Discussed at the time: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14639967
The Presence of One’s Own Smartphone Reduces Available Cognitive Capacity (2017)
171–180 of 379 posts
Re: The Presence of One’s Own Smartphone Reduces Available Cognitive Capacity (2017)
#172Earlier quoted context omitted.
It gives the other person a chance to tell you if there is an emergency / tell you the urgency of their request, and also lets them know that you know they want to talk to you.
I have a rule with everyone who could have an emergency, 3 calls in a row. I know it can be burdensome, but I don't answer in an emergency but if I ever see I missed 3 calls then I know it was an emergency.
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Re: The Presence of One’s Own Smartphone Reduces Available Cognitive Capacity (2017)
#173I want a smartphone that only has useful apps and nothing else. I want it to have SMS and Phone, Google Maps, Uber, Lyft, Uber Eats, and such. But I don't want social media, I don't want news, I don't want a browser, I don't want email, etc.
At least with android you can disable apps (even those that are built in). Of course you need a discipline to not enable them back.
Re: The Presence of One’s Own Smartphone Reduces Available Cognitive Capacity (2017)
#174Earlier quoted context omitted.
Gah, I need to do this so bad. Lately I've admitted to myself that I'm truly addicted to my phone. I go through phases of blocking safari, deleting all my non-essential apps, etc, but they always find a way to slowly creep back into my life ("5 minutes of reddit won't hurt while my kids are playing on their own...."). I'm realizing that I am just one of those people who can't handle even having it as an option. Thank…
Something I realized recently is that I'm not addicted to social media or any apps in particular, but I am addicted to my phone. I managed to give up pretty much all social media, save for an occasional peek at reddit and this site, but still take out my phone about as often as I did before. Mostly I just check the news for the umpteenth time in a day. My current plan is to keep using my phone, but switch to using it…
Similar realization here. Just can't get myself off the damn thing - doesn't seem to matter what I'm using it for. Hopefully the more productive route works for you!
Re: The Presence of One’s Own Smartphone Reduces Available Cognitive Capacity (2017)
#175I want a smartphone that only has useful apps and nothing else. I want it to have SMS and Phone, Google Maps, Uber, Lyft, Uber Eats, and such. But I don't want social media, I don't want news, I don't want a browser, I don't want email, etc.
If you really serious, you can set up parental controls with whitelisted apps on most phones.
Re: The Presence of One’s Own Smartphone Reduces Available Cognitive Capacity (2017)
#176Anyone has access to the source of the article? Aka, the full text/PDF to share it?
Had the same question, looks like here's a link[1].
Re: The Presence of One’s Own Smartphone Reduces Available Cognitive Capacity (2017)
#177New hot take: I'm addicted to my laptop. The phone barely registers in terms of interest because I work on my laptop anyway, which is less cumbersome to navigate. Notwithstanding the need to separate work from leisure life, much of leisure is just attached to this device. Even the less consumptive activities, like writing or playing music, benefit from it. And anything to do with innovation or research is absolutely…
This is why I never got a tablet/iPad. For someone who is constantly on their computer/laptop there's no need for a intemediary device.
Re: The Presence of One’s Own Smartphone Reduces Available Cognitive Capacity (2017)
#178Quitting smartphone has been incredible for me and i don't miss it at all. :)
Good job. The same companies are now trying to do the same thing but with Smartwatches that tell the time and... - More Notifications - Messaging - Calling - Internet - GPS - Plays music, video and podcasts + Health and Fitness (Can't disagree with that one) and finally the worst saved until last... - Apps The industry is doing it all over again with the smartphone but now it will be all on your wrist, but marketed c…
I actually liked how Pebble approached it, it was a watch first with some smart functionality. It so sad that they went out of business, because they made exactly what I was looking in a smart watch.
Re: The Presence of One’s Own Smartphone Reduces Available Cognitive Capacity (2017)
#179Earlier quoted context omitted.
It gives the other person a chance to tell you if there is an emergency / tell you the urgency of their request, and also lets them know that you know they want to talk to you.
I have a rule with everyone who could have an emergency, 3 calls in a row. I know it can be burdensome, but I don't answer in an emergency but if I ever see I missed 3 calls then I know it was an emergency.
That works too. Both Apple and Android have built-in support for do-not-disturb policies that will let someone through if they call twice in a row (defined as "within 3 minutes" on Apple and "within 15 minutes" on Android, it seems).
Re: The Presence of One’s Own Smartphone Reduces Available Cognitive Capacity (2017)
#180Getting rid of my smartphone was without a doubt the most positive thing I ever did for myself. I'm sure some people have the self-control to use it sparingly. But for me, not having to constantly fight the urge to check my always-connected magic pocket internet portal has freed up a huge amount of my mental willpower, which I can now redirect to other more important things. Now that everything is closed, I don't eve…
Can you talk more to the practicalities of getting rid of a smartphone? Have you seriously found that the loss of the conveniences they bring haven't been that burdensome? I am really intrigued by the idea but find it almost inconceivable to work for me (which might speak to an addiction, so I feel compelled to understand this further)
Not OP, but I also made the choice not to carry a phone (not even a dumb phone) because I don't want the inconvenience of carrying an interrupting device everywhere I go.
There's a phone at home and one in my office for emergencies, but other business gets done by email, on my terms.
I live in a (non-US) large city, walk or bike to work every day and don't own a car. We have a pretty good public transit system which I used to use a lot, pre-covid.
The biggest inconvenience of not carrying a cell phone was that I didn't have access to live bus and subway schedules, so I would sometimes take a suboptimal route to my destination.
My schedule is done on paper in a pocket schedule book that I always carry. I also carry a pen, a simple watch, a Swiss army knife, and a small flashlight, all of which I use at least once every day. I also always have a book in my bag, for reading while waiting for the bus, the doctor, or other things and people.
I look things up on the Internet at home.
I'm not saying I will never carry a phone, but it seems that not having a phone is the right choice for me at the moment.