These 7 Apps Can Help You Beat Your Smartphone Addiction (and Possibly Save Your Relationship)

These 7 Apps Can Help You Beat Your Smartphone Addiction

If you need to get a grip on your smartphone addiction, these apps will (ironically) help out in a big way.

You know the state of our collective smartphone addiction has hit defcon 1 when we start making up new words. The latest word du jour? Phubbing. It means “phone snubbing,” and according to recent research from Baylor University, this pesky habit can ruin relationships and lead to higher levels of depression.

Researchers conducted two separate surveys on the extent to which people’s relationships were being impacted by their sig-o’s smartphone addiction. “What we discovered was that when someone perceived that their partner phubbed them, this created conflict and led to lower levels of reported relationship satisfaction,” study co-author James A. Roberts, Ph.D., said in a statement. “These lower levels of relationship satisfaction, in turn, led to lower levels of life satisfaction and, ultimately, higher levels of depression.”

So if you find yourselves throwing each other shade every time your smartphones interrupt what should be an intimate moment, here are 7 apps to help you beat your smartphone addiction:

1. Moment

Okay, so even if you only check your phone five minutes here and ten minutes there, it can still add up to… well, a lot of wasted time. Moment is an iOS app that tracks how much you use your iPhone. You can set daily limits for yourself and either be notified when you go over—or get kicked off your phone altogether.

2. BreakFree

BreakFree is essentially the Android version of Moment. The app tracks exactly how you spend time on your phone, and offers guidance on how to get a grip on your smartphone addiction.

3. Flipd

If your smartphone addiction is getting in the way of your productivity, Flipd is an Android app that allows you to lock your phone for up to 12 hours. While flipped off, you can still accept phone calls and make outgoing calls to four select numbers (so choose wisely). You can even setup an auto-response text message so you don’t have to worry about ignoring your contacts as you get your work done.

4. Dinner Mode

When dinner is interrupted by constant ringing, dinging, and pinging, it’s Dinner Mode to the rescue. All you have to do is set the timer to 15, 30, or 60 minutes and place your phone face down on the table. If you pick it up before the timer’s done, an alarm goes off and completely humiliates you. Looks like you’re going to have to talk to the dude you’re dating after all. Like, with your voice.

5. App Detox

If there’s one app in particular that you just can’t quit, then App Detox is for you. This Android app lets you choose the app you need to avoid and program the specific time periods you’d like to be banned from it.

6. This.

This. is currently in beta testing, but I have a feeling it’s going to be a social media game changer. For those of us who’ve ditched sites like Facebook because of the cluttered mess they’ve become, This. allows users to share one only thing per day. One. You won’t have to cut through the crap to find out what’s going on with the people you care about, and will become more mindful of the important moments that shape who you are.

7. bSociable

bSociable is a game that you win by not using your phone. Unlike apps like Moment and BreakFree, which only keep track of how often you use your phone, this app allows you to earn rewards and “social time” for sticking to your smartphone non-use targets.

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Smartphone addiction image via Shutterstock

Krissy Brady

Krissy Brady is a women’s health + lifestyle writer who’s so out of shape, it’s like she has the innards of an 80-year-old. Instead of learning how to crochet, she decided to turn her emotional baggage into a writing career (genius, no?). You can follow her shenanigans on Twitter (you know, if you want).