Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to give in and get a smart phone?

82 replies

M3lon · 19/10/2019 12:36

I just had to ask my boss to phone me back in the middle of a really difficult conversation because I still use a payasyougo 'dumb' phone and ran out of credit... Blush

I don't have a smart phone, nor does DH or DD, mostly because we fear getting sucked in to 24/7 tech use. That and I don't have an earthly idea how to engage with it all now its all so bloody complicated.

BUT - the other day I couldn't check into a flight before getting to the airport because the only option to do so was via their app....I also couldn't pay a taxi recently because they stopped taking cards in favour of phone transactions....many electric car points require a phone....

Its time to give in isn't it?

OP posts:
NoSauce · 19/10/2019 12:36

Yes.

Aquamarine1029 · 19/10/2019 12:37

Yes, it's time.

PumpkinP · 19/10/2019 12:38

Yep

Original poster
M3lon · 19/10/2019 12:40

DD is gonna be pissed about this...as is DH...but its actually starting to interfere with my job...

Any advice on what to get, and how not to let it take over my life?

OP posts:
TheWorldAsh · 19/10/2019 12:42

Hold on. Electric car points? So you've got an electric car and yet do g want to be sucked into "24/7 tech"?

Get a smartphone. They're useful. If you get an iPhone (and that's what I'd recommend but your mileage may vary) turn on Screentime and it will alert you of your usage. .

Aquamarine1029 · 19/10/2019 12:43

Your phone will not take over your life unless you let it.

EggysMom · 19/10/2019 12:45

The issue wasn't your phone's capabilities, it was your payment method - you ran out of PAYG credit. Had you been on a contract, that wouldn't have been an issue.

The decision to have a smartphone should be made on the other criteria you list, such as app availability, paying for things by phone. You don't have to do all this. For the record, I'd be very annoyed if any airline had an app-only option for checking in, as I try to minimise the apps on my phone.

wonkylegs · 19/10/2019 12:46

Try installing an app to limit your time online if you don't want it to take over and think you can't do it on will power alone
www.inc.com/jeremy-goldman/6-apps-to-stop-your-smartphone-addiction.html

Wingedharpy · 19/10/2019 12:46

I feel your pain OP.
I've been thinking the same recently.
We're being forced into this gradually, as the alternative options are being removed.
As you infer, my dithering is due to the fact that I don't know how the system works.
Presumably, it's not just a case of going out and buying a smart phone.
Do you have to have some sort of contract to enable it to work?
Or can you still do pay as you go?
Does anyone make a smart phone with big buttons?!
Perhaps some of the more evolved humans on here could help guide us lost souls.

AgeLikeWine · 19/10/2019 12:48

Sadly, smartphones are just part of life in the 21st century. I held out against them for many years, and only got one when not having one became a significant inconvenience. Mine costs £11 a month.

Passthecherrycoke · 19/10/2019 12:49

God yes. The time to give in was 10
Years ago 🤣 you have a world of wonderful ness and convenience ahead of you

Bimbleberries · 19/10/2019 12:54

You can still have pay as you go type situations, or ones where you buy some credit each month (like giff gaff, which is what I use). But to do that, you have to buy the phone outright (either new or second hand), which can be expensive, so often the contracts are not a bad way of getting the phone to start with, paying it off over 2 or 3 years, and then after that, switch to pay as you go, or upgrade the phone. (I tend to keep mine for longer as I can't afford the newest ones and don't need the newest tech on it).

I like iphones because so many people have them and you can get help easily but there are lots of other good ,cheaper ones.

Original poster
M3lon · 19/10/2019 12:54

winged maybe we can go through this together? I honestly get the cold shakes when I think about entering a phone shop....they are going to see me coming and I am going to get the shittest deal ever.

I use my dumb phone about 3 times a year. This is the first phone call I've made from it for at least 6 months. A contract just doesn't seem cost effective.....

OP posts:
AliceLittle · 19/10/2019 12:56

They're not phones anymore. They're computers which have calling capabilities.

FinallyHere · 19/10/2019 12:56

I thought I was the last person to give in.

I tried a number of different types but could only really get the iPhone to work. Now I would not be without it.

You don't consider using an alarm clock as engaging with technology, do you. My phone is alarm clock, radio, library of written and spoken word and the way I keep in contact with people who are not near me.

I use it as a contact less payment method everywhere. Doesn't matter which country I am in, it just pays. No need for change for coffee, or parking. Its maps know where I am and tell me when I am walking in the opposite direct to the one I think I am following.

Wouldn't be without it now. Enjoy.

FinallyHere · 19/10/2019 12:57

Google is your friends (in a laptop?)

Research packages so you know what to expect. John Lewis is good for not baffling.

Wingedharpy · 19/10/2019 13:18

@FinallyHere : the alarm clock thing, I understand as I also use that on my current phone.

When you speak about paying for things with it, how does that work?
You must have to have some sort of system linked to the phone to enable that transaction?
Does it mean I'd have to have internet banking? - another cold-sweat-fear-inducing phobia I have.

@M3lon, I know exactly what you mean regarding phone shops, plus, they're all staffed by 16 year olds who speak words that mean absolutely nothing to me.
The last time I replaced my phone, the young sales assistant tried to get me to "upgrade".
His selling point was that I should think about all the great selfies I could take then send immediately to my "contacts".
"Don't be ridiculous" was my response.
Me and my new big button phone left the shop fairly swiftly after that.

timeforawine · 19/10/2019 14:05

Hi OP, what about a 30 day rolling contact? Not locked in, just 30 days notice to cancel. Mine is with Plusnet who I'm very happy with, they have some great tariffs and run of the EE masts so have good coverage.

timeforawine · 19/10/2019 14:06

www.plus.net/mobile/sim-only/30-day

AgeLikeWine · 19/10/2019 16:16

My local John Lewis has a cabinet of reduced phones which have been returned by customers for whatever reason. DP got an almost brand new boxed IPhone 6s (not the very latest phone, but still perfectly adquate) for £230 with a 2 year warranty.

TheSpottedZebra · 19/10/2019 16:26

God if you're that reluctant and you use it so rarely, you'd be a fool to spoff hundreds. Just get a low end phone, probably an android, like a cheapish Motorola or Samsung, maybe 2nd hand. And get payg credit - giff gaff is good as pp said. Or if you want a contract, consider someone like tesco mobile where you can probably get something for £8ish but it will be each month over a 24 month contract.

FurryDogMother · 19/10/2019 16:28

I finally gave in about a year ago. I still only use the thing when I'm travelling, or as an easy-to-carry camera. They don't have to take over your life, but can be handy, I suppose.

bridgetreilly · 19/10/2019 16:31

I highly recommend giffgaff. I buy my phone from them (last time on a monthly plan, this time outright - £120 for a refurb Huawei), and have the SIM contract too. You can alter the monthly amount any time, depending how much you're using it, and the customer service is excellent. I pay £8/month for usage at the moment but there are options from £6 up to £25, I think.

SilverySurfer · 19/10/2019 16:32

No, don't do it. I have a PAYG and have spent as much on buying top ups in the past four years as most people these days spend per week. Your problem was not caused by it being a PAYG phone but because you hadn't topped it up. Don't give in and become a zombie like everyone else Grin

Wineandpyjamas · 19/10/2019 16:38

You’re not the last! My mum is steadfastly refusing to get a smartphone.

If she wants to get somewhere and she’s unsure where it is, she looks at a map. She’s terrified of the government following her every move (as she puts it!)

If I want to share pics of her grandchildren with her I send them to her work email as she never checks her personal one. She’s said she won’t get a smartphone until her old Nokia dies a natural death. Which it won’t because it seems nigh on indestructible.

I’m a total addict to my phone and would never be without it but a large part of me admires my mum’s sheer stubbornness.

She manages very well day to day! If you don’t feel like getting one, then don’t get one. As PPs have said, there are ways to limit your usage. Maybe get a tech savvy friend to go to the phone shop with you so you can’t get sucked into a bad deal?