Summary
Phone addiction is a serious problem for many people. Even amongst the oldest group of Americans (those 65 and older), 30% admit to having a problem. If you are in the group struggling with too much screen time, here are some settings you can use to help you curb your problem.
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While most Americans say their smartphone has improved their life, nearly six in ten say they use it too much. The percentage decreases with age, but even 30% of those 65 and older admit to an addiction. If you’re in that group struggling with smartphone addiction, here are some settings you can use to help curb it.
For Personal Tech Media, this is Two Minute Tech. I’m Jim Herman.
First, check your screen time use. On Android, open Digital Settings and select Digital Wellbeing and Parental Controls. On an iPhone, open Settings, choose Screen Time, and then select See All Activity. While this won’t necessarily do anything to stop future problems, sometimes just seeing the amount of time you spend on your phone will come as a shock to you and motivate you to change.
Next, on an iPhone, use the Screen Time app to limit your phone usage. Go to Screen Time, Turn on Screen Time, and select This is My iPhone. Then, tap on Downtime to schedule regular time when your phone will be unavailable. Only calls, messages, and apps you specifically allow will be permitted during downtime.
If you have an Android phone, you can limit the time you can use individual apps. Open the Digital Wellbeing and Parental Controls section from the Settings app. Select the app you want to limit and choose Set Timer.
Finally, limiting the notifications you receive can be a great way to stop you from checking your phone so often. How to turn off notifications from specific apps will be the subject of tomorrow’s episode.