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Comment by whytaka | Hacker News Reader

I used to have an Apple Watch with LTE so I could go without my phone even when I left the house. Then I sold it because I started needing it much more for work. Now I'm considering getting it again just to be able to keep away from my phone at home.

How low I've fallen.

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One thing that worked well for me was to uninstall the attention grabbing apps. Helped immensely with battery life too :)

Pretty much all that is left on my phone is 'augmented reality' sort of applications. Translate, maps, 'what song is that', barcode scanner, etc. Anything that pops a notification for something I do not really need to know about right now gets uninstalled pretty quickly. I then use the actual websites for those sorts of applications as I can schedule when it happens. I basically made my phone a tool instead of something that is needy like a Tamagotchi.

The problem for me is the browser. Unfortunately iOS doesn’t let you put safari into restricted apps on screen time.

I’ve managed to train myself to regard my computer mostly as a work machine but that just means my phone is my mindless browsing machine.

I just checked and was able to set a time limit for Safari on both ios13.3 and 14.4.1. Type "safari" in the search box at the top of the list of categories that comes up when you go to set a new limit, pull the list down to reveal the search box if it doesn't show up at first.

Have the same issue. Like I deleted Instagram on my phone but I’ll just use the web version. Also, I think Android’s digital well being let’s you restrict websites on the browser

Hey, you can do this. In Screentime, turn on Content & Privacy Restrictions and switch off Safari in “Allowed Apps”. game changer!

I can not stand using the built in browsers on phones so I guess I am in luck :)

Either the pages are designed with you having a mouse. Or they are infinite scroll time sinks. Ok maybe not that bad but sometimes I feel that way... Also my eyes have recently decided 'oh you want to be able to see?! that aint a good idea anymore'. I went from being able to read 4pt to 12 to 15 being readable. You can guess how well that is working on a phone...

I like my Apple Watch, but I use it almost exclusively for fitness (workouts, trail running, etc).

I decided early on to remove all the other things -- apps, notifications, etc. I get Messages, but that's about it. I like the balance, and it allows me to keep my phone farther away in a bag than before.

Plus with the WorkOutDoors app, I can go on runs, with maps, without my iPhone. Love that.

Why not use a garmin in that case? I only use my fenix when I work out, as I strictly wear mechanical/quartz watches the rest of the time.

The UX is definitely not anywhere close to an apple watch, but it is more suited for physical activity and tracking that data.

I do low heart rate training for long distance running. Only iPhone apps with a chest strap or the WorkOutDoors app tell me when I’m above or below my specified heart rate zone.

I was considering a fitbit because of this, i like my mechanical watches too much. Think that might work on my other wrist, while still wearing my regular watches.

I don't have the LTE version, but thinking about getting one for the same strategy. In the meantime, I'm just hiding my phone in drawers/backpack etc to keep it hidden and within range of my watch.

I never had an apple watch but precisely this is the reason I want one. Leave that stupid phone somewhere but still be reachable by my family.

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