# I Need a Break: a break from scroll apps, and minutes earned by moving

> NPCoding built I Need a Break for iOS and Android: one-press and scheduled breaks from scroll apps, minutes earned by moving, and a weekly Time Receipt. Usage data stays on the phone.

Source: https://npcoding.ca/portfolio/i-need-a-break/
Last updated: 2026-10-26

An iOS and Android app that closes the scroll apps you pick, with one press or on a schedule like Sleep and Work, and gives minutes back for push-ups, steps, focus, reading or breathing. Built by NPCoding in 2026.

## Project facts

- **Client:** NPCoding
- **Industry:** Technology
- **Project type:** Mobile app
- **Platforms:** iOS, Android, React Native (Expo)
- **Services:** Software Product Engineering, Web & Mobile App Development

## What NPCoding delivered

- One press, or a schedule like Sleep 23:00–07:00 and Work 09:00–13:00
- Minutes earned back with push-ups, steps, focus, reading or breathing
- A weekly Time Receipt you can share as an image
- App usage and camera frames stay on the phone

## I Need a Break

A subscription app for iOS and Android that gives you a break from the scroll apps you choose. Press **Break now** and they close for 30 minutes, an hour, two, or as long as you choose, with a big countdown that shows when they open again. We built it at NPCoding in 2026.

- **Scheduled breaks**: an alarm clock the other way round — Sleep 23:00–07:00, Work 09:00–13:00 Sunday to Thursday, Family dinner 19:00–20:30. They run with the app closed, with an optional heads-up 5 minutes before.
- **Minutes for the rest of the day**: the apps you choose get 10 minutes. When they run out, the apps close and the block screen says one thing: do something.
- **Earn minutes by moving**: 10 push-ups counted by the camera on the phone, 1,000 steps, a 20-minute focus block, 15 minutes of reading or two minutes of breathing.
- **You decide how much to spend**: each time you open a scroll app, you pick 2, 5 or 10 minutes. Leave early and the rest stays in your wallet.
- **A weekly Time Receipt**: what you earned, what you spent and how much time you took back, shareable as an image.
- **Private by design**: app usage stays on the phone, camera frames are processed there and dropped, and there is no account and no ads.
- **English and Hebrew**, with a full right-to-left layout in Hebrew.

## How it's built

The app is written in **React Native** with **Expo**. Movement counting and app usage are handled on the phone itself, and subscriptions run through **RevenueCat** on Apple's and Google's stores. Without a plan, nothing stays blocked.

The app is on its way to the App Store and Google Play. Store links will be added here once it's live.

## Have a similar project in mind?

- [Software Product Engineering](https://npcoding.ca/services/software-product-engineering/): From idea to investor-ready product: discovery, prototyping, MVP and scale, engineered for the long run.
- [Web & Mobile App Development](https://npcoding.ca/services/application-development/): Web apps, mobile apps and customer portals built around the way your business actually works.

Discuss a similar project: https://npcoding.ca/contact/?topic=build&service=engineering&from=%2Fportfolio%2Fi-need-a-break%2F&type=project&id=i-need-a-break&cta=closing#enquiry

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NPCoding · AI-powered software & app development · Toronto, Canada · support@npcoding.com · https://npcoding.ca/contact/