I went a year without a phone service, and this is what I learned

While I’ve never spoken about this publicly before now, 2022 was a tough year for me. After my Pixel 7 broke, I found myself without a phone, and with plenty of rising family expenses, I didn’t feel like I could just run out and buy one either. What I did have was a collection of older work devices from OnePlus and a few other brands that worked well as Wi-Fi devices, but no longer supported the necessary bands to work correctly on any US network.

During this time, I saved up for a new device and relied on a combination of my home network, public Wi-Fi networks, and hotspotting off my wife’s phone as a way to manage the situation.

It’s true that for some people, it’s technically possible to get by without phone service in this day and age. That doesn’t mean it’s easy. The adjustment period was rough, but I have to admit that the experience wasn’t all bad.

Life without phone service isn’t impossible, but it certainly requires adjustments to how you use your phone. This means using alternative methods for calling and texting, as well as planning out your day and week so the lack of phone service doesn’t slow you down.

I opted to use Google Voice at the time, as it allowed me to place phone calls and receive texts without needing a dedicated phone service. Of course, this came with its own obstacles. The biggest problem with most VoIP services is that two-factor identification support is usually inconsistent at best, and many times, you’ll find a complete lack of support. For most things, I was able to get around this by setting up an authenticator app as an alternative, but I also had to use my wife’s number in a few cases where there was no support for other methods.

Another big issue is navigating from your phone using GPS. As someone who is naturally anti-directional, I rely heavily on GPS to get around in bigger cities and places I’m less familiar with. The good news is that it’s possible to use Google Maps offline as long as you download local data for your area. You can only store so much map data, and it expires over time, but it’s certainly a usable workaround.

You don’t get live traffic updates and redirects, though, which meant I actually had to pay a bit more attention to where I was going instead of relying solely on the GPS gods to get me there.

Now I will admit, it was likely much easier for me to live without phone service than the average person. After all, I work from home, I live in a smaller community, and there’s an abundance of public Wi-Fi networks at the vast majority of the businesses and entertainment venues I typically find myself in.

For the moments when I knew I wouldn’t have Wi-Fi? I also ensured that I had plenty of time-wasters on my phone. Not just gaming apps, but I also learned to use apps like Kiwix for downloading parts of Wikipedia for offline use and Pocket (which is no longer available) for saving articles at home to read in moments where I had no internet access.

At first, the transition felt a bit scary. At the same time, there was a certain level of peace once I got used to the situation. After all, I was no longer being constantly bombarded by texts, emails, and app alerts around the clock. It was a level of peace I hadn’t experienced for decades.

The end result was that my digital life felt more intentional. It was my choice when to check in and when to ignore. The more time I spent away from constant connectivity, the more social media and other parts of my digital life felt less important. Over time, I started spending more time on new physical hobbies like rock climbing, kayaking, and just living my life.

I also found that because I was forced to use my brain over the power of GPS, my own navigation skills improved quite a bit as well.

Now, it wasn’t always great either. Sometimes I’d miss a semi-important call, or I’d find myself wanting to look up the best restaurant. I couldn’t just do that from anywhere; I had to plan around hotspot access. Still, I feel like without this transition period, I probably would have never rebalanced my digital life the way I did.

About nine to ten months in, I finally bought a new flagship phone and activated phone service again. My digital life got easier, but I never forgot what I learned, either.

Even today, I tend to keep my phone in one room. I don’t bring it with me every time I go to the store. I chose intention over constant stimulation. I don’t bring out a phone at the dinner table, and I spend more time doing things that are physical and not just digital. Part of this might have happened anyway, but the habits I formed during my time without a phone plan have certainly stuck with me.

Does that mean I recommend others ditch their phone plans? Absolutely not. Sure, some folks probably could get away with it, especially if you work from home and have relatively wide access to Wi-Fi when you’re out and about.

Still, I do think many people could benefit from a short time without their phone’s constant access. Leaving your phone at home when you go out with friends or simply keeping your phone in another room for parts of the day can help you unwind the habitual need to constantly check in. For most, a few days is more than enough.