In May 2025, a video went viral showing a woman standing in line holding what appeared to be a completely clear smartphone, with no images or UI visible to the person filming.
While the clip has spread across multiple social media platforms, it was originally posted to TikTok by user ‘CatGPT,’ racking up over 26 million views in just two days.
Viewers instantly took to the comments, curious to know what new transparent tech was. Some surmised that it was a prototype for a new phone that hadn’t yet been released to the public; others were convinced that it was a clever edit.
However, it turns out that it wasn’t either of those things. Instead, the rectangle of clear plastic was just that — a clear, plastic rectangle meant to mimic the feel and shape of a smartphone.
Viral ‘clear smartphone’ isn’t a phone at all
CatGPT, the woman who was filmed standing in line, explained the situation in a follow-up video on May 15, explaining that the clear acrylic was called a ‘Methaphone.’
According to the TikToker, the ‘Methapone’ was created by her friend to replicate what it feels like to hold a smartphone in your hand in an effort to help curb phone addiction.
“He told me that what he wanted to test was, if we’re all so addicted to our phones, then could you potentially curb somebody’s addiction by replacing the feeling of having a phone in your pocket with something that feels exactly the same?” she mused.
“This little piece of acrylic feels like a physical artifact that directly responds to this collective tension we all feel about how our devices, which are meant to make us more connected, are actually having the exact opposite effect.”
Viewers, however, weren’t convinced that having a physical ‘replacement’ phone would actually do anything to stop them from endlessly doomscrolling on social media.
“Nobody’s addicted to holding phones, they’re addicted to the apps,” one commented.
“In my opinion, it’s pointless. Essentially a piece of acrylic that you’re trying to make have a deeper meaning than just being a piece of plastic,” another said.
“Soooo, it’s a piece of glass,” another quipped.
The Methaphone was successfully backed on Indiegogo for $1,100, and the campaign has since been closed. And while it might be the first phone-related addiction suppression tool to make it into the mainstream, it isn’t the first time someone has tried to stop an addiction by replacing it with the feeling of something similar.
For instance, Fum is a device that replicates the feeling of smoking with no harmful chemicals or vapor for those trying to quit smoking or vaping.
The jury’s still out on whether or not the Methaphone will have as big of an impact, though, given just how prevalent social media addiction is.
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