I don’t like so called smartphones (flashy devices to mine your data and other reasons) but my regular no touchscreen phone’s microphone is no longer working as it should, making conversations difficult.
Enter a smartphone I received as a present, my phobia (for lack of a better word) to smartphones and my (misguided?) obsession with privacy: I don’t want to use this smartphone as my default phone because I’m scared the carrier, ISP or google are going to mine my data and trace my calls.
Which might be an overreaction, because each time I use my regular cell phone, the carrier knows when I’m calling from, who I’m calling and how long the call lasts.
So I ask you: how much more data would I be leaking if I use my new smartphone for calls only, compared to a regular, no touchscreen phone?
Your fears about the smartphone are not unfounded. If you take a regular smartphone with you as you go about your day, it will collect a ridiculous amount of data against you. Even without Internet it will cache the data and transmit it once it has signal. Only way to stop it is to install a custom ROM.
Keep in mind that even a dumb phone can track you. If it’s connected to the cell tower then the telecom companies know your location and may share that with others. Also, calls and texts are not encrypted on a dumb phone and are probably being intercepted.
See if you can trade in your new cell phone for a Google Pixel and install GrapheneOS. That is currently the best privacy ROM. You can use this like a dumb phone and it will track you no more than a dumb phone could. To prevent tracking from cell towers, you can put it in airplane mode and use messaging apps over WiFi.