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Anti-Smartphone Phone Launched For Technophobes

Posted by samzenpus on from the I-do-one-thing-and-I-do-it-well dept.

geek4 writes "A Dutch company has launched what it calls 'the world's simplest phone,' targeting users who are sick of new-generation models. Only capable of making and receiving calls, John's Phone is dubbed the world's simplest mobile phone, specifically designed for anti-smartphones users. It does not provide any hi-tech features. No apps. No Internet. No camera. No text messaging. All you have to do — in fact, all you can do — is call, talk and hang up."

5 of 437 comments (clear)

  1. Jitterbug by Captain+Spam · · Score: 4, Informative

    Funny, I seem to recall TV ads a few years back for a series of phones — "Jitterbug", as it was called — that effectively did just this. Complete with the "old person afraid of smartphones" use case example. Though with screens (just to see the numbers as you dial them).

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    1. Re:Jitterbug by binarylarry · · Score: 3, Informative

      I bought one for my grandfather, it's a POS.

      50% of the time he doesn't receive calls.... they just hang up. And he's in a major city with otherwise great cell coverage.

      And it's not something he's doing, I've tested it myself.

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  2. Re:Wait? No phone book? by chemicaldave · · Score: 4, Informative

    I think even the now disappearing "basic phones" have some sort of phone book/directory function. That's not mentioned in the summary. Also, I see it has no display of any kind.

    The phone has a display for incoming calls. The address book exists in the form of a pad of paper on the back of the phone you can write on.

    I'm serious.

    Check it.

  3. Re:Expensive Price by DanTheStone · · Score: 3, Informative

    Ref: http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080714/0053011666.shtml

  4. Jitterbug by scorp1us · · Score: 4, Informative

    In the US, we already have such a phone, called a Jitterbug, and it is aimed at the geriatric market...

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