Making “The Flip”

10 Reasons I Ditched My Smartphone For A Flip Phone And You Should Too

By Presence Massie

My grandmother would tell me at the dinner table, “You’re like Edward Scissorhands but instead of blades and scissors attached to your fingers, it’s your smartphone!” She was right. The communication, games, and tools a smartphone provides causes us to be enslaved to our devices so much so that it becomes an appendage.

It is an appendage in the likeness of Edward’s that not only harms ourselves, but others we come in contact with. The tyranny of the notification has conditioned us to check our phone when we imagine it vibrating. It keeps us from observing the world around us and showing care to those with whom we are physically present. We are, as Thoreau once wrote, “tools of our tools,” enslaved to the very thing said to make us free.

I ditched  my smartphone for a flip phone and it was one of the best decisions I made. Here are ten reasons you should too.

1. Save Money

Flip phones are relatively cheap. I purchased mine for no more than $20. If you buy a flip phone instead of the new Iphone 7, you will have saved $750. In addition to the cost of the phone, your phone bill will be significantly less. My Iphone’s phone plan added to $60 a month and my flip phone is half that. My bank account has seen this frugality and yours will too.

2. Battery-Life

Flip phones have an incredibly long-lasting battery compared to smartphones due to fewer programs running on your flip phone. I had an Iphone 5S and would find myself charging it by mid-afternoon. If I was nearing 30% battery (even on battery-preservation mode) and would open an app such as Snapchat, my phone would give up and die. My flip phone can go a week on a full charge.

3. Little-to-No Glitching

Have you ever had you smartphone die on you unexpectedly? Has it ever frozen or crashed as you were trying to start up an app? Flip phones do not have this problem. Our blog’s Chief Creative Officer has only had a flip phone and claims it has never glitched on her. Mine has yet to do so as well. Through the years smartphones are constantly changing, causing you to need the next model, but the flip phone has remained simple.

4. Social Media Surrender

No one needs to see a snap of what coffee you purchased or a boomerang of you and your friends on the metro. Constantly documenting your life through social media is excessive, unnecessary, and studies show it restricts our memories of particular events because we view them through a screen and rest our knowledge on the image we took.

5. Living Life and Enjoying Others

When we keep our bodies hunched over our phones as we travel from place to place, we become disconnected with our surroundings and less acquainted with the outside world which, let’s face it, is most important. The first week of having a flip phone, I noticed when I walked past someone, I would take out my phone to avoid greeting them. Since I didn’t have anything to do on my flip phone, I realized I wasn’t looking at anything, but was giving into a reflex I developed with my smartphone. This was a  reflex I also gave into when I was at the dinner table with others. Instead of interacting with them, I would check my phone to avoid uncomfortable silence. With a flip phone, I have trained myself to put effort into conversation and enjoy others.

6. Comparatively Compact

Let’s be honest, some of the smartphones are cumbersome, mini-tablets. This is especially problematic for women whose front pockets are for fashion more than function. Small front pockets mean most have to move their Iphone 6+ phones to their back pocket where it can bend when one sits, increasing risks of cracks.

7. Distractions

The only notifications you receive on your flip phones are texts and calls. You will not be distracted by social media notifications or apps luring you in to play a game and keep you from focusing on the task at hand.

8. Durability

The screens will not crack as easily as smartphones’. I have cracked at least three of my previous smartphones. Flip phones can drop dozens of times without causing any issues. The ground might even break before the phone does.

9. Strengthen Your Sense of Direction

Many people I have talked to say the biggest reason they cannot make the switch is because they use their phones as a GPS. Mapping out your journey before you drive is a solution. Instead of completely relying on a GPS, get to know the area better and strengthen your geographical brain muscles. If you are desperate, call someone who might have access to news or maps. OR go the old-fashioned route by pulling over and asking for directions.

10. Others Are Too

When  a friend calls you a Luddite, take it as a compliment. You’re not alone. CEOs and celebrities such as Anna Wintour and Rihanna have been seen recently using flip phones. But don’t let this be the primary reason you make the switch… or should I say “the flip.”

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Shed the smartphone from your fingers and you will feel the weight has been lifted. Switching to a flip phone will be one of the best decisions you make. You don’t have to take it from me though. I’m just a millennial.