The Tool and the Toy: The Two Faces of a Phone
+ How using two phones has drastically reduced my screen time
One of the biggest reasons why phone overuse is so widespread is that the confines between healthy and unhealthy usage are blurry. In contrast to traditional addictions, such as cigarettes or alcohol, where the solution is unequivocal - quit - you cannot just give up your phone.
A phone is both a toolbox and a toy. You keep it for essential tasks but end up spending too much time on it for entertainment. The same goes for apps - you might intend to use Instagram to stay in touch with friends, but spend most of your time watching reels.
Sometimes, limitations are a good thing. Therefore I decided to turn my old phone into a pure utilitarian device and use it as my main device. For the past month I have used two phones:
the Toolbox Phone - an old iPhone SE, stripped down to its essential tools.
the Everything Phone - an unrestricted iPhone 15, reserved for occasions outside my daily routines.
TOOLBOX PHONE
My Toolbox Phone is an iPhone SE from 2020 with no SIM card containing all the apps that I need for my day-to-day activities. More specifically:
Daily routines: Calorie tracker, Habit tracker
At work: Calendar, To-do list, Time tracker, Two-factor authentication apps
At the gym: Apple fitness plus, Music
Communication apps: WhatsApp, iMessage, FaceTime
It does not have an internet browser, games, podcasts, social media, or news. It is a very boring device, there is nothing you can waste time on.
EVERYTHING PHONE
Then, I have my everything phone. I use it anytime I do something out of my routines, and in social settings. I can call people, use mobile data, take better pictures and have a great battery life. It is not as full of time-sink apps as some might expect, but it does have access to some that can be gateways to distractions, like Safari and Instagram.
What have I learned?
I already had a pretty intentional usage of my phone, but after a month of using two devices I gained the following insights:
I became more aware of times that I craved the phone.
I realized that I had habituated myself into using my phone in seemingly harmless situations, like during rest periods between weightlifting sets. In the past, I would have spent this time browsing online; not having the option has made me feel more embodied, leading to better and more enjoyable workouts.We often make our environments work against us.
99% of the time, we don’t need to use a phone during our daily activities, but we keep it with us for that 1% of the time we do, like authenticating to a website with our phone.
A Toolbox Phone is perfectly capable of doing that 1%. These days, if I am at my desk working, there is no reason I need my Everything Phone with me. As my Toolbox Phone has everything that’s essential, I can keep it on me with a sense of calm knowing that there are no distractions trying to pull me in.Some apps are neither tools nor toys, and a philosophy of use is needed for them.
During this month I realized how some seemingly innocuous apps are double-edged swords: most notably music, podcasts and news. These are not as addictive as social media, but they can be overused and become detrimental.
For example, I've noticed a tendency to always want something playing in the background, whether it's music while working or a podcast while doing something else. I believe it’s a bad habit. In times of silence my mind gets the space to think and gets its clearest and best thoughts.
This realization made me re-evaluate my relationship with some apps and I am currently figuring out how I want them to be part of my life. I’m doing so by creating technology rules and philosophy for them (learn how to do this yourself here - premium users only).
Conclusions
Will I keep using this system? Yes, at least for now. I am currently working on some personal projects from home and my life is pretty predictable - and this system is both enjoyable and effective (my average screen time on the Everything Phone is just over 1 hour - mostly on google search, messaging, and maps). However, as life introduces more variability with a full-time job on the horizon, I will likely need to use my Everything Phone more, and that might be the end of the two-phone lifestyle.
That’s fine, as I don’t believe this system is meant to be a life-long strategy, but I view it as an effective way to rethink our relationship with our phone and rewire our habitual patterns. I am confident that most of the habits that I have built and am building during this experiment will stick over time.
Have a great day,
You will hear back from me with a new premium post next Sunday,
Antonio
(P.S. I know some readers of Dachi are working at Digital Wellbeing and Mental Health companies - I am currently looking for a job as a Junior Product/UX Designer, so let me know if your company is hiring 😉).