A smartphone can be a major distraction when we are studying. Although we promise ourselves to study straight through an hour, it lures us with notifications on its bright screen which make us tap on them at last. Once we enter the endless world made by the small rectangular screen, time flies while surfing Instagram and having a chit-chat through KakaoTalk. However, you can turn this temptation into a study helper with a simple click. With these apps, you can reduce smartphone usage while effectively managing your working time.

Forest

Price: 2,500 won 

Forest is an app that helps people overcome phone addiction and manage their time in an interesting way: by helping you create your own virtual forest! The app works in a very simple way. First, set the time period during which you want to avoid smartphone usage and focus on something else. Second, choose a type of tree depending on the length of the time you selected. Remember, the longer you set the time, the fancier the tree will be. The tree will grow while you focus on your work. Lastly, if you succeed in concentrating on your work and avoid using your phone for the set period, you will get a tree added to your virtual forest. However, if you use your smartphone during the time you set, the tree will die and a withered tree will be added to your forest. You can see an overview of your forest on a daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly basis. Turn your hard work into a land of lush trees with the Forest app!

UBHIND (넌 얼마나 쓰니?)

Price: Free 

UBhind is an app that helps you keep track of the time you spend on your smartphone. In order to reduce smartphone dependence and addiction, you can set a goal for the amount of time you want to spend on your smartphone on a daily basis. For example, you can decide to spend only three hours on a smartphone, and the app will track every detail of when and how long you used the phone throughout the whole day, and whether you reached your goal or not. In addition, the app shows an analysis of how much time you spent on your smartphone compared to the day before, with diverse visual presentations such as pie charts and line graphs. Including this report, you can view your smartphone usage on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis. Moreover, UBhind provides motivational quotes to cheer you up and help you reach your goals. Indeed, it is an app that provides a sharp analysis with a warm heart.

TIMER WITH PASSION (열정 품은 타이머)

Price: Free

Timer with Passion is an app specialized for students or those who are studying for a big exam. It provides a wide range of features such as a dictionary and self-generated timetable. The self-generated timetable automatically records the respective time spent on each subject in addition to keeping track of break times, thus creating a specific record of the whole day. Also, it enables the users to view who else is awake and studying by showing the users that are currently using the app. Furthermore, the app provides a ranking system that lists the top 3 people who have spent the most time studying. Thus, the app greatly motivates users in diverse ways and even creates a positive companionship among users who are studying at the same time. However, since there is no English name for the app, make sure to just type in “열정 품은 타이머” to download it!