Thinking of a « light phone »
Jun 30
There are 2 kinds of phones: The Smartphone, those highly addictive pieces of glass we carry around in our pocket, that keep us glued to the screen and are the source of many hours of entertainment, games, text messages, videocalls and more ( oh yeah, and sometimes people actually « call » you ) and the « Dumbphones », classic communication devices with numeric keyboards that are mostly geared towards « calling » people and where typing out a text message requires a certain amount of patience and muscle memory that if you want to learn how to do it, you need to look for any cave paintings in the area that depict this.
NoSurf!
Those Smartphones are highly addictive. We spend hours scrolling the net and social media sites, and this has led many to re-think the way we interact with these devices. We do not control them, it is like they control US. Rows of « phone zombies » on the train or waiting in line can attest to it. That is why the #nosurf movement (who wants to re-capture the moment by stepping away from your phone) goes towards a dumbphone. A silly flip-phone in your pocket that is so boring, you only use it to call 911 when you are on the brink of bleeding out.
Lightphone
But what if you realise that having a « dumb-phone » just does not fit your connected lifestyle anymore. A lot of the services we use today require an internet connection (Music, Gps etc), the same internet connection that pumps social media sludge into our brain like its Soylent green. So isn’t there an in-between? A device that allows us to « connect » without becoming an attention-sinkhole? I went on a quest to find out.
Multiple candidates
Immediately I was drawn towards the Unihertz Titan and Titan Pocket. These devices remind me strongly of my Blackberry. A small, rugged and portable device that was ideal for communicating but sucked at webbrowsing or doing any of the internet stuff with a high-visual-octane. The smaller screen and the handy keyboard is very alluring. But the size of the Titan (the pocket is smaller but also has a smaller keyboard) and the poor android support (Android 11 on the Pocket, 10 on the Titan) might speak against them on the long run.
Jelly
Another weird little device on the Unihertz website is the Jelly. A 3 inch android smartphone that is so tiny, you wouldn’t even WANT to surf on it for hours on end. One way to still be connected without suffering from a screen addiction is to downsize the screen? The downside is that using this device for any kind of GPS would require reading glasses with a high perscription
Neuter your Smartphone
The last alternative of course is to « dumb down » your existing phone. By restricting apps and access it is perfectly possible to « scale down » the digital possibilities of your phone to give you JUST the the things you need. This does require a fair share of self discipline because you can easily « switch your phone back to full addictive mode » at the press of a button.
Not quite there yet.
Looking to make your Phone less addictive and more ‘productive’ is more of a thought exercise. I’ve started to figure out it is less about the hardware and more about the things we want to DO with it. Having addictive apps on your phone is a matter of what apps you allow, not what your phone can (or cannot do). I’ve recently moved things like Vinted (I can search for Retro Transformers for hours on end) to my iPad and haven’t used it since. So maybe the same can go for other apps. I need to re-baseline the smartphone I have and determine what I want it to do for me. And if that answer differs in different situations, then maybe I need to start using different profiles and settings to « transform » that black slab into something that does what I need it to do at that moment.
It all comes down to you
In the end? It all comes down to us, the user. We decide how we spend the « attention calories » of our day. Scrolling aimlessly on 9gag or writing up a blogpost that goes around the world in 50 minutes. That is up to us. Our devices enable us to do a great many things, but the way to fight the attention economy might not be with MORE hardware, but with a re-thought approach on how we want to use the technology we already have. So let’s veer away from the umph-teenth Youtube video on some new gadget, keep the money in our pocket and start thinking like like « smart » geeks.
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The Samsung Cellphone Shopping Survival Sheet (2015)
Jan 06When a Noob (or a “norm”) walks up to you and asks you what Samsung phone to buy, you have a problem. A problem not in the sense that you do not have the technical expertise to advise person X on his next digital purchase (You obviously have those skills since you are reading this blog) but you need an extra university degree to try to remember the hurdle of mobile devices Samsung has produced over the last two years. Sure its pretty easy to distinguish the “primary product lines” : The phablet like “Note” devices with their big screens and high specs are obviously something for the distinct power users. The “S” phones form the ‘upper class’ of the more ‘standard phone models’ … but when you try to look farther into the product spectrum it is absolute chaos. The Ace, the Young, the Neo, the Alpha, the Avant, the Core, the Star … You will have an easier time trying to remember Elisabeth Taylors Ex-Husbands in anti-alphabetical order .. then making sense of Samsung’s mobile product line. So lets help you out by giving you a simple list on what Samsung phone to suggest to what type of user in 2015
The Note4 and the S5
The Samsung “Note”
Consisting of the Note 4 and the Note 4 Edge these are the high end phablet phones with high specs when it comes to both screen resolution (5.6 inches) and processor power.
For Who.
For the serious geek who lives on his/her phone and doesn’t mind the size of in in their pocket and who don’t mind spending a couple of extra bucks and who think of their “phone” more like a digital tricorder then a standard “communicator”.
The Samsung “S” line.
Consisting of the Galaxy S5 a fairly “normal” sized phone with a high res 5.1 inch screen and a good camera.
For Who :
Your average user who wants to spend some cash on his/her ‘phone’ and expects a good screen and a point-and-shoot camera replacement. Those who want to hang with the Apple 5s Cool kids but want and Android : Its for them.
The Samsung A3 and A5 side by side
The Samsung A line.
Think “Galaxy S5” for “Norms”. New in the product line, the A-line devices (at last) sport unibody metal casings (Giving them an even more premium feel then the plastic-backed Galaxy S-line). The tradeoff is a non replaceable battery and slightly lower specs when it comes to camera and screen resolution but the end result is more then enough for a good price-quality device . Models : The A6 (5.5 inch display) the A5 (5 inch display) and the A3 (4 inch display).
The A5 with the new positioning of the headphone jack
For who :
As you know we love devices that have a good “value for money” and with these phones you get a well built device with more then average specs for a good price. Good for the entry level Android user who isn’t a smartphone hipster but still wants a decent device.
The unibody design of the A5 (Dual Sim model)
The J line.
Available in the second quarter of 2015 these are the low end phones in the line. The lines consist of the Samsung J1 . A low end smartphone for a low price with a low resolution screen (480×800) and a basic processor and camera spec.
For who :
At a cheap price this is a phone for people with moderate or low expectations of a smartphone. If playing bejewelled and snapping a picture of their dog is the pinnacle of smartphone technology , this is the phone to choose.
Conclusion.
Samsung is starting to mature in the mobile market by establishing a clear product line AND easing up on the (over)zealous use of their TouchWiz interface that has been irritating their high end customers for quite some time. The unibody designs of the A-line phones look better then the cases on the current Galaxy S lines (which is a little awkward) but we think this is only a matter of time.
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Oct 30
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App Week : Block distractions with Offtime. (Android)
Oct 20Smart-phones. That is what we call them .. right ? Well, in todays world we just call them “phones” because aside from aunt Jenny in Pensilvania who holds on to her Nokia 5110 for all eternity, there is no-one left using a “dumb-phone”.
However … I think our Smart-phones are pretty dumb ! They distract and interrupt you at the most horrible times. A Facebook message in the middle of a meeting. A phone call right when i’m “in the zone” for writing a good article, Email when i’m watching tv … or a silly ping by Pinterest that “such and such” is now following me .. AT 4 AM IN THE MORNING.
I hate being a slave of my communications, rushing to get calls, anxious that i’ll “miss out” on emails or messages. “Offtime” is a great app fror your Android phone that helps you with that. You just set the time when you don’t want to be disturbed and Offtime will block any incoming calls, dings, emails and messages EXCEPT from the people you put in your VIP list. Everybody else gets a nice “out of office” message that you have drafted up in advance.
Afraid your internet superstardom will make you “miss out” ? That”s ok. Offtime will give you a summary of what you missed when you get back. The app is free, available for Android, works ‘cross device’ (messages on your tablet smartphone etc will go ‘dark’ at the same time) and you can tie in offtime to your calendar.
And their video is adorable. … Offtime. That little curly haired girl that kicks you in the nuts and takes away your cellphone when you don’t want to be dist… OUCH !! HEY … GIMME BACK MY PHONE !!!!
LINK : Offtime (Free , Google Play)
