Guides
Practical, honest guides to spending less attention on your phone and more on what you want to learn.
Phone habits and focus
- A Screen Time alternative that doesn't just say noApp limits are easy to ignore. Braintoll puts a short flashcard review in front of distracting apps instead — a small cost on every open, not a limit once a day.
- How to stop mindless scrollingMindless scrolling is a reflex, not a decision. Seven practical ways to break the habit — from removing triggers to adding a pause that teaches you something.
- How to block distracting apps on iPhone and AndroidStep by step, how to block or limit apps with Screen Time on iPhone and Digital Wellbeing on Android, where the built-in tools fall short, and what to add when they do.
- one sec and Opal alternative: a pause that teaches you somethingone sec makes you breathe, Opal locks you out. Braintoll asks for a few flashcards before a distracting app opens. How the three app blockers compare, and which fits you.
- Learn instead of scrolling: apps that make you study firstTwo kinds of apps turn scrolling into learning, learning feeds and learning gates. How they differ, which exist for iPhone and Android, and which one fits you.
- App blockers for studying: an honest comparisonApp blockers for studying, compared by how they stop you: hard locks, focus timers, pauses and study-to-unlock apps, on your phone and your laptop.
- The best app blockers compared: free and paid, Android and iPhoneThe best app blockers for Android and iPhone compared: free plans, prices, how strict they are, what the Android permission sees, and which one fits you.
Study methods and flashcards
- The Anki alternative that shows up when you're about to scrollBraintoll uses the same spaced repetition as Anki, but shows your cards when you open a distracting app. Import your .apkg deck and keep your progress.
- Spaced repetition, explainedSpaced repetition schedules each review just before you'd forget. How the forgetting curve, growing intervals and Again/Hard/Good/Easy ratings work together.
- Active recall, explainedActive recall means testing yourself instead of rereading. Why it beats highlighting and rereading, six techniques with examples, and how to combine it with spaced repetition.
- How to turn a PDF into flashcards with AITurn a PDF, slides or a script into flashcards with AI: what to upload, how to check the cards, and four free ways compared, from ChatGPT to Braintoll.
- How to make a study plan you can actually stick toMake a study plan in 6 steps: plan backwards from the exam, add reviews and buffer days, and download a free study plan template (PDF and Word).
- How to study for exams: what works, ranked by researchHow to study for exams with the methods research rates highest: practice tests, spaced reviews, mixed practice, plus a 7-day plan and the night before.
- Anki vs Quizlet: which flashcard app should you use?Anki vs Quizlet compared: spaced repetition, free limits, prices and the best choice for languages, med school and class, updated for 2026.
- How to make flashcards that actually help you rememberHow to make flashcards for studying: 8 rules with before-and-after examples, what research says about making your own, and how to study with them.