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You Don't Need a Smartphone: A Practical Guide to Downgrading Your Phone and Upgrading Your Life
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Expected 6 Oct 26Win a free print copy of this book!
19 days and 18:53:42
20 copies available
U.S. only
In this radical and revelatory manifesto, anti-tech activist August Lamm gives you the courage and confidence to ditch your smartphone once and for all.
When August Lamm realized she was spending almost half her waking hours compulsively scrolling, she knew something had to change. She turned to experts to cut down her phone use, but none of their advice actually worked. You can’t simply limit something designed to be addictive. So, she decided to get rid of her smartphone completely. Almost overnight, her mental health improved, her attention span increased, and her curiosity returned.
August received her first iPhone in 2010 when she was fifteen years old--unlike many other writers in this space, she understands intimately what it's like to be a young person struggling to cultivate a healthy relationship with technology. Packed with offline wisdom and practical suggestions, You Don’t Need a Smartphone shows that living without a tiny computer in your pocket isn’t as restrictive or as difficult as you might think; in fact, it’s a lot of fun. From a guide to choosing the right flip phone to relearning your sense of direction after relying on GPS, from tips to meet new people without social media to how to navigate VPNs or banking systems that require an app, Lamm offers a revolutionary blueprint for existing in the Information Age.
A different, more fulfilling world is just beyond your screen. What will you do with all the time you get back?
When August Lamm realized she was spending almost half her waking hours compulsively scrolling, she knew something had to change. She turned to experts to cut down her phone use, but none of their advice actually worked. You can’t simply limit something designed to be addictive. So, she decided to get rid of her smartphone completely. Almost overnight, her mental health improved, her attention span increased, and her curiosity returned.
August received her first iPhone in 2010 when she was fifteen years old--unlike many other writers in this space, she understands intimately what it's like to be a young person struggling to cultivate a healthy relationship with technology. Packed with offline wisdom and practical suggestions, You Don’t Need a Smartphone shows that living without a tiny computer in your pocket isn’t as restrictive or as difficult as you might think; in fact, it’s a lot of fun. From a guide to choosing the right flip phone to relearning your sense of direction after relying on GPS, from tips to meet new people without social media to how to navigate VPNs or banking systems that require an app, Lamm offers a revolutionary blueprint for existing in the Information Age.
A different, more fulfilling world is just beyond your screen. What will you do with all the time you get back?
- GenresSelf Help
224 pages, Paperback
Expected publication October 6, 2026
About the author
August Lamm
4 books88 followersAugust Lamm is a writer and visual artist. She is the author of two books: a drawing guide and a nonfiction book, forthcoming from Vintage in fall 2026.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
July 22, 2026
On this book, August Lamm lays out a series of arguments why the smartphone is not only not needed in our lives, but is actively damaging our human connections, society, bodies, and world. The first half of the book focuses on the “what” and “why” of getting rid of your phones. This is a fairly comprehensive section, full of solid arguments and cited research. It was actually longer than I expected and touched on many aspects of why you should get rid of your phones but all through the lens of August’s personal stories and experience.
The second half of the book is more of the “how”. Touching on a ton of different areas from banking to navigation to dating to dual factor authentication to calendars, this section is what I was so excited for. I was impressed with the number and breadth of subjects covered, but very very disappointed in the length and detail of each one, some sections just being a paragraph or two about “just print a paper map and figure it out”.
Lamm talks openly about how strong her phone addition was and relates it very accurately through her family experiences to other addictions. In that context, she has an extreme stance that all phones are innately evil and destructive and must be gotten rid of. Beyond that, she also lumps in laptops and other connected technologies as irreparable. I don’t think this is true for many of us. There’s also a significant portion of this book, and this projected carefree, phone free lifestyle that almost selfishly caters to a young, single, artist lifestyle.
She states:
“Remember that the inconvenience to your loved ones is far less than the cost of screen addiction to you. If you’ve chosen to downgrade, it’s because you deemed it necessary. So try to hold on to that gut feeling, even as others question your decision.”
Is that the case? Is our individual decision that much more important than our families decisions? Hard stances throughout the book don’t feel preachy but do feel extreme.
Overall this is a very thought-provoking book with some good ideas, though lacking in as much detail as I would have preferred. All that said, I typed this review on my phone and plan to eventually post to social media, so I believe there’s a balance to be had that can still be helpful.
Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the ARC!
Connect with me!
www.instagram.com/calebisreading
The second half of the book is more of the “how”. Touching on a ton of different areas from banking to navigation to dating to dual factor authentication to calendars, this section is what I was so excited for. I was impressed with the number and breadth of subjects covered, but very very disappointed in the length and detail of each one, some sections just being a paragraph or two about “just print a paper map and figure it out”.
Lamm talks openly about how strong her phone addition was and relates it very accurately through her family experiences to other addictions. In that context, she has an extreme stance that all phones are innately evil and destructive and must be gotten rid of. Beyond that, she also lumps in laptops and other connected technologies as irreparable. I don’t think this is true for many of us. There’s also a significant portion of this book, and this projected carefree, phone free lifestyle that almost selfishly caters to a young, single, artist lifestyle.
She states:
“Remember that the inconvenience to your loved ones is far less than the cost of screen addiction to you. If you’ve chosen to downgrade, it’s because you deemed it necessary. So try to hold on to that gut feeling, even as others question your decision.”
Is that the case? Is our individual decision that much more important than our families decisions? Hard stances throughout the book don’t feel preachy but do feel extreme.
Overall this is a very thought-provoking book with some good ideas, though lacking in as much detail as I would have preferred. All that said, I typed this review on my phone and plan to eventually post to social media, so I believe there’s a balance to be had that can still be helpful.
Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the ARC!
Connect with me!
www.instagram.com/calebisreading
April 6, 2026
This topic is very nuanced in my opinion, and the author makes it clear they have a radical stance on this issue. Very informative and echoes a lot of my own thoughts. I like that it is split into sections of solutions that you may encounter on this journey and even a section that goes over the downsides of downgrading. This book makes some solid points and really gets you thinking about smartphone addictions and how smartphones really have made themselves an “essential” item to everyday life and how that could be changed, and does a good job going over the pros and cons of downgrading. This book definitely gets you thinking!
Review of advance copy
finna drop the PO box number soon
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
“The box is helpful,” we insist. “It holds all my things.” We forget that we possess these things long before the box ever existed. All throughout history, human have created and kept and shared these things without a tidy digital container for them. It took only a few years for that to change, for an entire species to forget its own power. ~Beginning of the book
I will admit, when I picked this book I did not know what to expect. So many other books talk about the psychology of being “constantly available” and how bad that is for us. This book… well, this book made everything feel REAL, which in of itself was a surprise to me. Also, after reading the aforementioned quote (on my PHONE, no less!), I put it away and opened my tablet. Still an electronic “box” per say, but not a phone. I will take that win.
The author begins by telling us she was a high school sophomore in 2009, which is probably why I had a hard time connecting with the latter half of the book. I was born in 1980, a time when the only cell phones we had were HUGE and you had to stick the antenna on top of your car to get signal. I was used to physical books, and board games, and PLAYING OUTSIDE. I grew up with one phone line in my house, while a rich friend of mine had her own phone line in her bedroom (I remain jealous of her to do this day). I recall printing out MapQuest directions in 2007, and when you had to *pay* to text someone, and to receive a text in return. So, in that, the latter part of the book which provides suggestions on how to not be so reliant on your phone was kind of a “no crap” moment for me. Her description of what a Dictaphone is (“a pint-sized audio recorder”) was almost archeological in nature, and actually make me snort aloud. However, this part of the book might prove very useful to others who did not grow up the way I did.
However, the middle of the book, where the author discusses how we chase convenience, and how in certain fashions a smartphone does make our lives easier, is what hit me right in the gut. The “Undoing Progress” chapter made me seriously question my reliance on my smart washing machine (hey now, I’ve come to rely on the delayed wash setting)… until she reminded her audience that washing, drying, and folding clothes used to take many hours a day, and I immediately loved my washing machine again.
One thing I am loving about the next generation, especially now that I have a grandson, is that their parents are recognizing how entrapped in this vicious smartphone prison they were, and they don’t want that for their kids. Maybe there is hope yet.
Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for letting me review this book. #YouDontNeedaSmartphone
I will admit, when I picked this book I did not know what to expect. So many other books talk about the psychology of being “constantly available” and how bad that is for us. This book… well, this book made everything feel REAL, which in of itself was a surprise to me. Also, after reading the aforementioned quote (on my PHONE, no less!), I put it away and opened my tablet. Still an electronic “box” per say, but not a phone. I will take that win.
The author begins by telling us she was a high school sophomore in 2009, which is probably why I had a hard time connecting with the latter half of the book. I was born in 1980, a time when the only cell phones we had were HUGE and you had to stick the antenna on top of your car to get signal. I was used to physical books, and board games, and PLAYING OUTSIDE. I grew up with one phone line in my house, while a rich friend of mine had her own phone line in her bedroom (I remain jealous of her to do this day). I recall printing out MapQuest directions in 2007, and when you had to *pay* to text someone, and to receive a text in return. So, in that, the latter part of the book which provides suggestions on how to not be so reliant on your phone was kind of a “no crap” moment for me. Her description of what a Dictaphone is (“a pint-sized audio recorder”) was almost archeological in nature, and actually make me snort aloud. However, this part of the book might prove very useful to others who did not grow up the way I did.
However, the middle of the book, where the author discusses how we chase convenience, and how in certain fashions a smartphone does make our lives easier, is what hit me right in the gut. The “Undoing Progress” chapter made me seriously question my reliance on my smart washing machine (hey now, I’ve come to rely on the delayed wash setting)… until she reminded her audience that washing, drying, and folding clothes used to take many hours a day, and I immediately loved my washing machine again.
One thing I am loving about the next generation, especially now that I have a grandson, is that their parents are recognizing how entrapped in this vicious smartphone prison they were, and they don’t want that for their kids. Maybe there is hope yet.
Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for letting me review this book. #YouDontNeedaSmartphone
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I've casually followed August Lamm on social media for a while, and I remember when she deleted her accounts and announced that she was pursuing her career offline. You Don't Need a Smartphone began life as a pamphlet she sold in her online store and this longer version is, as billed, a "practical guide" to getting rid of your smartphone addiction, accompanied by Lamm's quirky crosshatched illustrations. This book gave me a lot to think about--as a parent and a professor, I'm in many ways the target audience since I spend a lot of time worrying about smartphone usage and its impact on younger minds.
I appreciated Lamm's very practical tips and advice, as well as many of her arguments about the damage done to our selfhood, attention span, and society by our addiction to smart devices. She acknowledges that she's not the first to make these arguments and offers a robust set of citations and further reading. I also appreciated that she takes a gentle tone towards her readers. She is here to ask us to change, but she isn't here to shame anyone.
That said, I think the major aspect of the book that will be off-putting (or maybe polarizing?) for potential readers is how absolute Lamm's stance is. She believes smartphones are problematic devices and that the solution is to get rid of them--not to use Brick or a screen time timer or whatever other method we might employ to use them less often. This seems to be true for Lamm's own experience. She writes candidly about her smartphone addiction and its severity, which included using a dumb phone hotspot connected to a tablet while driving. For her own peace of mind, she gave up even owning a laptop and uses the computers at the public library to avoid a tech relapse. However, I (and others) might question whether we all need to ditch our smartphones altogether, or if moderation is possible. Lamm argues it isn't, but I am not entirely convinced. Either way, this will be a book that I recommend to my colleagues, students, and fellow parents. Lamm methodically and beautifully advocates for all of us to realize that a richer experience of the world is possible if we just unplug.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review of this book.
I appreciated Lamm's very practical tips and advice, as well as many of her arguments about the damage done to our selfhood, attention span, and society by our addiction to smart devices. She acknowledges that she's not the first to make these arguments and offers a robust set of citations and further reading. I also appreciated that she takes a gentle tone towards her readers. She is here to ask us to change, but she isn't here to shame anyone.
That said, I think the major aspect of the book that will be off-putting (or maybe polarizing?) for potential readers is how absolute Lamm's stance is. She believes smartphones are problematic devices and that the solution is to get rid of them--not to use Brick or a screen time timer or whatever other method we might employ to use them less often. This seems to be true for Lamm's own experience. She writes candidly about her smartphone addiction and its severity, which included using a dumb phone hotspot connected to a tablet while driving. For her own peace of mind, she gave up even owning a laptop and uses the computers at the public library to avoid a tech relapse. However, I (and others) might question whether we all need to ditch our smartphones altogether, or if moderation is possible. Lamm argues it isn't, but I am not entirely convinced. Either way, this will be a book that I recommend to my colleagues, students, and fellow parents. Lamm methodically and beautifully advocates for all of us to realize that a richer experience of the world is possible if we just unplug.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review of this book.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
This might be the most important and controversial book you'll read this year.
This compelling and thought-provoking work has me seriously considering switching to a basic phone when my current contract is up. I basically highlighted the whole book, so it feels impossible to just pick out one quote; you just need to read it! I appreciate that Lamm has practiced what he preaches, giving up thousands of followers on social media and risking his art career when he switched to a "dumb phone" and began spreading the message about freedom from smartphones. Lamm rightfully acknowledges the challenges of giving up a smartphone, and how doing so will be more difficult for some than others. (One example: if my kids' childcare provider requires an app, there's not a good workaround for that.) He does provide encouragement as well as some good specific suggestions.
Weird nitpick: He's a bit too blase, specifically, about the purpose of map apps, which aren't just for navigation but also for mapping the fastest route to avoid traffic (which feels very important to me when I'm trying to get somewhere in a timely manner). However, there is at least one basic phone I know of that can have a navigation app, and as Lamm points out, as of the time of writing, there are still other GPS options available.
Ultimately, there are many "what if's" and concerns about the cost of giving up a smartphone. Yet Lamm is right: there is a huge cost to having smartphones, as well: many people's relationships, attention spans and capacity for thought are suffering. This is not just due to a lack of self-control with a neutral technology; smartphones and social media are working exactly how their designers intended them to work.
I think everyone should read this book. Even if they end up sticking with a smartphone, it provides vital food for thought.
Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage & Anchor for the free eARC. I post this review with my honest opinions.
This compelling and thought-provoking work has me seriously considering switching to a basic phone when my current contract is up. I basically highlighted the whole book, so it feels impossible to just pick out one quote; you just need to read it! I appreciate that Lamm has practiced what he preaches, giving up thousands of followers on social media and risking his art career when he switched to a "dumb phone" and began spreading the message about freedom from smartphones. Lamm rightfully acknowledges the challenges of giving up a smartphone, and how doing so will be more difficult for some than others. (One example: if my kids' childcare provider requires an app, there's not a good workaround for that.) He does provide encouragement as well as some good specific suggestions.
Weird nitpick: He's a bit too blase, specifically, about the purpose of map apps, which aren't just for navigation but also for mapping the fastest route to avoid traffic (which feels very important to me when I'm trying to get somewhere in a timely manner). However, there is at least one basic phone I know of that can have a navigation app, and as Lamm points out, as of the time of writing, there are still other GPS options available.
Ultimately, there are many "what if's" and concerns about the cost of giving up a smartphone. Yet Lamm is right: there is a huge cost to having smartphones, as well: many people's relationships, attention spans and capacity for thought are suffering. This is not just due to a lack of self-control with a neutral technology; smartphones and social media are working exactly how their designers intended them to work.
I think everyone should read this book. Even if they end up sticking with a smartphone, it provides vital food for thought.
Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage & Anchor for the free eARC. I post this review with my honest opinions.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I picked up You Don’t Need a Smartphone because I have already been trying to build a more analog life. I finished it ready to contact an attorney and begin formal divorce proceedings against my iPhone.
August Lamm does not just tell us that we spend too much time online. We know. Our weekly screen-time reports have been trying to stage an intervention for years. Instead, she asks what our phones have quietly replaced: boredom, curiosity, privacy, creativity, real hobbies and the ability to wait three minutes without checking anything.
What I loved most was that this felt practical rather than preachy. Lamm acknowledges that getting rid of a smartphone creates legitimate inconveniences, then offers actual ways to handle things like navigation, tickets and authentication without pretending the transition is effortless.
This book echoed so much of what I have already been feeling about wanting a slower, more intentional and more physical life. Five stars and one increasingly nervous iPhone :)
August Lamm does not just tell us that we spend too much time online. We know. Our weekly screen-time reports have been trying to stage an intervention for years. Instead, she asks what our phones have quietly replaced: boredom, curiosity, privacy, creativity, real hobbies and the ability to wait three minutes without checking anything.
What I loved most was that this felt practical rather than preachy. Lamm acknowledges that getting rid of a smartphone creates legitimate inconveniences, then offers actual ways to handle things like navigation, tickets and authentication without pretending the transition is effortless.
This book echoed so much of what I have already been feeling about wanting a slower, more intentional and more physical life. Five stars and one increasingly nervous iPhone :)
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.
As someone who has been slowly removing themselves from a heavy online presence and resents the amount of time my phone steals from me this book was a wonderful reality check. As I read through I started becoming even more aware of how often I pick up my phone despite the lack of social media on it.
I loved that Lamm not only calls out the destructiveness of the habit, the time that we lose and the ways in which we normalize the use of this soul sucking machine, but they also give us alternatives and next steps to begin moving away from smartphones. This was well rounded and both sides of the argument were addressed without the message being muddled.
I'd recommend to any of my friends thinking about putting their phone down and becoming more present.
As someone who has been slowly removing themselves from a heavy online presence and resents the amount of time my phone steals from me this book was a wonderful reality check. As I read through I started becoming even more aware of how often I pick up my phone despite the lack of social media on it.
I loved that Lamm not only calls out the destructiveness of the habit, the time that we lose and the ways in which we normalize the use of this soul sucking machine, but they also give us alternatives and next steps to begin moving away from smartphones. This was well rounded and both sides of the argument were addressed without the message being muddled.
I'd recommend to any of my friends thinking about putting their phone down and becoming more present.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Engaging and thought-provoking book on a topic that affects all of us. Broken up into digestible sections for the screen-addled.
I found this book to be both a practical guide and a thoughtful piece of lay philosophy. My favorite section was "Boredom is the feeling of being alive." As other reviewers have mentioned, the author takes a radical stance, and I hope readers can open themselves to hearing a perspective on this they may not have heard before.
I really enjoyed reading this, and found myself thinking not only about smartphones, but about my approach to living (the most important thing we do!). I would recommend this to anyone.
I found this book to be both a practical guide and a thoughtful piece of lay philosophy. My favorite section was "Boredom is the feeling of being alive." As other reviewers have mentioned, the author takes a radical stance, and I hope readers can open themselves to hearing a perspective on this they may not have heard before.
I really enjoyed reading this, and found myself thinking not only about smartphones, but about my approach to living (the most important thing we do!). I would recommend this to anyone.
Review of advance copy received from Goodreads Giveaways
Thank you Penguin Random House so much for the ARC. And thank you Goodreads for the giveaway! I truly enjoyed this book and I’m going to take the steps to downgrade as soon as possible. This book was so well written and relatable! It was like talk to a friend, and made me go, “yes!” more than once. I have been trying to downgrade without actually following through. I have been on the sidelines cheering on while not getting on the field myself! Thank you for the motivation, I’m inspired!
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Reading August's work has changed my life for the better!
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews