Posted by gniting 3/29/2025
At best, it's a designer's hubris (mixed with contempt) like, "You want to select some text out of your SMS message? I've decided. NOPE."
But mostly we're treated with contempt simply because we're an annoyance that is obstructing the goal of serving the actual customer (advertiser) who is paying for the work.
App Stores are no mystery. They are a funnel for rent-seekers and adtech info brokers.
If you think they are intended to benefit you in any way at all, you are badly mistaken.
Apple has a much more robust solution privacy wise with their ScreenTime API but it makes an app like Limit Buddy much harder to build.
I just think better privacy and security controls and stricter app guidelines are a reason people choose the iPhone over Android, so this really isn’t a surprise to people that have been paying attention. It’s the tradeoff we make for the walled garden approach, but I think it makes sense for a smart phone and less so for a general purpose computer.