dumbphones as a new status symbol \ stacker news ~tech

I see more regard for privacy - not necessarily the tech kind, more like simply choosing to keep things to yourself online. More about disconnecting, the idea that offline is the new luxury, being harder to reach. ‘Chronically online’ is an insult. People raved about that joke app that makes you touch grass and many use some apps like onesec. More people talk about getting a dumbphone, particularly feature flipphones1 (not the smartphone foldables). The general comeback of Y2K aesthetics.

It has the potential to be the new cool: Mysterious. Untouchable. De-influenced. It carries an image of nostalgia, cooler designs and customization, better mental health, offline connections and being outside, having eclectic hobbies without milking them for content.

The writer makes the argument that having a dumb phone is the new status symbol because it signals not having to be concerned with likes, views, or other monetized aspects of interacting online.

Perhaps I'd agree but not necessarily for the same reasons. They didn't really focus on the luxury to have your privacy, which is completely given up in using smart phones, and another reason why someone might purchase a second, "dumb" phone.

There was a post about this earlier today (#934472)

0 sats \ 1 reply \ @Satosora 5 Apr

Interesting how silence is the new luxury, when it has been the luxury for long time. That is why the wealthy live on estates where no one can bother them. Maybe people are just starting to realize that smartphones and all the new gadgets are affecting society in the wrong ways?

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @unschooled OP 5 Apr

Perhaps the word silence needs to get a new definition in this digital age. Something like: the absence of any artificial stimulus, including text, video and sound. Certainly nature is a great place to connect with the silence.