimes feel like when it's a bit slow for a sec or I don't have a specific convenience people get a little... reassured for a sec? Like "oh yeah my choice is still the better one it would suck having a flip phone"? I don't really mind though tbh since I did make the concsious choice to give up on maps etc. and I get that that's not for everyone!

[3lsie]

THIS exactly! The train tickets and the 2FA are my poison too! My public transit ticket I get through my uni only works if you display the pdf QR code on a smartphone or ipad screen (not printed out for some reason???) and it's so annoying. I usually also carry around a ps vita, an ipod classic and a kindle so I think I'll experiment with those and see if they get accepted LMAO
It's kind of crazy how you just can't take part in some stuff without a phone anymore . . .

I feel like you're right with the shift though! Most people find it cool and ask where I got it from and how it's been working for me! I wonder if the awareness of how unhappy it makes a lot of people has something to do with it?
However I do sometimes feel like when it's a bit slow for a sec or I don't have a specific convenience people get a little... reassured for a sec? Like "oh yeah my choice is still the better one it would suck having a flip phone"? I don't really mind though tbh since I did make the concsious choice to give up on maps etc. and I get that that's not for everyone!

Yesss! I'm sorry you can relate with the trains and 2FA. It is ridiculous how there are so many things that require a phone. I have noticed that a lot of tickets for events are digital only now, but even if I could print them, I don't have a functioning printer haha.

I'm pleased to hear that you're getting a positive reaction from people as well I agree, and I think the fact that things like 'doomscrolling' are pretty commonly understood terms now might show that more and more people do have an awareness of smartphones not always being good for mental health.

I think I know what you mean about people feeling reassured about their choice. I also sometimes have this feeling that when I'm out with my smartphone instead of my flip phone, people might feel a bit vindicated that I'm not able to use a flip phone 100% of the time. Might just be me thinking that though!

[candycanearter07]

I think flip phones deserve a proper comeback, the latest line of modern flip phones just feel like smartphones that are flexible, I love the feeling of slamming a phone closed to end a phone call

You can still slam a modern phone, it just might not survive ;)

I have this little beast now these days: the Nokia E90 Communicator from 2007!

It's absolutely wild what this can do. 3G internet, a physical keyboard, calls and SMS of course, video conferences, themes, TV, a camera, analog radio, music, video, bluetooth, walkie-talkie connections, office suites including spreadsheets, presentations and a proper word processor, games (Temple Run anyone?), and much more.

It runs Symbian OS, which is really solid on this device.

Never want to go back to a touch "smartphone".

holy cow this is a beautiful piece of technology i wish i had one, especially since i don't really use the fancy iphone features

[caracalled]

Yesss! I'm sorry you can relate with the trains and 2FA. It is ridiculous how there are so many things that require a phone. I have noticed that a lot of tickets for events are digital only now, but even if I could print them, I don't have a functioning printer haha.

I'm pleased to hear that you're getting a positive reaction from people as well I agree, and I think the fact that things like 'doomscrolling' are pretty commonly understood terms now might show that more and more people do have an awareness of smartphones not always being good for mental health.

I think I know what you mean about people feeling reassured about their choice. I also sometimes have this feeling that when I'm out with my smartphone instead of my flip phone, people might feel a bit vindicated that I'm not able to use a flip phone 100% of the time. Might just be me thinking that though!

It really is so ridiculous! I've had a similar experience with concert tickets but I'm lucky to often still have the option to buy physical tickets for a euro or so more! (and I get a cute little thing to remember the event by — especially since I don't really like filming concerts). I saw something recently where instead of 2fa you get a little USB-stick looking thing to physically confirm your log-in instead, that would be so cool if it could be used with a bunch of websites!

Yeah, especially my parents are very adamant about how proud they are that I'm doing this - I think it's because their friends often complain about their kids being on their phones a lot hahaha
I think it's kind of sad though, smart phones and doomscrolling shouldn't be inevetably tied together. I wish there was more user friendly, ethical UI design around because I genuinely believe people shouldn't need a flip phone instead of a smartphone in order to forgo doomscrolling :(

I absolutely get what you mean! I think I've experienced that before as well, although it's such a slight feeling that it's difficult to be concrete about whether the other person feels this way or not (I am not sure if this makes sense, I hope you get what I mean). I think it is fair to want to feel reassured in their current choice to keep a smart phone and I'm glad that they're not openly trying to pick a fight about it if they actually disagree with my choice BWAHAHA

[livingdeadgrrl]

I've been really into getting a flip phone recently, mostly since i have an interest in collecting old tech (i think they have so much more charm to them) so im glad its a topic on here  its the samsung nori GT-FF20 flip phone since its relatively cheap and it would be a cute addition to my collection. Though i dont expect to be able to use it for much more than texting and being a backup phone ( if i even decide to buy a new sim card).



The one im really looking to get is a sharp aquos 601-sh which i know is a popular choice but its popular for a reason. I would try to use it to get off social media more. plus it really is just a gorgeous piece of tech that i just gotta own.

[zawieja]

I've been really into getting a flip phone recently, mostly since i have an interest in collecting old tech (i think they have so much more charm to them) so im glad its a topic on here  its the samsung nori GT-FF20 flip phone since its relatively cheap and it would be a cute addition to my collection. Though i dont expect to be able to use it for much more than texting and being a backup phone ( if i even decide to buy a new sim card).



The one im really looking to get is a sharp aquos 601-sh which i know is a popular choice but its popular for a reason. I would try to use it to get off social media more. plus it really is just a gorgeous piece of tech that i just gotta own.

That samsung looks really cute! I love how different from each other all the old phones looked like :]

I've recently ordered aquos 601sh for myself! It hasn't arrived yet, but I hope it will work well enough to give me a break from social media while still providing internet access in case I will get lost in the city, or something 

If it will end up working for me - I can't wait to buy phone charms and some stickers too.

[Tommie ΘΔ]

Honestly, i'd love to return to flip phones!! My Abuela used to have one, so whenever I was at her house, I had to use it to text my mom   I always really enjoyed it!!

I currently have an Iphone, but I would love to start carrying around a flip phone instead. My goal going into college is to step away from mobile devices, keep my web surfing to computers only. I think a flip phone would do me some good in that sense

[zawieja]

So I got my Aquos 601SH and it works pretty well!    It took a while to set it up properly, but it does 95% of what I wanted it to do - a working internet browser, working maps, youtube (I had to install NewPipe), and a hotspot. It works smoothly and I'm just happy with it - I can't wait to buy some stickers to decorate it, too!

[livingdeadgrrl]

So I got my Aquos 601SH and it works pretty well!    It took a while to set it up properly, but it does 95% of what I wanted it to do - a working internet browser, working maps, youtube (I had to install NewPipe), and a hotspot. It works smoothly and I'm just happy with it - I can't wait to buy some stickers to decorate it, too!

That is SUCH a gorg phone i hope i get the opportunity to get it one day,,,im hoping to visit some secondhand shops in japan (if) my family continues with the plans to go there for the winter