FILE - Jose Briones displays his Light Phone 2 (L) and Sunbeam F1 phone at his apartment in Littleton, Colorado, on March 24, 2023. (Photo by JASON CONNOLLY/AFP via Getty Images) While it may seem like everyone around you is scrolling through a smartphone, there are still consumers being lured by the simplicity of a "dumb phone" – or one with basic functions and limited connectivity.
More people – particularly younger generations – are seeking to unplug from social media and other apps in an effort to improve their real-life interactions, experts say."People want freedom from screens," said Jose Briones, a digital minimalist and moderator of the subreddit r/dumbphones. "They want useful features while leaving the time-wasting devices at bay.
Many also switch for mental health reasons and to slow down their lifestyle."HMD Global, maker of Nokia phones, told FOX Television Stations that market share in the flip phone category "globally doubled" during 2022 compared to 2021, and it’s expected to grow during 2023 even in a declining market.Many Americans are opting for what’s known as a "feature phone," or one that has more functions than a basic cell phone, such as internet accessibility, but lacks all the capabilities of an iPhone or other. "While global sales of feature phones have decreased worldwide, this is still a massive segment, and there are a few key regions and price points that are bucking the trend," a spokesperson for HMD Global’s U.S.
team said, adding that "tens of thousands" of Nokia flip phones are sold in the U.S. each month."The growth in this market supports the trend of consumers buying premium feature phones as part of an effort to improve their quality of social connections by unplugging from their.