Due to privacy and time management concerns, I have decided to take the jump and get rid of my smart phone. Unsurprisingly, there are very few of resources online about which dumb phones are the best. Those of you who use a non-smart phones, which model is it and how do you like it?
Ask HN: What is the best “dumb” phone?
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Re: Ask HN: What is the best “dumb” phone?
#2I have the original Nokia 3310, which is not being used right now. Daily driver is the reissue 3310 that came out a couple years ago. It's still a little too "modern" for my tastes but something I can live with. The great thing is that the battery lasts forever. Probably close to a few weeks. Well, I don't use it at all, so there's that.
Re: Ask HN: What is the best “dumb” phone?
#3I got the cheapest phone available at MediaMarkt (German electronics store).
It's a SwissOne (don't know which model exactly) for about 30€. The battery life is great (runs more than a week) and it even has dual SIM support.
Interestingly, I could not find (in that shop) any phone without a color screen and camera. Really, I just want a phone for calls and SMS.
The one downside of that phone is that the audio volume on calls is really low, even when set to the maximum. That makes it difficult to have conversations on busy streets. In the future, I would pick one of those phones targeting senior citizens (with the huge buttons).
Re: Ask HN: What is the best “dumb” phone?
#4Oh great question! I have tried asking almost the same thing here[1] with no luck. 8 upvotes, 0 replies.
Very curious to see if this thread will get any traction.
Personally, I was eyeing Nokia 3310 (relaunched version)[2].
Re: Ask HN: What is the best “dumb” phone?
#5Dumbphones effectively no longer exist.
Anything with LTE (aside from iDevices) seems to run a Linux kernel with a stripped down Android or FirefoxOS on top. They have simplified UIs if that's what you're looking for, but they also have security holes out the wazoo (you can frequently get a root adb shell via usb with a stock config), and will never see updates.
To top that off, the available "dumb" phones with LTE often don't support US LTE bands. (glares at useless nokis 8810 4g)
You might get away with a pre-LTE device that's a legit dumbphone, but those networks are rapidly dying. :-(
Re: Ask HN: What is the best “dumb” phone?
#6I bought Alcatel Go Flip for $25, works fine. If you need to read web from 2.8" display via 4G or Wifi one-two times per year, this is good choice.
Re: Ask HN: What is the best “dumb” phone?
#7I got multiple dumb phones. The new Nokia 3310 being my favorite. On top, it's dual SIM.
Re: Ask HN: What is the best “dumb” phone?
#8A discussion worth mentioning: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16912679
Of the blogpost on how to make a dumber phone https://nomasters.io/posts/dumber-phone/
Re: Ask HN: What is the best “dumb” phone?
#9Ultraorthodox Jews buy dumbphones only because of religious considerations. These are known as Kosher phones. Here is a shop that sells them https://www.zipy.co.il/s/אליאקספרס/-/-/טלפון/?aspect=:::2000...
Re: Ask HN: What is the best “dumb” phone?
#10I still primarily use an iPhone SE, but every couple of months I'll "disconnect" by using a dumbphone for a week or two at a time. I use the Nokia 106: https://www.nokia.com/phones/en_int/nokia-106/
I like it a lot. It's cheap, simple, and has great battery life; I charge it perhaps once during the week or so I'm using it. I paid £18 for mine unlocked.
My favourite antifeature is that it has no camera. Most dumbphones have a camera in them that's so poor it's not worth having. This one doesn't bother with one at all, which means there's no camera option cluttering up the menus.