realtime
/ˈriːəlˌtaɪm/ — noun
1. time spent in real life that belongs to you, not your phone.
2. life experienced directly, not through a glass screen.
3. the state of being fully present in the real world.
4. the opposite of screen time.
REALTIME is a fun experiment that encourages going offline and living in the present moment. Put your phone down, let the timer run, and see how long you can go undistracted.
Reaching for our phone has become instinctive. We may even feel out of place in public if we’re not staring at a screen like everyone else around us. But this constant fragmentation of attention strips away the depth of the moment. We are physically present, but mentally absent.
Of course, the best experience is turning off your phone entirely. But when you want a little more motivation to put the phone down, REALTIME tracks uninterrupted offline time and lets you compare it with others. No quick notification checks, no background scrolling, no sneaky app switches.
REALTIME isn't just a timer. It's a reminder that your time is finite, and it belongs to you, not the algorithm.
How it works
- Tap ENTER REALITY on the home screen.
- Your screen will go dark but your phone will stay unlocked.
- If you leave the app, check notifications, or lock your phone, the run ends.
- If your battery dies or the app crashes, the session ends automatically at the last saved moment.
- There’s only a 3-second grace period in case you exit the app by accident, reduced to 0 seconds in ZERO TOLERANCE MODE.
- Long-press anywhere on the screen to "properly" end a session.
Integrity Protocol:
- • To encourage true REALTIME, sessions under 10 seconds don't count towards your public profile.
- • Sessions auto-end after 12 hours, preventing idle phones from running indefinitely.
- • This limit still allows you to unwind overnight and resist the morning scroll, without worrying about the timer.
- • Overnight sessions are expected and welcome. Sleep counts.
Zero Tolerance Mode:
- • Built for users who want zero distractions.
- • All external audio (music, podcasts, etc.) is blocked.
- • No 3-second grace period. Leaving the app ends the session immediately.
Session Types
- • COMPLETED — you stopped the session manually.
- • LEFT APP — you switched apps or REALTIME went to background.
- • SESSION CAPPED — you reached the 12-hour limit.
- • VOID — the session ended at under 10 seconds.
Tips
- Put the phone screen-down while you’re in a session.
- Don't leave your phone unattended! Unless you really want to get rid of it, and you're fine with a stranger going through everything on it.
- Use Do Not Disturb to block incoming notifications, or even go hardcore with Airplane Mode (we will not be held responsible for important missed calls!).
- Try using REALTIME while walking, training, meditating, reading, eating, working, or any time you want to be fully present.
- Invite your friends and compare progress on the Syndicate leaderboard.
Syndicate & Social
• Log in to access the Syndicate and start building your circle.
• Discover new people and manage incoming requests in the SOCIAL tab.
• See all current connections and their stats on the Syndicate leaderboard (in the WORLD tab).
• To remove someone, go to the Syndicate board and long-press on their name.
• Sent a request? It stays pending until they accept. Until then, you won't see their name on your board.
• Spot a user with a gold VIP badge? That signifies a user who joined within the first 2 months of launch. They were offline before it was cool.
Live Status
The Syndicate leaderboard shows what your friends are up to:
- BLUE DOT — In a REALTIME session. They’ve chosen to be present and intentionally disconnected.
- GREEN DOT — Offline. The app is closed and they’re out living in the real world (hopefully not just on another app!).
- GREY DOT — Online. Checking the leaderboard or preparing to enter reality.
Profile & Stats
• Create a profile to sync all future sessions to the cloud.
• Sessions completed while signed out will not be synced to the cloud, but will remain on the device.
• The clear all stats button removes all local sessions from the device only. Cloud data is unaffected.
OFFLINE / UNRANKED SESSIONS:
- • If you are offline (no internet) when starting a session, it is marked as unranked.
- • To prevent cheating (manipulating system time or running devices simultaneously), unranked sessions are saved to your device history but are NEVER uploaded to the cloud or leaderboards.
- • You must be online and logged in to verify a session.
Ranks
Your total REALTIME unlocks titles, simply based on your total time spent uninterrupted by your phone:
Have Feedback?
Found a bug or have a cool idea?