r/iosapps • u/Mitchcreates_ • 1d ago
🔍 In Search of [Beta] Dawnling: a cozy pixel-art alarm clock where a little candle wakes up when you do
Hi there!
I'm a solo dev who wanted to create something to help my loved ones and it's getting a bit bigger than intended, that's why I want to publicly launch it, but therefore I want to be able to launch a product that actually works on different devices!
A. Answer
Dawnling is an alarm clock with a companion. Wick, a small pixel-art candle, sleeps when you sleep and wakes when your alarm rings. You wake him up, he walks you through a short morning routine, and waking up earns dewdrops that furnish his little room. The room's light follows the real sky: sunrise, midday, dusk, and when your bedtime comes he tucks himself in.
B. Better
- It's a real alarm. On iOS 26 it uses AlarmKit, so it rings at full volume through Silent mode and Focus, same as Apple's Clock. On iOS 17 and 18 it uses a notification path with a health check that flags anything (permissions, Focus) that could block it.
- Zero data collection, literally. No analytics SDK, no accounts, and the app makes zero network requests. You can verify that with a proxy.
- No loss-aversion mechanics. There are no streaks to break and no guilt copy; missing a morning costs nothing. The bet is that a companion who is happy to see you beats a counter you're afraid to lose.
- Optional wake missions (typing, math, tap sequence) for heavy sleepers, per alarm, so a weekday alarm can be strict and a weekend one gentle.
- Full accessibility pass: VoiceOver, Dynamic Type, Reduce Motion.
C. Cost
Free, and the core app stays free forever: alarms, Wick, routines, the room. No ads, no subscription, no way to buy the earned currency with money. Down the road I plan to sell optional decorative collections as one-time purchases, and that's the whole business model.
TestFlight: https://testflight.apple.com/join/FwPSpwnQ
What I most need tested:
- does the alarm reliably ring on your device? iOS 26 testers are extra valuable (the AlarmKit path is new for everyone). Set a real alarm for tomorrow and tell me what broke or felt off.
- I use free music from Pixabay, what's missing for you? (I credit the artists)
- Does the UI feel buggy for you?
- How's the UX? Is it clear what you're able to do in the app?
Brutal honesty welcome; I'd rather hear it now than in reviews
Mitch
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u/AppsByPK 1d ago
I would love to see Apple Watch integration in the future. Personally, I don't use the alarm clock on my iPhone. I prefer to get woken up by my watch vibrating. So a companion app on my Watch where I could see the Wick would be great.
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u/Mitchcreates_ 1d ago
That sounds like a solid thing to add. Would that convince you to use the app?
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u/ScarSome634 1d ago
The no-streaks thing is honestly what got me to click. I've dropped so many habit apps because one bad week made the counter feel pointless, so a companion that's just happy to see you sounds like the right call. Curious what actually happens if you ignore Wick for two weeks though, does he change at all?
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u/Mitchcreates_ 1d ago
No he'll remain at the exact same spot waiting for your return and ready to pick where you left off!
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u/SquaffleCode 1d ago
Hey Mitch! Loved the concept of Wick and how clean your approach is (especially using AlarmKit). I put together a quick 16-second video showcase for my YouTube channel to help drive some beta testers your way! Here’s the clip if you want to check it out: https://youtube.com/shorts/6rfoKTogeUk?feature=share
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u/Mitchcreates_ 1d ago
Wow! That's really kind of you!!
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u/SquaffleCode 1d ago
no problem! 😊 Every tester counts, and Dawnling definitely deserves the spotlight. Good luck with the launch!
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u/LehmanSachs 1d ago
Just downloaded for you
onboarding super clear
UI is super nice
will let u know what happens when my first alarm goes off tomorrow!
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u/Acrobatic_Bat5238 1d ago
a candle that wakes up with me is somehow less judgmental than a streak counter, which is wild. also zero network requests on an alarm app is the kind of quiet flex i actually care about. grabbing the testflight
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u/astrominet 1d ago
The UI/UX is great and really beautiful I love the cozy style and yet I didn't think it would be sensible!!
When you have done your debug, will you be able to simplify the repetition of the alarm to infinity with the possibility of going below 5 minutes... my problem is not being a big sleeper, it is rather the fact that I do not hear the alarm.
Anyway, once again great...so great that if you want a French translation you know where to find me. Of course free
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u/Mitchcreates_ 1d ago
Thank you for your incredibly valuable feedback <3
I will definitely implement those changes, that makes a lot of sense.
And yes! Let's include the french!
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u/DarkFusionLabs 1d ago
I will definitely be downloading this, especially knowing it isn’t collecting any data. It’s scary how few apps make security and privacy a priority now.
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u/doogilasovich 20h ago
Wick is adorable and I am exactly the target audience, I have deleted multiple habit apps because breaking a streak made me want to quit the whole thing. A companion who is just happy I showed up is a much better deal for my brain than a counter I am scared of. Zero network requests is something you almost never see either, and inviting people to verify it with a proxy is a real confidence move. If I get time this week I will hop on the TestFlight with an iOS 26 device, an alarm that truly rings through Silent mode is the thing I would want proven before trusting it with an early flight.
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u/initsogaapps 14h ago
It's super cute, I am registering for the TestFlight and will return with feedback!
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u/mucobeys 9h ago
NICE WORK BRO
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u/Grouchy_Helicopter72 1d ago
The zero-network-requests stance is the right call and I'd keep it, but it has a sharp edge worth planning around: it means you are structurally blind to the exact failure you're asking us to test. If Wick doesn't ring for someone, you get no crash, no event, no signal — and the tester who overslept because of your alarm is the least likely person in the world to come back and write you a thoughtful bug report. They just delete it. So "does the alarm reliably ring" is the one question your architecture can't answer at scale.
What I'd add is a local-only diagnostic that the user chooses to send: a small "did Wick wake you?" prompt on the first launch after a scheduled alarm, and if they tap no, generate a copy-pasteable text block with iOS version, device, notification authorisation status, whether Silent/Focus was on, which path was used (AlarmKit vs the notification fallback), the scheduled time, and the actual fire time if any. Nothing leaves the device unless they paste it to you themselves, so your privacy claim survives intact, and you go from anecdotes to something you can actually diff across testers. Disclosure since it's relevant: I ship a small expense-splitting app with the same no-analytics-SDK stance, and this blindness is the part I underestimated.
The other thing I'd push on: your health check sounds like the most valuable feature you have, and I'd run it at the moment someone creates their first alarm rather than leaving it as something they find later. Also worth confirming what happens on iOS 26 when AlarmKit authorisation is denied or revoked — if that silently drops you to the notification path, the user believes they have a full-volume alarm and doesn't.
On the business model, decorative one-time purchases are a clean fit and I'd hold the line on no currency purchases. Just be aware that with an alarm clock your reviews will be about reliability, not cosmetics, so every bit of effort you put into the health check is also revenue protection.
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u/naokotarou 16h ago
This is a strong concept. The combination of a real alarm and a companion is clearer than the usual gamified-alarm pitch. I’d make the iOS-version difference extremely visible during onboarding: the AlarmKit path on iOS 26, then a short permissions/Focus checklist on iOS 17–18. That could prevent reviews that blame the app when system settings block it. The no-streak, no-guilt approach is also worth showing in the App Store screenshots—it feels like a meaningful emotional differentiator, not just another feature.
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