Comparison

OnLock vs Pomeow

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

Head to head
About

OnLock

This app enforces focus by locking distracting applications at the operating system level. It uses AI to verify study sessions with photos, ensuring your progress is genuine and building an earned streak. Features include scheduled blocks, intent journaling, and focus intelligence insights.

Highlights
  • OS-level distraction blocking
  • AI-verified study sessions
  • Streak building
  • Scheduled recurring blocks
  • Intent journaling
  • Focus intelligence insights
  • Home screen widgets
Features
Read full description

Studying doesn't fail because you're lazy. It fails because Instagram is one swipe away, and willpower is not a strategy. OnLock is the block you can't talk yourself out of. When a session starts, OnLock locks your distractions at the operating system level using Apple's Family Controls. No "5 more minutes." No uninstall trick. The shield holds until you finish. But blocking is the easy part. The hard part is proving the work was real. Before any session counts toward your streak, OnLock's AI reviews a photo of what you did. No proof, no credit. THE SHIELD • Un-bypassable OS-level enforcement built on Apple's Family Controls • Locks the apps that derail you: social, games, browsers, anything • Holds through restarts, app deletion, and panic uninstalls • Schedule recurring blocks for the hours you always slip AI PROOF • Submit a photo of your notes, work, or finished problem set • AI verifies the session was genuine study before your streak counts • Catches the "I just sat there" sessions you'd rather forget • Builds a streak you actually earned THE INTERVENTION • A quiet pause before every session to ask if this is really study time • Journal your intent so distraction has to argue with your own words • Reflect after to see what is actually working THE WHY ON A TIMER • Plot your exams on a real countdown • Every session lands against the clock • See what each lost hour costs you FOCUS INTELLIGENCE • Learns your peak hours, worst blockers, and patterns • Tells you when to study and when to stop pretending • Your data, your insight, never shared ALWAYS ON • Home screen widgets in three sizes • Lock screen complications for glanceable streaks • Quick Study: one tap and you're locked in THE AESTHETIC A calm, editorial interface designed to feel nothing like the apps it replaces. No infinite scroll. No screaming notifications. No dopamine arcade. Just focus. PRIVACY • Screen time data stays on your device • Built on Apple's native Family Controls and Screen Time APIs • Photos for AI proof are reviewed and discarded • No tracking, no sale, no leak FREE Every feature above is included, free. No subscription, no upsells, no locked tools. Stop trying harder. Start being unable. OnLock. The focus you can't undo. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://onlock-api.joshuawang2048.workers.dev/legal/privacy

About

Pomeow

Read full description

Pomeow is a pomodoro timer with a heartbeat. Start a focus session and a tiny hand-drawn cat keeps you company - on screen, on your Lock Screen, and in the Dynamic Island on supported iPhones. Stay with it and the cat purrs along. If a call or another app takes you away, the timer pauses and continues when you return. Finish the session and it does zoomies. GENTLE BY DESIGN No dead trees, no shame. If life interrupts, the timer waits without blame. Give up a session and it just needs a little care - then you both try again. IT GROWS WITH YOU Every finished session earns fish. Hit your daily goal to build a streak. Your cat grows from kitten to fully grown, remembers milestones, and brings home little stories from the windowsill. FREE TO FOCUS - The complete focus timer and growth journey are free - No subscriptions, no ads, no analytics and no tracking - Fish can never be bought - only earned - Optional one-time cosmetic packs if you'd like to spoil your cat BUILT FOR PEACE OF MIND - Focus features work offline; by default, history stays on your device - Optional private iCloud backup can restore completed history and growth - No Pomeow account or sign-up is required FEATURES - Focus sessions: 15 / 25 / 45 / 60 minutes - Live Activity companion on the Dynamic Island and Lock Screen - Calls and app switching pause without blame; view your session on the Lock Screen - Daily goal, streaks, seven-day chart and a dated growth journey - Coat colours, patterns, eyes, temperament, accessories and desk scenes - Morning reports, bedtime, mementos and seasonal details - Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets, plus alternate app icons - English, Japanese, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese and Korean Adopt your focus cat today. It believes in you.

Screenshots

OnLock4 screens
Pomeow4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: OnLock at Free against Pomeow's $1.99. Pomeow's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs every 5 weeks). On ads, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement 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

OnLock is free to download; Pomeow costs $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

OnLock ships an update every 5 weeks, Pomeow every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on August 5, 2026 and September 17, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
OnLock versus Pomeow: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterOnLockPomeow
PriceFree — better$1.99
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size48 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTing Ting Xu军 郭

In-app purchases

None

OnLock

No in-app purchases

None

Pomeow

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is OnLock free?
OnLock is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Pomeow free?
Pomeow costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do OnLock or Pomeow have ads?
Neither OnLock nor Pomeow shows ads.
Which is updated more often, OnLock or Pomeow?
OnLock ships an update every 5 weeks, and Pomeow every 4 days. Most recently, OnLock was updated on August 5, 2026 and Pomeow on September 17, 2026.

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