Show HN: LookAway 2.0 – a break reminder for Mac that respects what you're doing
A 'smarter' macOS break reminder that 'respects what you're doing' by understanding user activity and context, avoiding interruptions, and offering detailed screen-time analytics and customizable enforcement.
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AI Executive Synthesis
A 'smarter' macOS break reminder that 'respects what you're doing' by understanding user activity and context, avoiding interruptions, and offering detailed screen-time analytics and customizable enforcement.
LookAway 2.0 addresses a common user frustration with productivity tools: intrusive notifications. Its core innovation lies in context-awareness, pausing reminders during critical activities like meetings or screen recording. This intelligent behavior significantly enhances user adoption and long-term utility, moving beyond a simple timer to a more integrated productivity assistant. The inclusion of detailed screen-time analytics and customizable enforcement options caters to varying user needs, from gentle nudges to strict adherence. This product exemplifies how nuanced user experience design, driven by understanding real-world usage patterns, can create a more effective and sticky solution in the personal productivity software market.
Hey HN,I’m the solo dev behind LookAway, a macOS app that reminds you to take breaks.I built it because I spend most of my day in front of a screen, and I noticed that a lot of break reminder apps kind of fail in the same way: they do help, but they also interrupt you at the worst possible time. After a few days people just start snoozing everything or turn them off.I just released LookAway 2.0, which is a pretty major update.A lot of the work in this version went into making the app behave less like a timer and more like something that understands when to back off a bit.Some things that changed:- i added a stats system, so it can track sessions, natural breaks, break adherence, daily totals, and a screen score- it now shows where you spend your screen-time including apps, as well as things like meetings or watching videos, etc- it can automatically pause / delay reminders in more situations now, like meetings, active mic usage, screen recording, games, video playback, etc- there’s now a proper heads-up flow before breaks- stricter break controls if you want enforcement instead of just gentle nudges- redesigned menu bar / quick controlsI’m still iterating on the balance between being helpful and being annoying. That part is honestly the whole product.Happy to answer any questions!- Kushagra
macOS app
stats system
track sessions
natural breaks
break adherence
daily totals
screen score
screen-time including apps
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What is LookAway 2.0 – a break reminder for Mac that respects what you're doing?
LookAway 2.0 – a break reminder for Mac that respects what you're doing is analyzed by our AI as: A 'smarter' macOS break reminder that 'respects what you're doing' by understanding user activity and context, avoiding interruptions, and offering detailed screen-time analytics and customizable enforcement.. It focuses on LookAway 2.0 addresses a common user frustration with productivity tools: intrusive notifications. Its core innovation lies in context-awareness, p...
Where did LookAway 2.0 – a break reminder for Mac that respects what you're doing originate?
Data for LookAway 2.0 – a break reminder for Mac that respects what you're doing was aggregated directly from the Hacker News community ecosystem, representing raw developer and early-adopter sentiment.
When was LookAway 2.0 – a break reminder for Mac that respects what you're doing publicly launched?
The initial public indexing or launch date for LookAway 2.0 – a break reminder for Mac that respects what you're doing within our tracked developer communities was recorded on April 7, 2026.
How popular is LookAway 2.0 – a break reminder for Mac that respects what you're doing?
LookAway 2.0 – a break reminder for Mac that respects what you're doing has achieved measurable traction, logging over 2 traction score and facilitating 0 recorded discussions or engagements.
Which technical categories define LookAway 2.0 – a break reminder for Mac that respects what you're doing?
Based on metadata extraction, LookAway 2.0 – a break reminder for Mac that respects what you're doing is categorized under topics such as: macOS app, stats system, track sessions, natural breaks.
What are some commercial alternatives to LookAway 2.0 – a break reminder for Mac that respects what you're doing?
Our semantic intelligence engine identifies potential commercial alternatives in the SaaS space, such as LookAway 2, which offers overlapping value propositions.
How does the creator describe LookAway 2.0 – a break reminder for Mac that respects what you're doing?
The original author or development team describes the product as follows: "Hey HN,I’m the solo dev behind LookAway, a macOS app that reminds you to take breaks.I built it because I spend most of my day in front of a screen, and I noticed that a lot of break reminder apps ..."
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Hacker News
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