Lately App: Gamified Time Management for Punctuality

Introducing Lately: A Gamified App for Timeliness

A novel application, Lately, has recently become available on the App Store. It is specifically designed to assist individuals diagnosed with ADHD in achieving punctuality and incentivizes them for successful on-time arrivals.

How Lately Assists with Time Management

The service functions by actively managing users’ travel schedules. It provides timely notifications indicating when departure is necessary, alongside reminders issued 30 minutes, 10 minutes, and 5 minutes prior to the scheduled leaving time.

Furthermore, Lately integrates with iPhone and Apple Watch through Live Activities, displaying a clear countdown until the optimal departure moment.

A Point-Based Reward System

To motivate prompt departures, Lately incorporates a point-based reward system structured across four distinct difficulty levels.

The initial level, termed “Goldfish,” grants users 3 points for arriving early, 2 points for being on time, and no points for tardiness. Subsequent levels – “Coffee,” “Grown Up,” and “Yoda” – progressively increase the challenge.

For example, the “Yoda” level imposes a penalty of 2 points for late arrivals.

Unlocking Achievements and Virtual Rewards

As users accumulate points, they progress through levels and unlock a variety of virtual characters within the application. These characters function as digital achievement badges.

Although the rewards may seem straightforward, they can offer a valuable sense of accomplishment and progress for users.

The Inspiration Behind Lately

Lately was developed by independent developer Erik MacInnis to address the specific difficulties encountered by people with ADHD, particularly those relating to time management.

MacInnis shared with TechCrunch, “I’ve consistently been the one arriving late within my social circle. For many, the primary obstacles to leaving on time are difficulties with time perception and inaccurate time estimation. Lately directly tackles both of these issues by maintaining constant user awareness of departure times, and its gamified nature provides positive reinforcement when arriving punctually.”

Differentiating Lately from Existing Solutions

While comparable applications do exist – such as the Android app “Time to Leave” – MacInnis believes they are becoming outdated.

Existing ADHD applications like Structured and TickTick primarily focus on task management and do not specifically address the issue of time blindness when commuting.

Testing and Potential Improvements

Our testing indicated that Lately is a helpful tool. However, we suggest the addition of time estimations for commuters in major cities utilizing public transportation or bicycles.

Currently, the app only supports travel options for driving or walking.

Potential for Success

Despite this minor limitation, we anticipate the app will find success among its intended audience.

Individuals with ADHD often experience a lack of motivation, and experts frequently recommend employing reward systems to foster self-discipline. The gamified app Finch has also garnered attention for its point-based system, encouraging users to complete daily tasks and healthy habits by rewarding them with points to customize a virtual pet.

Future Development Plans

MacInnis has revealed plans for future updates to Lately. These include a social feature that automatically notifies friends when a user departs, is five minutes away, and arrives.

An Android version is also planned for future development.

Availability and Pricing

Lately is available for free download. A premium subscription is also offered at $3 per month or $10 per year, unlocking features such as customizable difficulty levels and the ability to schedule recurring trips.