In a society in which we are connected from early in the morning until late at night, there has been a visible change lately. Young people from Generation Z are more likely to opt for a dumbphone. This is also the same in Spain.
Young people have a growing interest in so-called dumbphones or ‘dumb’ phones with the aim of breaking free from the intensive use of technology and its negative effects on health. Dumbphones are phones that you can only use to make calls or send text messages. Furthermore, there are no apps on them. And the fact that you can’t use it on the internet, Facebook, Instagram or TikTok is precisely the reason.
Other advantages include durability, battery capacity, and affordability: you can buy a good phone for less than €30. A bargain compared to expensive smartphones.
Hispanic youngsters are more likely to opt for dumbphones
A recent study by SPC, a Spanish technology company that develops consumer electronics, found this trend increasing in Spain. Already 12.2% of young people have exchanged their smartphone for a dumbphone. 19.5% of young people know someone who has already done so. Other sources have pointed out that this practice is especially important among members of the so-called Generation Z – people born between 1995 and 2010 – who do not know life without the internet or social networks.
“The research we conducted has allowed us to delve deeper into a movement that had not been analysed in detail until now, revealing how more and more young people are joining the detox trend,” says Irene Manterola, Marketing Director at SPC.
Research among Spaniards between the ages of 18 and 35
The final report of the survey, which was carried out among 1,000 Spaniards between 18 and 35 years old, shows that in Spain the average daily use of smartphones is around 5 hours a day. This may include the use of social networks, instant messaging, video calls, or work.
This means that these young people are glued to their smartphones about 20% of the time. This has led to growing concerns about the overuse of these devices and their key role in social network addiction.
As a result, more and more youngsters are opting for simple mobile phones without an internet connection. In Spain, searches for these phones for purchase have grown by almost 215% between September 2023 and the same month this year, according to data from price comparison site Idealo.
Addictiveness
Several studies, such as that of the Chicago Booth School of Business, have shown that intensive use of social networks activates the same brain regions as addictive substances, causing mental health problems such as anxiety and depression.
This situation is especially worrying for young people who have grown up with technology, such as those of Generation Z. They have grown up in a digital world and these devices offer them a completely new and valuable experience.