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Our smartphones are designed to distract us. The average British adult devotes over three hours a day to their phone. Young people report that their phones cause anxiety, and grown-ups experience sleep disruption and declining attention spans. This troubling new ‘phone addiction’ trend is sweeping the modern world.
Can non-smart ‘dumbphones’ save us from this epidemic? Maybe. As one of a handful of journalists specialising in minimalist technology, I’m confident that dumber devices can at least help. They’ve certainly made a difference to me. As someone who has struggled with work-life balance, switching from an iPhone to a basic Nokia enabled me to regain control of my evenings, holidays and weekends.
I recently asked Telegraph readers for their questions about dumbphones, including their rise in popularity, methods to combat social media addiction and whether they are a good option for screen-absorbed teenagers. You can read my answers below.
Why are dumbphones gaining in popularity? A smartphone is obviously more useful
Md. Fakhrul, West Midlands
Almost everyone I know is questioning their relationship with their phone at the moment. Some of my friends want to stop wasting their evenings on social media doomscrolling, while others can’t let go of ‘urgent’ work emails during lunchtimes and weekends. I’ve also heard from people with gambling issues or whose mental health is being wrecked by the relentless 24/7 misery of rolling news.
I compare it with choosing a new car. Lots of drivers buy the biggest go-anywhere 4x4 they can afford, but many would be happier with a sensible estate, hatchback, or even a bicycle. The same is true of mobile phones. Not everybody wants or needs the most advanced or powerful model, and not everyone benefits from being permanently connected to the internet
Which brand of dumbphone is the best?
Boris, North West
By far the biggest and most reputable name in dumbphones is Finnish firm HMD, which has inherited Nokia’s reputation in mobile handsets (and until very recently sold dumbphones under the Nokia brand). Its range of practical, basic dumbphones – including the Barbie Phone – consistently scores highly in my testing, and its newer teen-friendly restricted smartphones such as the HMD Fuze are effective and well-liked.
Almost all other players in this (growing, but still niche) sector are small operations by comparison, at least in Europe. Several, like Punkt and Light Phone, are specialist manufacturers catering to their rarefied audiences of design enthusiasts. Kid-friendly device company Xplora, which also owns accessibility-focused brands Doro and Emporia, is another emerging leader. Alcatel dumbphones are now manufactured by Chinese giant TCL.
Does a dumbphone have internet access?
Harvinder, West Midlands
It’s complicated. The word ‘dumbphone’ makes most people think of nineties brick phones with no internet connection at all, but that’s a simplification. Mobile phones have all had access to some form of internet for over 20 years now, and any sold new today will run on the 4G or 5G networks – that is, the fourth and fifth generation of mobile network. These are internet connections.
How it uses that connection will depend on the device itself. An iPhone has unbridled access to websites and apps, while a dumbphone will give the user a much more limited helping of internet access, like receiving picture messages and some dumbphones even have crude web browsers. You won’t be streaming videos or even reading long articles, but you might be able to check the weather.
With my smartphone helping me manage everything in my life, including banking, travel and shopping, what benefits could I achieve by switching to a dumbphone?
Andrew, East of England
It’s true that smartphones are incredibly practical, and I’ll be the first to clarify that not everybody will benefit from a dumbphone. I’ve booked holidays, moved money between accounts, paid bills and ordered supermarket deliveries from my sofa. So much of this technology deserves to be celebrated.
But you should ask yourself whether you’re making a trade-off. For every hour you’re spending researching hotels or managing your savings, how many are you spending doomscrolling or otherwise wasting time? And for every useful notification you get about your boiler or the status of your Waitrose order, how many adverts or spam messages are interrupting your life? How often do work emails harsh your vibe on a Friday or Sunday night? A dumbphone can help you omit some of these stress-inducing influences, albeit at a cost that only you can know is worth it or not.
Are these being created to prevent teenagers and young people from becoming dependent on smartphones?
Lisa, South East
Some dumb devices like the Karri Messenger and Xplora One are overtly aimed at and marketed towards parents of young children. Some dumbed-down smartphones like the HMD Fuse are designed for older kids.
The majority of dumbphones I review either cater to adults who want a basic device for whatever reason, or are primarily sold to people where long battery life, rugged build quality and selected practical features are more important than full-featured smartphone capabilities.
There is limited research into how dumbphones can meaningfully help reduce smartphone addiction and other digital horrors in young people, with serious proactive concern about young people’s screen time being a relatively niche concern.
It’s also true that many young people face the same obstacles as adults do when attempting a dumbphone lifestyle. As an example, WhatsApp is baked into British life, and will only run on smartphones. With growing interest from Gen Z and Gen Alpha in digital detoxing, these demographics will certainly continue to fuel the dumb device resurgence.
Can a dumbphone run banking apps?
Konstantinos, London
A traditional dumbphone won’t run any apps, even if it does have a 4G connection. The Barbie Phone, Nokia 3310, Motorola FW410 and IMO Dash are all examples of basic phones that won’t run banking or navigation apps, instead offering only phones and SMS messages, alongside a handful of basic tools like calculators and memos.
To get apps on a basic phone, it will need to be running some version of the Android operating system. That’s the only sensible way of being able to download apps, either via the official Play Store (which is Google’s in-house shopfront) or alternatives like the Aurora Store.
Which dumbphones have a reasonable camera?
David, Yorkshire
They’re all quite bad, I’m afraid. Of the true dumbphones and dumbphone-like devices, only the Light Phone III offers smartphone-quality photographs. Some of the Nokia and HMD handsets barely have two megapixels to rub together (compared with 50 in a modern smartphone), and that’s before the other shortcomings in lens design and processing capabilities. Unless you enjoy the lo-fi 2000s aesthetic, you’ll probably find most dumbphone cameras limiting.
Does switching to dumbphone really help in the world of social media?
Som, North West
It depends on what you’re trying to achieve, but almost certainly yes. Dumbphones either deprive us of access to social media altogether or add a protective layer of friction that deters us from spending too much time on networks such as Facebook, Instagram or X.
Owning a dumbphone won’t prevent social media from happening, but it will put some distance between it and you. I’ve spoken to people whose dumbphones have helped them reclaim time they’d otherwise have spent doomscrolling, for example.
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