Punkt. is a reasonably small, dynamic and independent business, and we want to keep close connections with our consumers and with people and organisations within the design world. As part of this, we regularly run 'Punkt.Challenges'. These consist of style challenges that form part of postgraduate style courses, and digital detox difficulties where self-confessed mobile phone addicts are welcomed to review their relationship with innovation.
10 years earlier, smartphones were still really unusual. Now, a life lived outside the framework of the smartphone is unusual. 10 years back, the majority of people had smart phones, however they would generally only attract our attention if another person had actually chosen to call us or send us a text. Now that the majority of people's lives are so much more automated: the new normal is to scamper around within a ceaseless attack of status updates, push alerts and a whole lot more.
Our Digital Detox Challenges have actually been running given that 2016. The negative elements of smart devices weren't commonly gone over at that point, however there has actually because been a rise of interest in the subject. Participant reports are a key component of the Detox Challenges; by running the Challenges and publishing these reports we intend to keep the discussion of individuals's relationship with technology popular and on-going - both in regards to tech dependency and the value of top quality style in the real (i.e. non-virtual) world.
The big distinction this time round was that the term 'smart device dependency' had plainly entered typical parlance - in 2016 it still sounded a bit over the top, but in 2018 people were beginning to sound genuinely stressed. You can read the reports listed below, but here are some excerpts from a few of the numerous applications we received:
" The consistent scrolling."
" I tried it with an old traditional phone, it resembled going back to an ex - with all the old pros and cons. Who does that?"
" We use our phones a lot - why should not they be beautiful as well as functional?"
" I'm doing my own variation now, however I needed to settle for a broke ass burner phone that's 10 years old ...".
" As a UI designer for digital items I've often questioned some of the success requirements utilized in my market, particularly 'engagement' as a metric for success. Till that changes, regrettably it's very challenging to combat against 100s of designers who are aiming to hook you in to their products. [] There is a specific paradox about this as I create for these items however desire to escape them. I think it's a chance for me as a designer to appreciate how important our attention is, and try to take that lesson back into my industry, hopefully to influence a change in technique to technology.".
" I have started getting rid of all my social media profiles and have instantly observed the positive impact it's had on me. I am so much calmer now, and I 'd like to keep it that method, by likewise removing my mobile phone for great.".
Life is too short to keep our heads down.
Technology has considerably altered over the last century, from being a handy tool in our lives to keeping us as connected in as much as it can and for the longest duration of time. This Challenge modifications that in its totality, pressing us into recognizing what is going on. I've constantly enjoyed utilizing the most recent things, however considering that Punkt. has actually been around, I wanted to change that, and with the Digital Detox Challenge, that's precisely what took place. When you go from a continuously buzzing smartphone to a phone like this, you understand just how much you can compromise all these applications that keep you hooked all day: you don't require them.
In such a way, you do become type of separated socially from your pals-- let's say if they "Snapchat" you or whatnot-- but you begin to realize that it's for the much better, and the Punkt. MP01 accomplishes simply that. It teaches you simplicity and teaches you that you do not require everything on your phone. Simply the fundamentals.
If you seem like you are hooked on your phone, like the majority of individuals I have fulfilled, it could be a great time to provide this phone a shot. A number of my own household members experience this sensation and I seem like passing this challenge on to others so they can get the hang of it. This Challenge has become so crucial in 2018 because-- as I said-- Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and so on are here to keep us hooked in for the longest time. Do not believe me? Download QualityTime for your Android and you will recognize that you do not even take note of what's going on around you. If you feel an itch, it may be a great time to get that took a look at, and a great way to tackle it is with the Punkt. MP01.
The more time we invest taking a look at screens, the lesser daylight becomes-- and in some cases, yes, more of a barrier. Whether you're examining your messages while strolling to work, enjoying your smartphone with your friends (who are each taking pleasure in theirs), or viewing a film, daylight is a trouble.
We started heading this method since we wished to. Nowadays-- to a large extent-- we merely do it because we do it. And since others desire us to do it.
Is this actually how you desire to spend your time on Earth?
* * *.
In 2016, Google worker Tristan Harris left his job to found a new non-profit organisation called Time Well Spent, which sought to expand the dispute on exactly what technology is doing to us and resulted in the creation of the Center for Humane Technology. Considering that then, the subject has actually exploded into the mainstream and it has actually become clear that it is not doing good things to our basic sense of well-being.
The home page of the Center's website features a striking montage image. A generic graphic of a mobile phone is integrated with a photo of a female. She is not presented as being on the screen. She remains in fact looking out from the phone, leaning with her arms folded on the bottom edge of the screen as though it were a windowsill. She appears pleased, delighting in the view. And she is bathed in sunshine.
Maybe it makes good sense to use these brighter nights for something aside from taking a look at pixels? And when bedtime methods, matching sundown with a digital sunset: whatever turned off, leaving just a check here land-line with a number understood only to household and close friends, and a devoted alarm clock.
Signing up with those who have actually ditched their mobile phones entirely, integrating a basic phone with a laptop or tablet (much better for typing on). Nowadays these ideas might sound practically radical, however as far as biology is worried, they're what your brain wants. The medical side-effects of tech over-use.
Due to the fact that of the evident reduction in traffic accidents, Daylight Saving Time is said to increase life span of a nation's citizens. Ditto banning phone usage while driving, of course (with a much clearer causal link). Phones threaten in other methods, too: scrollers walking into traffic, selfie trophy-hunters taking one threat too many, etc. Over-use of tech shrinks our lives in another way as well-- incrementally and undoubtedly. It offers us a narrower presence where we are less focussed, less rested and thus less awake. Over-use eats our lives, and it's becoming the norm.
Time for a rethink?
Do you find that wherever you go, you constantly wind up in the same location: in front of your smartphone? Utilizing it, or letting it use you, to remain 'connected'? Connected with exactly what people are up to back house. Linked with the most recent news reports. Gotten in touch with work. Linked with games, YouTube videos, Wikipedia. Linked with photos from the last holiday you took, and the one before that. What sort of 'connection' is that, actually? This circumstance is something that's crept up on us, and possibly it's time to start making some choices ...
A vacation is an opportunity to switch off, to experience brand-new things. If we do not also change off our devices, if we continue to outsource our awareness to image sensors and memory cards, if we're still attached to what we were doing before we left and exactly what we'll be doing when we get back, it's as if we're paying a kind of vacation tax. Part of the experience is deducted-- and not to assist the local economy, however to assist line the pockets of investors of social media companies.
Think of a classic travelogue like Jack Kerouac's On the Road, minus this tax. There would not be much. And even if we're looking for something a bit less extreme for our fortnight away, the concept still uses. Whether it's a case of pings on the beach, or livestreaming from the Louvre, something's acquired however something's lost. And on the subject of getting lost, yes, without a smart device it could take place. And possibly you'll end up someplace that ends up being the highlight of your journey. Maybe you'll find some interesting restaurant that isn't on tripadvisor.com. You might end up talking to some residents. Absolutely nothing ventured, nothing got. This ties in with the growing sluggish travelmovement, and the reclaiming of overland travel as a mainstream and realistic option to flying, demonstrated by the underground success of The Man in Seat Sixty-One. It's everything about being there.
If we do choose to have a vacation that does not focus on processing huge information, there are a couple of options. We can go to the other extreme, and leave home with no sort of phone or tablet. (That never used to be an extreme, however we live in severe times.) And we have choices like altering our gadget's settings to 'minimum', leaving it in the hotel safe throughout the day, etc
. Or we can take a different phone. One that just does calls and texts. And after that immerse ourselves in a various culture, have some experiences, or simply delight in a little bit of solitude.
The physical act of switching phones goes deep. It's a bit like flying the nest. And it's beginning to gain in appeal: whether a cheap, old-tech model or something more elegant and up-to-date, deciding to often use a simple phone is something that everyone can relate to nowadays. They might refrain from doing it themselves, however they definitely understand why some people do.
There are useful benefits, too. Only needing to charge your phone periodically is popular with everyone however if you're going someplace without mains electrical energy, your greedy mobile phone will be no usage at all. With a basic phone you don't need to keep examining that your digital factotum hasn't cunningly found some way of running up monster-sized information roaming charges-- it can still take place. However it's the 'actually existing' that truly counts. Sure, taking a trip without a smart device will mean a couple of mix-ups, a reduced capability to plan, to know in advance what's going to happen. But taking a trip sans algorithms is where the action is. And the screens on simple phones are frequently much tougher than the big locations of glass discovered on their more complicated cousins. Replacing a damaged mobile phone screen is a trouble at the very best of times; increase that by ten if you're abroad.
It's the 'actually being there' that actually counts. Sure, taking a trip without a mobile phone will imply a few mix-ups, a minimized capability to plan, to know in advance exactly what's going to happen. Taking a trip sans algorithms is where the action is.
SMS 03 - Punkt. MP02 from Punkt. on Vimeo.