When the dumbphone counter-revolution was only just beginning to heat up, people used whatever non-smart phone they could get their hands on, and that usually meant cheap plastic, no touchscreens, no Bluetooth connectivity for listening to music, and having to text by cycling through letters one by one via the number pad. You know, just like the (bad) old days.Now we’ve got dumbphones like the Light Phone III, which are so close to the smartphone experience that it feels almost crass to call them dumb. But as nicely made it is, and as impressive as the 5G connectivity, touchscreen, camera, and Bluetooth are, it fulfills the core tenets of a dumbphone by blocking access to unrestricted app stores and internet browsers.And you know what that means? (Sound the trumpets). No social media apps.TL;DR: My Quick VerdictYou love your smartphone’s hardware; the slick touchscreen, the sense that those who designed it sculpted it out of aluminum and glass, and the toolbox of apps that let you navigate this baffling ordeal we call a world. But you hate the fact that your smartphone’s unrestricted access to social media, app stores, and the wider internet make it feel more like your phone owns you, rather than the other way around. That’s who the Light Phone III is made for. It’s a gorgeous piece of premium hardware that feels more like a smartphone with those insidiously addictive, attention-robbing apps scooped out.(opens in a new window)Light PhoneLight Phone III(opens in a new window)Available at Light PhoneBuy Now(opens in a new window)MORE: Best Dumbphones for Smarter Phone Use or a Digital Detox how i tested THE LIGHT PHONE IIIBecause I’m not much of a social media person and normally pack a regular, ol’ iPhone 15 Pro in my pocket, I thought I’d take the Light Phone III over to a close friend who gave up on smartphones years ago. I test this thing for work. He’s lived with a series of dumbphones day in, day out. What would he think of it?Compared to the series of old, eBay special, refurbished flip phones and, later on, modern-day flip phones he’s carried around, the Light Phone III felt like a Space-X capsule. Together we ran through the Light Phone III’s cycle of built-in tools, comparing it both to his big dummy of a flip-screen dumbphone and my iPhone 15 Pro, an aging brainiac graying at the temples but still very advanced.The Light Phone III tended closer to the iPhone’s experience when it came to connecting to AirPods via Bluetooth and texting. Back home I found myself flicking the Light Phone III on to swipe through its screens and turn over the handsome device in my hands. I just couldn’t put it down.light phone iii – credit: Matt jancerso, so smart for a dumb dumbphoneCompared to the premier smartphones, such as the latest Google Pixels, Apple iPhones, and Samsung Galaxies, the Light Phone III’s build quality is right on par with the best. The aluminum case and the matte-finish touchscreen converge in crisp edges. Sure, you might swathe it in one of Light Phone’s $15 protective cases, but for a while, at least, you can appreciate that it gives up nothing to the iPhone in the fit and finish department.The Light Phone III’s specs are respectable but nothing out of this world. It packs a 50-megapixel rear-facing camera and an 8-megapixel front-facing camera. The rear-facing camera shoots videos in 1080p resolution and 30 frames per second. Not top specs, but not bad.The color, 3.92″ AMOLED touchscreen is a pleasure to use. The menus are simple to navigate, and the display is fast and responsive. Onboard storage at 128GB isn’t a ton, but it’s plenty for a dumbphone. You don’t have to connect the Light Phone III’s WiFi to anything when you’re using it, but you do need it for periodic software updates.The onboard Bluetooth lets you download music to the phone and connect it to a pair of headphones, so you’re not totally without your tunes when you don’t have Spotify or Apple Music. There’s also GPS for using the built-in navigation app.I found it more than adequate. Without the Google Play Store or Apple App Store, you’re not going to be downloading a bunch of apps anyway. You’ve already got built-in apps for taking notes, receiving directions, setting alarms, listening to music, and viewing your calendar, anyway.light phone iii – credit: Matt jancerthe light phone iii at a glanceAs far as dumbphones that strip out very little from the smartphone experience, the Light Phone III excels. You’ve got all the non-addictive functions of a smartphone, just siloed away from the larger internet and app stores that contain the more addictive apps. TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, I’m looking at you.There’s little not to like when it comes to the Light Phone III. The price of $699 is the only pill hard to swallow. That’s twice as much as most dumbphones, even some touchscreen-centric ones, such as the $399 Wisephone II. But once you get over the idea that a dumbphone has to be a cheap phone, the Light Phone III’s price tag is easier to justify. You’re paying an iPhone 17 price, but you’re getting a device much more closely matched to the iPhone than to the traditional cut-rate, “they’re still making phones like that?” phones that have dominated the dumbphone market until recently.can i use it on a normal cellular network?Good news. The Light Phone III comes unlocked, so it works on a lot of regular cellular providers, including Light, AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon (no prepaid and no numbershare plans), Ting, Mint, and US Mobile.But hey, I wouldn’t be saying “good news” if there weren’t a bad news flip side. The Light Phone III isn’t compatible with a host of networks, including Sprint, Google Fi, Cricket, US Cellular, Metro by T-Mobile, and more.does it work with esim?Smartphones have increasingly begun to incorporate eSIM, which replaces the physical SIM card that you slide into a pop-out tray in the side of the phone. The Light Phone III is fairly unique among dumbphones in that it has an eSIM alongside its SIM card tray.“The feature is working quite well,” writes Light Phone, “but given that we are still pending some carrier certifications and have not had extensive testing across a wide variety of carriers, especially internationally, we are designating (it) as a ‘beta’ feature for now.”The eSIM is not yet working with Verizon, although the fact that Light Phone threw a “yet” in there makes me hopeful that they’re working on it.Does it matter that a phone has an eSIM? Not that much to me. Eliminating physical SIM card trays is more about phone manufacturers saving room within their crowded phone cases. As a user, it hardly matters to me after I pop the SIM card into the tray.light phone III while charging – credit: matt jancerthe bottom lineOf all the dumbphones I’ve played around with, the Light Phone III has been the most joyful to use. Remember that friend I mentioned before, the one who uses a dumbphone every day? Before I left his place, I asked him for a final verdict on the Light Phone III. It was the most advanced dumbphone either of us had ever used.“It’s amazing,” he cooed. He turned it over in his hands one more time, the way I did often at home with it. “Peter, would you pay $700 for one of these puppies?”He just laughed as he handed it back. Seven hundred bones is a steep price, but if you stop seeing a dumbphone as a lesser-than step down from a smartphone and more as a choice parallel to but distinct from the smartphone trap, it makes sense. It’s not built any worse than a mid-to-high-end smartphone. Why should you settle for a piece of junk plastic just because you want to escape the attention grind of social media and internet use on your mobile?Right now if you were to order one at the time we’re publishing this in early April 2026, you’d receive yours in September 2026. Think you can hang on that long? Seems the Light Phone III dumbphone will teach you patience even before you get it in your hands.(opens in a new window)Light PhoneLight Phone III(opens in a new window)Available at Light PhoneBuy Now(opens in a new window)The post Light Phone III Review: The Dumbphone That Suspiciously Feels Like a Smartphone appeared first on VICE.