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Want to control smartphone addiction? Try Google's six new apps
Last updated on Oct 25, 2019, 11:58 am
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Thanks to social media and instant messaging, people waste a lot of their time glued to their screens.
The problem is nothing new, but the advent of tantalizing new apps, like PUBG and Call of Duty, is simply making the case worse.
Google realizes this, which is why the company has launched six new experimental apps dedicated to curbing addiction.
Here's all about them.
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App #1
'Unlock Clock' to show how many times you unlocked phone
!['Unlock Clock' to show how many times you unlocked phone]( "'Unlock Clock' to show how many times you unlocked phone")
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Though Google already offers Digital Wellbeing to combat addiction, these six apps take a more focused approach to help you spend less time on your device.
The first program, for instance, shows the number of times you've unlocked your phone throughout the day.
It appears as a live wallpaper, displaying the count, and therefore, helping you control yourself.
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App #2
Post Box to keep notifications in check
![Post Box to keep notifications in check]( "Post Box to keep notifications in check")
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Next on the list is Post Box, which, as the name suggests, stores all your notifications in one place and shows all of them once, twice, or thrice in a day.
It lets you pick how many times you want to get notifications and keeps collecting them for later access.
This ensures you get all the important information without being bombarded by notifications regularly.
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App #3
Morph to control app usage
![Morph to control app usage]( "Morph to control app usage")
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Google is also offering an app launcher called Morph to control your phone usage.
The program packs a clean interface and shows only those apps that you need at a particular time.
For instance, you can set it to display apps like Google Drive, Gmail, and Docs while you're at work and Spotify, YouTube, and Netflix when you come back home.
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App #4
We Flip to connect with friends
![We Flip to connect with friends]( "We Flip to connect with friends")
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Smartphone addiction can disconnect us from the world, but Google has a way to tackle that - We Flip.
The app, when paired with your friends' phones, will start a session, where you all would start interacting while keeping your phone flipped.
It will monitor the session and report how long it lasted before one of the members unlocked their device for texting/calling.
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App #5
Desert Island to use select few apps
![Desert Island to use select few apps]( "Desert Island to use select few apps")
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This particular app is also a launcher, one that literally takes you to the 'desert island' by letting you choose just 7 apps.
The idea is to disconnect you from the range of apps you use and help you focus on limited content.
It also gives a daily report of how many times you gave in to the urge of opening other/hidden apps.
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App #6
Paper Phone for a digital break
![Paper Phone for a digital break]( "Paper Phone for a digital break")
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Modern life is all about going digital but that has also contributed to smartphone addiction.
Google wants to change that with Paper Phone, a solution that would let you print all necessary information on a piece of paper for easy access.
From contacts to tasks to Maps, you can have all on it and keep your phone limited to only making/answering calls.
