PERTH, AUSTRALIA / RankWire.AI / – Innovative accessories like wall-mounted docks and vintage-style handsets are gaining popularity as researchers explore ways to encourage people to distance themselves from their smartphones. Edith Cowan University researcher Dr Jess Hardley has examined shifts in Australian mobile habits over more than ten years. Her recent research investigates wall-mounted smartphone stations, classic-style handsets, and other tools designed to limit constant device access. The study also looks into everyday strategies individuals use to make their devices less immediately accessible.
Hardley observed practices such as leaving phones in separate rooms or locking them in drawers. Some participants switch their screens to greyscale mode or impose restrictions on certain applications. One individual kept a phone inside a work drawer after mobile gaming started interfering with focus. Although these actions differ in form, they all serve a common purpose. Each creates a physical or digital boundary that temporarily separates users from their devices during specific times of the day.
The research also considers accessories that convert smartphones into more traditional landline phones. Wall-mounted docks can fix a device in one spot instead of being kept in pockets or held in hands. Some connected handsets adopt designs reminiscent of old household phones, such as coiled cords. Hardley’s study includes these products alongside phone-free social gatherings and locking pouches used during concerts. The findings do not establish that these products improve health, focus, or overall wellbeing.
Various ways to create distance from smartphones are examined
Hardley’s publication explores how mobile phones transitioned from portable communication tools to devices integrated into everyday life. Today’s smartphones combine messaging, entertainment, payment options, photography, navigation, work-related functions, and internet access. Her research emphasizes what shifts occur when users intentionally make these devices harder to access. Physical separation is one strategy to modify smartphone habits, along with restrictions implemented at home, work, events, and shared venues.
Titled Revisiting the ‘Snug Tether’: Smartphones in an Era of Scroll-Free Social Events, Landline Accessories, and Device Bans, the paper was published in M/C Journal. It revisits earlier studies on the close relationship between users and mobile phones, now covering topics like phone jails, social gatherings without scrolling, vintage accessories, and device restrictions. According to Edith Cowan University, this research highlights practices that break the persistent proximity commonly linked to smartphone use.
Public environments also see the implementation of phone restrictions
In Australia, restrictions on smartphone usage in public schools have been introduced. Education ministers agreed that from Term 1 of 2024, all public schools would ban or limit mobile phones. Following these changes, federal education authorities cited a survey of nearly 1,000 principals in New South Wales. The government stated that 87% of respondents reported fewer distractions among students in classrooms, while 81% observed enhanced learning outcomes after the restrictions were enforced.
Hardley’s research continues to focus on how individuals manage smartphones as they remain central to daily routines. The study identifies methods such as physical separation, limited accessibility, and creating phone-free zones. Retro handsets and wall-mounted docks constitute part of this broader array of strategies. Edith Cowan University published a summary of these findings on Aug. 18, 2026, adding further examples to ongoing research concerning smartphone habits and digital behavior.