Kick Your Phone Addiction: Introduction to iOS 12’s New Feature (And Dupes for Android!)

October 23rd, 2018 by admin

Yikes - the average person checks their phone 110 times a day. Learning the details of your personal phone usage can be an even harder pill to swallow. These details can be found in the new iOS 12 update. Here are some ways to make the best of this new feature and curb your addiction.If you feel like a slave to your phone, you're not alone. Thankfully, like any bad habit, there is hope for those who want to free themselves from the onslaught of notifications, apps and mindless scrolling. Apple's new “Screen Time” feature lets you see and control your phone time - here's how it works.

From “Settings” choose “Screen Time” to see where you're spending time on the phone, whether it's social media, messaging,

productivity apps (we can only hope), etc.

If you click on your device name, you can see your day broken down further by app, and by time of day. You can also view this information by the past 7 days.

Scrolling further, you'll see stats on how often you pick up your phone, and how many notifications you receive, as well as averages per hour.

Most people find this information a little … shocking. If you're unhappy with the numbers you're seeing, Apple has provided a few ways to make changes.

Downtime

From the Screen Time homepage, select the option called, “Downtime”. This feature allows you to block out time where your device will lock itself down, giving you access to only certain apps (messages, phone, and FaceTime, though more can be added) and restricting you from all others (Imagine that: a phone that only calls and texts!). It may be helpful to activate Downtime at bedtime, at school or work.

App Limits

You can set your own daily limits for app categories or even specific apps. You can customize your limits based on day of the week. You will receive reminder alerts to let you know that your time limit is almost up. Once you are out of time, the app will lock you out (don't worry, should you need to use the app, it gives you the option to approve more time).

Parental Controls

Screen Time includes a parental control feature so that you can monitor your kids' devices, and set limits on usage and specific apps.

If you're trying to break free from your addiction, here's some additional tips that others have found helpful.

Third Party Apps

Don't have an iPhone? Want access to even more features and customization? No problem. Apps like AppDetox (Android), Flipd (iOS & Android) and Moment (iOS) are available to help with monitoring and controlling your usage.

Disable notifications

You may be surprised at just how many notifications you receive throughout the day. These can break your focus and take you down a rabbit hole. Try turning off your notifications for apps that aren't absolutely necessary. You'll be surprised how much easier it is to stay off your phone when it's not constantly lighting up.

Delete Apps

If you know there are a handful of apps that are total time sucks for you, delete them. It can be a bit painful, but if you can rip it off like a band-aid, you'll get you a lot of your time back.

Out of Sight, Out of Mind

Just the thought of this can be nerve-wracking, but put your phone in another room or a drawer. If it's out of sight, the temptation to mindlessly check it will be reduced.

Focus your boredom on other things

You may be using your device when you are bored, or during small bursts of downtime. Try replacing your smartphone activities with more meaningful ones, like reading a book, learning a hobby, or even just sitting and thinking for a while.

Have any more tips? We would love to hear them.

- Hannah Web

Posted in: Tech Tips, Productivity, Technology