Heineken on a mission to make our smartphones dull with 'The Boring Phone'

Beer firm Heineken has created a new 'Boring Phone' to encourage young people to talk to each other during nights out.

The project, in collaboration with street fashion firm Bodega features a limited run of 'dumb' phones designed to have reduced tech capabilities.

It has been created to encourage people to enjoy better real-life connections on nights out by disconnecting from their smartphones.

Nabil Nasser, the Global Head of Heineken comments: "At Heineken, we want to foster moments of genuine connection and help people experience the joy of true togetherness. In creating The Boring Phone we have gone back to basics, we have dialled down the tech to help people truly connect over a beer, without any distraction from the constant buzzing and dings."

Produced by mobile innovator, HMD, the Heineken x Bodega Boring Phone strips back the distractions of today's smartphones. Its functions are to send messages and make calls but it is unable to download social media or other apps.

Oliver Mak, co-founder of Bodega adds: "Despite having grown up surrounded by technology, us Gen Z and Millennials are now recognising that our dependence on our phones is impacting our ability to make actual, real-life connections. This in turn impacts our ability to have fun, and on a macro level, the development of culture. Smartphones can be too interesting, so we wanted to design a boring one."

Alongside the new phone, Heineken has commissioned research that shows young adults in the 'Zillennial' generation are often distracted by social media, with almost two thirds (62 per cent) admitting to checking social media while out with others. Over a third (37 per cent) reveal that they check their phones more often than they should when socialising, but 32 per cent admit they would like to be able to switch off from their phones while on a night out.

An app that will turn smartphones boring will also be launched in June to give those who don't manage to get their hands on a physical device the Boring Phone experience.