Noko: Pomodoro Study Timer

Studying is hard, boring, and lonely. But what if it could actually be fun - and even rewarding? Noko and his friends are your new study buddies, cheering you on while you earn awards & add friends.

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Inspiration

I've done my fair share of studying during my bachelor's, master's, and now my PhD. It was always a thing I HAD to do. I pushed it off until the last minute. I procrastinated like a PRO. That's how studying goes for millions of kids every day. It's the necessary part of everyone's life that barely anyone actually enjoys. 671 days ago, I downloaded Duolingo. My outlook on studying completely changed from that day on. Learning a language (which I hated most during school) could actually be fun & rewarding. I kept a streak alive. I earned rewards & achievements. I completed challenges with friends. I knew: this is how studying should be. Fun & enjoyable.

What it does

So I decided to build Noko, with the mission to make studying fun and personalized (something that's really missing from traditional education). I took inspiration from Duolingo and the many video games I played (instead of studying, of course). Noko is the result: A super-gamified study timer. The core feature is a pomodoro timer - meant to keep concentration high while also minimizing procrastination by splitting study sessions into doable 25-minute chunks (they can actually be as long as the user wants, it's completely configurable). But of course that's nothing new, so I added 3 study buddies: Noko the turtle, Blinky the fox, and Owliver the owl (duh!). Each of them has their own unique personality. They cheer you on during studying and give you feedback once you completed your session. They are also your personal tutor: Buddy Chat enables you to ask them about anything - and they'll explain it in their personality. I also added awards, friends, leaderboards, streaks, and XP and there's much more to come.

How we built it

I'm doing my PhD, so I'm working on research projects full time. Luckily my work also includes building iOS apps, so my skills are never getting too rusty. This summer, I spent every free evening, weekend hour and even some vacation time on Noko. I shared my progress publicly on X (@FloWritesCode). Noko is built with SwiftUI, Firebase (for auth, data storage, and AI features like buddy chat & study feedback), and RevenueCat (for IAPs & paywalls).

Challenges we ran into

It'd been a while since I last used Firebase, so I had to get familiar with writing code that works nicely with it. I shared some architectural problems I ran into on X, such as making sure there's always a logged-in user if certain screens are shown. By far the biggest challenge I ran into was something completely new to me: getting stuck in "waiting for review". Noko spent 10 days in that state. I tried requesting expedited reviews, resubmitting builds, and even emailing app review. Finally - out of desperation - I appealed their rejection of my very first build (before the waiting game started). Apparently this triggered something inside the app review blackbox and Noko was finally "in review". What a journey!

Accomplishments that we're proud of

With that being said, I'm so excited and proud to have released Noko in time for ShipATon. I originally intended to launch alongside iOS 26 (as Noko leans strongly into liquid glass) and even submitted the app for an App Store nomination. I'm also super proud of stepping out of my comfort zone regarding marketing. I've seen success stories about "TikTok marketing" all over X, but never understood how it worked. So with Noko, I tried a simple approach: daily devlogs (This is day 1 of building Noko, the Duolingo for studying). While they didn't really kick off on TikTok or Instagram, they are getting constant comments & likes on YouTube Shorts!

What we learned

Noko has taught me (and this is very fitting with Noko being the calm & wise turtle character) to be patient and trust the process. I was anxious to miss the ShipATon deadline when the app review issue started. But perseverance (and a good amount of sheer will) pushed me through. It's released!

What's next for Noko: Pomodoro Study Timer

Releasing Noko was just the first step. I'm already working on some exciting new features (both social features & study tools). I'm also doubling down on social media marketing after the launch. I'm giving this app everything I have, as I KNOW how much it can help students all around the world. This was just the beginning!

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