Why I’m Using a Flip Phone
Dumbphone user since 2006 here. Non-Luddite. Main reasons for avoiding the switch :<p>1) When not using computers for work [or chess] purposes, I want to spend as little time as practical staring at a screen. I have lots of non-computer activities to attend to [gardening, studying, home maintenance, etc etc] and a family to look after.<p>2) I am a strong adherent to the notion that one is well-advised to maintain awareness of one&#x27;s surroundings -- what I&#x27;d call commonsense alertness -- and my observations of folks using smartphones in public suggest to me that their use diminishes situational awareness because they are a distraction.<p>2.5) Corollary to the above : I want to set a good example of prudent behavior for my kids, which to me includes limiting recreational computer &#x2F; phone use [I realize this sounds snobby, but you should see the kids in my neighborhood -- like elementary-school kids -- constantly with their faces buried in phone];<p>3) Last and also least : expense and durability : decent dumbphones are nearly indestructible and if I distruct one, a replacement is less than $50. Smartphones, on the other hand, tend to be fragile and expensive.