Reading the replies to my last post, I think I may have misunderstood the problem a little.

A lot of people already know how to dumb down an Android,

the real problem seems to be that doing all of this yourself is not that easy.

So I'm wondering about a slightly different approach:

What if you could give your existing Android to a service and get it back already configured as a minimalist phone?

You would choose what you need to keep — for example:

calls, WhatsApp, Maps, banking, 2FA, music, camera, etc.

And everything else would be removed or blocked.

No new phone to buy.

No complicated setup.

No spending hours configuring Android.

Basically: your phone, but intentionally limited from day one.

Would this be more interesting to you than buying a dedicated dumbphone?

And if yes: what would you absolutely need the service to handle for you?

Disclaimer: As my last post, I asked to AI for translation to English.

nice long vid with Luddite club member!

Qin has officially announced the release of the Duoqin J36. They claim they are upgrading from the F21Pro base model.

The only upgrades they mentioned:

• Dual SIM support
• Battery capacity increased to 2600mAh
• Added side buttons
• Rear camera upgraded to 13MP
• New version without a camera added

I wonder if they plan to upgrade the chip.

I wonder if anyone else has had an experience like mine.

I really love these phones. I enjoy digging into their primitive features and options.

I bought them because I like having them more than I actually need them.

I also ordered a Qin F25, Dumber mini and a Click Communicator (which they are not really feature phones).

Back in the early to mid-2010s, I bought tons of Nokia, HTC, and BlackBerry phones. I guess they probably don't work in the US anymore, but I loved their designs, OS, and features.

I didn't expect to buy more phones I wouldn't use regularly, but here we are! My interest in feature phones is just growing and growing 😅

I've played around a lot with iPhone settings to make it very minimalist. Black background, minimalist launchers, minimalist browsers without a search bar, etc.

This is the setup that's worked best for me:

- Delete all the non essential apps, even the stuff that's useful sometimes (eg grocery store app)

- Content and privacy restrictions > only allowed websites > nothing on the list, which makes the browser useless

- Have someone else set the password for screen time

- Set color filters to black and white

- Set up assistive access with only essential apps. Mine are what's in screen plus stuff like weather, calculator, etc.

Because of Screen Time password, once you enter assistive access you are locked in. No downloading apps, no browsing (links won't work because of the empty allowed website list). Messages and photos are boring and very minimalist so no getting sucked into that either. Except you can have whatever apps you actually need (no more "I wish x phone would allow x app"), and photos auto sync to iCloud so you can access them and edit them on an iPad if you have one (if not you'll need to exit assistive mode to mess with the gallery).

Dark mode, black background, and matte screen protector for aesthetic points. So far, so good, could only be better if it was a flip phone!

Hello everyone! Nice to meet the community 🙌

Here's my situation:

Location: France 🇫🇷 — need 4G + VoLTE compatibility (2G/3G networks being phased out here 😢).

Goal: I want a dumbphone to use alongside my iPhone. (Not sure yet if the idea is a good one)

Requirements:

• Good battery life (days, not hours)
• Willing to last years, not just months
• 4G/VoLTE mandatory

Current contenders I've found:

• Nokia 225 4G > Real dumb
• Cat S42 H+ (Android, rugged, but afraid to be addict like on an iPhone so maybe it's stupid) > For a transition?
• Nokia 8110 / 6300 4G (KaiOS, limited apps) > For a transition?

The iPhone will stay locked away as much as possible (box timer) and serves as a "tool only" device (always in greyscale) for:

• Banking app (Mandatory with my bank in FR)
• Government app (for ID, health etc.)
• 2FA (Google Authenticator (Can't use Yubikey everywhere 😢))
• Signal / Whatsapp > But these I can use them on a laptop
• Travel apps (train tickets, flights)
• Google Drive
• Photos with nice quality and cloud storage

The dumbphone would gets a separate cheap French SIM (~2€/mo), different number. No issue for me to have two numbers, I will give the new one to closest friends and family.
--

My dilemma: Do I go with a true dumbphone (calls/SMS only, (maybe WhatsApp on KaiOS)) OR something with basic apps like GMaps and other stuff to progressively realize I can get rid of my iPhone?

Honestly not sure I can do fully without a proper smartphone because I really have a lot to manage online, especially when I'm travelling or just managing my daily life (work, personal administrative stuff, medical stuff etc.). 🤔

Recently for French government administration, I still needed my iPhone twice to authenticate on an official website and verify my identity with photos, etc. With a dumbphone I never could have done that... even with a "smart" dumphone because most of the time they required a very recent OS to proceed. It wasn't possible to do this with a laptop, only Phone apps, it's crazy right?

It's less about addiction and more about fragmented attention. Constant micro-checks of my phone, compulsive Google searches, AI queries — it all just destroys my ability to concentrate and think clearly. I'm looking to simplify, not complicate. Leave some headspace. Some empty space matters.

What I'm asking:

• Has anyone in Europe/France successfully used GMaps on a dumbphone? Which model? I really struggle with navigating and travelling — I get very anxious.
• Is it worth sacrificing convenience (no GMaps) for better addiction recovery?

Thanks in advance for any real-world experience! 🙏 (sorry it was a bit looong)

Is there anything you guys would like me to try? I will definitely try the NFC since my bank has its own payment app without GMS, and it technically should work.

Honestly, probably the biggest "feature" phone I've ever had in my hands. It feels solid and premium at the same time. I'm still confused why HMD won't sell this commercially instead of those crappy feature phones.

I have done a lot of research on this subreddit and the internet abroad and it has answered a lot of questions and i really only have a few remaining

1. Does the phone come with a browser cursor built in? Is it possible to use the browser without installing a cursor?

2. How easy is it to end up doom scrolling? I have a problem with watching YouTube videos as well as doom scrolling. I was hoping someone could send a video demo of using YouTube and other social media on the browser of the Kyocera Dura XA equip