The Return of the Flip Phone: Why Some Zoomers Prefer Dumbphones to Smartphones
Before 2007, the hottest phone on the market was the iconic Motorola Razr V3 (or the Blackberry if you spent 80% of your time in “crucial meetings”). But then the Apple IPhone entered the chat, with the first Android devices joining the market the following year. Ever since, the revolutionary smartphone has taken the world by storm, worming its way into the hands of everyone from the age of 9 to 99. In fact, as of 2024, 310 million Americans reported that they own a smartphone — that’s 97% percent of the population!
However, a recent trend indicates that smartphone saturation may have reached its peak. More and more Gen Zers — those born from the mid-to-late 1990s through the early 2010s — are ditching their smartphones in favor of “dumbphones,” the practically indestructible devices their parents used to use.
What are Dumbphones?
Dumbphones — also popularly referred to as feature phones — do away with most apps and features of modern smartphones. In other words, they don’t have any fun stuff, but they also don’t have many of the negative attributes of smartphones.
As someone whose first mobile phone was a Motorola MicroTAC, I can assure you that even the cheapest modern dumbphone is still way more powerful than the phones we carried around when I was a kid. (The MicroTAC was too big to fit in my pocket and it couldn’t even send texts.) Still, today’s dumbphones are pretty barebones devices — and that’s actually a huge part of the appeal.
These phones focus primarily on calls, text messages, and some basic internet functions like email. Not only are companies now creating new dumbphones, but several models from a bygone era are making a comeback as well. For instance, the classic Nokia 3310 “brick” phone — which nearly every Millennial and Gen Xer was completely obsessed with in the early 2000s — is back and better than ever. (Don’t worry, it’s not that much better…it’s still pretty dumb.)
But, of all generations, why are Zoomers the ones leading the charge to go back to more low-tech devices? And will other generations follow their lead, or is their smartphone addiction beyond help?
Why are Zoomers Transitioning Back to Dumbphone Usage?
There are quite a few reasons why some people — particularly Gen Zers — enjoy the stripped-down nature of a dumbphone. The concept of “doom-scrolling” is all too familiar for many people these days. Some of us simply can’t help ourselves from spending countless hours scrolling through bad news on X (formerly known as Twitter) or comparing ourselves to influencers on Instagram or TikTok.
Living in the Moment
By swapping out a smartphone for a dumbphone, Zoomers prevent themselves from participating in doom-scrolling. Instead, they’re actually participating in antiquated hobbies like reading books and newspapers, conversing with those around them, or picking up crafting, much like their parents did when they were younger. If that sounds boring, that’s kind of the point!
Dumbphones allow users to be more present in their daily lives, a concept that Zoomers are latching onto. According to the market research firm Mintel, 60% of Gen Zers say they want to be less connected to the digital world on a day-to-day basis.
Given this stat, it may not surprise you to hear that the research firm GWI says that Gen Z is the only generation that has actually decreased its social media usage from 2021 to today. It might seem strange that Zoomers are setting aside TikTok in favor of reading a good old-fashioned book, but it’s increasingly true!
Modern Trend-Setting and Nostalgic Yearning
Some Zoomers say their dumbphones can be fascinating conversation starters, as people often ask about their dumbed-down devices and why they chose them. Others see them as a cutting-edge fashion trend — dumbphones as a fashion accessory draw attention in ways that widespread devices like iPhones do not.
Another aspect of Zoomers’ dumbphone usage is a sense of nostalgia for a bygone era, one that many Gen Zers were too young to experience for themselves. As far as trends go these days, you’d be hard-pressed to find one more pervasive than nostalgia.
The rejuvenation of the dumbphone is part of a broader reinvention of retro devices, as Gen Z is also flocking to vinyl records and cassette tapes instead of Spotify and playing outdated 8-bit games rather than firing up a cutting-edge title on the PlayStation 5. In addition, every time you turn on the TV or go to the movies, you’ll see countless intellectual properties from yesteryear rebooted for a fresh young audience. Hollywood even remade “Mean Girls” this year, rebooting a movie that came out back when the OG dumbphones were at the height of their popularity!
Privacy and Availability
Many people — regardless of how old they are — simply don’t like to be available all day, every day. We’ve reached an era where if we don’t respond to every call, text, or WhatsApp message immediately, people wonder if there’s something wrong with us. Some people simply prefer not to be “on call” to their friends, family, and colleagues 24/7/365, instead preferring to carve out a little bit of privacy in an increasingly connected society.
Speaking of privacy, smartphones have plenty of concerns in this area. Whereas dumbphones have very few apps that hoard customer data — which is far too easily leaked — modern smartphones are essentially high-tech surveillance devices. A recent study from Malwarebytes says Zoomers are more concerned than other generations with the risk of private texts and photos being leaked, so it makes sense that they might turn to outdated technology as a solution.
It can feel like some of our apps know more about us than we know about ourselves. They track our every move, know who all of our friends are, learn our spending habits, and much more. With a dumbphone, most of these concerns are essentially out the window, as they barely collect any data at all, not to mention tracking and sharing it!
Kids, Parents, and Schools
Most parents like to be able to get in touch with their kids at any time, so having some sort of mobile phone is necessary. On the other hand, many parents also prefer to limit kids’ access to distracting and anxiety-inducing smartphone features. This can be a tough balance with a smartphone, but much easier with a dumbphone!
Mobile games can be major distractions that eat up countless hours of a child’s day, and scrolling social media feeds can lead to self-esteem issues as kids compare themselves (usually negatively) to influencers and peers. Dumbphones mostly eliminate these concerns while still keeping lines of communication open and available between parents and kids.
Parents aren’t the only ones looking to limit youths’ screen time, as some school districts now ban smartphones as well. For students in these schools, dumbphones provide a workaround that enables them to circumvent the rules while still staying in touch with their friends throughout the school day.
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