Most social media apps always compete for your attention, often at the expense of focus and productivity. In search of a more distract-free alternative, I found Locket, ‘the minimalist social app that allows me to stay connected with family and close friends without falling into the familiar social media spiral.
For those who are photographers, **Good to know If you’re a photographer, you might want to see Irys, an Instagram app that actually puts photo sharing first. ** ** .
A Social App that Prioritizes Your Focus
The drill is a word for endless notifications of messages, posts and activity updates anyone with Facebook or WhatsApp installed on their phone knows what to do. A constant stream of warnings can really seriously interfere with your concentration when you’re working.
That’s certainly the case for me as a . I have to check my phone every time I hear a ding from . I want to keep myself focused on the work that is happening but I still want my inner circle. So most of the time I give in and unlock my phone, while chatting with it will be connected? My main focus is to look at the notification preview but sometimes when I see something that says “repr” or check it immediately, which stops my flow.
While Android and iPhone both allow you to mute app notifications in a selective manner, it’s not always convenient (and is easy to forget that). The most effective solution for me was switching to Locket (an a minimalist social app that keeps me updated with what others are up to without constantly interrupting my day.
Locket’s appeal is also based on what it leaves out of the . It’s easy to check in and move on, because there are no endless feeds to scroll through. It’s also not a “make new friends” app, it’t even. While you can search for others by username, Locket doesn’t support user profiles you find and eventually befriend. It’s pretty slim to get random friends request/messages while using Locket, that said ‘That is the chance of getting them all by itself.
Tip : here’s what to do if your favorite social media app, like TikTok, is down.
The Time-saving Power of Sharing Directly to the Home Screen
In contrast, Locket is the first social media app that allows you to share photos directly on the home screen. One of your friends posts something automatically and all you have to do is look at your phone’s home screen to see what’d new. Because when you don’t get an audible notification, there is no need to check your phone immediately. And when you find it, you can see what it is for you.
Locket can be used on both Android and iOS as well as in Locking. After having the app on your phone, you have to register for an account first. If you add friends from your contacts, the app will then ask you to add them. Adding just close friends and relatives, I chose to add someone you know (they also have the app) but it’s possible.
Next, the app will prompt you to add the widget to your home screen.
Whenever you want to position it, put it anywhere. You use more than one , but if you have multiple home screens it doesn’t need to be on the main screen. In Android, do I have the option to add a different wallpaper to each home screen by the way?
Never miss a moment
After adding the widget, you will see friends’ photos from their photo updates on your home screen. If you want to see pictures from a certain friend first on iPhone, then what is the best way to do that? Long-press on the widget and select Edit Widget.
Select the friend in question. Alternatively, you can opt for Everyone and see updates from all your friends.
Several widget options are available on Locket on iPhone (You may also add more than one to Android, but they will be the same) and in many ways. Long-press on an empty space in your home screen to add more than one, and select Edit.
Tap Add Widget.
Find Locket in the list of apps. Go through all the widget options and select your favorite.
Keeping in mind that the widget just shows the latest picture sent, and you won’t be able to rotate through photos. Multiple friends sent images roughly the same time, so if you’re still seeing the last one of them that was sent. You can add multiple widgets, each with a different person on iPhone to solve this problem. This isn’t supported by the Android app yet, unfortunately for .
Note that if you want to send a photo, you’ll have to snap the image with the Locket app. The camera roll is not allowing you to upload from your . You can also add text to the image or even link to Spotify and include a song with your post (only on iPhone)?
In this setup, I can see my phone’s home screen from a time to time and see what my family is sharing with them. Great for my productivity, it is that the widget updates automatically and silently (i.e asynchronous)?
In addition, Locket also has a feature called Rollcall that allows users to collate their best moments of the week into s collage (this time you can select photos from the camera roll) A convenient way to catch up on recent friends and family conversations is it’s a good idea.
Tip : you can text even when offline with BitChat.
Simple Messaging Options Are All You Really Need
It can sometimes feel too much, with modern social media apps containing feature-rich messaging. In the opposite, Locket’s simple messaging options were all I need to do with my message. When you reply to shared photos, the app allows you to chat with full people; if you’re going to locket for that, you will have to open it.
Locket’s messaging is very basic, unlike most mainstream social apps. You can’t send emojis, GIFs or draw on messages like you can in Instagram but add reactions. I don’t have video or voice call options, but for someone like me who prefers keeping in touch with simple daily chats it works perfectly.
Locket does notify when you receive a message, but since you can see the images without opening the app, it’s easy to resist temptation of seeing the messages until you have fewer free seconds.
Here’s some advice that really worked for me and helped me take a long-needed break, if you’d rather quit social media altogether and recover time for yourself?
Thanks for reading The Locket App Changed How I Keep in Touch with Friends
