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Let's talk dumb phones

B

boxerboxer

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 4, 2020
Messages
351
I'm interested in the idea of a dumb phone, both for privacy reasons and as a way to help myself stay more present in my life. For my use case it's probably best that the phone has a small collection of the essentials and little to no ability to install unnecessary apps (social media, youtube, etc). There are several promising phones out there like the Mudita Kompakt, and the Lightphone 2 and 3 (but hit me with any other recs if there are other devices like those I should be looking at).

My main hangup is that during the parts of the year when I'm hunting/scouting/fishing, I'd really like access to Spartan Forge, Navionics, etc. Has anyone messed with running them on a small rugged tablet? I could also just get a used phone for that purpose.

I'm not sure I have a real clear question here but I'm interested in how you may have dealt with the phone thing in general and the hunting part of it specifically. Strategy, devices, etc are all fair game.
 
Following. I'm on an Iphone 11 and my Onx is a little touchy lately. I'm considering getting a Pixel 8 or 9 and dumping the OS and installing Graphene OS. I keep my current phone as app free as possible now. If I don't use an app I delete it. I don't install new apps.

I'm going to have to do something in the next year or so. I want simple and private, with as few apps as possible preferably all sandboxed from one another.
 
I've been using a Pixel 8a running GrapheneOS, mostly to get away from google (never been AAPL fanboy) for privacy reasons. It installs Spartan Forge, but I don't have time using it yet on this device.
 
sureshotscott said:
I've been using a Pixel 8a running GrapheneOS, mostly to get away from google (never been AAPL fanboy) for privacy reasons. It installs Spartan Forge, but I don't have time using it yet on this device.
Click to expand...
How are you liking Graphene OS? That is the route I will probably go. The only smart phones I've used are Apple, just becasue I got in the habit of just taking the wife's hand me down once she upgrades since a phone is not something I want to spend money on. I do like that Pixels will more easily integrate into the Linux environment that I have switched to after dumping Microslop.
 
NMSbowhunter said:
How are you liking Graphene OS? That is the route I will probably go. The only smart phones I've used are Apple, just becasue I got in the habit of just taking the wife's hand me down once she upgrades since a phone is not something I want to spend money on. I do like that Pixels will more easily integrate into the Linux environment that I have switched to after dumping Microslop.
Click to expand...
I like it, but it's a learning curve. The app store you are used to is not there by default, so installing apps is challenging. You need to learn to ask the AIs how to do things.
 
sureshotscott said:
I like it, but it's a learning curve. The app store you are used to is not there by default, so installing apps is challenging. You need to learn to ask the AIs how to do things.
Click to expand...
Yes, I figured there would be a learning curve, for sure. Graphene has a very in depth how to on their site, and there are lots of good videos out there with how to's from real humans. If I can't figure it out without the AI's I probably don't need to do it in the first place, lol. Maybe if I can get a good locally run uncensored model up and running soon I will use an AI, but I'm not interacting with one otherwise.
 
NMSbowhunter said:
Yes, I figured there would be a learning curve, for sure. Graphene has a very in depth how to on their site, and there are lots of good videos out there with how to's from real humans. If I can't figure it out without the AI's I probably don't need to do it in the first place, lol. Maybe if I can get a good locally run uncensored model up and running soon I will use an AI, but I'm not interacting with one otherwise.
Click to expand...
https://www.perplexity.ai/ can be used totally anon. No account necessary. Run it in incognito window/tab if you want assurance your data is not tied to you.

So I had this prompt on standby:

How to install _________ on a Pixel 8a running GrapheneOS?
 
sureshotscott said:
I like it, but it's a learning curve. The app store you are used to is not there by default, so installing apps is challenging. You need to learn to ask the AIs how to do things.
Click to expand...
Ahh I remember the old days of pirate installing apps (aka sideloading) from one OS to another.
 
I don't know how people think mapping apps on a smartphone-sized screen (or requiring connectivity) is a must-have or even desireable.

Have always though the Razr-type foldable (flip) screens or a ruggedized tablet would be where I'd install anything meant for the field.
 
Potential alternative: my girlfriend recently got herself a brick, and swears that it has helped a TON with her ADHD/doom scrolling/whatever. you can decide what apps are blocked and what aren't, and then tap the brick and they are locked until you physically tap it again, you can't change anything from your phone once you walk away. So you can turn your normal/smart phone into any version of a dumb phone temporarily. I need to do some researching this as well, for a different angle- as my kids move into the double digits I'm debating when they will need to have a (dumb) phone to call me from after school activities etc.

getbrick.app

Brick — Take Back Control of Your Screen Time

Brick helps you focus and live intentionally. One tap locks your phone so you can reclaim time for what matters most. Works with iPhone & Android.
getbrick.app getbrick.app
 
thedutchtouch said:
Potential alternative: my girlfriend recently got herself a brick, and swears that it has helped a TON with her ADHD/doom scrolling/whatever. you can decide what apps are blocked and what aren't, and then tap the brick and they are locked until you physically tap it again, you can't change anything from your phone once you walk away. So you can turn your normal/smart phone into any version of a dumb phone temporarily. I need to do some researching this as well, for a different angle- as my kids move into the double digits I'm debating when they will need to have a (dumb) phone to call me from after school activities etc.

getbrick.app

Brick — Take Back Control of Your Screen Time

Brick helps you focus and live intentionally. One tap locks your phone so you can reclaim time for what matters most. Works with iPhone & Android.
getbrick.app getbrick.app
Click to expand...
There’s an app called Locked for iOS that does this for free, you just buy generic nfc tags from Amazon. It helps but it’s not exactly what I’m looking for.
 
There are some nice ruggedized tablets out there but of course "size matters." I would still go that route vs. a smartphone if I actually wanted to study a map in the field.

I'm ignorant of the smallest non-ruggedized tablet you could get away with these days.

If just dropping pins or using GPS to set a track or use the compass, a dedicated, stripped-down smartphone would be handier.
 
Lot easier to travel in the woods at night carrying a phone vs a tablet. Maybe the folks that need the large print versions of books need a tablet...
 
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