Can we live without our phones?

Available for over a year

For many of us, our phones are the first thing we look at in the morning and the last thing we put down at night. But with growing pressure over screen time and concerns about the impact of social media, tech companies like Meta have agreed to restrictions. In our conversations, we bring together three people who have received treatment for tech addiction. We also hear from those have decided not to use smartphones at all. “To me what’s weird is when a couple go on a date, instead of looking at each other and talking to each other, they’re staring at their own phones and texting people and doing whatever the hell they’re doing,” Loren in Los Angeles tells us. “That to me is weird and I see elements of weirdness on smartphones all the time.” Presenter: James Reynolds BBC producers: Ben Davis, Angela Sheeran and Adam Chowdhury Boffin Media producer: Richard Hollingham Editor: Arja Haikonen A Boffin Media production in partnership with the BBC World Service Outside Source team. (Photo: Young group of people standing in circle using mobile phones outside. Credit: Xavier Lorenzo/Getty Images)