Comparison

Normal vs 1bit

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Normal

This app helps you reduce phone usage by blocking selected applications by default. To access blocked apps, you must physically scan an NFC tag, QR code, or barcode, or be at a specific location. It offers granular control, timed unblocks, and scheduling to help you regain control of your screen time.

Highlights
  • Block apps via NFC, QR codes, and barcodes
  • Use any NFC tag, QR code, or barcode
  • Unblock/block specific apps
  • Timed unblocks
  • Scheduling
  • Granular control
  • Bypass prevention options
Read full description

Normal actually makes you use your phone less by keeping selected apps blocked by default. To unblock you have to physically scan an NFC Tag, QR Code or use a Location. This can be any NFC Tag, QR Code, Barcode, Location you set in the app. This 'opt-in' approach is backed by research and actual use. Normal is made to be the most powerful screen time app available. Saving your hours of your day. It's fully open-source and no features are behind paywalls. It can also be made to be impossible to bypass. Highlights of Normal: - Block Apps via NFC Tags, QR Codes and Barcodes - Use ANY NFC Tag, QR Code or Barcode - Unblock/Block specific Apps - Timed Unblocks - Emergency Unblocks - Scheduling - Complete Granular Control - Can make it as easy or as hard to bypass Normal was made because of issues with some other screen time apps. - Other screen time apps are easy to bypass. Normal can be made to be impossible to bypass, or easy to bypass. You have complete control. - Most other screen time apps work on opt-out strategy, where you have access to all apps, then lose access through usage. - Normal works on opt-in strategy. The apps you have blocked are always blocked, to use them you have to physically get up and scan your NFC tag or QR Code. - Most screen time apps are paid, either one-time or more commonly, subscriptions. There are no paid features. Everything is free and open-source. - Normal is privacy-focused. We don't log any data, everything stays on device. Since we're open source, you can check our code and confirm. - Normal allows timed unlocks. Other NFC/QR Code blockers don't have this. If you want to use an app for 15min, you can unlock it for 15min only. You don't have to remember to reblock. Normal was made by actual users, research on smartphone addiction and developments in dumbphones in-mind. If you want to turn your iPhone into a dumbphone, you can. Block all smart apps, block the app store, prevent disabling normal (via preventing delete and the shortcuts trick). Now you have a dumbphone, which you can't make smart without your NFC Tag (which you can make as difficult as you need). If you want a semi-dumbphone, you can. Do the above but have some apps like maps, music, messaging, etc. If you're a professional who needs access to apps distracting sometimes, Normal is for you! Block all distractions with Normal. Set schedules for you work apps or used timed unblocks. Need 15min to post content or check email? You can do that! You just have to physically get up and scan your NFC Tag, QR Code, or Barcode. The apps will automatically reblock after your timer is over. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

1bit

Experience a minimalist, retro phone interface designed for digital detox. Enjoy a distraction-free environment with features like a simple music player, ad-free browsing, and classic games. Keep essential apps accessible while reclaiming your focus.

Highlights
  • Retro 1-bit interface
  • Distraction-free browsing
  • Minimalist music player
  • Classic games included
  • RSS news reader
  • Simple camera and maps
Features
Read full description

You know that feeling. Headphones on, lying in the grass, just you and your music with no distractions. Those ten minutes on the bus with the snake game on your T9 keypad. Blocky photos you took with your first digicam. That is 1bit. We think the early 2000s got something right. Not just nostalgia. A clear head. No algorithm waiting when you only meant to check the time. No doomscrolling. We don't block apps, we just give you a more fun one. You keep your banking app and your transit pass, all available when you need them. Get the dumb phone experience without buying a second phone that you will put down as soon as you get tired of its limitations. This is the digital detox you never have to quit. WHAT IT IS A gloriously retro phone experience in two colors. Black and white, one grid, every shade a dither pattern on a screen that never pretends to be anything else. Put the launcher widget on your home screen and each row opens into a quiet world with nothing in it pulling you back. WHAT IS INSIDE • Music. Add files or play from your library. Gapless, a real peak meter, an optional tactile wheel like your favorite mp3 player had. • Podcasts. Search, subscribe, queue, download, sleep timer. Stream them or download them. • Web. Addiction-proof browsing. One page at a time, no tabs. Block ads and scripts. 1bit images or none at all. No videos at all. • News. Old school RSS reader. Only the feeds you picked, in publish order, plus a read-later shelf. • Camera. A 1-bit viewfinder that develops into black and white film when you save to your camera roll. • Maps. A drawn map, search, saved pins, route guidance. No frills. • Phone and text. Classic dial pad. Your contacts, favorites, and a record of every call you made from here. • Calendar and reminders. Your real calendars and lists. • Notes and voice memos. Plain text in a folder over USB. • Clock. Alarms, timer, stopwatch with Live Activities. • Games. Solitaire, minesweeper, snake on a drawn keypad, brick breaker on the wheel. • Widgets. Launcher, clock, today, and a great big shortcut button to any feature you use the most. Switch any section off in settings. It stays off. WHY IT FEELS DIFFERENT Nothing here makes up reasons to pull you back. No algorithms trying to learn who you are. No notifications to tickle your dopamine. News ends. Music stops when the album ends. The browser will not autoplay video at you. Alerts stay off until you turn them on. Pick a retro font. Pick a size. Day, night, or following the sun. SETTING UP The guide is in the app. Pop our widgets on the home screen, tuck everything else away, black wallpaper, grayscale with a triple-click to bring color back. Ten minutes. YOUR DATA We don't like having our data harvested so we don't collect yours. No account. No server. No analytics. No third-party SDK. Sync uses your own iCloud if you want it. WHAT YOU NEED An iPhone running iOS 18 or later. THE PRICE Free for fourteen days, everything unlocked. Then one purchase, once. No subscription. Nothing else to buy.

Screenshots

Normal4 screens
1bit4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: Normal at free against 1bit's free with in-app purchases. Normal also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs weekly) and ratings volume (43 vs 6). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Normal sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $5.00 per month and 1bit sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for Normal against 4.8 for 1bit. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Normal has 43 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Normal ships an update every 2 days, 1bit weekly. Both last shipped on November 1, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Normal versus 1bit: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNormal1bit
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (43 ratings) — better4.8 (6 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings43 — better6
Update frequencyEvery 2 days — betterWeekly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS18.018.0
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB18 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperNormal Engineering Inc.Nicholas Counts

Customer experience

Normal

All ratings42 ratings
Positive97.6%
Neutral2.4%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews23 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

1bit

All ratings6 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

9 purchases

Normal

Subscriptions3
  • Monthly Support$5.001 Month
  • Monthly Support$10.001 Month
  • Monthly Support$20.001 Month
One-time6
  • One-time Donation$5.00
  • One-time Donation$10.00
  • One-time Donation$20.00
Show 3 more
  • One-time Donation$50.00
  • One-time Donation$100.00
  • One-time Donation$200.00
1 purchases

1bit

One-time1
  • 1bit: Complete Lifetime Unlock$14.99

Questions

Is Normal free?
Normal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is 1bit free?
1bit is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Normal or 1bit?
Normal is rated higher. Normal averages 4.9 out of 5 from 43 ratings, while 1bit averages 4.8 from 6 ratings.
Do Normal or 1bit have ads?
Neither Normal nor 1bit shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Normal or 1bit?
Normal ships an update every 2 days, and 1bit weekly. Most recently, Normal was updated on November 1, 2026 and 1bit on November 1, 2026.

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