Comment by weast | Hacker News Reader

Comment by weast | Hacker News Reader

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I am currently working on a phone designed to reclaim the digital toolbox nature of the smartphone- access to maps, messages email etc, but with an e-paper display. There are some (albeit not so interface friendly) e readers with SIM cards, but I think there is great power in just having a screen that doesn't vibe with the oversaturated video and image based distractions we are so used to lugging around with us all the time.

One of the most interesting things about a hardware based restriction is that it entirely avoids the game of turning on and off apps or deinstalling them. Even if you want to respond to a message in your DMs in Instagram, it will work, but the temptation to pull up the Reels or For you page just isn't there when it's all black and white and choppy.

Mind you we are super early stages but the idea feels promising and by my own testing I have really found it to be a much more pleasant phone experience.

I'll post some links here if people are interested.

> I think there is great power in just having a screen that doesn't vibe with the oversaturated video and image based distractions we are so used to

Similarly (easier but less drastic) I’ve seen people turn their phone to grayscale mode to make the device less engaging and remind you that it’s a productivity device, not an entertainment device. On iOS you can do this through the Accessibility settings. (Settings > Display & Text Size > Color Filters > Color Filters on, Grayscale

It’s possible to create a (greyscale) color filter toggle, as well as time based or app open/close activation with the iOS “shortcuts” automation: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=W32pf_97onM

didn’t open the video, but you can also set double or triple tap on back of your iphone shortcut for this. i have a red filter set up for late night doom scrolling

I tried grayscale for a few months but it changed absolutely nothing. Videos are just as good as it turns out.

I would give a try to an e-ink based smartphone if there was a good one. The only reason I got a smartphone in the first place in 2020 was access to maps/taxi/banking apps which would work with any display. But given the grayscale experience I wonder if you get used to laggy e-ink videos as well.

Android's Digital Wellbeing also has an option for Bedtime Mode to enable greyscale mode (along with do not disturb etc.). I find that really useful and it also has a sort of snooze option in the notifications if you quickly need to disable it for a short period.

Another option: a touchscreen, but with a mechanical backlight. What I mean by that is a little string you pull that spins a magneto that momentarily powers the backlight, maybe for 5-10 seconds at a time. This frees the battery from a major source of drain (hopefully comparable to e-ink) and also has a built-in limit to how much screen time you get. Eventually anyone would get tired of pulling the string. But it would be plenty for a map or sending a text or email.

I went thru the author’s struggle, too. Here’s what I came with:

https://vonnik.substack.com/p/how-to-take-your-brain-back

Are you thinking about a clear USP vs. the Light Phone II/III?

Are you working on the Mudita Kompakt or Minimal Phone?

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