After years of technology companies competing over larger screens, more features, and applications capable of keeping users constantly connected, marketing messages have begun to emerge that move in the opposite direction: “zero screen time,” “no notifications,” and “one function.” A report published by Anadolu Agency on September 3, 2026, says these messages reflect growing consumer interest in a simpler, more controllable digital experience—not merely nostalgia for older devices.
The report draws on assessments by experts from Princeton and Oxford universities, along with the opinion of a psychologist, to examine the relationship between digital fatigue and changing strategies among technology companies. However, the article does not present evidence of a comprehensive market shift; rather, it traces an emerging trend whose signs appear in specialized products and in the way they are presented to consumers.
Technology That Recedes Into the Background
One example cited in the report is an advertising campaign in New York for a product designed solely to play music, presenting the absence of a screen as a core feature rather than a deficiency. The campaign brought the term “slow tech” back into the discussion, meaning the design of tools that perform a specific role and do not compete for the user’s attention all the time.
The same trend appears in devices focused on limited functions such as calls, messages, note-taking, and navigation, as well as in e-readers. What these products have in common is reduced exposure to social networks, notifications, and the pressure to remain constantly connected. The report also notes, citing data from market research company Circana, the renewed appearance of wired earbuds after years of decline against wireless earbuds, with choices by some celebrities and fashion shows contributing to their increased visibility.
From the Screen Problem to the Attention Problem
D. Graham Burnett, a professor of history and the history of science at Princeton University, says users have become more aware of the harms associated with the attention economy and are seeking ways to protect their focus. According to his argument, the problem lies not only in the phone itself, but in social, technological, and economic systems that exploit attention, time, and the senses, including business models based on artificial intelligence-supported algorithms and the collection of large amounts of data.
Matthew Sharpe, a researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute, believes that simpler devices give consumers the ability to choose the part of technology they need without bearing some of its side effects. However, he does not believe technology companies will automatically prioritize protecting users’ attention; in his view, keeping users on a platform for as long as possible remains more valuable to companies than reducing their presence on it. He does not expect this incentive to change unless users leave platforms in large numbers or regulators impose rules requiring companies to protect their attention.
What Is Changing in Practice?
Nil Madi, an occupational and organizational psychology specialist, explains that digital fatigue is not measured only by the number of hours spent in front of a screen; it is also linked to the nature of interaction and the intensity of interruptions. Continuous notifications break concentration, and restoring engagement with work may take about 20 minutes after a single interruption, according to her assessment cited in the report. She also links remaining continuously online to increased stress, anxiety, and mental fatigue, and to their effects on performance, motivation, and general well-being.
From this perspective, single-function devices do not merely sell “fewer specifications”; they sell users a greater degree of control over the digital environment. The value of this shift lies in moving the product standard from the number of functions to the amount of attention it consumes. However, this does not eliminate the need to verify how effective these products are beyond the marketing message, nor does it prove that reducing screen use alone addresses digital fatigue.
A Real Trend or a New Marketing Narrative?
The facts presented in the report point to a change in marketing language and the emergence of demand for less distracting tools, but they are not sufficient to say that the attention economy is receding. Companies may use the language of “no notifications” and “one function” to attract a group seeking alternatives while their core business models, based on increasing usage, continue across their other products.
Therefore, the most important effect of this trend for now is reopening the discussion about what technology should do, for whom it was designed, and how it measures success. Reducing the digital burden may become a more prominent criterion in some users’ product choices, but the open question is whether this demand will turn into a broad change in platform design or remain a specialized market that companies use as an additional marketing message.