#dumbphone — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #dumbphone, aggregated by home.social.
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My new phone arrived on Saturday, and I've been playing with it so that I can give at least a somewhat knowledgeable review. For a bit of background, try these posts.
https://someplace.social/@dandylover1/117016570097287465
https://someplace.social/@dandylover1/117080735346981626
Note that I have not tried Calculator, E-mail, Browser, Messages, or usb tethering and hotspot. I know that it will speak inside of the message edit box, but I haven't sent a message, since it seems I need to add a contact first. The only ones i would really use of those are Calculator and hotspot/tethering, anyway. I shall divide this into pros, cons, and overall opinion.
Pros
*It has real buttons. This was my main purpose in buying this phone. I was sick of touchscreens. The navigation pad isn't really tactile in the sense of having separate buttons as my Kyocera Rally did, but it's fairly easy to figure out, since it's just a circle with only four options.
* Yes, it has a screen reader. It's called Readout. Tello does not include the user manual in the box and directs users to the official one by TCL. For some inexplicable reason, while they mention other accessibility features such as hearing aid compatibility, they say absolutely nothing about a screen reader. Fortunately, both AT&T and Tracfone do. This is from AT&T.
https://www.att.com/device-support/index/tcl/flip-2/
* Readout reads almost everything. Almost all menus are read. Certainly, important ones such as settings are, except for the battery percentage. I can easily add a Bluetooth device, set an alarm, change ring tones, switch to usb file transfer mode, read all files on the phone (and presumably on an sd card/I'm waiting for that to arrive), read notifications, use the Music, Recorder, and Notes programs. I think I can also add contacts, but I'm still working on that.
*Files are easily transferred from my computer to the phone and vise versa. Even though it's a very old version (11), on AOSP, so I'm not truly surprised about that.
*It works well with an external keyboard. Mostly, I won't be using one, but it really helps when adding contacts, writing notes, or sending texts, though I usually do the last via Google Voice on my computer.
*It's not huge. I was concerned that it would be a very long phone, but it's really not. It's also narrow and very easy to hold in the hand.
*The battery life is excellent. It lasts for a long time if it's just sitting idle.
*It has a headphone jack. I really missed that when going to the SE3 from my A15. Now, I can listen to things without worrying that the batteries in my earbuds will die.Cons
*Setting it up the first time requires sighted assistance. There is no way to turn Readout on with a hotkey such as the volume buttons, as with regular Android. But the option appears very early in the process, and if you wanted to, once it was on, you could finish the process yourself.
*Setting alarms can be confusing at first. For some reason, while it always speaks the first number in each column (hour and minute), when I arrow up and down, it says nothing. Then, when I go back to it, it will tell me the changes. For example, if the hour is on 9 and I set it to 10, it will not say "10". IIf the minute is on 29 and I set it to 30, it says nothing. But if I then go back to the hour column, it will say "10" and if I then go to the minute column, it will say "30". Now that I know this, it's fairly simple to do.
*The battery percentage isn't announced via the menus. As with the clock, I don't understand this. It reads everything up to clicking on "battery level" and then it just says "okay" without actually telling me the level. The only way I can be sure of it is to plug the phone into a wall outlet, a computer, or a power bank.
*The calendar does not speak at all. Absolutely nothing in the calendar speaks.
*It does not announce whose calling. At first, I was upset about this. Then, I realized that the only phone which did that was my Kyocera Rally and then only because I chose a ring tone that specifically read out messages. None of my iphones (SE, SE2, and SE3) nor my galaxy A15 read out numbers. I must unlock the phone to read them. Here, though, if I open the phone, it answers. The other option is press any key, so no matter what, I won't ever know who's calling. I can, however, set specific ring tones for contacts and just ignore everyone else.
*Programs can be installed on it, but it's not easy or officially supported. I wasn't sure whether to include this in Pros or Cons, but since everyone says it's extremely difficult, as the phone must be rooted and failure and even ruining the phone are possible, I put it under Cons. I won't be attempting it. But for those interested, this is a forum discussion that explains how to do it. It also contains a site with programs for flip phones in general, so you might find it useful, even if you own another model or brand entirely.
https://www.howardforums.com/threads/tcl-flip-2-modding-info.1927948/
*The branding on this phone is very confuding. When trying to determine if this phone had a screen reader, I came across several similar-sounding names. The Alcatel My Flip 2 and Flip Go 2 are entirely different phones. But the TCL Flip 2 and Alcatel TCL Flip 2, all with the model number T408DL (or ALT408DL) are the same thing.Overall Opinion
I absolutely love this phone! It's small, light, has real buttons, speaks what I need it to speak, and even has some extras like music, Recorder, Notes, alarm/timer, and hotspot. I can finally simply call someone and hang up without annoyances, an use a phone that doesn't require the strength of Hercules and the hands of a giant to hold! I would highly recommend this to anyone who just wants a simple phone and doesn't want to pay over $300 for the Minivision2+. While the Flip 2 isn't designed for the blind, it does most things right and can definitely be used daily.#Android #accessibility #AOSP #blind #Dumbphone #FlipPhone #MiniVision2+ #MobilePhone #TCLFlip2 #Tello #technology
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Unfortunately my time with the Minimal Phone is over. Sold it today, hopefully the new owner gets some good times with it.
So close to greatness. I might miss this one day like I do my Surface Duo 2, but I’m not one to have phones hanging around not being used.
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#didit #degoogle #dumbphone #android #smartphone
Stelle nach 2 Wochen Dumbphonenutzung fest, ich benötige eigentlich unterwegs regelmäßig nur diese 5 Apps:
Aegis (Authentificator)
Bitwarden (Passwortvault)
Bankapp
Maps-App (egal welche)
ThreemaPlus Telefonfunktion natürlich. Bin wg Telefonqualität unzufrieden mit meinem Android-Dumbphone TT990 und frag mich, ob es noch ne Alternative zu nem regulären Smartphone gibt, die diese Apps nutzbar macht - aber eben nichts anderes? 🤔 Jemand Ideen?
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The Dumber Mini is a dumbish phone with a candybar-style design, 2.8 inch screen, and T9 keyboard. But with an MT6761 chip, 4GB RAM, and Android 14-based OS, it can run modern apps if you need them. Available now in the UK, up for pre-order for $199, ships in December, supports T-Mobile in the US. https://boingboing.net/2026/08/01/dumber-mini-aims-to-be-the-perfect-candybar-dumphone.html #Dumbphone #DumberMini
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Tag 1 (0,5) mit dem dumbphone #degoogle #diday #dumbphone #digitaldetox
1. Hürde: wusste nicht sicher wie viel Geld ich aktuell aufm Konto hab, weil ich gern mein Geld direkt aufs Sparkonto schiebe (Zinsenfuchs) aber diesmal die Zahlen nicht aufm Schirm hatte.
2. Hürde: meine Kontakte sind beim Simkarte umstecken nicht mit übertragen worden, hab ich aber erst gemerkt, als ich den Teenie anrufen wollte. Dessen Nummer konnte ich zum Glück haha
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Un video rilevante sul tema, di cui condivido i pensieri: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wh8uSaden3Q
#socialmedia #dumbphone #chronicallyonline #internetaddiction -
not exactly foss, but this commodore flip phone looks kind of awesome.
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Schaut mal, wen ich mit einem neuen Akku zu neuem Leben erweckt habe!
Verbindung mit Kopfhörern funzt.
Jetzt nur noch neue Musik draufladen, dann kann das 6300, das älter ist als neine Teenager, sein zweites Leben als MP3 Player beginnen.Es war sogar in den Notizen noch ein 14 Jahre alter Einkaufszettel gespeichert. 😆
#Nokia #Nokia6300 #6300 #retrotechnik #digitalDetox #Dumbphone
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While writing a review of my new phone, I realized what keeps me away of screen addiction is screen size and physical keyboard. https://www.reddit.com/r/dumbphones/comments/1un9m5i/tt990_early_review/
#dumbphone #featurephone #smartphone #screentime #tt990 #ttfone -
Buried Apple Feature Turns an iPhone into the Perfect Kids' Dumb Phone
Comments: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48803004
#HackerNews #AppleKids #DumbPhone #ParentingTech #iPhoneFeatures #FamilySafety
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Second day with my TCL flip phone. I didn't touch my smartphone. I survived and I'm very happy with the experience.
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I just bought a TCL flip phone.
This is an experience. Let's see how long can I survive with a dumb phone.
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Commodore Callback Email: Is Peri Getting Nervous?
#Commodore #Callback8020 #Perifractic #CommodoreCallback #C64Ultimate #Lemon64 #Sailfish #MediaTek #RetroComputing #DumbPhone #DigitalDetox #ModernRetro #GEOS #ImpossibleMission
https://theoasisbbs.com/commodore-callback-email-is-peri-getting-nervous/?fsp_sid=8741 -
"Less scroll. More soul."
More people are jumping on the dumb phone wagon to take back their life from social media. But the Commodore Callback 8020 isn't exactly a dumb phone, it seems to be attempting to strike a happy balance.
At $500, the price is steep. But then again, cutting the cord to social media pays dividends for your mental health.
Source: https://commodore.net/callback/
#Wishlist #CassetteFuturism #RetroComputing #Commadore #Analog #Phone #DumbPhone
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Interesting device. My teenage daughter is actively looking for a flip phone, this is certainly interesting although the price is a bit too serious, however, you‘d probably end up spending a similarish sum on a used iPhone….
#flipphone #sailfish #commodore #dumbphone -
@annika This was always curious to me: https://www.punkt.ch/pages/mp02-4g-minimalist-phone-pigeon
I had an MP01 phone from Punkt. and it felt good, despite some annoying gripes in the primitive software.
I think @ruari has a MP02. Did you ever set up Signal integration, Ruari?
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It may be a little out of my price range for a new phone but damn, I like what #Commodore is doing with its new phone.
https://www.timeextension.com/news/2026/06/commodores-next-hardware-release-is-dumb-and-proud-of-it
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Welcome to the Internot
Smartphones? Too smart.
Dumbphones? Too dumb.We built the phone in between.
Does everything you want, nothing you don’t.It’s the not dumb dumbphone.
#Commodore #FlipPhone #Dumbphone
https://commodore.net/callback/ -
Commodore made a social media-banishing flip phone
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The Commodore 64 was the first computer I saved up to buy…
Seriously tempted by this back to basics phone!