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Turn Your iPhone into a Dumb Phone

This article shows you how to turn your iPhone into a dumb phone, using a handful of simple apps and settings. You don't have to purchase a new device just to simplify your screen time — you can dumb-down your existing iPhone, and enjoy many of the same benefits.

Using an Accessibility setting, you can completely gray-out your iPhone’s screen, which I’ve found has made a noticeable difference to how engaging it is. Whatever apps you’re addicted to, just seeing their icons on your iPhone (or being able to search for them) can act as a in your brain which sends you spiralling into another doomscrolling session. You can turn your iPhone into a ‘dumphone’ all you like, but unless you also delete some apps, you’ll still have access to all your vices — social media, games and more (even if they’re now grayscale).

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