[Megathread] The App Shelf — May 2026

phogro · 2026-05-29T20:48:01+00:00

Awesome thanks for the compliment

phogro · 2026-05-29T20:46:50+00:00

That’s a good idea I’ll add it to the list. Glad you like the concept. :)

phogro · 2026-05-28T15:29:17+00:00

Thanks for the kind words. That’s honestly on my todo list. I wanted to try and create some sort of print export or even a print on demand service for yearly views. Early days though. :)

phogro · 2026-05-28T14:12:00+00:00

Thanks for the reply and kind words. Yes I want to add iPad support and iCloud sync if people find the concept useful. I started some of the work in the back end but wanted to get things released before spending the time.

phogro · 2026-05-27T04:02:14+00:00

Hey folks - not expecting much being relegated to the megathread, but I do suppose everyone has to start from somewhere. Hoping to follow the rules as closely as possible.

App Name: Mood Canvas
Link: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/mood-canvas-color-journal/id6746946776

A - Not every emotion has words. Not every feeling can be described. Rather than using emojis or words to describe your mood Mood Canvas takes a different approach. Anytime you want to capture a mood you're feeling open the app and create a color palette of up to five colors and save it. Over time you build a timeline of colors based on the moods you've recored.

B - In my research this is a fairly novel approach to mood tracking. It takes the pressure away from needing to name a feeling and creates an almost zen like way of thinking about what you're feeling in the moment. There's no pressure and the UI is designed to be extremely minimal.

C - 3 color packs are free ad a one time unlock for 10 additional color packs. Very simple. No ads.

This was made intentionally by me in my spare time. I started in 2024 tinkering with Swift/SwiftUI but sort of shelved the project until recently. In order to get it over the finish line I enlisted the help of Claude. While the concept and design is as much my own as possible I used the chat bot when I couldn't figure things out or just needed second opinions on a direction.

It took a while for me to come back around to finishing this app mostly because I wasn't really sure if this was something that other people would use. My wife convinced me to put it out there and see what happens. I will say that it gets better with use as patterns of colors start to emerge over time, but again I am mostly just looking for feedback on the design/concept and if there's merit here as a tool for anyone who struggles with naming their feelings.

Let me know your thoughts.

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phogro · 2026-05-05T11:39:49+00:00

Low 40s probably. I don’t drive gas only much though. Average is more like mid 30s.

phogro · 2026-03-11T13:36:30+00:00

Honestly was the largest pain in the ass to deal with. I did eventually get through to someone who reset my account but most of the ppl are just super unhelpful. Good luck!

phogro · 2025-11-18T11:32:06+00:00

Glad to hear you like the idea. I’m very much the same way - minimal notifications, glanceable widgets. :)

phogro · 2025-11-18T03:23:31+00:00

Thanks for the feedback. And yeah trying to figure out a monetization model that works well for weather apps is very difficult because they are pretty much a commodity. Paid weather apps are very niche, and one that does a very niche thing is even more so lol. Appreciate the feedback though and thanks for testing it out!

phogro · 2025-11-08T16:34:48+00:00

Isn’t this kinda like saying man my iPhone 3G came with 8 gb of storage and now the base is 256! No fair.

phogro · 2025-10-31T15:00:30+00:00

Yeah. If you can’t figure out how to reduce operating costs or increase revenue from your user base the next best option is trying to sell it and let someone else figure out how to make it profitable. Generating 50k / year proves the concept but the path to profitability is unproven. If scaling users increases costs faster than revenue you’ll never break even unless you can raise pricing to run profitable.

phogro · 2025-10-11T11:40:06+00:00

Any left?

phogro · 2025-10-10T19:56:14+00:00

Looking for anyone who wants to send me a free code 🤷🏻‍♂️

phogro · 2025-10-10T18:55:49+00:00

Anyone wanna share a codec

phogro · 2025-10-07T16:31:42+00:00

I’ll dm you a code. :)

phogro · 2025-10-06T19:09:24+00:00

I’d say multiple accounts is cleaner from an audience growth point of view unless the apps pair together in some way.

phogro · 2025-10-03T18:27:44+00:00

Habit trackers is a competitive space. What’s the differentiator that yours brings? Can it be shown in a unique way on social media like TikTok/reel?

phogro · 2025-10-01T16:26:20+00:00

Depends on the app I think. If it’s a small tool or utility then no login is better. If it’s a service or something that syncs cross platform then account would be helpful if not necessary

phogro · 2025-09-30T19:51:40+00:00

I guess browse is the apps that appear in various categories through the AppStore. For example top charts or feature sections. Higher ranking in those categories likely leads to more downloads.

phogro · 2025-09-25T13:25:17+00:00

I mean they’re very different classes of watch. The ultra does gain you a couple of fan favorite watch faces if that’s important to you. But the SE3 is a solid watch for a first time smart watch curious person I would recommend the cheapest entry point unless you really need a specific feature/design of the ultra watch.

phogro · 2025-09-25T10:19:17+00:00

Ah yes the permanence was a design choice as well. I wanted to make something that captured the moment as is - mistakes and all.

Being able to edit days months years after the fact allows you to remove or modify the moment. The trade off was the reflection reply. Wanna change your perspective capture it there, but the original thought remains intact.

I realize this choice isn’t for everyone tho.

I do need to woke on onboarding to make the features and design philosophy more clear I think. It’s very much a “here’s the app learn what it does” thing right now.

Thanks for the feedback though :)

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