Why a transparent "phone" on TikTok has millions rethinking their screen addiction

A see-through acrylic phone-shaped object called the "methaphone" is going viral - here’s why it’s got TikTok fooled.

A lady in a queue is scrolling on a transparent piece of plastic. Did she fool you into thinking it was a transparent phone? Well, she certainly had me going.

That’s what happened recently to many people on TikTok, with lots of confused comments and even some falsely claiming she was holding a Nokia clear phone.

@askcatgpt

Completely clear phone spotted in San Francisco on May 14…?!? Wtf?????? 🤭🤫 Link in bio for more deets. (NOT SPONSORED)

♬ original sound - CatGPT

What's actually going on?

The “methaphone” – a play on the word “methadone,” which is prescribed for heroin addicts – is a social experiment and a see-through acrylic phone-shaped object.

The influencer in the video is tech commentator @askcatgpt, who later explains that her friend created the object.

“If we're all so addicted to our phones, could you curb someone’s addiction by replacing the feeling of having a phone in your pocket with something that feels exactly the same?” pondered Cat.

Far from being a gimmick, the project’s purpose was to see whether the feel of a device could change phone usage habits.

The methaphone is currently priced at $25 USD but is sold out. However, the supplier Mindless Toys claims on their site that they’re going back into production.

@askcatgpt I’m sending out a batch of methaphones to people who have ideas for (safe) social experiments they’d like to run with them— break it out on the subway? Show it to a 5 year old? Replace your phone for a week? The only catch is that you have to write or document your experience in a post online (e.g. blog post, medium, substack, YouTube, tikTok, Ig, etc) The goal is to keep the conversation going. If you’re interested, fill out the super short survey at the link in my bio! Let’s keep the conversation going! #tech #methaphone ♬ original sound - Noah Kahan

Collective tension around tech

When watching the follow-up explainer video by Cat, it felt like a minimalist protest piece – a commentary on behavioral addiction.

Though in its formation it’s just a single piece of acrylic, culturally the object has become increasingly symbolic, and that’s explored in the follow-up video.

"Do you think a single piece of acrylic could start to help us get back in touch with humanity or is it just a weird party trick?” she broaches to the audience.

And whichever answer we choose – or a mix of both – it brings to mind vapes and nicotine patches for those trying to combat smoking. It’s a clever satirical twist on how hooked we are on our phones.