Pocket Meditation Timer Reviews

I just want a simple meditation app that plays chimes at the beginning, the end, and at intervals, and does it over soothing soundtrack from the Apple Music app in background. PocketMeditationTimer does that, so that’s good. I would even pay a one-time $2-3 to remove the ads, maybe even $5. But after using it a couple of times, I am close to deleting it because I really hate the chime selections it has. There are about 7-8 chime selections, and almost all are terrible. The sound sampling quality is horrendous. Most end rather abruptly, almost none lingers on to keep your attention. And a few chimes sound jarring and repulsive. Not something you would want for a calming meditation. So I hope the developer will address these issues soon. Otherwise, I will delete it.

Dec 2017: editing my review, from 4 stars to 2 stars. Pop up ads have begun playing towards the end of meditation sessions. It's jarring, disruptive and inconsistent with the tool's purpose. I respect the developers' need to create revenue, but question the use of this ad format. I'll switch back to my analog timer.

2013: This is a useful tool. The bell is gentle and its easy to setup. It would be even better if the bell chimed a bit longer, of you could save multiple lengths - instead of needing to reset your time when you want a longer/shorter session, and if you could start over without having to exit PocketMeditationTimer . Once you hit play, there is no rewind option. I recommend this version, though, and use it often.

The general functionality is perfect for what I want out of a meditation app. Simple: a timer with intervals, and I can choose the type of sound played at the intervals.

However, I am very close to deleting it.

There is no option to pay to remove ads. There appears to be an option to watch an ad, which looks like it will remove ads for 48 hours. I’m not sure because I haven’t done it, and I don’t plan to. I would gladly pay a reasonable, one-time fee to remove ads forever. I do not want to have to give my time and attention to advertisers only to have to do it again in 48 hours.

If you haven’t temporarily removed ads, at the end of the meditation session a full volume ad plays automatically! Could this be any more aggressive or inappropriate? This is a meditation app. It is supposed to help people center themselves. The revenue model is in direct opposition with the job of PocketMeditationTimer .

Last gripes are the visual design and organization of the settings, both of which could use a user experience overhaul. I respect that not all developers can afford to pay a professional for these services, but even just using more established iOS patterns would improve the experience.

I hope this feedback is helpful to the developer of PocketMeditationTimer and can use it to make adjustments that would be better for everyone. Best of luck.

I’ve been using the free version of PocketMeditationTimer off and on for years (depending on how dedicated I am to my practice). And the ads have become excessive and not conducive to meditation... The banner during the meditation constantly changing draws my attention as I see the flashing out of the corner of my eye. (I like to meditate with my eyes open to better translate that feeling of calm to my every day life.) And the videos at the end of the meditation cut the silence, cut the calm not allowing for a mindful transition and defeating the purpose of meditating. The still image ads at the end of the meditation time are fine. Even having a banner ad on the meditation screen is fine. And the ad promotion needs to be rethought to better align with the intention of PocketMeditationTimer .

Two pointless dialog windows appear within PocketMeditationTimer that I have to click through every single time a session ends and then an ad appears that I have to wait for. Plus there’s always an ad at the top of PocketMeditationTimer and there’s no premium version, so there’s no way to get rid of them. You can get rid of them for two days if you watch an ad, which means I’d have to watch 183 ads a year to use a simple timer without ads. That’s completely insane!

I like the customizability of the timer but there’s no way to create more than one of them, so if I do different kinds of meditation sessions, I have to change the settings each time. This is ridiculous. And why require me to give the timer a name if it’s the only one I can create? With the reminders, there should be an easy way to pause or silence them all for a time. Finally, the background images are extremely old and low resolution. They need to be updated to use the full resolution of modern devices.

I use this timer for my daily meditation and find it quite useful. It’s simple and easy to work with lots of options for different sounds. I also like using it in my yoga classes. I set it for a 3 minute interval and tell students that when they hear the chime to use it as a reminder to return to their breath.

The only reason I deducted a star is that occasionally there is an ad afterwards that has audio that can be jarring. If the only allowed silent ads it would be perfect.

Meditation Timer is fairly customisable with an intuitive interface. I was able to put it to use instantly.

The ads are unobtrusive in the free version, they do not get in the way of its primary mission.

My only suggestion is that they improve the quality of the sounds. The tones I want to use come with a bit of a background hiss and cut off before they completely fade away. I might be willing to pay to remove the ads just to show my support for PocketMeditationTimer , but I’d definitely be willing to pay if the sounds were improved and/or allow me to import my own.

I find PocketMeditationTimer mostly good compared to other apps. I can customize just enough to fit my meditation needs. My only complaint is the abrupt ad at the end. Super invasive after such a great calm. I have to use rest time chime to stop it before it happens! But the bell chime is what I was looking for when I wanted the bowl sound that happens when you circle the rim, it was close enough. My only suggestion would be to add that chime. The ongoing circle rim thingy, soundy, majig. Sorry. I don’t know what the correct name is for it. Lol.

I still like PocketMeditationTimer and will use it, but I am annoyed by the commercial aspect that has crept in. Ads immediately following the timed session graduate to ads with sound. I think this is a manipulative effort to get us to purchase PocketMeditationTimer (and of course to make PocketMeditationTimer pay for itself.) Nonetheless it seems sneaky and pretty much 180 degrees opposed to what meditation is all about, in my book. Then again, who am I to think I should just get all my apps for free? But why not just charge up front a minimal fee after a trial period?

I like the programmability. I like the bell tones, although for some reason your program cut off the end of the sound of some of the bills fade our, which is a little bit disconcerting.
I understand the need for ads to finance your project, but some of them are a little bit over the top in my face. If they were a little bit more discrete, I also think they would probably be more effective. Because having something pop up makes me want to cross company off my list

When I first started practicing TM, I wore a watch. Like most people, I rarely do anymore because I have my iPhone. PocketMeditationTimer obviates the need to wonder how much time I have left, which allows me to focus on meditation until I hear the bell. FYI, I had gotten out of the habit, but anyone who studies leadership these days will find that meditation is important. Bill George, former CEO of Medtronic and a Harvard Business School professor, is a practitioner; listening to him convinced me to resume, and PocketMeditationTimer is perfect (but do get "checked" by a teacher if you've fallen out of practice).

PocketMeditationTimer makes meditation so much more enjoyable. I have alway been a little bit bothered by the use of my phone timer to notify me that my meditation time was up. Phone alarms are loud, invasive, and they undo some of the peace you established during meditation. PocketMeditationTimer’s start and finish tones are so delicate. They ever so gently close out your session which really helps preserve you peace. The pre-start tone is also very useful in giving you a few seconds to get situated before your actual meditation time starts. It’s a very simple and well thought out app.

I have already done courses explaining how to mindfully meditate, what I needed was a timer that would chime at regular intervals to bring me back to the present in case my thoughts wander. Additionally since it works when I am on other apps I use it to remind myself to look up away from my phone regularly when I am on standby at work. It works great! I’m impressed they haven’t gotten on the subscription bandwagon, just a version with ads and a paid version, plain and simple like the old days of iPod apps.

2017, August - the annoying loud video pop ups after sessions are gone -- THANK YOU! Changed my review back to 5-stars.

2017: PocketMeditationTimer developers have started using video pop-up advertisements after a meditation timer completes. It's disconcerting and incongruous to be jarred back to reality by the sound of bombs and machine guns from a video game after finishing a nice meditation sessio! I've changed my review from 5 stars to 4 stars. Like other reviewers, I would be happy to pay for a pro version to have the ads removed. So it goes. We've all gotta eat, and I get that. Hard work should be rewarded. But those War game videos... I'm almost tempted to look for another app that I can just buy to remove the ads.

2016: PocketMeditationTimer does exactly what I was looking for. It allows me to time my meditation, and has a wonderful interval feature where you can have it give you another alert during your meditation. I use it to meditate for 15 minutes, then it gives me a chime and I switch to prayer for another 15 minutes. After 30 minutes, it gives me a chime to let me know I'm done. You can adjust the timers to anything you like, so this is perfect for any kind of meditation. The chimes are soothing, unobtrusive, perfect for meditation. Thank you for this wonderful, free app!!

I really enjoy this timer. In true meditation, one is not supposed to use a timer, it is to be the inner body/soul that is to be used for timing. I love the intention, but I’m a schedule, people! This allows me to get in meditation in my busy schedule. I know that I’ve allotted 15 minutes, 20 minutes, or even just 5 minutes....I’m getting a meditation in and I don’t have to keep one eye opened (so to speak) on the clock...the meditation timer does it for me. It allows me to set the time for getting relaxed for the meditation, then the meditation time itself, and the closing timer to come out of the meditation in a gentle way.

It does what it says: it times your meditation practices. I like that we have options for the length of the preparation time, the intervals, the option for each to have its own sound and to chime 1, 2 or 3 times. I also like the ability to write notes and save them. It helps me to note obstacles that I encounter in my practice and how I’m dealing with them.

I might take a half a star away because recently, there have been glitches in that some sounds didn’t chime as they were supposed to do. I’m hoping this is due to some incompatibility with the iOS update that I just did and that it’s being addressed by the programmers.

On another topic, I would love to be able to save more than one timer routine, say ten, twenty and thirty minute timers, each with distinct pause intervals and sounds, so that I wouldn’t have to change the options each time, according to how much time I have available or to my moods.

Even with my critiques, I recommend PocketMeditationTimer to anyone.

PocketMeditationTimer has great options for sounds and settings. I can set sound that works best for me. PocketMeditationTimer covers what’s needed. A preparation bell, which is possible to choose my option for the preferred length of time. A timer for preferred length of my meditation. An intermediate option that I can choose my preferred time; for example 10, 15, ect.. minutes. This is very helpful to remain focused. I love the variety of choices I can use for the sounds. Overall, this is an excellent effective app for meditation. In addition, I can add my meditation to my Health App for IOS.
For the developers, thank you.

I use PocketMeditationTimer to help me time my TM meditations. I’ve been doing TM for only about 2 months. However, when i first started I did not use a timer. I kept opening my eyes during meditation to check the clock. While reading Super Mind, Dr. Rosenthal suggested using a meditation app to keep track of the meditation time. With a pleasant, non rattling sound that would gently bring you out of your meditation. This is a great app for that. Now I can just relax during my meditation, and know that I won’t go over my time. I also like that you can set timers for prep and rest. I have mine currently set to 2 minutes of prep, 20 min meditation, and 5 minutes of rest. PocketMeditationTimer has made my TM effortless, just as its supposed to be. Thank you!

So perfect! It’s exactly what I was looking for in a meditation time. Simple and easy to use and functional. I love the edit function which gives you options for modifying your meditation. And the ads aren’t unbearable and disruptive. The only modification I’d want is the ability to save multiple different sessions so you don’t have to go in and change the timer for different session lengths. As sometimes I meditate for 20 mins and other times an hour. So it would be nice to have it so that I can save my 20 min timer and my 1hr timer as two different sessions so I can readily have them available. But this is not really a big deal and this feature would be a luxury. I’m okay with needing to adjust my time each time.

This simple app is a wonderful way to NOT have to keep track of time while meditating. Set it up once with with two instructions: how much of an interval you want after pushing “begin” to settle into your meditation posture (eg, 5 secs? 10?), and how long you want the mediation period itself to be. There’s a third option, which I find helpful: you can also set it up for a bell or tone during the meditation to act as a mindfulness reminder, in case mind has strayed into thinking. There are several bell tones to choose from.

This is a remarkably useful app. I highly recommend it.