Addicted to phone? Try Google's new apps which shame you
What's the story
The problem of smartphone addiction has been growing worse, thanks to more and more people falling into the mitts of engaging games, social media, and OTT platforms.
It has become extremely hard to ditch that screen, but Google now appears to have cracked a (lame) solution: apps that could shame you into keeping your phone down.
Here's all about them.
Idea
Goal to make you feel guilty about smartphone overuse
Though Android phones already offer Digital Wellbeing features to tackle addiction, Google has been launching dedicated apps to help with the problem.
In October 2019, the company had launched six apps, and now, as part of the same effort, it has launched three new apps that can reflect/display your smartphone overuse to make you feel guilty and do something about it.
App #1
Envelope to seal your phone
The first app, dubbed Envelope, transforms your phone into a simple, call-only device.
You just have to launch the app on the phone, place it inside a physical, special envelope, which has numbers marked to let you make/answer calls or use speed dial.
For anything else, you would need to tear the envelope down to take the phone out. Cumbersome? Yes!
Information
Two Envelopes prepped, but only for Pixel 3a
Notably, Google has announced two envelopes - for photo/video and calling - for Pixel 3a. They both curb screen usage and can save you from the trouble of buying a second basic phone just for the sake of taking a break from the digital world.
App #2
Activity Bubbles to show how much you use your phone
Along with Envelope, Google has also developed Activity Bubbles.
This app, as the name suggests, shows bubbles on your home screen on the basis of your smartphone activity.
So, every time you'd unlock your phone, a bubble would appear on the screen. Plus, the longer you use the phone, the bigger that bubble would be.
App #3
Screen Stopwatch will also highlight your phone activity
The third app of the batch is a simple Screen Stopwatch that shows how long you have used your phone throughout the day on the home screen.
Just like Activity Bubbles, this particular app also serves a constant reminder of smartphone overuse, making you realize on your own obsession with the screen and take some steps to deal with it.