A new dumb phone is on the scene, and it looks pretty darned cool (2024)

As technologically incredible as the best camera phones now are, there's a growing number of users who are getting fed up with how a smart phone can become so interwoven with our existence, demanding attention with its relentless pings, highly curated news and social media algorithms, and resultant data sharing concerns.

The answer to this is a more back-to-basics phone, that retains the core functionality of a mobile/cell phone - the ability to make calls and send text messages - but ditches the apps and extra frills that turn a phone into a technological addiction. A whole industry has developed to produce 'anti smart phones' - or dumb phones as they're often called - and the latest such device to be announced is the Light Phone III.

The original Light Phone was launched back in 2015 as the result of a successful Kickstarter campaign. It was succeeded by the Light Phone II in 2018. Both were minimalist devices, down to their black-and-white displays, and lack of any cameras. But the latter, at least, is about to change with the Light Phone III. Its makers have stated that the third Light Phone will get front and rear cameras - a 50MP primary camera, and an 8MP front-facing selfie cam. Of course it could easily argue that adding additional features to a phone that's supposed to be stripped down is counterproductive. On the flip side, having the ability to capture meaningful memories is always beneficial, and if the alternative would be to carry a standalone camera in addition to your phone, that's hardly the streamlined life a dumb phone is supposed to be promoting.

One potential issue with the Light Phone III's new camera set-up is that the phone's display is still black-and-white, so despite the phone capturing color images, you'll have to view them in monochrome until they're downloaded. The phone will have the ability to send images though, and another nice touch is you'll also get a two-stage physical shutter button where you can half-press to focus.

Other tools offered by the Light Phone III include an alarm, calendar, turn-by-turn directions, hotspot, music, notes/voice memo, podcast and timer features. These are all optional though, rather than being pre-installed, so you can choose what you want and keep the phone as pared-down as you like. Unlike many ultra-cheap dumb phones, the Light Phone III does have some 'premium' features, like an NFC chip, 5G connectivity and fingerprint ID.

The phone's also been designed with longevity in mind. It's constructed with a metal frame and recycled plastic panels, while the battery is easily accessible. The screen and USB port are also said to be more easily replaceable than they are on a conventional smart phone.

You might imagine that a stripped-back device like this would have a fittingly cut-down price, however the Light Phone III will cost $799 when it launches in 2025. But if you pre-order before July 16th, it's available for a discounted rate of $399. The seemingly high price reflects how the cost of the phone isn't being subsidised by bloatware like bundled freemium apps. We'd also wager a phone like this, being produced in relatively limited numbers by a small company, won't benefit from the same economies of scale that a multinational corporation can leverage to launch a mass-produced smartphone, hence the unit price is inevitably higher.

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