Before 2007, the hottest phone on the market was the iconic Motorola Razr V3 (or the Blackberry if you spent 80% of your time in “crucial meetings”). But then the Apple iPhone entered the chat, with the first Android devices joining the market the following year. Ever since, the revolutionary smartphone has taken the world by storm, worming its way into the hands of everyone from the age of 9 to 99. In fact, as of 2024, 310 million Americans reported that they own a smartphone – that’s 97% of the population!
However, a recent trend indicates that smartphone saturation may have reached its peak. More and more Gen Zers – those born from the mid-to-late 1990s through the early 2010s – are ditching their smartphones in favor of “dumbphones,” the practically indestructible devices their parents used to use. From 2021 to 2024, 18- to 24-year-olds led a staggering 148% spike in “brick phone” sales, while their smartphone use actually dropped 12%, according to the peer-reviewed journal Partners Universal Innovative Research Publication.
The numbers back it up further: a Morning Consult survey found that 16% of Gen Z adults say they currently own a dumbphone – the highest of any generation – and 28% expressed interest in acquiring one, more than double Gen X (13%) and baby boomers (9%). Meanwhile, market research firm Mintel found that 60% of Gen Z say they want to be less connected to the digital world on a daily basis. A 2024 Harris Poll of 1,006 Gen Z adults, conducted alongside social psychologist Jonathan Haidt, found that more than 1 in 5 wished smartphones had never been invented at all – and 50% wished X didn’t exist, 47% TikTok, and 43% Snapchat.
To be clear, this is still a niche development – U.S. feature phone sales accounted for only about 2% of all handset sales in 2023, representing roughly 2.8 million units. But the momentum is real. HMD, the maker of the rebooted Nokia 3310, reported that sales of the phone had doubled since its 2017 relaunch, as of 2023. So, what’s driving Zoomers back to these stripped-down devices – and are they as good at T9 as their Millennial predecessors?
Key Takeaways
- Gen Z leads a 148% spike in brick phone sales from 2021–2024, while their smartphone use dropped 12%.
- 16% of Gen Z adults already own a dumbphone — higher than any other generation — and 28% want one.
- 60% of Gen Zers want less daily digital connectivity, and over 1 in 5 wish smartphones were never invented.
- Key motivators include escaping doom-scrolling, protecting privacy, nostalgia, and using dumbphones as fashion statements.
- School smartphone bans and parental concerns are also pushing younger users toward simpler, less distracting devices.
What are Dumbphones?
Dumbphones – also popularly referred to as feature phones – do away with most apps and features of modern smartphones. In other words, they don’t have any fun stuff, but they also don’t have many of the negative attributes of smartphones either.
As someone whose first mobile phone was a Motorola MicroTAC, I can assure you that even the cheapest modern dumbphone is still way more powerful than the phones we carried around when I was a kid. (The MicroTAC was too big to fit in my pocket and it couldn’t even send texts.) Still, today’s dumbphones are pretty barebones devices – and that’s actually a huge part of the appeal.
These phones focus primarily on calls, text messages, and some basic internet functions like email. And the market for them is quietly growing. U.S. feature phone sales reached an estimated 2.8 million units in 2023 – about 2% of all handset sales. That might sound small, but the momentum behind it tells an interesting story.
Not only are companies now creating new dumbphones, but several models from a bygone era are making a comeback as well. For instance, the classic Nokia 3310 “brick” phone – which nearly every Millennial and Gen Xer was completely obsessed with in the early 2000s – was relaunched by HMD in 2017, and its sales had already doubled by 2023, according to The Guardian. (Don’t worry, it’s not that much better than the original…it’s still pretty dumb.)
Meanwhile, from 2021 to 2024, 18- to 24-year-olds led a 148% spike in “brick phone” sales, while their smartphone use dropped 12%, according to the peer-reviewed journal Partners Universal Innovative Research Publication. A Morning Consult survey found that 16% of Gen Z adults say they currently own a dumbphone – the highest of any generation – and 28% expressed interest in getting one, more than double the rate of Gen X (13%) and baby boomers (9%).
The “why” behind all of this is becoming clearer, too. According to market research firm Mintel, 60% of Gen Z say they want to be less connected to the digital world on a daily basis. A 2024 Harris Poll conducted alongside social psychologist Jonathan Haidt found that more than 1 in 5 Gen Z adults wished smartphones had never been invented at all – and roughly half wished platforms like X, TikTok, and Snapchat didn’t exist.
So, of all generations, why are Zoomers the ones leading the charge to go back to more low-tech devices? And will other generations follow their lead, or is their smartphone addiction already beyond help?
Why are Zoomers Transitioning Back to Dumbphone Usage?
There are quite a few reasons why some people – particularly Gen Zers – enjoy the stripped-down nature of a dumbphone. The concept of “doom-scrolling” is all too familiar for many people these days. Some of us simply can’t help ourselves from spending countless hours scrolling through bad news on X (formerly known as Twitter) or comparing ourselves to influencers on Instagram or TikTok.
Living in the Moment
By swapping out a smartphone for a dumbphone, Zoomers prevent themselves from participating in doom-scrolling. Instead, they’re actually participating in hobbies like reading books and newspapers, conversing with those around them, or picking up crafting. If that sounds boring, that’s kind of the point!
Dumbphones allow users to be more present in their daily lives, a concept that Zoomers are clearly latching onto. According to the market research firm Mintel, 60% of Gen Zers say they want to be less connected to the digital world on a day-to-day basis. And a 2024 Harris Poll – conducted alongside social psychologist Jonathan Haidt – found that more than 1 in 5 Gen Z adults wished smartphones had never been invented at all. Half of those surveyed wished X didn’t exist, 47% said the same about TikTok, and 43% about Snapchat.
The numbers back this sentiment up in a tangible way too. From 2021 to 2024, 18- to 24-year-olds led a 148% spike in “brick phone” sales, while their smartphone use actually dropped 12% over the same period, according to the peer-reviewed journal Partners Universal Innovative Research Publication. It might seem strange that Zoomers are setting aside TikTok in favor of a good old-fashioned dumbphone, but the data increasingly confirms it!
Modern Trend-Setting and Nostalgic Yearning
Some Zoomers say their dumbphones can be fascinating conversation starters, as people often ask about their stripped-down devices and why they chose them. Others see them as a cutting-edge fashion trend – dumbphones as a fashion accessory draw attention in ways that widespread devices like iPhones simply do not.
Another aspect of Zoomers’ dumbphone usage is a sense of nostalgia for a bygone era, one that many Gen Zers were too young to experience for themselves. As far as trends go these days, you’d be hard-pressed to find one more pervasive than nostalgia.
The dumbphone revival is part of a broader reinvention of retro devices, as Gen Z is also flocking to vinyl records and cassette tapes instead of Spotify and playing outdated 8-bit games rather than firing up a cutting-edge title on modern consoles. Hollywood has followed suit, with countless intellectual properties from yesteryear being rebooted for fresh young audiences. The nostalgia economy is very real – and dumbphones fit squarely within it.
Nokia’s iconic 3310, relaunched by HMD in 2017, is a prime example of this phenomenon. According to The Guardian, its sales had doubled by 2023 compared to its relaunch figures – a remarkable feat for a device with no apps, no social media, and a screen barely bigger than a postage stamp.
Privacy and Availability
Many people – regardless of how old they are – simply don’t like to be available all day, every day. We’ve reached an era where if we don’t respond to every call, text, or WhatsApp message immediately, people wonder if there’s something wrong with us. Some people simply prefer not to be “on call” to their friends, family, and colleagues 24/7/365, instead preferring to carve out a little bit of privacy in an increasingly connected society.
Speaking of privacy, smartphones have plenty of concerns in this area. Whereas dumbphones have very few apps that hoard customer data – which is far too easily leaked – modern smartphones are essentially high-tech surveillance devices. A study from Malwarebytes found that Zoomers are more concerned than other generations with the risk of private texts and photos being leaked, so it makes sense that they might turn to simpler technology as a solution.
It can feel like some of our apps know more about us than we know about ourselves. They track our every move, know who all of our friends are, learn our spending habits, and much more. With a dumbphone, most of these concerns are essentially out the window, as they barely collect any data at all – let alone share it with third parties.
Kids, Parents, and Schools
Most parents like to be able to get in touch with their kids at any time, so having some sort of mobile phone is necessary. On the other hand, many parents also prefer to limit kids’ access to distracting and anxiety-inducing smartphone features. This can be a tough balance with a smartphone, but much easier with a dumbphone.
Mobile games can be major distractions that eat up countless hours of a child’s day, and scrolling social media feeds can lead to self-esteem issues as kids compare themselves – usually unfavorably – to influencers and peers. Dumbphones mostly eliminate these concerns while still keeping lines of communication open between parents and kids.
Parents aren’t the only ones looking to limit youths’ screen time. School-level smartphone bans have accelerated significantly in recent years, with a growing number of U.S. states passing legislation requiring districts to restrict or outright prohibit smartphone use during the school day. For students in these schools, dumbphones offer a practical workaround – allowing them to stay reachable by parents without the temptation of social media and games during class hours.
Find Your Refurbished Phone from Gazelle
Whether you’re looking for the latest and greatest iPhones and Androids, or you want an older-model phone that operates more like a dumbphone, Gazelle has plenty of options for you. With 16% of Gen Z adults already owning a dumbphone — the highest of any generation — and 28% expressing interest in getting one, the demand for simpler devices is very real. There’s no need to spend full price when we have a wide variety of certified refurbished devices to match every lifestyle.
Get in touch with Gazelle for more information about our 30-point inspection process for every device we sell. Or, take a look at our inventory to choose your next device today!