# Blue Light Therapy — user reviews > 58 indexed App Store user reviews of Blue Light Therapy by Alexander Stone, rated 2.80/5 from 24 ratings. - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/blue-light-therapy/id537446731/reviews - App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/blue-light-therapy/id537446731.md - Rating breakdown: 5★ 7 · 4★ 3 · 3★ 3 · 2★ 1 · 1★ 10 ## Newest reviews (15 of 58) ### 3/5 — Like it, but... *2018-02-28, version 4.0* I do enjoy the single beach and water scenes. However, please lose the cheesy music and let us just enjoy the relaxing nature sounds (allow us to choose, perhaps?). Now the scenes with the cat, dog, food, etc. in the corners are just corny and ridiculous, like the developer is trying way too hard! I won’t be viewing those; however, we can choose our scenes, so thanks for that. Whether it wakes you up or improves your mood, I couldn’t say. But I do like the water scene that I can make waves with my finger for relaxation. Even better would be an animated ocean scene! Will up my rating for that. ### 3/5 — Blue Light Therapy *2017-06-20, version 3.0* I liked it. But it only stays on briefly. Would prefer it would stay on for 45 minutes to an hour. Otherwise it ruins the moment to have to keep hitting the phone to keep it going. **Developer response:** Thank you Woodrow, there's a "loop" feature in settings which can make the app play forever! ### 2/5 — Wow! Not blue at all! *2017-06-12, version 3.0* I bought this app with the intention of using a blue light screen on my iPad. I want to run it for 5 minutes or so in the morning to help me wake up and be more alert. What I got was one screen with a "blue-tinted" beach scene for waking up, and a orange-tinted fire scene to help me wind down at night. I didn't buy this to be entertained and yet someone decided that was what was needed. The description in the app sales area should be more clear and should include screen shots. This was (to me) a real waste of money! ### 2/5 — Now it's broken *2017-04-29* I liked it at least 2 stars better when I could set the length of time. Now with the new orange mode that would be really helpful. Right now it's 4 minutes or until your battery dies? I don't want it to run all night, let me set the time! ### 4/5 — Good *2017-04-26* Relaxing, but just one theme. I hope the developer adds more. ### 1/5 — They screwed it up *2017-04-20, version 2.1* This app was fine the way it was, but not any more. Only landscape, and now the interactive touch is only automatic. And where's the blue screen, yo? ### 3/5 — It's nice *2017-04-16, version 2.0* I really enjoyed playing with the ripple/fluid touch controls the most. Adding an option to control additional parameters would be a huge step up. Example: horizon range - only ripple the water horizon down. Type: rain drops or ripple Etc The overall look is very bright, warm & positive. Blue light = blue sky. I would however like to see more images available (other beaches, pools, streams, balloons, jello lol). Also the ability to choose which images & to "lock" onto a certain one if desired would be a HUGE plus. I felt while running the app as those few "stock" images changed they merely became distracting and felt more like a glitch. Finally the music was pleasing yet repetitive but you can toggle it off and it does allow you to play your own music in the background. I think it's a good app with potential but would not only add stars if those suggestions were added but honestly could see this spreading around quite quickly with them. I understand the point of the app but if the user is more immersed in the experience I think they will experience more. Thank you. **Developer response:** Thank you for the review! The next update would introduce ability to add your own images and expand the range of built - in images. ### 1/5 — Verry bad *2017-04-15, version 2.0* It was very bad and blather ### 1/5 — App does not work *2017-03-10* Wasted money, the App "cant find bridge". No obvious place for support on the developer website. How do I get my money back? ### 3/5 — Needs Update *2017-01-23, version 1.4* When I turn it on, it shows an error message letting me know the owner needs to update the app and the app may slow down my phone. Additionally, the Phillips Hue bridge can not be found. I'd like to try it again once these updates have been made. ### 2/5 — Hues not working *2016-06-05* Have been trying to switch hues but it keeps saying that there is no bridge. How do I fix this. Thanks ### 2/5 — Won't display Phillips Hue Lights *2015-11-07, version 1.4* It works alright on my iPod but won't find the different Phillips Hue Lights, which I really wanted. ### 4/5 — Good but keep improving *2015-08-17* I take tryptophan supplements and as a side effect my body produces too much melatonin, so it's difficult to wake up in the morning (it was the same on antidepressants). This works perfectly for that, but to make it effective (for me) I have to turn my screen brightness up. Also stop saying that this is a free app in your online additional information! I just paid for this I don't want to hear that. ### 1/5 — Waste of money *2015-01-02* Don't waste your money on this, you are as well staring at a blue picture on Google free of charge. ### 4/5 — Great idea (particularly w/Hue) *2014-12-15, version 1.4* Just downloaded the app. Haven't used it yet but...am getting bathroom redone which I intend to deck out with Philips Hue bulbs. That is where this app comes into the picture. I live somewhere in The Great White North where the winters are very dark, cold and long. Seasonal Affective Disorder can be a real issue. Also, I have NO time to sit for a half hour in front of a light box but, while getting ready for work in bathroom I DO have time to use this app to suffuse myself with blue light, hopefully to salutary effect. That's the plan. I do wish there was some way to contact the developer Alexander Stone to ask about the product(s), thank him for his hard work and dedication and perhaps make a donation so he can continue his helpful work. ## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated) ### 1/5 — Blows up on boot. *2018-09-12, version 4.0* I found a previous review here I’d written, which was a surprise to me: apparently, the app ran for me at one time, though I could tell what it was for. Whatever it did or didn’t do then, it’s doing less than that now, as it blows up on boot. Can’t run it at all. Given that the developer last updated it nine months ago, it appears to be abandoned, so I spose it doesn’t matter that it doesn’t run, though if I were the developer, I’d delete it so as not to give people the idea that the developer creates broken apps. Better to delete it from the store unless the developer isn’t writing apps these days, in which case a broken app isn’t hurting his reputation. ### 1/5 — Crashes immediately *2018-04-07, version 4.0* The app crashes as soon as it's opened. Unable to use. ### 1/5 — Won't load *2018-02-28* Ipad air on ios 11.2.5 Not working ### 1/5 — New version *2018-02-28, version 4.0* Just installed update on my phone. Then tried to install on my iPad Air. Can’t open on iPad. Starts to open, then crashes and closes. Something is badly wrong... ### 1/5 — Crashes on opening *2018-02-28* I’ve no idea if this App is any good, as it crashes the moment it’s opened! 😔 ### 1/5 — Nice-by👑👩🏻♿️ *2017-11-27, version 4.0* I got this free in Apps Gone Free 1 day. Very nice & pleasant little sleep/wake audio/visual app. (Altho I alwez thought It looks TERRIBLE! Cartoony blu made people sleepy, sleeping pills r blu, night-time pictures r alwez dark blu, popular bedroom color is blu) but I love this neat little app. 😊🌞🌝🌙 WTH IS this?!?!?! Cartoony images that r bright but look like a 2yr old drew! VERY hard 2 tell what the images r. Truly AWFUL. Deleting... NOW. ### 1/5 — Total waste of money *2017-11-13* I thought it might come on like an alarm clock and gradually wake you up. No it’s some stupid thing that you wake up and play with. Total waste of money and I don’t normally buy that many apps. ### 1/5 — Does Nothing *2017-10-23, version 3.2* I have seasonal affective disorder, and I have a Masters’s degree and work in the mental health field, and I can tell you with 100% certainty that this app will do nothing to improve your mood. Sure, there’s the placebo effect this may have for some suggestive individuals, but beyond that, there is ZERO science behind this app. You need psychotropic medications and/or a light therapy box of 10,000 LUX to change your mood... All this does is play some cheesy music/audio along with a static wallpaper, with a ripple effect thrown in to increase the “zen” of this app. Save your space on your iPhone and skip this... Good example of an app developer trying to exploit people. —————————— EDIT: The developer is comparing this app to Apple’s blue-light reduction night-shift mode. True, blue light from your phone may effect your ability to sleep in a dark room, but there is ZERO evidence to suggest that the iPhone screen can improve a user’s mood. Helping someone sleep versus improving depression IS NOT the same thing. AND there is not very much evidence to suggest that Apple’s night-shift really does a whole lot to improve sleep anyways compared to simply turning your screen brightness down. It’s more about reducing eye-strain... Furthermore, he argues that his app makes people “feel happy” because being in a beautiful environment makes people feel happy, and since his app has pretty pictures of pretty places, you will then feel happy by staring at the pictures. So he’s basically admitting that this app is a screen saver/photo carousel. I stand by my original review, even more so now. Please avoid this app. **Developer response:** Thank you Adam. I invite you to consider a single fact - in 2016 Apple introduced the "Night Shift" feature to turn iOS device screens orange at night. I was blogging about this issue back in 2012 - full 4 years before this change. The information about the effects of blue light at night on sleep came out in 2010-2011. Thus the mainstream understanding of the effects of light on cognition is severely lagging behind the medical research fields which I follow. The latest advances in evolutionary psychology suggest that human brain has specialized neural networks which detect environmental advantages to survival and reproduction. A bright meadow on a hill with blue sky near a river offers such advantages, and we can recognize it. Which is why a house on such hill costs millions of dollars - we "like" it. While a light box, no matter the amount of LUX does not.Few people really "like" anything about their light box, it's a chore to stare at it for 30 minutes. The neural networks simply filter out the light and we are left with the same approach as the modern psychiatry - just push harder with more LUX hoping that something in the brain gets triggered. It certainly works for some people, but it's a crude technology, we can build better tools now. I've had the privilege to observe the euphoric effect which blue sky and tropical greenery has on visitors of a tropical island in the winter. The pictures in the app are taken on that island. Instead of drab browns and grays, visitors see green jungle and blue sea and sky. All their neural networks overwhelmingly suggest they found a good place to be - they "like" it. This app takes a part of this experience and offers it to the users, in many cases for free. I understand it won't replace a tropical vacation, but it is certainly worth trying! ### 1/5 — Will Not Load. Period. *2017-10-18* Downloaded + installed. Went to load App. Immediately it crashes. Please fix. Using IOS 11.0.3 on iPad mini 0 stars. ### 1/5 — No feeling *2017-10-18, version 3.1* Not feel wakening. ## Most praised reviews (10 highest-rated) ### 5/5 — Great App *2022-07-13, version 4.0* Thank you for the realization of a great idea! Andrew Huberman says it’s important to have blue light exposure in the morning. ### 5/5 — Lovely and so relaxing too, I use + lightbox *2020-01-20* As the developer says, 200 lux is not the same as 10,000 like my lightbox, but I LOVE the ripples, so calming and put me in a relaxed and positive mood. Needed a bit of fiddling with the settings to get how I wanted it - landscape mode is easier, and I found you can use your own photos if you want to add them in and take away the ones you don’t like. You can also have whatever music you like playing in the background if you use Spotify or similar, just mute the app sounds. Great way to deal with anxiety as just a couple of mins of this and the tension in my solar plexus dissolved and I was feeling fine. Thank you for developing this!💜👍🏻🙏🏼 ### 5/5 — Good progress *2017-10-22, version 3.2* I like it, it takes a couple minutes to change to a nice background. Already using this in the morning for a few days to feel more alert. ### 5/5 — Surprise surprise it works *2017-04-26* Well shut my mouth and call me dumb! This actually works. ### 5/5 — Very good! *2017-04-16, version 2.0* This technology is effective. Whether or not you like the music or the picture, or the animation, looking at blue light like this really does wake you up. I would get this app, make sure to disable nightshift, and try it in the morning (or even at night / another period of the day when you are tired or want to wake up) ### 5/5 — Great with Philips Hue *2014-10-18, version 1.4* Thanks for making this work with Philips Hue. I love it! I had to slide the Hue on/off switch back and forth a dozen times before the configuration screen opened. But then it has been working great once configured. It's nice to have running in the auto mode with Hue lights. Maybe have a separate icon to get to the config so it's easier to setup? Thanks for posting! ### 5/5 — Helps With Deporesion *2014-05-15, version 1.3* Wow! This app works! I got it because i was feeling sad and needed to expand my coping skills. I turned on some pop/top hits and tried to tap to the beat it is very fun and effective. I recommend this app to anyone felling down or just looking for a fun game to play! I hope if you read this it helps just as much as it helps me! ### 5/5 — Review *2014-02-11, version 1.3* Awesome and fun ### 5/5 — It actually works! *2013-11-21, version 1.3* I was a bit skeptic about blue light therapy helping with fatigue and stress, but over the best few days I've been using it for a short five minutes while I'm still in bed and it has really improved my tiredness! It's only been a short while, so I'm hoping the effects will stay and this isn't just a placebo. No matter, this app is innovative and unique, as well as very simple to use! ### 5/5 — Pretty sweet, makes me wide awake. *2013-09-25, version 1.2* This app just wakes me app so I guess it does work. I usually use with ill brightness on --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-06-10.*