Folding cellphones or flip phones seem to be returning to being a must-have gadget thanks to Gen Z. No, not folding screen phones like the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip, but old school folding cellphones that were popular in the 2000s.
Old school folding cellphones suddenly appear in many TikTok videos. Some young TikTokers make videos showing unboxing folding cellphones, decorating them with cases, and showing tutorials on making aesthetic photos and videos using their makeshift cameras.
Like Sammy Palazzolo, a freshman at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. His TikTok video inviting other users to buy a folding cellphone has been watched more than 14 million times and received more than three million likes.
"This takes away all the bad things about college and all the good things about cell phones. That is connecting with people and taking photos and videos," said Palazzolo, as quoted by CNN, Monday (16/1/2023).
Palazzolo said he still often uses a smartphone on a daily basis, but when he leaves the house he prefers to bring his old folding cell phone. When brought to a party, the folding cell phone that Palazzolo brought immediately became the talk of the town.
"At parties people would say, 'oh my gosh, is that a flip phone?,'" Palazzolo said.
"So we can talk to some new people, meet some people, and everyone likes it," he continued.
Gen Z fans of old school folding phones say they choose phones like this because they help limit social media use and interact more with those around them. There are also those who are interested in the camera, which, although its capabilities are not much, can produce photos and videos with vintage aesthetics.
Apart from ordinary teenagers like Palazzolo, several Gen Z celebrities have also replaced their smartphones with folding cellphones. Like singer Camila Cabello who has a TCL folding cell phone and actress Dove Cameron.
In an interview last November, Cameron said he now uses a flip phone because he realized that spending too much time scrolling through social media was bad for his mental health.
The rise in popularity of old school folding cellphones has made brands like Nokia feel benefited. HMD Global as the holder of the Nokia brand said that Gen Z is an unusual demographic for them.
"This is the generation that didn't have a Nokia as their first phone and likely found our brand through social networks," said HMD Global Head of Marketing Jackie Kates.