After OnePlus and Motorola, now Vivo tells us to switch phone off

We all know that loved ones need our time. But if one were to ask how many of us actually sit with them and have a good time, we might reply we do but our minds are distracted even when we are sitting with them. The constant urge to check our mobile phones - peep into our mail box, quickly check our Facebook timelines and what friends are up to on Instagram stories, whether a new hashtag is trending on Twitter, fears of a missed call or a WhatsApp notification, are constantly running at the back of our minds. Smartphones, primarily meant to ease one's life, have taken over our lives and smartphone manufacturers are taking note of it.

Vivo, the Chinese technology company is encouraging users to switch off their mobile phones for a day and spend time with loved ones, through its digital New Year campaign.

The 80 second film featuring brand ambassador Aamir Khan, shows how the 'father' is engaged over an 'important call' and then his work life as the family of three sits down for breakfast. As a New Year wish, his son wants to take away the father's phone not to play with it but to switch it off and keep it away so that he can spend some quality family time.

As per a recent survey conducted by Vivo and CMR, it was found that 75 per cent of respondents admitted that they had owned a smartphone in their teens. Among these, 41 per cent were hooked to phones even before graduating from high school.

Speaking on the need to #SwitchOff, Nipun Marya, director, brand strategy, Vivo India, said, “As a brand, we believe that technology can immensely improve our consumer’s life, but like all things good, should be used cautiously. And as a smartphone player, it was essential we ask ourselves the fundamental questions - how much is too much? Thus, we commissioned this campaign that urges users to temporarily switch off and give time to relationships.

Vivo isn't the first brand to highlight this in its communication. Smartphone brand OnePlus' Zen mode feature is the brand's attempt to to wean users off constant smartphone use. Activating Zen Mode puts the phone on a kind of lock-down for 20 minutes, without any notification alerts or access to applications. It only allows users to make emergency calls, attend to incoming calls and access the camera.

American multinational telecommunications company Motorola, in its Diwali 2017 campaign #PhoneLifeBalance, addressed the growing concerns around mindless device usage and smartphone addiction.

iPhone's 'screen time' and Google's 'Digital Wellbeing' help users monitor their on-screen and app-usage time. One can even download third-party apps like 'Usage Time' and other time-management apps that give precise reports on time spent with the screen on for the current day, divided between used apps.