Cost: Free/4.99 per week
Everyone needs a break sometimes. And since one constant in most of our lives is our phones, a lot of app developers try to make programs to give us these breaks. These apps are labeled “wellness,” “meditation,” or “de-stress.” While the idea seems sensical enough, the results often have varying levels of success. One such meditation app is Komforto.
Komforto, created by the Austin-based startup Maxwell Labs, is an app that touts “relaxation with haptic meditation” and claims to “relieve anxiety.” The app’s main function revolves around mesmerizing background animations, soothing music, and a movable dot. It keeps track of how long the user keeps their finger on the screen and encourages them to press it for as long as possible. The simple concentration this task requires, paired with the music, is meant to provide a relaxing experience.
When opening the app for the first time, there are a few screens to click through. After that, it will ask you to pay for a subscription. Just click the X in the top left corner to start using the app. This subscription is one of the more annoying parts of the app. It’s a weekly subscription that allows you to use more backgrounds. And that’s pretty much it. There’s not a hugely noticeable difference using the subscription other than it stops bugging you about buying it. The other annoying thing about the app is that the backgrounds have a tendency to freeze. You’ll be in the middle of watching the kaleidoscope designs spin when it suddenly stops moving. This wouldn’t be the biggest issue, except it ends up negating any destressing effect.
That being said, the dot animation is nice. You can touch anywhere on the screen to drag the trail of dots around and even pick from several dot color options. Plus, the animated backgrounds and music have even more options.
Komforto can easily make for a good peaceful distraction for some, especially for those willing to pay $5 a week for it. For the rest of us though, there are plenty of other apps to look at. There’s nothing particularly wrong with the app—and the customization is great—but there are definitely more effective applications available.
