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The science behind an iPhone dumb phone

dumbph.com

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Re: The science behind an iPhone dumb phone

#71

Post by cocoflunchy »

tines wrote: post #45
cocoflunchy wrote: post #18

I have in my backlogs of projects (one day I will have time for them...) an extreme "dumb smartphone". I want to have maps, whatsapp, chatgpt, a document scanner, my banking app, a guitar tuner... these are tools. So I need both an app whitelist (there are only so many apps that I actually use on my phone) and a website blacklist (no more HN, reddit, twitter, facebook, news websites, etc). I can use those on my compu…

I went down this path, it's actually very easy to uninstall the built-in web browser and the Play Store via adb, which actually got me exactly what I wanted in my dumb phone without too much technical work.

The thing is I do want the web browser, because there are various situations where you can be very penalized by not having internet access. I want a whitelist for apps but a blacklist for websites. (One of my friends was stranded on the road after a car accident and his insurance required him to go on a specific website to get assistance...)

Re: The science behind an iPhone dumb phone

#72

Post by cocoflunchy »

em500 wrote: post #60
cocoflunchy wrote: post #18

I have in my backlogs of projects (one day I will have time for them...) an extreme "dumb smartphone". I want to have maps, whatsapp, chatgpt, a document scanner, my banking app, a guitar tuner... these are tools. So I need both an app whitelist (there are only so many apps that I actually use on my phone) and a website blacklist (no more HN, reddit, twitter, facebook, news websites, etc). I can use those on my compu…

It can be done in iOS: in Settings -> Screen Time -> Content & Privacy Restrictions you can disable almost any app, including Safari and App Store. Ask a trusted person to set a Screen Time Passcode (and keep safe backups) and you'll have pretty much zero opportunity to waste time on a phone. (You'll probably waste it on a laptop instead.)

You can set a website whitelist but not a blacklist... see my other comment about needing access to some specific websites

Re: The science behind an iPhone dumb phone

#73

Post by cocoflunchy »

pololeono wrote: post #57
cocoflunchy wrote: post #18

I have in my backlogs of projects (one day I will have time for them...) an extreme "dumb smartphone". I want to have maps, whatsapp, chatgpt, a document scanner, my banking app, a guitar tuner... these are tools. So I need both an app whitelist (there are only so many apps that I actually use on my phone) and a website blacklist (no more HN, reddit, twitter, facebook, news websites, etc). I can use those on my compu…

I have some expirience implementing an extreme dumb phone: I did it on a samsung smartphone using "Google family link" which is the parental control feature of android. You need a second ios or android device (yes the family link app to control your "children" also exists for IOS). This device you store in an inaccessible location and you tie it to an account of which you dont remember the password (just write a long…

That looks very promising, it has the website blacklist + apps whitelist. Thanks, I'll try it out!

Re: The science behind an iPhone dumb phone

#74

Post by tines »

cocoflunchy wrote: post #71
tines wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I went down this path, it's actually very easy to uninstall the built-in web browser and the Play Store via adb, which actually got me exactly what I wanted in my dumb phone without too much technical work.

The thing is I do want the web browser, because there are various situations where you can be very penalized by not having internet access. I want a whitelist for apps but a blacklist for websites. (One of my friends was stranded on the road after a car accident and his insurance required him to go on a specific website to get assistance...)

Yeah that's rough, the world isn't friendly to dumbphone users.

A website blacklist is pretty easy with the parental controls on most smartphones these days. Unless you're like me and you just disable the whitelist when it slightly inconveniences you :) I guess a better option would be to use a really low-spec smartphone, like the Cat S22 Flip, so that you can browse the web but it's really painful and less habit-forming. I used the S22 for a while and did kill my smartphone habit. The only problem was that it would crash randomly, which isn't acceptable for me. No silver bullet I'm afraid.

Re: The science behind an iPhone dumb phone

#75

Post by cocoflunchy »

tines wrote: post #74
cocoflunchy wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The thing is I do want the web browser, because there are various situations where you can be very penalized by not having internet access. I want a whitelist for apps but a blacklist for websites. (One of my friends was stranded on the road after a car accident and his insurance required him to go on a specific website to get assistance...)

Yeah that's rough, the world isn't friendly to dumbphone users. A website blacklist is pretty easy with the parental controls on most smartphones these days. Unless you're like me and you just disable the whitelist when it slightly inconveniences you :) I guess a better option would be to use a really low-spec smartphone, like the Cat S22 Flip, so that you can browse the web but it's really painful and less habit-for…

Yes I tried it and I always end up disabling it... that's why I need something more radical. As for the flip phone I want a good camera so not an option for me.

Re: The science behind an iPhone dumb phone

#76

Post by 1vuio0pswjnm7 »

robertlagrant wrote: post #7

I've uninstalled all social media, which is the main notifications hook. I really think the power of apps is in notifications, and it's best to cut them out. If I want to see a Tweet or a Facebook post, probably because someone I know on Whatsapp sent me it, I'll use the website. I don't want to be dragged in by notifications. Anyone else the same?

After I saw an early iPhone had Facebook integration built-in, i.e., the owner cannot remove it, I completely gave up on the iPhone.

If it's really necessary to check Facebook from a phone, then https://mbasic.facebook.com is sufficient.

Re: The science behind an iPhone dumb phone

#78

Post by MARK1947 »

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