Maybe if my toothbrush was a little more like my phone, I wouldn't forget to brush my teeth twice a week...
Phones Should Be Like Toothbrushes
11–20 of 65 posts
Re: Phones Should Be Like Toothbrushes
#12The primary problem of the phone is that it's a lineal descendant of a technology that was unavoidably based on "stop what you are doing and pay attention to me". (Contrast telegrams, from the same era.)
It's not just that voice calling necessarily interrupts you (or if you arrange that it goes to voicemail, this is considered rude), it's that the whole mental model of a phone is a thing that interrupts you.
Re: Phones Should Be Like Toothbrushes
#13I get the point, but "like a toothbrush" is a stretch. Dentists think none of us spends enough time with the toothbrush.
Well, we've read the article. That was the objective of the metaphor.
Just as a data point, I looked at the article title and the comments here and decided not to bother reading the article.
Re: Phones Should Be Like Toothbrushes
#14> Your toothbrush is the greatest tool of all time. You only use it when you’re supposed to for as long as you need to and then let it go. I use my phone to play blitz chess online (I'm a chess player; if you play chess, you shouldn't focus exclusively on blitz, but it does have its place eg. to help quickly practice new openings)... to listen to podcasts (for instance when I'm washing the dishes - no dishwasher wher…
> to listen to podcasts [...] or to read articles on Hacker News, for one. Do I need to do any of these? No. Certainly not in the same sense as I need brushing my teeth. But these are my pastimes. I also don't need reading a book, listening to a radio show or going to standup comedy. It's entertainment.
That's the thing: The apps that take up most of the average person's smartphone daily usage[0] are designed to exploit your psychological imperatives and vulnerabilities, so they can literally entertain you for as long as possible--that is, to divert the user from other, more intentional activities that are much more costly in terms of conscious preparation and effort, by means of frictionless, persuasive design[1].
Being able to entertain oneself by using an electronic device is not a bad thing per se; however, smartphones have enabled corporations to dictate our behavior during every single hour of our waking lives, turning it into a mindless, constant consumption of entertainment. Many people's lives have become a never-ending pastime. Our attention, our time, our true beliefs and desires are all we've got to develop as a person and lead a fulfilling life. We should think critically of something that permeates our lives as heavily as smartphones and their apps.
[0] All the people ranging from 10 to ~20 years old that I've recently met significantly exceed the 2.5 hours of smartphone use per day that the article mentions. That only illustrates my own experience, but I believe it's something to think about.
[1] https://captology.stanford.edu/about/about-the-lab-1.html.
Re: Phones Should Be Like Toothbrushes
#15> Kill vibration.
I did this a while ago. What happened was I ended up checking my phone significantly more due to FOMO. Hiding your phone is a better solution, since it's more out of sight.
Re: Phones Should Be Like Toothbrushes
#16I always say that any use of screens, given their captivating mimetic and sensorial nature, should be preceded by a clear intention regarding what will they be used for. Moreover, I wholeheartedly agree on the fact that electronic devices--any kind of devices, really--should only be used for as long as they are required to accomplish the task at hand, which has ben decided a priori. Anything that deviates from that is effectively dictating our behavior to a harmful extent.
Re: Phones Should Be Like Toothbrushes
#17My phone (iOS) is perennially on Do Not Disturb + let calls through. In my life, calls are super rare, and 99% when they happen I want to know. Everything else can wait until I check my phone. Sure, sometimes I check it often when I'm bored, but when I'm concentrated / in the flow I am never interrupted. I can't believe most people keep notifications on, and sometimes at full volume. It would drive me crazy.
I'm in pretty much the same camp here. One day I was chatting with a collegue and he asked if he could call me to work out a problem and I realized I had no idea where my phone was, the battery was dead when I found it. I hadn't even used for a few days. The majority of my time spent looking at my phone is for 2FA , taking a photo, or bored somewhere waiting.
Same.. usage may vary, but I have only kept notifications for messaging (but none on "groups" and I user "Favourites" for the calls/messages while on DND. Everything else sits in absolute silence as it should (for me).
Re: Phones Should Be Like Toothbrushes
#18Maybe if my toothbrush was a little more like my phone, I wouldn't forget to brush my teeth twice a week...
Not trying to promote electric toothbrushes, but what worked for me is to get an electric one, keep the charging dock right next bathroom sink, with the toothbrush latched on, so you have the visual queue/reminder to brush them 100% of the mornings/nights.
Re: Phones Should Be Like Toothbrushes
#19> Your toothbrush is the greatest tool of all time. You only use it when you’re supposed to for as long as you need to and then let it go. I use my phone to play blitz chess online (I'm a chess player; if you play chess, you shouldn't focus exclusively on blitz, but it does have its place eg. to help quickly practice new openings)... to listen to podcasts (for instance when I'm washing the dishes - no dishwasher wher…
> to listen to podcasts [...] or to read articles on Hacker News, for one. Do I need to do any of these? No. Certainly not in the same sense as I need brushing my teeth. But these are my pastimes. I also don't need reading a book, listening to a radio show or going to standup comedy. It's entertainment . That's the thing: The apps that take up most of the average person's smartphone daily usage[0] are designed to exp…
> Many people's lives have become a never-ending pastime.
How is that different from people spending time watching TV back in the 80s and 90s? Nothing new. Most people have never been very productive with the free time they have.
The main difference with a smartphone is that the access to content, at any time, is 1000 fold better than TV. But the behavior of wasting one's free time is pretty much unchanged.
Re: Phones Should Be Like Toothbrushes
#20Maybe if my toothbrush was a little more like my phone, I wouldn't forget to brush my teeth twice a week...
Could buy one of those fancy electronic ones with a mobile app that can set notifications. Irony…