TechCrunch Reporter Crosses City With $20 Flip Phone After 1-Day iPhone Dare
Updated
Updated · TechCrunch · Jul 10
TechCrunch Reporter Crosses City With $20 Flip Phone After 1-Day iPhone Dare
1 articles · Updated · TechCrunch · Jul 10
Summary
A TechCrunch reporter made it across town to a library event without an iPhone, relying on Dumb Co’s flip phone after founder Lydia Peabody challenged them to leave the smartphone at home.
The test worked because the $20 TCL-based device still handled essentials—calls, texts, audio recording, maps-adjacent planning and apps like WhatsApp, Spotify and Uber—while cutting off social media and email.
The reporter said nothing went wrong and felt more connected to their surroundings, though T9 typing was clunky enough that longer messages were sent by voice.
Peabody, who says she went 7 weeks without a smartphone and now runs Dumb Co after leaving her therapy career, pitches the device as a middle ground for people who want less screen time without fully disconnecting.