The idea behind minimalism is one that most don’t realise can extend to just about every part of their lives, even to their electronic and digital lives. Minimalism isn’t just about having as little stuff as possible, but to create a mindset where all things need to be cut back and kept clean. Luckily, there are a few easy ways of cutting back on electronics and making your life a little less cluttered.
Televisions
We’re living in an age where smartphones, tablets, and laptops have long become the norm for everyday usage, and owning a television makes less and less sense. It might seem like a good investment at first, but televisions can become dangerous after a while in terms of how much they take and how little they give back.
While there’s nothing wrong with having a few screens in your life, where they can be used to watch videos or sign up today to the latest in gaming, but it’s important that they always benefit you as much as possible.
Cameras
Digital cameras were once marvels that allowed us to take pictures on the go without needing to buy an expensive cameras. But smartphones, many of which ship with the best quality digital cameras that money can buy, have made owning a stand-alone camera completely obsolete.
Buying a camera in this day and age makes very little sense, and only adds to the electronic clutter in your house. Rather save the money and invest in a phone that has an excellent camera.
USB and Music Players
Like cameras, both portable storage and portable music players have become almost entirely obsolete in a world that’s dominated by multi-function smartphones. Most of today’s phones come with their own internal storage, but it’s also possible to add expanded storage to these devices, making them perfect as portable storage devices that can be connected via a cord or through wireless means.
Similarly, physical music players, like a Walkman, just don’t make any sense any more as this role can easily be fulfilled by a smartphone. Not only does this mean that CDs no longer need to be carried around, but smartphones have a much wider access to music, thanks to the power of the internet.
GPS Devices
Before the rise of Google Maps, most people relied on stand-alone GPS devices that were able to connect to the global network of satellites orbiting the planet and provide constant updates on where the person was going, and the best route to get there.
These devices, as wonderful as they were, often were clunky with unrefined touchscreens. They were unable to connect to the internet, and a user would sometimes need to sign up to an expensive subscription service in order to successfully make use of the best routes and maps that the device had to offer.
Google Maps, along with other mapping services, have made GPS devices totally obsolete, and they should only be bought for regions that don’t have detailed routing on more modern mapping.