Show HN: The modern flip phone – but it's an iPhone

Show HN: The modern flip phone – but it's an iPhone dumbsmartphones.com...

I built dumbsmartphones.com for people who want to use their phone less — without switching to a clunky flip phone or giving up iMessage.

The idea is simple: we take an iPhone and configure it through Apple’s device management tools to remove addictive apps and lock down distractions. You can still text, call, navigate, and take photos — but no TikTok, no Instagram, no YouTube, no app store rabbit holes.

There are two service levels: • $20/mo: standard digital minimalism setup (core apps only) • $50/mo: fully customized setup (you choose what stays or goes)

It’s part product, part lifestyle experiment — helping people reclaim focus and attention without sacrificing Apple’s ecosystem.

I’d love feedback from this community on: • Any technical gotchas you see in using Apple’s MDM/ABM for this purpose • Ideas for privacy or autonomy safeguards so users always feel in control • Whether you think there’s real demand for “managed minimalism” vs. DIY solutions

Site: https://dumbsmartphones.com

morgan814 · 5 months ago

> we take an iPhone and configure it through Apple’s device management tools

$20-$50 / month to point an LLM at Apple Configurator is wild.

bigyabai · 5 months ago

$20/month for an AI-programmed app that disables features on my phone is nuts. Your project is dead-on-arrival.

YPCrumble · 5 months ago

The idea is that the damage done by addictive social media apps is far greater than $20/month. And people already buy dumbed down smartphones based on Android that don’t allow most apps.

"Far greater" - then price it that way. Good luck getting anyone to pay $50/month though, or whatever you think it's worth for a few lines of Swift that Claude could make.

You're frankly asking a lot making it $2.99, but I'll let your customers speak to that more than myself.