Observed arrival · 2026-09-10

Furlough, the app blocker with no unblock button

furloughapp.com Observed source

Editorial interest 84/100 Selection signal · not a rating of the site

An iPhone app blocker that uses budgets, schedules, waiting periods, and an NFC tag to make distraction harder to negotiate with.

Landing page captured for the 2026-09-10 issue.

Field notes

The product combines Apple's Screen Time API with schedules, daily minute budgets, and a delay before restrictions can be loosened. Its stricter Anchor mode moves the escape hatch into the physical world: selected apps remain locked until the phone is held to a paired NFC tag. The page also distinguishes Hazard and Essential apps, assigning them four-times-longer or quarter-length waits respectively. Availability is described as coming soon to the App Store.

Observed signals

Read the marks

Editorial observations of this landing page, not a rating.

○OpenPublic substance visible

✦PrettyNotable craft visible

●ProPolished or operationally mature

◎NicheUnusually specific use

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