Excellent article. Thank you. Maybe being able to delete the apps from our phones would be enough. I do think there’s a strong desire in the market for a better phone. It might be possible for a team to form a company around the idea of building one. Yes it would be a colossal task to create a whole new phone, but would still be profitable if enough folks want it.
Yeah I think that would go a long way. The other hurdle is, if you delete texting from your phone and someone else tries to get ahold of you that way, without calling, you could get in a snafu. Devices that make this more of a default would help change that.
Love this, Elle. I meditated on the design problems of smartphones a bit myself back in March. Ive tried a bunch of alternatives and found issues with all of them. We want phones that are capable but not distracting and those two things are at odds, and there's a very jagged border of tradeoffs. Strangely my hope lands on the return of the BlackBerry form factor.
How did I miss this one!? I almost wrote about the clicks communicator too but didn’t because it’s still just another android 🥺 I do find it an interesting concept in that it’s a specific device for all communication. But I ultimately would rather have that device live at home in the form of a tin can or laptop.
Truly every single bit of this. I am a parent who tried to get a flip phone last summer and had to swiftly move back to Iphone. To pick up my children from school, I announce my arrival on an app so they are released (which is honestly a postive tech experience because there can be multiple pick up options thanks to it instead of just having to wait in the carpool line.) Ubers, plane tickets, maps were as complicated as you mentioned.
On the positive side of parenting tech, we are a tin can phone home and it has been a game changer for not just my 9 year old daughter but also me. To coordinate with her friends about biking to school or weekend meetup neighborhood spots, I don't have to also have a conversation with the friends parents. Not that conversing with friends parents is a negative but every time my daughter wants to have a friend over I dont have to have 5 "Hi, it's victoria, hope you are well. Liz was seeing if Alice could play" on repeat. I am southern so dropping niceties isn't in my DNA. There is so little control over how your texts are received in context so I always default to pleasantries. But damn if they don't get exhausting!
You are the second person I’ve spoken with now who has loved the tin can. I’m glad it’s being as adopted as I want it to be (even if I think it should be for adults too!) It’s such a cool concept.
I don't know if you remember the movie Aliens (1979) or even the subsequent games
But that story takes place in the future, and they still use knobs and dials !
I always thought retro tech was the future because no touch screen and beat the tactile satisfaction of turning a knob or smacking a flip phone shut after a call.
Do you really believe, the global cabal and absolute control freaks would ever renounce the best and cheapest shackles for the vast majority of gullible humanity ever designed ??? ... 🤔🤔🤔
We, a tiny portion of the people, cannot force the majority of our gullible brothers and sisters to renounce the shackles that are soooo convenient and on which the cabal relies for their total enslavement so heavily.
We can only refuse to step on the rigged play-ground and stubbornly refuse to play.
Well, an old Nokia is a good start and using the smart-phone only as a picture-camera with option for transmittal of images is too ...
Love this take. I hadn’t considered the lack of context but now it seems obvious. It always feels like people have vanished into the void when they’re on their phones in a way that you don’t feel when someone is reading a book or the newspaper. I think AirPods are the other enemy. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve tried to make small talk with someone only to realize they literally can’t hear me. Connection feels so much harder when everyone is distracted all of the time.
I so agree with the AirPod separation! I love them in many contexts (on airplanes, etc.) but out in public interacting with people it creates such a weird separation!
Excellent article. Thank you. Maybe being able to delete the apps from our phones would be enough. I do think there’s a strong desire in the market for a better phone. It might be possible for a team to form a company around the idea of building one. Yes it would be a colossal task to create a whole new phone, but would still be profitable if enough folks want it.
You have given us a lot to think about.
Yeah I think that would go a long way. The other hurdle is, if you delete texting from your phone and someone else tries to get ahold of you that way, without calling, you could get in a snafu. Devices that make this more of a default would help change that.
Love this, Elle. I meditated on the design problems of smartphones a bit myself back in March. Ive tried a bunch of alternatives and found issues with all of them. We want phones that are capable but not distracting and those two things are at odds, and there's a very jagged border of tradeoffs. Strangely my hope lands on the return of the BlackBerry form factor.
https://otherworldscatalog.substack.com/p/is-2026-the-year-of-the-good-phone?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=129tfw
How did I miss this one!? I almost wrote about the clicks communicator too but didn’t because it’s still just another android 🥺 I do find it an interesting concept in that it’s a specific device for all communication. But I ultimately would rather have that device live at home in the form of a tin can or laptop.
Yeah I would love GrapheneOS for the Clicks. And having more options is better for everyone.
Truly every single bit of this. I am a parent who tried to get a flip phone last summer and had to swiftly move back to Iphone. To pick up my children from school, I announce my arrival on an app so they are released (which is honestly a postive tech experience because there can be multiple pick up options thanks to it instead of just having to wait in the carpool line.) Ubers, plane tickets, maps were as complicated as you mentioned.
On the positive side of parenting tech, we are a tin can phone home and it has been a game changer for not just my 9 year old daughter but also me. To coordinate with her friends about biking to school or weekend meetup neighborhood spots, I don't have to also have a conversation with the friends parents. Not that conversing with friends parents is a negative but every time my daughter wants to have a friend over I dont have to have 5 "Hi, it's victoria, hope you are well. Liz was seeing if Alice could play" on repeat. I am southern so dropping niceties isn't in my DNA. There is so little control over how your texts are received in context so I always default to pleasantries. But damn if they don't get exhausting!
You are the second person I’ve spoken with now who has loved the tin can. I’m glad it’s being as adopted as I want it to be (even if I think it should be for adults too!) It’s such a cool concept.
I don't know if you remember the movie Aliens (1979) or even the subsequent games
But that story takes place in the future, and they still use knobs and dials !
I always thought retro tech was the future because no touch screen and beat the tactile satisfaction of turning a knob or smacking a flip phone shut after a call.
Exactly!!!! Why couldn’t our high tech future have knobs and dials!???
Many thanks for your inspiring post !!! 🎯🎯🎯👍👍👍
Do you really believe, the global cabal and absolute control freaks would ever renounce the best and cheapest shackles for the vast majority of gullible humanity ever designed ??? ... 🤔🤔🤔
That’s why we have to force em!
We, a tiny portion of the people, cannot force the majority of our gullible brothers and sisters to renounce the shackles that are soooo convenient and on which the cabal relies for their total enslavement so heavily.
We can only refuse to step on the rigged play-ground and stubbornly refuse to play.
Well, an old Nokia is a good start and using the smart-phone only as a picture-camera with option for transmittal of images is too ...
Yee-Haw !!! Let's roll 👊👊👊
Ah! Yeah I mean force the companies to give us better defaults. But yes you’re right it’s up to us from there ☺️
Love this take. I hadn’t considered the lack of context but now it seems obvious. It always feels like people have vanished into the void when they’re on their phones in a way that you don’t feel when someone is reading a book or the newspaper. I think AirPods are the other enemy. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve tried to make small talk with someone only to realize they literally can’t hear me. Connection feels so much harder when everyone is distracted all of the time.
I so agree with the AirPod separation! I love them in many contexts (on airplanes, etc.) but out in public interacting with people it creates such a weird separation!
... or we could change our 2 misunderstandings :
1 we could assume the best (for us) usage to avoid our recognition of disrespect, when our "subconscious mindset" kicks in
2 we could avoid the usage of phones when there is a good chance, that others feel that wellknown subconscious recognition
and it would be in our hands to do so .
the fascinating presence of opportunities is ours.
thank you for the great inspiring read
Love this POV on smartphones!