Focused Work User Reviews

Michael Tigas

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A Powerful Tool—With One (Minor) Flaw

As productivity tools go—especially for those who use Toggl and want to integrate time-tracking—Focused Work is probably the strongest. Add to that the ability to integrate Shortcuts and it becomes a powerful tool with a lot of flexibility and potential.

However, although it boasts many strengths, it does still have one (admittedly, superficial/minor) flaw: The emojis are non-negotiable. For all its flexibility, not having the option to opt out of using emojis—especially when they’re displayed so prominently—is incredibly distracting, and incentivizes me to hide what is otherwise a clean interface with crisp Live Activities.

That’s not suggesting adding an alternative like SF Symbols; just that I wish the emojis themselves were optional, so I’m not required to use them or forced to decide which garish emoji best fits the custom focus session I want to create. PLEASE make these optional.

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tomc_23

2 months ago

Super app!

The killer feature for me is the shortcuts integration and being able to automatically turn on and off focus modes so I don’t even think about interactions.

Plus I am a great fan of doing things from the menu bar, being able to manage all the stages and timers, and the gentle sound effects.

BohemianCoast

2 months ago

Response from developer

Thank you for the super kind review! 🙌 It's great to hear that you really appreciate automation support, amongst the other features you mentioned. Being able to automatically turn a Focus on when a focus session begins is definitely helpful for staying on task. Enjoy!

Great app, but annoying

I spent a lot of time searching for an app with a flexible Pomodoro timer that includes a count-up clock and tracks my sessions. I love that Focused Work offers a Flowmodoro option, a flexible timer, and the traditional Pomodoro. The Toggl integration is also very convenient. This app has really boosted my productivity.

I knocked off one star because there are some features that I find extremely annoying. So much so that every now and then, I stop using the app, try to find something similar, but never find it, so I come back. The main issue is the notifications. I didn’t like them, so I turned them off. Now I get reminders to turn on notifications so that I can get reminders! It really makes no sense. Then there are the reminders to rate and review, which I guess worked. I also wish we could complete the session without having to pause it and that it had better sync between iPhone and MacBook

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1992brz

4 months ago

Enjoying this as a work tool

After a short period of use I’m finding this app helpful. Mostly easy to use and adaptable to suit customised settings.
Thankyou

jonapyef

7 months ago

Response from developer

Hey thank you for the kind review! Great to hear you're loving how flexible Focused Work is - enjoy!

Great tool

Super helpful to maximise on time, i always find myself wanting to push a little bit further and stops the procrastination.

Edna 2019

7 months ago

Response from developer

Thank you for the kind review! Great to hear you're finding Focused Work really effective for managing your time + dealing with procrastination. Enjoy!

Love it, one time purchase, works on all my devices

There's so much good to say about this app, but it's all very self-explanatory so I won't repeat.

There's some features I wish existed that would level this app up.

1. Sync active timers across devices, say if you want to go for a walk during your break but the timer is on your work laptop.

2. I find it really annoying that the Scratch Pad input opens up as a modal over the timer. I wish this would open up within the timer view, pushing the timer aside but keeping it visible. It would be a dream if you could also set it to open by default!

3. More flexible time options while a session is active would be nice... for instance and " Add Time" input to increase the length of the current stage. Logging extra time after the stage runs out of time feels bad.

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Meanpandax

7 months ago

Incredible App that feels tailor fit for Me!

This is such a thoughtful app! I’m able to customize it to my heart’s content. I also love all the data about my sessions. It helps me get better at focusing. Also adore the extra time that can get added when a stage is complete and the clock is still ticking. I can really see, in granular detail, how I may have extended a break or worked past my allotted focus stage time. I tried nearly every pomodoro app in the Apple Store. This is the winner in my book!

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Laughhearty

10 months ago

Response from developer

Thank you for the kind review! 🙂 Glad to hear you're loving how flexible & customisable Focused Work is. The ability to log extra time is definitely super useful when you're still in the middle of wrapping up a big task, and need those extra few mins tracked. Spread the good word. ❤️

Keeps me focused

I have become dependent on this app. It keeps me focused and on track every day (and on all my devices). I love the way it integrates with Toggl/Timey and Apple Shortcuts. It’s very flexible and can easily be adapted to my workflow. Highly recommended.

Mike A Coyle

10 months ago

Response from developer

Thanks for the nice review Mike, really appreciate it! 🙏 Great to hear you're making handy use of the Toggl + Shortcuts integrations too. Keep up the great productivity!

Keeps me on track!

Really great app for creating and following routines. Especially good if you use Toggl too. I really like the way there is a pop out timer too that overlays all other apps. Very responsive developer who is committed to his cause! Keep up the good work!

rohard007

10 months ago

Response from developer

Appreciate the kind review, thank you! 🙏 Great to hear you're loving Focused Work and its flexibility + the integrations. They're indeed really handy! Keep up the great productivity, cheers!

I hate when apps put annoying review reminders in my face, especially when I’m trying to focus

So I’ll give an honest review. This app is weird. Why do the default settings include a constant ticking sound, in-session popup notifications, and automatic transition between segments only logical for a robot? Is this intended to help a person focus? Customizing the sessions is nearly impossible, and even when you succeed, the app attempts to be persistent about sticking to the original template. I’m often finding that sessions get paused and never restarted, or new segments never start, and I don’t remember doing this myself. Excessive pause during a session, or excessively long break between segments? Those would be good times to alert a user that something is amiss. The concept is simple on its face, I’m not sure why I have yet to find a well made app that matches the ease of a timer with a few thoughtful features. Hoping this one improves on some good foundations, namely the design and the big bold view of the timer on the lock screen. Update: it appears a 10 minute pause notification has been put into the iOS version at least, which I learned because I guess I’ve spent 10 minutes writing this review. Would add 1/2 a star for that. Minus half a star for going back in the app only to find it’s still asking me to review.

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barryhorowitz123

10 months ago

Response from developer

Hi, thanks for the review! This kind of feedback is super helpful, appreciate you taking the time to write it out - lots of points noted. 🙏 I've a few questions I'd love to pick your brain on, in particular about the initial configuration, alerts, and templates - if you're open to it? Always trying to optimise for the right balance with those. If so, shoot me an email at focusedworkapp@michaeltigas.com.au and I'll hit you up - cheers!