The amount of time we spend on our smartphones is something we’ve increasingly begun to feel ashamed of. We’ve even talked about it here, telling you about the Light Phone and what goes through the minds of those who’ve decided to abandon the world of smartphones, even if just for a while. Today, we return to the topic by talking about the methaphone and how a single TikTok video managed to get everyone talking about this new “device.”
But let’s rewind a bit. How did we get to the point of talking about a phone that’s essentially fake? How is it used, and why is it being discussed all over the internet? Let’s break it down.
In this article from the New York Post, we read about how the internet was “shocked” by the story of a woman named Cat and a video she shared on TikTok. In the video, she appears to have filmed herself while standing in line at a bubble tea shop, holding what looks like a clear acrylic glass panel. In the clip, the creator is seen mimicking the same gestures we make every day on our smartphone screens. Her act — clearly a (very successful) attempt to grab attention on the Chinese platform — shows how, on TikTok, we can make our audience believe practically anything.
@askcatgpt Completely clear phone spotted in San Francisco on May 14…?!? Wtf?????? 🤭🤫 Link in bio for more deets. (NOT SPONSORED)
In another TikTok, the same creator explains the behind-the-scenes of the previously mentioned video. A video that immediately made many people think it was a potential new Nokia phone, sparking a flood of videos about something that doesn’t even exist. It was, in fact, the methaphone.
@askcatgpt I’m sending out a batch of methaphones to people who have ideas for (safe) social experiments they’d like to run with them— break it out on the subway? Show it to a 5 year old? Replace your phone for a week? The only catch is that you have to write or document your experience in a post online (e.g. blog post, medium, substack, YouTube, tikTok, Ig, etc) The goal is to keep the conversation going. If you’re interested, fill out the super short survey at the link in my bio! Let’s keep the conversation going! #tech #methaphone ♬ original sound – Noah Kahan
In our opinion, Cat’s idea of showcasing this object works precisely because it reflects one of our deepest fears: being judged for how much time we actually spend on our smartphones. And as a result, we may one day — perhaps not too far in the future — end up relying on devices like this which, even though fake, would reveal one of our generation’s greatest weaknesses: smartphone addiction.
