Single Purpose Device Month - The End
I haven't reached Nirvana, but I do have a better relationship with the technology I surround myself with.
There are parts of this month I'm keeping, and parts I'm leaving behind. My main takeaway from this month is - agency.
I have a working theory when it comes to how we consume media, be it books, music or any sort of video. When specifically looking for something to listen to, watch or read, you always feel better once you're done compared to media an algorithm has served you. These single purpose devices have no algorithm on them, only essays, stories and albums I've curated, as a result I've enjoyed my time with them more, I've savoured the media I've chosen to engage with; I've gotten more out of it as a result.
Now, there are caveats, a discover weekly playlist that Spotify shoves down your throat will inevitably have a few bangers, but getting stuck in a YouTube recommendation spiral never feels as good as sitting down and watching that documentary you've been meaning to get around to, or that next episode of a series you've been enjoying. Getting stuck in a loop on shortform video content while waiting for the bus never feels as good as reading an essay, or sneaking in a couple of pages of the book you're getting through.
To be clear, I don't think everyone who relies on algorithm driven recommendations feels this way, but I do, and a month where I've curated all the media I've enjoyed has transformed this vague feeling of dissatisfaction into something far more concrete.
I'd recommend using single purpose devices to anyone, not so much as a lifestyle change, but as a way of figuring out what really matters to you, what do you care about enough to overcome some sort of friction in how you access it?
This is not a unique thought but we are bombarded with information non-stop, hardly any of it is relevant, meaningful or enriching. There are endless scrolls of distraction all around us and engaging with them or even avoiding them is exhausting. There are notifications to check, enshittified products pushing updates, adverts lurking behind every swipe and flick. You don't have a choice dealing with these, but you do when it comes to the personal media you consume and how you curate it, you just have to put up the barrier yourself, make the decision, and press play.
-Stray Observations-
- Dumbifying my phone even more is something I'm not going back from. The only social media I had on there was Instagram which I use to chat with a few friends on, I posted I wasn't going to be on there and it was..fine. I had the exact same conversations on WhatsApp, and nothing of value was lost. I moved everything off the homescreen and have been averaging about 30-40 minutes of screen time a day, and that's somewhat warped because I use the clock app in the gym. I'll keep my phone looking like this.
The launcher used is Niagara (free version), there are a bunch of others you can use to accomplish the same thing, I think Niagara is a little bit more polished than the rest.
I also stopped using idly browsing Chrome, instead using my little e-ink reader instead. I've got most of the way through the fantastic Pulphead while on breaks from Anna Karenina, my big project. I'll keep carrying that little guy around and using it to motor on through short story and essay collections.
I don't think I'm going to keep using an iPod. Having to charge another device is a pain, finding and downloading certain albums is also annoying. Oh, and I don't get the wired earphones thing, I can't wait to go back to my wireless pair, the amount of untangling I did this month - unforgivable. My listening habits have changed however and I'll be using Bandcamp and NTS for my listening going forward, with Spotify for albums I've been meaning to get around to. I think curated shows on NTS and a more personal collection of music on Bandcamp seems like a happy middle ground.
I will keep on carrying around a separate camera with me. This has been loads of fun and the photos I've taken this month have so much more character than my phone photos. I've also taken some of my favourite photos of my friends (will not be posted here for privacy reasons, sorry) in this time too. I've included a few other favourites here.
