Punkt. is a fairly little, vibrant and independent company, and we like to keep close connections with our clients and with individuals and organisations within the style world. As part of this, we regularly run 'Punkt.Challenges'. These consist of design challenges that form part of postgraduate design courses, and digital detox obstacles where self-confessed mobile phone addicts are welcomed to revisit their relationship with innovation.
10 years earlier, mobile phones were still really unusual. Now, a life lived outside the framework of the smart device is uncommon. 10 years back, many people had smart phones, however they would usually just attract our attention if another human had chosen to call us or send us a text. Now that the majority of people's lives are so much more automated: the brand-new typical is to scoot around within a ceaseless onslaught of status updates, push alerts and a great deal more.
Our Digital Detox Challenges have actually been running because 2016. The negative aspects of smartphones weren't widely discussed at that point, however there has actually given that been a rise of interest in the subject. Participant reports are a key component of the Detox Challenges; by running the Challenges and releasing these reports we aim to keep the conversation of individuals's relationship with technology popular and on-going - both in regards to tech addiction and the importance of high-quality style in the real (i.e. non-virtual) world.
The big distinction this time round was that the term 'mobile phone dependency' had plainly gone into common parlance - in 2016 it still sounded a bit over the top, however in 2018 people were beginning to sound really stressed. You can check out the reports below, however here are some excerpts from a few of the numerous applications we got:
" The continuous scrolling."
" I attempted it with an old classic phone, it was like going back to an ex - with all the old pros and cons. Who does that?"
" We use our phones a lot - why shouldn't they be beautiful in addition to practical?"
" I'm doing my own variation now, but I had to opt for a broke ass burner phone that's 10 years old ...".
" As a UI designer for digital items I've frequently questioned a few of the success requirements used in my industry, particularly 'engagement' as a metric for success. Till that modifications, unfortunately it's very tough to combat versus 100s of designers who are aiming to hook you in to their items. [] There is a certain paradox about this as I create for these items however desire to get away from them. I think it's an opportunity for me as a designer to value how important our attention is, and try to take that lesson back into my industry, ideally to affect a change in approach to innovation.".
" I have actually begun eliminating all my social media profiles and have instantly observed the positive effect it's had on me. I am a lot calmer now, and I wish to keep it that method, by likewise eliminating my smartphone for excellent.".
Life is too brief to keep our heads down.
Technology has actually dramatically altered over the last century, from being a practical tool in our lives to keeping us as connected in as much as it can and for the longest time period. This Challenge changes that in its totality, pressing us into realizing exactly what is going on. I've constantly liked using the latest things, but since Punkt. has actually been around, I wished to alter that, and with the Digital Detox Challenge, that's precisely what happened. When you go from a continuously buzzing mobile phone to a phone like this, you realize what does it cost? you can compromise all these applications that keep you hooked all day long: you do not need them.
In a method, you do become type of separated socially from your good friends-- let's say if they "Snapchat" you or whatnot-- however you start to recognize that it's for the better, and the Punkt. MP01 achieves just that. It teaches you simpleness and teaches you that you do not need whatever on your phone. Just the fundamentals.
If you feel like you are hooked on your phone, like many people I have met, it could be a great time to give this phone a shot. Much of my own family members experience this sensation and I seem like passing this challenge on to others so they can master it. This Challenge has actually become so essential in 2018 because-- as I stated-- Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and so on are here to keep us hooked in for the longest time. Don't think me? Download QualityTime for your Android and you will understand that you don't even focus on exactly what's going on around you. If you feel an itch, it might be a great time to obtain that had a look at, and a great way to go about it is with the Punkt. MP01.
The more time we invest taking a look at screens, the lesser daylight becomes-- and sometimes, yes, more of a limitation. Whether you're inspecting your messages while walking to work, enjoying your smart device with your good friends (who are each taking pleasure in theirs), or seeing a movie, daytime is an inconvenience.
We started heading in this manner due to the fact that we wished to. Nowadays-- to a large level-- we merely do it since we do it. And since others want us to do it.
Is this truly how you wish to spend your time on Earth?
* * *.
In 2016, Google employee Tristan Harris left his job to found a new non-profit organisation called Time Well Spent, which looked for to broaden the dispute on exactly what innovation is doing to us and caused the production of the Center for Humane Technology. Ever since, the topic has exploded into the mainstream and it has ended up being clear that it is refraining from doing good ideas to our basic sense of wellness.
The web page of the Center's website features a striking montage image. A generic graphic of a smartphone is integrated with a picture of a female. However she is not presented as being on the screen. She remains in reality 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, enjoying the view. And she is bathed in sunshine.
Possibly it makes sense to use these brighter nights for something besides looking at pixels? And when bedtime techniques, matching sundown with a digital sunset: everything switched off, leaving simply a land-line with a number understood only to household and close pals, and a dedicated alarm clock.
Joining those who have actually dumped their mobile phones entirely, integrating a fundamental phone with a laptop computer or tablet (much much better for typing on). Nowadays these ideas might sound practically radical, but as far as biology is concerned, they're exactly what your brain desires. The medical side-effects of tech over-use.
Due to the fact that of the evident decrease in traffic accidents, Daylight Saving Time is stated to increase life span of a nation's residents. Ditto prohibiting phone use while driving, of course (with a much clearer causal link). Phones threaten in other methods, too: scrollers strolling into traffic, selfie trophy-hunters taking one danger too many, and so on. But over-use of tech diminishes our lives in another method also-- incrementally and undoubtedly. It provides us a narrower existence in which we are less focussed, less rested and hence less awake. Over-use consumes our lives, and it's becoming the standard.
Time for a rethink?
Do you discover that wherever you go, you constantly wind up in the very same place: in front of your smart device? Using it, or letting it use you, to remain 'connected'? Gotten in touch with what individuals depend on back home. Linked with the most recent news reports. Linked with work. Linked with games, YouTube videos, Wikipedia. Connected with pictures from the last vacation you took, and the one before that. What type of 'connection' is that, actually? This situation is something that's crept up on us, and perhaps it's time to begin making some choices ...
A holiday is a chance to turn off, to experience brand-new things. However if we do not likewise turn off our devices, if we continue to outsource our consciousness 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 return, it's as if we're paying a sort of vacation tax. Part of the experience is subtracted-- and not to help the regional economy, however to assist line the pockets of investors of social networks business.
Imagine a classic travelogue like Jack Kerouac's On the Road, minus this tax. There wouldn't be much. And even if we're looking for something a bit less intense for our fortnight away, the principle still uses. Whether it's a case of pings on the beach, or livestreaming from the Louvre, something's gotten however something's lost. And on the topic of getting lost, yes, without a smartphone it might take place. And possibly you'll wind up somewhere that turns out to be the highlight of your journey. Maybe you'll find some appealing dining establishment that isn't on tripadvisor.com. You may wind up talking with some residents. Nothing ventured, nothing got. This connect the growing slow travelmovement, check this link right here now and the reclaiming of overland travel as a mainstream and realistic option to flying, shown by the underground success of The Man in Seat Sixty-One. It's all about existing.
If we do choose to have a holiday that doesn't focus on processing big data, there are a couple of alternatives. We can go to the other severe, and leave house without any sort of phone or tablet. (That never ever used to be a severe, but 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, and so on
. Or we can take a different phone. One that just does calls and texts. And then immerse ourselves in a different culture, have some adventures, or merely take pleasure in a little bit of peace and quiet.
The physical act of switching phones goes deep. It's a bit like flying the nest. And it's beginning to get in popularity: whether a low-cost, old-tech model or something more elegant and updated, picking to in some cases use an easy phone is something that everybody can associate with nowadays. They might not do it themselves, however they certainly understand why some individuals do.
There are practical advantages, too. Only needing to charge your phone occasionally is popular with everyone however if you're going somewhere without mains electrical energy, your greedy mobile phone will be no usage at all. With a simple phone you don't require to keep examining that your digital factotum hasn't cunningly discovered some method of running up monster-sized information roaming charges-- it can still happen. It's the 'really being there' that truly counts. Sure, taking a trip without a mobile phone will mean a few mix-ups, a minimized capability to strategy, to know in advance what's going to occur. Travelling sans algorithms is where the action is. And the screens on simple phones are frequently much tougher than the large areas of glass found on their more complicated cousins. Replacing a broken mobile phone screen is an inconvenience at the finest 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 smartphone will mean a few mix-ups, a decreased ability to strategy, to know in advance what's going to happen. But travelling sans algorithms is where the action is.
SMS 03 - Punkt. MP02 from Punkt. on Vimeo.