Above a graphic of a purple and blue gemstone with a smiley face, the Opal Manifesto proclaims, “Phones can make us happy”. In the text that follows, the manifesto refers to social media companies as “distraction companies” that have “turned our screens into mindless distraction devices”. The proposed solution? Opal, a Chrome app and extension that gives users the ability to remove apps from their phones on a predetermined schedule, to combat endless scrolling and help “rewire our screens for mindfulness.”
Originally launched 2 years ago, the new Opal released in September 2022 is fully integrated with iOS 16’s Screen Time API, making it the first adult-oriented app to do so. Most screen time and usage reporting apps are marketed to parents who want to monitor and limit their child’s activity.
On the contrary, Opal is entirely dedicated to an adult user base, as is evident from its brand image and the wide range of features offered in addition to scheduled app blocking.
The first is Focus Score, which offers real-time data about your activity, including how many times you picked up your phone, what notifications you received and checked, and how long you spent on certain apps.
Opal takes the Focus Score beyond Apple’s in-house Screen Time app by analyzing the data it collects and using it to project a future prediction, known as Attention Weather. For example, if you check Twitter at the same time every morning, you’ll get an hourly “tune-up forecast” letting you know you might soon find yourself having to retweet – letting you decide whether to break or stick to your habits. on social networks.
Similar to the Focus Score is the Focus Report, a weekly breakdown of your screen time and app activity. This is sent to you via push notification or email and provides an overview of the last 7 days of your focus data. The report also includes projections of your future behavior based on historical data, as well as comparisons to your previous weeks of data.
The Opal website also offers three external resources for additional attention focusing on their website.
The Focus Cafe links to a 24/7 live YouTube video streaming atmospheric instrumental tracks made for work, similar to the Lo-Fi Beats to Study To channel familiar to anyone who’s written a college paper since. 2014.
The Opal Media Library contains links to book recommendations, podcast episodes, TED talks, and Twitter feeds on productivity, mindfulness, and healthy relationships — all topics that might relate to our ability and willingness to stay focused on our overall well-being.
Finally, Opal offers Focus Coaching with Hilary Andreini, a PCC certified coach specializing in the management of ADHD in adults. For a fee of $399, users can sign up for a 4-week coaching plan and a lifetime subscription to Opal’s app.
In 2013, researchers at Carnegie Mellon found that when asked to read and answer questions in a short paragraph, readers who received and checked text messages while reading performed 20% worse than those who did not.
Imagining the magnitude of that experience now, in a world of ever-expanding forms of social media and daily distraction, makes a great argument for Opal’s functionality.
An annual subscription to Opal costs $99, although interested users can sign up for a 7-day free trial.
