Find a simple phone that actually works on your network
Get your attention back with a phone that leaves you alone.
PlainPhones compares feature phones (often called dumb phones), flip phones and kids' phones sold in India, and checks each one against your network, so the phone you buy can actually make calls.
Certified not a paperweight
Does the HMD 105 4G work on Vi (Vodafone Idea)?
from ₹2,599
5 of 6 phones, checked against Vi (Vodafone Idea)
-
Works
HMD 105 4G
The simplest, cheapest option: calls, texts, FM radio and a torch.
- Bar
- No app store
- Battery: up to 10 hours of talk
Calls and texts should work on Vi (Vodafone Idea), including over 4G.
from ₹2,599
-
Works
Nokia 106 4G
A basic bar phone with 4G calling, FM radio, a music player and a headphone jack. No apps or maps.
- Bar
- No app store
- Battery: up to 12 days on standby
Calls and texts should work on Vi (Vodafone Idea), including over 4G.
from ₹2,599
-
Works
HMD 110 4G
A basic bar phone with a music player, FM radio and USB-C.
- Bar
- No app store
- Battery: up to 10 hours of talk
Calls and texts should work on Vi (Vodafone Idea), including over 4G.
from ₹2,799
-
Works
Nokia 2660 Flip (2022)
The 2022 Nokia-branded version of the big-button flip phone, with an emergency button, FM radio, a music player and a headphone jack. No apps or maps.
- Flip
- No app store
- Battery: up to 26 days on standby
Calls and texts should work on Vi (Vodafone Idea), including over 4G.
from ₹5,160
-
Works (on 2G)
HMD 105
A 2G-only keypad phone with FM radio and a music player: it can't make calls on Jio, which has no 2G.
- Bar
- No app store
- Battery: up to 8 days on standby
Calls and texts work on Vi (Vodafone Idea) using 2G. They'll stop working when 2G is switched off unless 4G calling gets enabled.
from ₹1,079
Shortcuts
Who's the phone for?
- Their first phone Calls, texts and a way to reach you. No feeds, no app store. Phones for kids
- My escape from the scroll Keep maps or WhatsApp if you must. Lose the feed. Minimalist phones
- A phone for mum or dad Big buttons, a loud speaker and an SOS key. Easy-to-use phones
- Mud, rain and festivals Tough phones with batteries that last for days. Rugged phones
How we check
Three things decide whether a phone can call
Shops rarely say and networks bury it, so we look it up phone by phone and network by network, and link the source.
2G today
Does the phone fall back to 2G for calls, and does your network still run 2G?
Shared 4G bands
The phone and the network have to meet on the same frequencies.
4G calling
What matters once 2G is switched off, and the thing shops rarely mention.
- phones checked
- 6
- networks
- 3
- countries
- 20
- paid placements
- 0
A note from the founder
The opportunity to be bored was worth the trade-offs.
Why a plain phone?
Doomscrolling was a problem for me (still is when I get the chance to use social media), so I decided to take back my attention and my serenity by switching my primary phone to a minimalist phone. I added website blocking to my iPhone (which now has no data so can only be used on wifi), and let my family and friends know that good ol' SMS would be the way to reach me now.
This has completely broken my addiction to my phone and now I'm setting a better example for my kids and am able to think straight for even minutes at a time. If you're like me and worry about the state of the world and reach for the phone to keep "informed" about what is happening, then switching to a plain phone may be a great fit for you. But first, let's list the pluses of a smart phone and the downsides of a plain phone to see if it is good for you (which is what this is all about, making good choices for yourself and your happiness).
Smart phone pros
- Keep in touch with friends and family
- Can get support and admiration from your social media followers
- Find your way around without a map
- Can get an Uber
- Take photos and video to make good memories
- Use apps for productivity, e.g. banking, language learning, etc.
Plain phone cons
- No way (mostly) to use apps
- Knowing your way around town means you have to think
- SMS messaging is uncool and clunky
- You may be ignorant of what is happening in the world
- No social media followers
- No productivity apps, e.g. Uber, Duolingo, banking
- Being bored while waiting around, self-distraction becomes harder
- Can't sell on Facebook Marketplace
- Can't make good memories with photos and video
With all these pros for smart phones and cons for plain phones, this is not for everyone. But despite all this, for me the opportunity to be bored and to not feel the compulsion to check my feeds for the latest garbage the algorithms want to show me was worth the trade-offs.
Terry, PlainPhones