iPhone de-distraction and retro tech

[ellnicklin]

So with the general sense of malaise with … modernity, that is rippling through both tech-focused communities and otherwise, more and more people are looking to get back to their devices as being a source of productive tooling and non-distracting entertainment, myself included. I think most people are now aware of the degradation to the social fabric, politically, democratically, and individually around attention/cognition that constant access to the social media attention extraction machine does to us, and want to think about disengaging.

The most success I’ve had so far with this is the use of the Blank app to dull my home screen and force me to do 10 push-ups before I can open Instagram. (this doesn’t sound like much but it’s been the most successful method so far to remove constant Instagram use, particularly away from home because you’re not exactly gonna drop and give me 10 out and about)

I’ve also got back into iPods and off-line listening where the music doesn’t fade into the background of whatever other more distracting tasks my device is able to distract me with.

So both of these got me thinking about how much interest there would be from every day non-apple heads for either/both a new modern day iPod (with click wheel, bluetooth, modern design language but older interface and syncing, where the work required to navigate is in service of the engagement with and mindful curation of the music)

And also the potential for an iPhone model that at firmware level is not able to run any social media applications (or the ability to black list particular applications), where perhaps an aftermarket desire to do so is subject to some kind of administration fee for Apple to turn that back on at hardware/firmware level. It sounds like overkill but I genuinely think I would opt in to a social media free SKU over the standard phone. I would then just use home devices to do that more mindfully for less time.

On one hand, it’s kind of self infantilising effectively delegating parental control to Apple, but these systems are psychologically designed from the ground up to be addictive. it would be empowering for a gambling addict to be able to purchase a phone that can’t run gambling applications so why not for people who have issues with social media?

is this massive overkill/over thought or do you think there would be sufficient numbers buying in to these ideas for a sufficient financial incentive for Apple to make these a reality?

 

[eyoungren]

This isn't going to work for me. I'm a Gen-X latchkey kid that grew up rural and got online in 1985. I'm going to stay online. And long ago I learned to ignore distractions.

Tech has been a big part of my life since 1980 when I was 10. Not stopping now.

 

[nickdalzell1]

I traded out all my modern Apple devices for vintage ones (iPhone 3GS, iPad 2, 2009 MBP) and the rest of my home and lifestyle is from the 1970s (I love 1970s tech and the whole 'nature inspired' aesthetic of that decade). I've already gotten comments about time traveling as I go all the way, clothes, car, the works. You walk into my home you will think the year is still 1978. I even got an Atari VCS on top of a 20" 1979 CRT TV, and yes everything works. The VCRs, tape decks, stereos, the Atari, and yes, I play that thing too. Those games are fun in their simplicity.

The modern world is boring, clinical and eye-searing (especially those modern streetlights that love to go all purple). Also tech isn't solving problems anymore, only causing problems. Solutions in search of problems. When I have to jump through 5 hoops just to login to my email (when in 1998 the correct password is all you needed) it's too much. Too complicated and no longer efficient. It's much easier to pop in a VHS tape than sort through a dozen streaming platforms just to find the one that has Family Ties

Now they're trying to force a cashless society on us. They already declared war on pennies (they stopped making them but what remains still exists yet stores refuse to give them out as change and some won't accept them) and some places have recently decided to refuse legal tender (cash). For now I avoid going to such places but one day I won't have a choice.

 

[Apple_Robert]

People need to exercise personal control and proper boundaries. It isn’t hard. You don’t need to be plugged in and doom scrolling 24/7. Enjoy life without handcuffing yourself to tech.

 

[nickdalzell1]

People need to exercise personal control and proper boundaries. It isn’t hard. You don’t need to be plugged in and doom scrolling 24/7. Enjoy life without handcuffing yourself to teach.

Problem is that the world and society have pretty much made them required tech. I am lucky enough to live in a backwoods rural area where you don't need a smartphone much less a modern one but I'm hearing tales that there are folks who are required to have one to hold a job, or even pay their bills. Some live in countries that don't take cash and require payment apps. That is just cringy to me. But it's easy to say 'well don't get addicted' to an addict or someone who uses their phone for 99% of their daily lives. It's become the new heroin, sadly, and nothing is being done about it. The idea of buying a phone just to call and text is as much a fantasy to many people as the idea of the world being flat. Some just cannot imagine a world without apps and QR codes.

It's scary to me that there will be a day where nobody can conceive of life before phones, the internet, or even computers. It's bad enough folks exist who don't know who Lassie or Buck Rogers are or think the freaking Atari Video Computer System is a myth, and it's only gonna get worse with each generation. They must have banned teaching history in schools or something, kinda like how they did to Cursive.

 

[eyoungren]

Problem is that the world and society have pretty much made them required tech. I am lucky enough to live in a backwoods rural area where you don't need a smartphone much less a modern one but I'm hearing tales that there are folks who are required to have one to hold a job, or even pay their bills. Some live in countries that don't take cash and require payment apps. That is just cringy to me. But it's easy to say 'well don't get addicted' to an addict or someone who uses their phone for 99% of their daily lives. It's become the new heroin, sadly, and nothing is being done about it. The idea of buying a phone just to call and text is as much a fantasy to many people as the idea of the world being flat. Some just cannot imagine a world without apps and QR codes.

It's scary to me that there will be a day where nobody can conceive of life before phones, the internet, or even computers. It's bad enough folks exist who don't know who Lassie or Buck Rogers are or think the freaking Atari Video Computer System is a myth, and it's only gonna get worse with each generation. They must have banned teaching history in schools or something, kinda like how they did to Cursive.

I lived rural from the time I was 9 to the time I was 29 (1980 to 2000). You and I have a very different opinion of rural I think. I got out in 2000 and I will NEVER go back.

It is computers and being connected in that rural lifestyle that kept me sane. While my friends were down the hill checking out the latest music and books and software at the mall, I was at home. So, getting a modem in 1984 and a car in 1986 and the heck out of there in 2000 were life changing things for me.

 

[WarmWinterHat]

I lived rural from the time I was 9 to the time I was 29 (1980 to 2000). You and I have a very different opinion of rural I think. I got out in 2000 and I will NEVER go back.

It is computers and being connected in that rural lifestyle that kept me sane. While my friends were down the hill checking out the latest music and books and software at the mall, I was at home. So, getting a modem in 1984 and a car in 1986 and the heck out of there in 2000 were life changing things for me.

I grew up very rural and on a farm, next to about 150 acres of forest. Moved away for college and then for several years afterwards (different cities, in different states). Moved back to a rural area about seven years ago, at 39, and won't go back to a city or suburb. I like not seeing my neighbors homes from mine, being able to have some animals, chickens and goats in our case, have a huge vegetable garden, and tinker with classic tractors.

Anyway, back to the topic. I find myself pulling away from tech, too. I don't take my phone with me when running or doing local errands, and really only have a handful of apps on my phone...no social media, at all, no games, no video streaming (including YT), and the only browser I have is Firefox Focus. Safari is disabled. My setup works, and I might only use my phone an hour a day. You don't HAVE to be plugged in all the time. Leave the phone in another other room when going to bed, for example.

I've been downsizing my tech collection, too. Giving away things, or selling it. I sometimes don't use my phone, or my computer on the weekends, so basically internet free.

The most success I’ve had so far with this is the use of the Blank app to dull my home screen and force me to do 10 push-ups before I can open Instagram. (this doesn’t sound like much but it’s been the most successful method so far to remove constant Instagram use, particularly away from home because you’re not exactly gonna drop and give me 10 out and about)

I use Blank as well, and this has been Home Screen for well over a year:

 

[Richard8655]

I have to agree with the premise (as I understand it). Tech has taken over our lives as a mind-numbing addiction. Most use it not as a productive or information tool but as mindless entertainment. We sit in front of a screen for hours as our physical condition deteriorates for lack of movement and exercise. We're becoming less informed about domestic and worldwide events as entertainment has taken our attention. I partially blame the current sad situation we're in on this.

 

[eyoungren]

I grew up very rural and on a farm, next to about 150 acres of forest. Moved away for college and then for several years afterwards (different cities, in different states). Moved back to a rural area about seven years ago and won't go back to a city or suburb. I like not seeing my neighbors homes from mine, being able to have some animals, chickens and goats in our case, have a huge vegetable garden, and tinker with classic tractors. Currently restoring a 1957 Ford 641.

Anyway, back to the topic. I find myself pulling away from tech, too. I don't take my phone with me when running or doing local errands, and really only have a handful of apps on my phone...no social media, at all, no games, no video streaming (including YT), and the only browser I have is Firefox Focus. Safari is disabled. My setup works, and I might only use my phone an hour a day. You don't HAVE to be plugged in all the time. Leave the phone in another other room when going to bed, for example.

I've been downsizing my tech collection, too. Giving away things, or selling it.

I have no issue with anyone who likes or wants to live rural. It's just me that has a problem with it. At the time I was growing up, I only saw my friends on weekdays at school during school hours. I was dependent on my parents for transportation until 1986. I largely missed out on being able to go to the mall, shop and be around my friends. On the weekends, my dad was homebound because he absolutely refused to go anywhere, which meant he wouldn't drive me anywhere.

Friends also stopped coming over on the weekends because my dad saw that as free labor and put them all to work.

As I got older I resented that coffee shops, restaurants, grocery stores, book stores, malls, music stores, etc were at minimum a 30 minute drive away. Same with seeing a movie. So, once I got out, I vowed never to return to that way of living. Where I live now, everything is convenient.

Then there is small town/rural politics along with its (often) small minded mentality, people knowing and being up in your business. A former mayor of the early 90s is still banned from public office - part of her plea deal for defrauding voters when she ran for higher office. The rest of the town council in the late 90s were all prosecuted and convicted in an another matter for ripping off the town.

And the fact that any shop worth going to closes at 5pm. I used to work a 9pm to 1am shift. All my snacks and dinner on the way home had to be purchased outside of that rural town because NOTHING was open.

Tech makes my life easier. I'm going to keep using it and bending it to my will and use case.

 

[NUFC2025]

I use my pixel with grapheneOS so it does not have any google stuff on it. I do not and never will have any social media accounts as just dont need the distraction.
Most of my screen time is on a kindle reading books.

 

[eyoungren]

I have to agree with the premise (as I understand it). Tech has taken over our lives as a mind-numbing addiction. Most use it not as a productive or information tool but as mindless entertainment. We sit in front of a screen for hours as our physical condition deteriorates for lack of movement and exercise. We're becoming less informed about domestic and worldwide events as entertainment has taken our attention. I partially blame the current sad situation we're in on this.

Since I was a teen, I have consumed the news. Newspapers, watching my local broadcasts, magazines and later online various news sites. I ended up as a graphic designer in the newspaper industry. I want to know what's going on…pretty much anywhere.

Today, you can find me watching my local news broadcast while reading Google News or Flipboard. Later, I may turn to Sky News or the BBC, or watch the local news for a city that's a 4.5 hour drive from mine. From time to time I will tune in to local broadcasts for the places I used to live in or have visited. Modern tech has given me an Amazon Fire Stick and lots of free news channels to watch.

My wife has often accused me of looking back (at the places I used to be).

So, yeah. I sit in front of screens a lot and I won't argue the health issue. But I will put myself up as a data point against being less informed.

 

[nickdalzell1]

Just for the record, the 'rural' I refer to is the parts of Appalachia where tech often takes a decade after launch to become part of the culture. Around here, there are stores refusing chip and pin cards because many are still confused by how it works, and they can end up holding the line and cause delays. Many places STILL refuse to take Apple/Google Pay/Samsung Pay for a similar reason (some even think you're hacking the register like James Bond or something!). Much of infrastructure is outdated, outmoded yet still exists. There are service stations (yes, full service!) with mechanical gas pumps and the little cash box between them. We're talking Mayberry style life. Only modern bits are cars and smartphones. Everything else you'd swear it was still 1967. Go over the county line into the real backwoods and you're back in 1958. I still have working rotary landlines in my home, too.

There are still bottle vending machines that take quarters (not bills) in the wild. Pennies are still accepted currency (although lately some more modern stores are banning use of them and not giving them as change)

Bottom line is folks here whether they're your boss or your parents or anyone else out in public don't look at you funny for not carrying a smartphone. Pay phones exist still, paper maps are still sold. It's easy to detach from modern tech without sacrificing convenience and I'm thankful for that.

 

[eyoungren]

Just for the record, the 'rural' I refer to is the parts of Appalachia where tech often takes a decade after launch to become part of the culture. Around here, there are stores refusing chip and pin cards because many are still confused by how it works, and they can end up holding the line and cause delays. Many places STILL refuse to take Apple/Google Pay/Samsung Pay for a similar reason (some even think you're hacking the register like James Bond or something!). Much of infrastructure is outdated, outmoded yet still exists. There are service stations (yes, full service!) with mechanical gas pumps and the little cash box between them. We're talking Mayberry style life. Only modern bits are cars and smartphones. Everything else you'd swear it was still 1967. Go over the county line into the real backwoods and you're back in 1958. I still have working rotary landlines in my home, too.

There are still bottle vending machines that take quarters (not bills) in the wild. Pennies are still accepted currency (although lately some more modern stores are banning use of them and not giving them as change)

I'll be specific…since it's been 26 years since living there.

Cherry Valley, California. It's an unincorporated community in Riverside County with Beaumont to the south and Banning to the southeast. Both of those are incorporated.

When I was there, these three places were rural. You passed through on the I-10 freeway to get from San Bernardino to Palm Springs. The ONE fond thing I remember is being able to pick cherries during the summers. North Cherry Valley had dirt streets that turned to mud when it rained and the rest had gravel streets. Your main industry was feed shops and a single hardware store. There was one grocery store and one convenience store. Restaurants tended to fail, so you went to Banning or Beaumont for the limited options they had. Anything else you went down the hill to Redlands. Until the 1990s, everything there was cash and carry.

It's not rural anymore. A large segment of people living in Orange County moved in because it was cheaper. Houses got built, Walmart came in, Home Depot, Lowes, Starbucks and major chain restaurants. Of course - none of this happened when I lived there. It all occurred AFTER leaving in 2000! I wouldn't have minded so much.

 

[klasma]

And also the potential for an iPhone model that at firmware level is not able to run any social media applications (or the ability to black list particular applications),

The reason this doesn’t work for me is that I want a browser, but a browser also gives access to basically anything. Like MacRumors 😉. Yes, you can blacklist sites, but you also can just not install apps. It doesn’t really solve the problem.

 

[nickdalzell1]

I'll be specific…since it's been 26 years since living there.

Cherry Valley, California. It's an unincorporated community in Riverside County with Beaumont to the south and Banning to the southeast. Both of those are incorporated.

When I was there, these three places were rural. You passed through on the I-10 freeway to get from San Bernardino to Palm Springs. The ONE fond thing I remember is being able to pick cherries during the summers. North Cherry Valley had dirt streets that turned to mud when it rained and the rest had gravel streets. Your main industry was feed shops and a single hardware store. There was one grocery store and one convenience store. Restaurants tended to fail, so you went to Banning or Beaumont for the limited options they had. Anything else you went down the hill to Redlands. Until the 1990s, everything there was cash and carry.

It's not rural anymore. A large segment of people living in Orange County moved in because it was cheaper. Houses got built, Walmart came in, Home Depot, Lowes, Starbucks and major chain restaurants. Of course - none of this happened when I lived there. It all occurred AFTER leaving in 2000! I wouldn't have minded so much.

Go deep enough into areas here you'll find 1950s-era McDonald's with the golden arches and Speed-e on the sign! Until sometime in 1999-2001, some of our Dollar General stores still had the Ames signs up from when they took the locations over. There's a "Rexall" drugstore that's actually a Rite-Aid but they kept the store original. Do-It centers are your hardware stores (but in the more city-parts you do have Lowe's and Home Depot but the latter is pretty much dead, and the Lowe's didn't exist until 1998). New development is confined to State Route 54, which looks like you're finally in 2026, but it's not aethetically pleasing to go there for myself since I'm more into the old school lifestyle and modern stores feel uncomfortable.

The people here tried to vote with their wallets. Our tiny little Walmart (which was still stuck in 1972 until 1990) became a SuperCenter and NOBODY wanted to go there because 1) it was too darned big and 2) it kept rearranging stuff once you learned where everything was. We had people who'd still pile up in front of Kmart just before it opened at 6 in the morning. It took Walmart actually buying the property that Kmart sat on, closing Kmart via emminent domain, and then selling it to the highest bidder, in our case, U-Haul. I'm still irked about it, as I, too, preferred Kmart over Walmart. It was the first time in my life that I realized that what I learned about economics in school was nothing short of lies and myths. If supply/demand economics were still a thing, then Kmart would have thrived and our Walmart would have shut down instead. But Corporations don't care about the customer or what the customer thinks about them. They can be absolute crap and they thrive by killing the competition, making themselves the only options left, and there you have it, the 'illusion of choice'.

There's an unmodified, 1976 BiCentennial Kroger store still keepin' on keepin' on, on State Route 60, unchanged inside and out.

 

[eyoungren]

Go deep enough into areas here you'll find 1950s-era McDonald's with the golden arches and Speed-e on the sign! Until sometime in 1999-2001, some of our Dollar General stores still had the Ames signs up from when they took the locations over. There's a "Rexall" drugstore that's actually a Rite-Aid but they kept the store original. Do-It centers are your hardware stores (but in the more city-parts you do have Lowe's and Home Depot but the latter is pretty much dead, and the Lowe's didn't exist until 1998). New development is confined to State Route 54, which looks like you're finally in 2026, but it's not aethetically pleasing to go there for myself since I'm more into the old school lifestyle and modern stores feel uncomfortable.

The people here tried to vote with their wallets. Our tiny little Walmart (which was still stuck in 1972 until 1990) became a SuperCenter and NOBODY wanted to go there because 1) it was too darned big and 2) it kept rearranging stuff once you learned where everything was. We had people who'd still pile up in front of Kmart just before it opened at 6 in the morning. It took Walmart actually buying the property that Kmart sat on, closing Kmart via emminent domain, and then selling it to the highest bidder, in our case, U-Haul. I'm still irked about it, as I, too, preferred Kmart over Walmart. It was the first time in my life that I realized that what I learned about economics in school was nothing short of lies and myths. If supply/demand economics were still a thing, then Kmart would have thrived and our Walmart would have shut down instead. But Corporations don't care about the customer or what the customer thinks about them. They can be absolute crap and they thrive by killing the competition, making themselves the only options left, and there you have it, the 'illusion of choice'.

There's an unmodified, 1976 BiCentennial Kroger store still keepin' on keepin' on, on State Route 60, unchanged inside and out.

Most of the changes I mention happened to Beaumont and Banning. Cherry Valley itself is largely unchanged, except that by the early 90s most of the cherry orchards were gone and streets got paved. Beaumont made a land grab in the early 90s and took over parts of Cherry Valley. Those parts are more modern. One of the reasons I don't care for small town politics, as that was a shady legal move on the part of Beaumont's mayor at the time.

Beaumont had a Rexall with a sit down counter for lunch. That's long gone though. Technology didn't so much change the area as bring in stuff the area never had to begin with. I can still remember the opening day crowds when McDonalds went in. Oh! And Albertsons in Banning. Madhouse that day (1990).

 

[nickdalzell1]

That Rite Aid took over a Rexall but kept the Rexall signs up (cheaper maybe? We have an Aldi occupying a defunct Walgreens) and for the sake of originality they kept the bar around (I won't get into the irony of encouraging dairy product consumption aka milkshakes in a place intended to improve health when it's one of the leading causes of type II diabetes but I digress) and it's pretty much like that drugstore in Season one of The Andy Griffith Show. Only we don't have a nice looking lady operating it, but some guy doing a bad Phil Robertson (guy from Duck Dynasty) impression.

You won't find American Eagle or any popular clothing stores around these parts. The top fashion since 1989 is camouflage, often with a Browning logo or Team Realtree logo. Hunting is participated by 90% of the local population. Our largest industry is sadly, animal agriculture. Other fashions are Buc-ees t-shirts (even though we're more than 200 miles from one of those monstrosities), overalls, and bluejeans and white t-shirts.

Funny thing is that we still have an active Star Trax video rental store. Ya wanna know why they thrived while BlockBuster went under? Perhaps BlockBuster should have went to adult films hint hint! That's all that store has!

 

[maerz001]

I grew up very rural and on a farm, next to about 150 acres of forest. Moved away for college and then for several years afterwards (different cities, in different states). Moved back to a rural area about seven years ago, at 39, and won't go back to a city or suburb. I like not seeing my neighbors homes from mine, being able to have some animals, chickens and goats in our case, have a huge vegetable garden, and tinker with classic tractors.

Anyway, back to the topic. I find myself pulling away from tech, too. I don't take my phone with me when running or doing local errands, and really only have a handful of apps on my phone...no social media, at all, no games, no video streaming (including YT), and the only browser I have is Firefox Focus. Safari is disabled. My setup works, and I might only use my phone an hour a day. You don't HAVE to be plugged in all the time. Leave the phone in another other room when going to bed, for example.

I've been downsizing my tech collection, too. Giving away things, or selling it. I sometimes don't use my phone, or my computer on the weekends, so basically internet free.



I use Blank as well, and this has been Home Screen for well over a year:

View attachment 2622552

I like the honescreen. Had something similar with android nova launcher 15 years ago.
How do you do that on ios?

 

[WarmWinterHat]

I like the honescreen. Had something similar with android nova launcher 15 years ago.
How do you do that on ios?

Blank spaces app, what I use, or dp (dumb phone); they both do the same thing. The affect comes from two widgets..


I'm still running iOS 18, otherwise there would be borders around the widgets, and while it works the same, it breaks the effect.

 

[ayephoner]

Have you all seen the Light Phone? It's obviously not an apple product, but seems similar to what some of you are talking about here.

https://www.thelightphone.com/lightiii

 

[257Loner]

I don't think there's any hope for me. I'm a slave to doomscrolling.

 

[nickdalzell1]

It's kinda impossible to doomscroll on an iPhone 3GS. I'm thankful for my 'downgrade' which feels more like an upgrade. Thankful also that you don't need a cellular plan for iMessage, continuity or handoff to work. Saves a lot of $$$ in the long run.

I have (to myself at least) the most important smartphone bits available: Email, Weather, Messaging, Phone calls, Notes, Music, Browsing the web/quick search, Calculator, To-Do list and so forth. What I'm glad to finally be away from are constant notifications for the most innocuous item, apps constantly begging me for attention, ads, social media and the 'you'll own nothing and you will be happy' subscription model. The only things that go off on this phone are calls, messages, emails or alarms if I need one. With their original iconic tones too (Marimba, Tri-tone, ding). Plus I get to enjoy the wonderful 'slide to unlock'.

 

[Ta_whirimatea]

My favourite phone was the Sony cmd z7, unfortunately it’s a 2g if I remember right & so useless nowadays.
I use my astell & kern s35 for music player. The device which gives me the most tech rage by a mile has always been the iPhone:
- typing accuracy is 🐶💩
- music sounds ok
- slightly over processed pics

Everything has been dependant on smart phone as a means of connection (bank apps etc).
I don’t want a modern iPhone, I’d happily have a basic separate call device.
I don’t use social media.

But credit to apple for creating a device that is the centre of their products to which the users are addicted to.

 

[nickdalzell1]

There are no 2G or 3G networks so while my 3GS has zero cellular capability there are public WiFi spots all around me (and what isn't I don't really miss much when out anyway, plus my music is offline) and since handoff, continuity and iMessage all work over WiFi (and the other apps thanks to jailbreak tweaks) the phone can still work as a smartphone, with its only constraint being apps made after iOS 6.1.3 don't exist. They're not important enough to worry about though. My needs are simple.

I also am thankful the area I live in is culturally stuck in 1967, so physical bank branches mean no dependence on banking apps or the latest OS. Same goes for paying utility bills, shopping and so forth. "Modern" life freaks me out. It's intentionally meant to be uncomfortable and relies too much on connectivity and the latest tech. I once got picked up by my mom and her vehicle felt like a Starfleet Shuttlecraft and it didn't feel right. On road trips I'm reminded that a horrible monstrosity that's the size of three Walmarts put together called Buc-ee's exists and I'd rather go to a old mom and pop store. I can't imagine living in a Cyberpunk world. The thought of it gives me nightmares.

 

[Abydos]

come on, back in the day people were distracted tuning their am radios in their cars, lighting cigarettes , checking out chicks (birds, babes, broads ,whatever), tech is just another venue for distraction - don't over exaggerate the issue