I’m on a never ending quest to reduce my screen time.
I have a widget pinned to my home screen that shows my daily screen time so it’s front and center.
I average between two to three hours of screen time per day, depending how much I’m working and if I workout that day.
Imagine reducing your screen time by 50%, what would you do with that extra time?
I realized I spend too much time checking out on Twitter and it distracted me too much.
— Jadie (@heyjadie) May 3, 2023
So I deleted Twitter app on my phone and I saw significant positive effect on concentration.
I use browser when I need it.
Look at the insane screen time 😬
Now it is just the half 🙂 pic.twitter.com/KnExltsU7p
On really busy days with a lot of meetings, my screen time is very low until I finish with work.
Workout days also increase my screen time as I’m often scrolling Reddit or watching Youtube in between sets.
A really good day for me is spending less than two hours on my phone.
So when the founders of Unpluq reached out offering to let me try out their app I immediately said yes.
This is not a sponsored post but they did give me free access to their app and NFT tag to try out (spoiler: I love their NFC tag).
What is Unpluq?
Unpluq is a mobile app for Android and iOS that helps reduce your screen time.
Anyone can download their app for free to get started and there are additional features for anyone who subscribes to their paid plan (which is 100% worth it, more on that later).
It works by making you complete challenges like tapping a pattern, walking 25 steps, or shaking your phone for 15 seconds every time you want to access an app you’ve blocked.
It adds friction so you can’t mindlessly pickup your phone to check TikTok for the 100th time today.
When you first install Unpluq it prompts you to setup a schedule where you want to block distracting apps.
I setup two schedules:
- A work schedule to focus more
- A night-time schedule to go to sleep earlier
Both schedules block similar distracting apps like Reddit and Youtube, but at work I allow usage of my web browser to look things up
The light from your phone actively prevents your body from producing melatonin, the chemical that makes you sleepy.
But there’s another advantage to spending less time on your phone at night.
By staying off social media I’m less likely to make myself angry or upset at something I read.
I’d rather read a book than doom scroll social media and Unpluq has helped me do that.
Read on for my full review of Unpluq.
Unpluq Review
I’ve saved 7 hours and 45 minutes with Unpluq and I’ve only been using it a few weeks.
That number is calculated using the average screen time before using Unpluq.
8 hours is a lot of time to get back and I’ve done my best to spend it on other things that matter in my life:
- Working on this blog
- Learning to program
- Launching a podcast
- Quit video games
You could even calculate how much those hours are worth to you by multiplying them by your hourly wage or consulting time.
If each hour is worth $30 to you then congrats, you just made back $240 in the span of a few weeks.
Speaking of how much your time is worth, let’s talk about how much Unpluq costs
Unpluq Pricing
Unpluq has two products, their app subscription and a physical NFC tag you can use to unblock your phone.
More on the NFC tag in a sec.
Here’s how much their app costs:
- Monthly: $4.49
- Yearly: $44.99
- Lifetime: $194.99
If someone said they’d pay me to spend less time on my phone, I’d take that deal in a second.
And that’s what Unpluq has done.
Because I value my time highly the app has already paid for itself.
Now let’s talk about my favorite part of Unpluq, the NFC tag.
NFC Tag
This thing rules.
First, it’s made of super high quality materials.
The first thing my wife said when she picked it up was “wow this feels really good”.
It works the same way Apple or Google Pay works.
If Unpluq blocks an app from opening and you really want to open it anyway then just tap the tag on the back.
The beauty of the tag is in where you keep it.
Mine’s on my key chain which I feel is a reasonable place for it.
But my key chain is often in the other room from wherever I am. I don’t know why, it’s the magic of keys.
They’re never where you need them.
So if I want to use an app then I have to decide if it’s worth it to get up, walk into the other room, get my keys, and tap the back of my phone.
Most of the time it’s not worth it!
And the times I really want to use that app, unlocking it is a simple tap on the back of my phone.
If you’re reading this and you’re intrigued by what I’m saying then get the tag.
It’s 100% worth it.
You can buy the Unpluq Tag on their website:
- Tag + 6 Months Subscription: $44.95
- Tag + 1 Year Subscription: $59.95
- Tag + Lifetime Subscription: $199.95
Wrapping Up
The ROI on Unpluq is unmatched.
Time is money and the less time I spend on my phone the better.
Without realizing it you can spend entire workdays worth of time on your phone.
What could you do with that time instead?
Take back your time and try out Unpluq today.