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Using Home Assistant, adguard home and an $8 smart outlet to avoid brain rot

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370 points remuskaos | 9 comments | 22 Jun 25 20:26 UTC | HN request time: 1.251s | source | bottom
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AdieuToLogic ◴[23 Jun 25 02:48 UTC] No.44352075[source]▶
Here is a gradated set of exercises to determine one's phone addiction, if any, in increasing levels of potential difficulty.

  1 - on an off day, with no reason to require phone use,
    put your phone in a dresser drawer for the day and
    do not use or look at it.

  2 - on an off day, with no reason to require phone use,
    put your phone in a dresser drawer for the day and
    leave your residence for at least one hour.

  3 - leave your phone at home when either meeting friends,
    getting lunch, or going to the grocery store.

  4 - leave your phone at home when going into the office
    for one day.

  5 - leave your phone in a dresser drawer for an entire
    weekend.

  6 - leave your phone at home when traveling for more
    than a day (vacation, visiting family, etc.).
replies(18): >>44352106 #>>44352132 #>>44352176 #>>44352263 #>>44352441 #>>44352464 #>>44352801 #>>44353233 #>>44353783 #>>44354129 #>>44354290 #>>44354968 #>>44355446 #>>44357132 #>>44357265 #>>44357748 #>>44358033 #>>44359048 #
1. mwidell ◴[23 Jun 25 03:15 UTC] No.44352176[source]▶
I also recommend getting an Apple Watch with cellular – that way you can still be reached for emergencies, while not having access to any social media or other distractions. Since I got an apple watch I find myself leaving the phone at home more often.
replies(3): >>44352241 #>>44352260 #>>44353141 #
2. shreezus ◴[23 Jun 25 03:31 UTC] No.44352241[source]▶
Agreed - I disabled all non-essential notifications (I don't need Slack pinging my wrist) and have found my watch actually helps me ditch the phone more easily.

I'm still "reachable", but the watch UX is annoying enough that I won't find myself scrolling X etc on it.

3. AdieuToLogic ◴[23 Jun 25 03:35 UTC] No.44352260[source]▶
> I also recommend getting an Apple Watch with cellular – that way you can still be reached for emergencies ...

For people who realistically could require emergency contact (parents of minor children, family members with health risks, etc.) this is a wise recommendation.

However, for those not having these very genuine concerns, an Apple Watch with cellular connectivity (or equivalent device) could engender a placebo effect and mask withdrawal.

4. gattilorenz ◴[23 Jun 25 06:54 UTC] No.44353141[source]▶
Wouldn’t a dumbphone work better for a fraction of the price?
replies(2): >>44353285 #>>44353501 #
5. jen729w ◴[23 Jun 25 07:21 UTC] No.44353285[source]▶
Your dumbphone can't have your actual phone number as that SIM is in your iPhone, so it's no good for emergency notifications. The reality is that the vast majority of people can't actually use a dumbphone as their daily driver. Society has pushed us past that point.
replies(1): >>44354174 #
6. mwidell ◴[23 Jun 25 08:09 UTC] No.44353501[source]▶
A dumbphone does not have imessage, dictation, voice memos, timer, and other small things that makes life more convenient. That's why I prefer apple watch.
replies(1): >>44354154 #
7. bravesoul2 ◴[23 Jun 25 10:21 UTC] No.44354154{3}[source]▶
You could get a few of those with a HN style Rube Goldberg where you set up a VoIP you can call that will do voice to sms, call back timer, etc.
8. eemil ◴[23 Jun 25 10:25 UTC] No.44354174{3}[source]▶
This simply isn't true. Where I live every major operator offers multisim i.e. two (e)sims with the same number. It's primarily used for smartwatches, but they support phones as well.
replies(1): >>44384053 #
9. ikr678 ◴[26 Jun 25 03:54 UTC] No.44384053{4}[source]▶
Do dumb phones accept esims though? Usually they require the physical card.