Unpluq encourages users to unplug from their smartphones
The app’s distraction barrier effectively reduces screen time
Photo courtesy of Jorn Rigter
From May to July, I used Unpluq, a phone habit tool designed for reducing screen time on smartphones. The app allows users to block certain apps, such as social media or email, for a set amount of time. However, what makes Unpluq unique is the tag it comes with, which unblocks apps when it is tapped against the phone. Although the tag is Unpluq’s main barrier against distraction, other ways to unblock apps include actions such as tapping a specific pattern and shaking the phone.
Given that the app was designed to minimize distractions, the tag’s unblocking capability may seem counterintuitive. However, having to complete a particular action to use apps requires users to make a conscious decision about their phone usage. By adding this friction, the app incentivizes people to spend less time on distracting apps. According to their website, the average Unpluq customer reduced their daily screen time by one hour and 20 minutes.
Unpluq has a free and premium version. The free version allows users to block up to two apps via two distraction barriers (tap pattern or shake) for a single schedule. On the other hand, the premium version ($66 per year) does not limit the number of blocked apps or schedules; it also offers more than six distraction barriers, including the tag.
In my case, I used Unpluq Premium for 90 days on a free trial, courtesy of Unpluq. Instead of using the tag, I chose the tap pattern as my distraction barrier, which required me to click on random dots in a 3x3 grid seven times before allowing me to unblock an app. Although I was not unhappy about my screen time (30-40 minutes per day) before using Unpluq, I was curious about how I could further improve my phone usage.
For context, I do not have social media or entertainment apps like Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube on my phone; the apps that contribute to my screen time are iMessage, Gmail, and Safari. Over the summer, I installed Discord and Messenger because I didn’t have access to my personal laptop while at work and on weekend trips, but then deleted the apps once the school year started.
During the time I used Unpluq, I decided to create a schedule that would prevent me from using certain apps for about an hour before I went to bed and an hour after I woke up. These apps included iMessage, Gmail, and Safari. The only apps I could use were essential ones, like Maps and Camera. Although my phone isn’t the main reason I stay up late (it’s actually my computer), I still thought it would be good to encourage myself to not check my phone right before going to sleep or waking up.
At first, I was somewhat skeptical about the effectiveness of Unpluq, but the distraction barriers were surprisingly helpful. To unlock an app for just five minutes, I had to tap on random circles again and again. Fortunately, I only had to go through this ordeal a few times to send an important text before going to bed.
Although the tap pattern task was easy to complete and took less than ten seconds, tapping on random circles just to use an app felt very stupid, which was the point of the barrier. Not wanting to deal with the extra friction that Unpluq introduced, I simply accepted the block schedule I set for myself. As a result, I got used to not checking my phone before bed or after waking up, and learned that I wasn’t missing out on much by adapting to this change.
Technically, iPhone users can use Apple’s app limits to block apps after a daily limit is reached or the Downtime feature to limit phone usage during sleep. However, bypassing these limits is much easier, since there’s no barrier to requesting more time. Meanwhile, the Unpluq app intentionally introduces friction to prevent one from accessing distracting apps.
Overall, Unpluq is a great app for reducing screen time, though for someone like me who did not have issues with screen time prior to downloading Unpluq, the changes that came with Unpluq were minimal. Nevertheless, I recommend Unpluq for people who want to reduce their screen time significantly by spending less time on TikTok or Instagram.
If you are someone looking for better alternatives to other tools to reduce screen time, you might want to consider trying Unpluq for free. If the free version of Unpluq is still not enough, then you can consider getting the Unpluq Premium subscription for $66 a year. At the end of the day, time is money, and money is time. So why not give Unpluq a try to get back your time, attention, and productivity?
Note: Unpluq reached out to the Hir requesting a review of their product and app.