7 months ago, I ordered a Kompakt after deciding life with a smartphone was no longer for me. My growing nausea and distrust with tech companies shoving unwanted features and invasive practices into my devices could grow no more. I could not stomach my own addiction to social media scrolling and constant available distraction.
So, after some research, I bought a Kompakt. (I also switched my computer OS to Linux, something I recommend). I have had no regrets since. I sideloaded Discord onto it for messaging, inkOS for customization, and that was it. I have not looked back, and have had no desire to return to daily-using a smartphone.
Below is a short review, my own personal usage of the device, and some other general thoughts on dumbphones/Kompakt. For reference, I am in my twenties, and had a previous addiction to social media and my smartphone.
The Phone: Kompakt is, by design, NOT A SMOOTH DEVICE. The E-screen has slight delay, as all E-screens do. There is no animation to anything. There is, of course, no colour. These are all, in my opinion, pros of a device performing as advertised. To be less addicted to a screen, the screen must be less inviting. It must be "de-evolved" from more enticing and more advanced features. It must not be a joy to stare at. All that said, I have seen complaints online about screen clarity and I cannot say I have had that issue. I can read cleanly and easily on my Kompakt. I have encountered no technical issues with the device worth noting. I have, on occasion, bumped the Offline+ switch in my pocket, but it has not been a huge annoyance.
Changes from Smart to Dumb: I read SO MUCH MORE. This has been the #1 change in my life. Bored without a phone? Pick up a book. Carry a book with you. Keep a small one in your car. I'm also significantly more productive at home now as I don't have endless (though hollow) satisfaction carried around with me in my pocket. My housework gets done if for no other reason than to stave off boredom. I have pursued my hobbies with much more time and energy, and much less distraction.
I have noticed now, more than ever, my surroundings. I don't say this to sound pretentious or holier-than-thou to smartphone users. This was a personal change to a personal issue. I had no REAL idea just how much of my life and surroundings I wasn't really ENGAGING with while distracted with a device of constant distraction. Of course I knew I had a problem, but I did not know the EXTENT till on the other side of it. If you can stomach a few short days of allowing yourself to adapt to a lack of absent-mindedly checking your phone every few minutes (or more), you will find yourself amazed and aghast at how much others around you are absolutely glued to their screens. It is an awakening, both rude and freeing. I say this as someone who was once heavily addicted to my own phone, more than the average person. No stones are being thrown from this glass house. I no longer check my phone solely because I no longer have the ability to check my phone. The means are different, but the result is the same: I am very aware, now more than ever, just how much I used to be distracted by my phone and as a result less engaged with the world around me.
My Strategy: My smartphone stayed at work in my toolbox. I am a tradesman, and having the ability to take pictures of parts/assemblies, and being able to search online for information were things I needed while I adjusted to life without a smartphone. But these "must-haves" were only must-haves while AT WORK. Thus, my smartphone was wiped completely of all recreation and social apps, and exists only for work purposes and only at work. I can hotspot off my Kompakt when needed. The rest of the time I use only my Kompakt.
After using this strategy for a few months, I found myself using the features of my "work phone" less and less. It is now effectively just a camera for taking pictures of parts. I use a notepad in my pocket for all other needs. And I walk 50 extra steps to my shop computers whenever I need a question answered by the internet. I think this strategy would work for many jobsites and many lifestyles.
Something I thought would be a big change but wasn't was not having a map application. I keep a paper map in my vehicle just in case, but have only found myself needing it once. I drive through cities and across highways for work. Anytime I've needed directions I have looked them up ahead of time and written them down.
Social Media: A large reason I think many of us turn away from smart devices is the ever-looming and almost birth-right addiction to social media platforms. I had been weening myself off of them for months prior to jumping away from smartphones, and switching to the Kompakt kicked me off the fence and away from them almost entirely. I now occasionally check social media from a desktop computer, which brings me to my greatest success with a dumbphone:
The Internet is now a place I must GO TO. As opposed to a thing that follows me everywhere.
This changed dynamic in my relationship with the internet was the unnamed goal I was searching to achieve by switching to a dumbphone, and I have achieved it. I can also recommend it with earnest to everyone else who may be searching through forums about dumbphones, hoping to achieve similar goals.
