I don't have an original flip phone (actually never did, always had a brick), but I do have a smart flip phone, Samsung Flip. My Gen Z niece thinks it's really lame.

maybe because it's not about the 'flip', but the lack of 'smart'?

> Palozzolo wanted to use a flip phone during one high school summer because she thought it would be “cool.” “My parents said absolutely not, we need to be able to track you,” she said.

Will this be the generation that finally applies the Principle of Least Privilege?

> maybe because it's not about the 'flip', but the lack of 'smart'?

I think that also applies to parts of the world in which the ''candy bar'' form factor like the Nokia 3310 is still quite popular.

North Americans have seemed to have a need for the flip form factor for decades. In the early 1990s Nokia sold an AMPS model called the 139 into the North American market, which was just a candy bar phone fitted with a flip cover for the keypad and a genuine imitation dummy placebo extendable antenna. Focus groups told them that they need to scratch those consumer itches. Today there is potentially a modern Nokia 139DL model that may soon fill a similar niche.

I think those “consumer itches” probably stemmed from 1990s American action movies in which the original of this style of phone (Motorola MicroTac I think?) seems to be almost universally used.

Agreed, those Motorolas set the pace in North America. It is quaint to watch TV shows or movies in which a character goes through the motions:

1. pull buzzing phone from pocket, purse, etc.

2. extend antenna

3. flip cover open (the really cool ones had a spring loaded cover opener activated by a side button)

4. optional: look at the display before answering

I'd blame Star Trek (1966-1969)

https://intl.startrek.com/sites/default/files/styles/content...

It is because Americans are notoriously rude and violent. They need a device that they can physically slam in the other person's face when ending an angry and stressful phone call - also known, in their language, as "a phone call".

/s but with a grain of truth I think: the physical action of closing a flip phone is satisfying, and the sharp noise made when closing it down one-handed comes across a little rude in more reserved cultures, but perfectly acceptable to the more boisterous Americans.

Relevant subreddit: https://old.reddit.com/r/dumbphones/

I haven't had a flip phone in a while (or any phone for that matter), but I think flip phones are probably my favorite type of phones. They look sleek, you can easily check the time just by looking at them, and you can type without even looking at the screen. Cool to see flip phones getting more popular.