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schobi

I like the idea and the looks of it, but do they get any usage (beyond the test calls)?

It will be hard to overcome a lot of gaps in education

- where is a phone (he seems to have signs "phone inside"), what kind of device am I even looking for, visually?

- is this operational? did someone forget this on the wall?

- how do you operate the dial?

- do you even remember a phone number that is useful now? When the smartphone suddenly stops working?

Sadly, I would probably score 2/4 and not rely on it.

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If I pointed my kids at one of those phones and said - Go see that that thing does. They would.

Without an adult to prompt them, I think most kids would. As long as their ambition hasn't been conditioned away.

I worked as a tech on an art project involving a phone booth on a public square and every few hours I was there I'd see some children go in and try to talk. There were two unused booths, so on a few occasions I saw sibling go into them and "talk" to each other. The phones weren't plugged in, but my plan for this year is to set up an intercom between them. I also saw a lot of parent take their kids up to the booths and tell them about what it was like when we didn't have phones in our pockets.

> do they get any usage (beyond the test calls)?

Usage stats: https://randtel.co/stats.html

Regarding the first one, the app icon of the phone app on smartphones still depicts a telephone receiver, so that should look somewhat familiar.

I dial important numbers by hand so that I remember them when I don't have my phone with me.

I may forget everything but I’ll always remember 867-5309

> do you even remember a phone number that is useful now?

This is the one that would get me. Back in the 1980s and 90s I had lots of phone numbers memorized, now I don’t even know my wife’s phone number.

> Back in the 1980s and 90s I had lots of phone numbers memorized,

> now I don’t even know my wife’s phone number.

I think this is all of us who were born before the Reagan admin.

For my part, I combined both things you brought up. I have 10 numbers that are ~same as the ones I grew up with and they forward to the family phones (50¢ea/mo, MVNO)

I have one friend's telephone number memorized, but he has had it for 40-plus years. My wife's and my son's? Well, they are stored on my phone.

When I realized the only practical numbers I knew were my home phone number from 1995 and my cell, I made it a point to memorize my wife’s.

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