Compared
DetoxDroid vs one sec
one sec does one thing and has the paper to prove it works: before a chosen app opens, you take a breath. Or look at yourself in the front camera, or turn the phone over, or type a line of random letters. The study with the Max Planck Institute found 57 percent fewer app openings on average, and I believe it, because a forced pause is exactly the mechanism DetoxDroid uses for its wait screen. The difference is what happens after you get in. one sec is done; DetoxDroid is just getting started, with the colour gone, the scroll watched and the budget counting down.
The short version
one sec is friction at the door, done better than anyone: a dozen kinds of pause, a free tier with one app, Pro for all of them, a desktop extension for the same trick in the browser, and nothing collected. DetoxDroid has a plainer wait screen and then everything one sec's listing doesn't mention: gray, dim and blur per app, a doomscroll interrupt by how you scroll, Do Not Disturb while it runs, a brake, a text-only launcher. one sec removes Shorts and Reels from their apps; DetoxDroid leaves them in, but gray and interrupted. one sec runs on iOS too, and DetoxDroid never will.
Where one sec is better
- The pause itself. Breathing, a mirror, a rotated phone, random text, 4-7-8 breathing, a reflection question. DetoxDroid's wait is a progress bar.
- A peer-reviewed study (PNAS, with the Max Planck Institute for Human Development and Heidelberg University) that says it works.
- Shorts and Reels removed from YouTube and Instagram while the rest of the app stays.
- Intention and emotion tracking, journaling, and nudges towards an alternative when you reach for the app.
- iOS, Android and a desktop browser extension, and integrations with Structured and Lengo.
Where DetoxDroid is better
- Gray, dim and blur for the apps you name, all day. one sec changes nothing about how an app looks once you are in.
- A doomscroll interrupt by how you scroll, in any app. one sec's "emergency brake" is a time limit.
- A budget per day or per clock hour that tightens as it runs out, then a lock.
- Website lists ready-made for six categories, on the phone. one sec's Android blocker covers porn sites; other websites need its desktop extension.
- Do Not Disturb while it runs, an emergency brake, a commitment password.
- Every feature free and open source. one sec is free for one app, then Pro, and patented.
Side by side
| DetoxDroid | one sec | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A boring phone by default, paused on purpose | A pause before a distracting app opens |
| Gray, dim, blur | Per app, from install | Not listed |
| Breaks doomscrolling | By how you scroll, in any app; cooldown afterwards | ~A time limit; Shorts and Reels removed from their apps |
| Wait before an app opens | A few seconds, per app | A breath, a mirror, a rotated phone, random text, a reflection |
| Daily time budget | Per day or per clock hour; stricter as it runs out | Block after a set amount of time |
| Schedules | Always, nights, nine to five | Focus times; blocks instantly or on a schedule |
| Blocks websites | Paths and ready-made lists, in the phone's browsers | ~Porn sites on Android; the rest through its desktop extension |
| Do Not Disturb | On while the app runs | Not listed |
| How you get out | A pause with a minimum gap; a password; a brake | A strict block option; the porn blocker's setting can be locked |
| Stats | Screen time, opens, scroll distance; two widgets | How often you reach for an app and the time saved |
| Open source | GPL-3.0, since 2020 | Closed source; US patent |
| Data it collects | Nothing, per the Play listing | Nothing, per the Play listing |
| Price | Free, donations | Free for one app; Pro for the rest |
| Runs on | Android 8 and newer | iOS, Android, desktop browsers |
Every one sec cell comes from its own listing, website, docs or code as they read on 27 October 2026. "Not listed" means I couldn't find it there. German law asks a comparison to be objective and checkable, which is also simply the honest way to do it. If a cell has gone stale, tell me.
Which one
If the one thing you need is a moment of hesitation before Instagram, one sec, and if you have an iPhone as well, one sec without a second thought. If you want the phone to stay dull after the hesitation, DetoxDroid. The two don't collide: one sec's breath on the way in, DetoxDroid's gray once you're there. Only one of them is free for more than one app, which may settle it.
Get DetoxDroid Try it on the page first
Sources
- play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=wtf.riedel.onesec: one sec on Google Play, the feature list, the free and Pro tiers, the patent line and the data safety section, read on 27 October 2026.
- one-sec.app: one sec's website, the interruption types, the browser extension, the research claims and the FAQ, read the same day.
- play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.flx_apps.digitaldetox: DetoxDroid on Google Play, for its own data safety section. The rest of the DetoxDroid column is the app itself.
The other comparisons: Curbox · Reef · Digital Wellbeing · ScreenZen · AppBlock · Stay Focused · Lock Me Out · Freedom · Digital Detox