Smartphones are bad for kids – we don’t need to call on scientific data to know it
John Naughton
Jonathan Haidt’s claims about the effects of devices on children’s wellbeing have been criticised for lacking proof, but they tell us what we need to know
Smart shot
‘There is mystery and it’s also slightly disturbing’: Phil Doherty’s best phone picture
The absence of a body adds intrigue to this shot of the photographer’s daughter on a rope swing
Should I bring a brolly? Five of the best weather apps
Buyer’s guides
The best Apple iPhones in 2024 – tested, reviewed and ranked
Smart shot
‘The collie was trying to herd the lamb – but failing’: Mark Aitken’s best phone picture
June 2024
‘We wanted to change the norm on smartphone use’: grassroots campaigners on a phone-free childhood
Observer book of the week
Coming of Age: How Adolescence Shapes Us by Lucy Foulkes review – deep dive into the teenage mind
Smart shot
‘It’s the quagmire of teenage existence - vulnerability with confidence’: Denise Marcotte’s best phone picture
Could big tech eventually face its USSR moment and collapse completely?
Alex Hern
Smart shot
‘It was strange – a girl without a hijab at an ancient religious ceremony’: Mohammad Nazari’s best phone picture
New York signs parental control of ‘addictive’ social media feeds into law
Smart shot
‘As their older sister, I feel a responsibility to protect them and be a role model’: Aleesha Coker’s best phone picture
Jenga, dodgeball and no phones: a London school’s radical 12-hour day
Today in Focus
The phone-free, 12-hour school-day experiment – podcast
I banned my daughter from using the iPhone she bought. It made her a better person
Em Rio
‘We need to go places and touch things’: the people turning away from smartphones
Apple push into AI could spark smartphone upgrade ‘supercycle’
Observer business profile
‘It should be a right to fix your phone’: the boss of booming secondhand tech firm Back Market
TechScape newsletter
Why passwords still matter in the age of AI
The networker
Look before you scan – the QR code scammers are phishing for business
