Pond - Screen Time & Pomodoro

This is a great free app and I will continue to use it but I have noticed that the time is slightly inaccurate. Maybe I’m just going crazy but I have been trying to record study with me videos and the timer never lines up with the video. It is always slightly short, meaning when I go to study for an hour, I end about 7 seconds early. Not really a problem for most but just wanted to point this out.

I had this app (the free version) on my older device, it worked perfectly! Switched to a new phone and used the auto backup process to set it and now it is all messed up. First the app version I had didn’t even open (the only app that failed the auto move process), so I had to delete and reinstall it. Then, the new version I installed didn’t support any of the cool features I loved so much, they are all blocked now under the “get pro version” wall. Very poor experience to have it all open and then get a crippled version when upgrading my phone... Ok, so I bought the pro version and guess what, the main feature that made me do it won’t even work!! Trying to set a song from my music library as the ticking sound keep failing, and actually does nothing (won’t even open my songs list to pick from). For me it was the main feature (it is an awesome feature) that distinguished this app from the rest of the similar apps out there. Not only that I could set a song as ticking sound but I could also have it keep playing in the background when other sounds (videos, lectures etc) were playing simultaneously. And now it is all gone.... Rather than that the app is fine but doesn’t offer any key advantage compared to many free timer apps. Please fix it. The app support link leads to a tumblr page 😩 so I had to write this review as a support ticket in addition to a message I’ve sent on tumblr (didn’t get any response to it). —- UPDATE—- They have finally fixed it!

I really didn't think I needed an app like this, as I'm fairly focused normally--or so I thought! After a successful friend raved about it, I figured I could at least give it a try. I was very pleasantly surprised at how much more focused I am when using it, as it forces me to commit and stay on task. End result is that I get way more done than before I started using it. Here's how it has craftily gotten more work out of me. I only use it for tasks that need heavy focus. So I do a session and stay on task. Then it's break time and I say "Screw it--I'm on a roll." So I end up doing anywhere from 4 to 8 sessions in a row, with no breaks except bathroom and pour a cup of coffee. And the more sessions I do in a row, the more the challenge is on to do even more sessions. I find it funny how I entertain myself with this. But it's really interesting the mind games I have played in the past, where I let myself get distracted in the middle of important tasks by things I "really have to do." Now, when the challenge is on, all of that stuff waits until I've done at least 8 sessions, sometimes as many as 12. And I thought I really knew myself!