ScreenBreak
Stop mindless scrolling and earn app access through effort
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ScreenBreak - Stop mindless scrolling and earn app access through effort

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ScreenBreak helps you cut off app addiction by adding effort at the exact moment you try to open a distracting app. Instead of simple blocking, it asks you to complete a quick challenge—tap fast, shake your phone, or draw a circle. Win, and you get a short access window; fail, and the urge breaks. ScreenBreak also provides detailed hourly and weekly screen-time insights to help you understand and improve your habits.

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Maker
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Hi everyone! 👋 I built ScreenBreak because traditional app blockers never worked well for me. Hard blocks felt too rigid — either I locked myself out completely, or I tapped Ignore Limit and kept scrolling. There was no middle ground. But in real life, we do sometimes need to open addictive apps — to search something, reply to someone, check updates. The problem isn’t the intentional use; it’s the unconscious, endless scrolling that follows. Soft blocking creates a balance: you can still access the app when needed, but you must put in effort, which naturally filters out mindless usage. After nearly a year of iteration, I designed multiple flexible ways for ScreenBreak to activate: - Schedule Block – block during certain hours - App Launch Limit – block after too many opens - Usage Budget Limit – block after hitting time caps (daily or hourly) When a block triggers, you must complete a quick challenge — tapping fast, shaking your phone, drawing a circle, etc. Win for a short access window; fail, and the urge usually fades. I’d love your feedback on challenge design and which blocking rules fit your habits best. Thanks for checking it out! 🚀

This is a really smart approach to the scrolling problem. 🧠 Hard blockers usually just make me angry (and I end up disabling them), but adding 'Friction Cost' via physical effort is a much better psychological hack to break the dopamine loop. Congrats on the launch!

I am a huge fan of these digital detox apps and as someone who damaged eyesight by staring to the screen most of time, find this pretty helpful :)

This is a super nice app.

Looks so pretty. I think the analytics can be such a huge help if done right. Is that a premium feature?
Maker

 Thanks for your comment. The analytics feature is open to free users.

I'm interested in digital detox, I even tried using a flip phone but nothing really worked for me.
Curious how this will hold up to my impulsive scrolling 👀

Maker

 This is indeed a painful issue. I’d say ScreenBreak’s gamified control helps reduce doomscrolling to some extent (speaking from personal experience).

Need more gamification and completely block the app without continue button

Great Release! The app looks nice. I'm going to try it. Did you test if it actually helps to reduce screentime with a user group? If yes, what are the results?