Is a 60-minute cooldown too brutal? Need a quick reality check on our app’s math.
Hey everyone, I’m Rhonda, the founder of Paced.
Most screen-time apps out there drive me crazy because they feel like an adult time-out. They lock you out completely, make you feel like a child, and then you just end up bypassing anyway because you're annoyed.
I wanted to build something that actually respects adult autonomy, so we launched Paced back in April. Instead of a hard lock, we use a simple trade-off when your usage limit runs out:
WAIT - You get a 60-minute cooldown break from your restricted apps.
OR
WALK - But every 100 physical steps you take knocks 3 minutes off that timer. With steps the 60 cooldown timer can be eliminated in around 15 minutes
So if you choose to sit still, you wait an hour. If you get up, stretch your legs, and move around, you earn your screen time back faster. No punishments, just a trade.
We aren't looking for polite pats on the back here. I genuinely want some brutal feedback from other builders on whether our core math makes sense:
Is 60 minutes too harsh as a baseline? Does an hour-long wait feel too discouraging, or does the ability to chip away at it with movement give you the right amount of control?
Will people just sit on the couch and shake their phones? We all know screen-time apps are easy to game. Do you think a physical movement challenge actually breaks the scroll trance, or will stressed-out users just cheat the system?
Is the ratio right? We landed on 100 steps for 3 minutes so the walk feels meaningful but not impossible. If you were designing this, would you tighten that up or leave it?
Appreciate any thoughts you have.
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