Made with Aether
DialFocus & Thought Capture

Stay in the work.Let the thought wait.

Dial is a focus Session that stays intact when your mind interrupts you. Time counts up. Your plan is a landmark, not a deadline. Park the interrupting thought in seconds without leaving the clock, then return immediately.

Join the beta Follow one Session
Dial / InstrumentCurrent build
Dial at 17 minutes elapsed with the running Session, Park a thought, and End session actions visible.
A real running Session in the current Instrument theme. Elapsed time leads; the plan stays quiet.

One Session.
Three acts.

The clock keeps one continuous place through focus, Park and Return, Sections, overtime, and a gentle close.

Focus / Count up

Start without a setup wall. Dial shows what you have held instead of what is disappearing, while the plan stays visible as a quiet landmark.

Dial counting upward at 17 minutes elapsed, with Park a thought available below the clock.
The current Instrument theme, running.

Park / Return

Park what surfaced in seconds. The clock remains visible and running; after the thought is safe, you return without a review step or re-entry ritual.

Dial’s Park a thought sheet over the visibly running Session.
Park it without leaving.
Dial returned to the same running Session after a thought was parked.
Return to the same clock.

Sections / Continue / Close

Sections are set before the clock starts — a planning act, not a mid-session edit. From then on Dial follows them automatically, lets work continue quietly past the plan, and closes by stating what happened—never grading it.

The shape is set before the clock starts.
Dial running at 12:33 elapsed, showing Section 3 of 4 on one continuous Session.
Section 3 of 4. Still one clock.
Dial quietly continuing at 27 minutes elapsed, beyond a 25-minute plan.
Past the plan. Still in the work.
Dial’s gentle Session close showing minutes held and parked thoughts without a score.
The work continued. The thoughts were not lost.
Siri + App Shortcuts

Keep your hands in the work.

Siri is a first-class control surface for the same running Session. Start or steer Dial, park what surfaced, and check where you are without opening the app or creating a second timer.

  1. Start Dial

    Say “Start Dial” to begin, or use the Start Dial action in Shortcuts with a 5–60 minute plan.

  2. Set a target

    Say “Set my target time in Dial.” Give Siri a clock time and Dial moves the current plan landmark while preserving its absolute 60 held-minute boundary.

  3. Park a thought

    Say “Park a thought in Dial.” Dictate what surfaced and it is saved directly against the active Session so you can let it go.

  4. Check Dial

    Ask “How is my Dial going?” Siri can report whether the Session is running or paused, how much time you have held, and the current plan target.

  5. Pause / Resume / End

    Pause, continue, or end the same durable Session from Siri. The Live Activity and session boundaries stay reconciled with what you asked for.

Implemented platform

The Session stays useful when the iPhone is not in your hand.

These surfaces are implemented in the current repository. We name them here without inventing screenshots that have not been captured in the current Instrument theme.

Dial’s ambient sound picker offering Embers, Pink Noise, Brown Noise, White Noise, and None.
Ambient soundscapes, in the current Instrument theme. They keep playing with the screen locked and stop when the Session ends.
Fast follow after free launch

Dial Plus

The first release is a complete, local-first free app. Dial Plus follows in a fast update for people who want their own iCloud across devices, more visual expression, and a richer Watch instrument.

$2.99 monthlyNo trial$19.99 yearly7-day free trial
Preview Dial Plus

One Session.
Four visual worlds.

Choose how Dial meets the room without changing how it works. Instrument ships with the free app. Ember, Calm, and Ink follow with Dial Plus.

Dial at about six minutes elapsed in Instrument: cool steel-blue time, controls, and dial marks on graphite.
Included at launchInstrument

Cool steel and graphite. Dial reads as a precision timepiece.

Dial at about thirteen minutes elapsed in Ember: warm gold time, coral controls, and brass dial marks.
Upcoming with Dial PlusEmber

Warm brass and gold. Dial’s original fire-lit identity.

Dial at about twenty-one minutes elapsed in Calm: mint time and dial marks with a warm sand Park accent.
Upcoming with Dial PlusCalm

Quiet sage and mint, with warmth reserved for parking a thought.

Dial at about eighteen minutes elapsed in Ink: high-contrast bone-white time and marks on deep carbon plate.
Upcoming with Dial PlusInk

Stark carbon plate and pure bone-white ticks. Pure monochromatic focus.

At free launch

The complete core

  • Count-up dial and adjustable plan
  • Sections, thought parking, and dispatch
  • Siri + App Shortcuts session controls
  • Instrument theme and soundscapes
  • Session history, search, and export
  • Complete Watch fundamentals, including wrist parking and Digital Crown plan
  • Local data on this iPhone; no Aether account
Upcoming Wave 1

More places, more expression

  • Private sync through your own iCloud
  • Ember and Calm visual themes
  • Watch Sections visibility
  • A richer Section-aware or Smart Stack complication

Made with Aether

Your focus is not our data.

At free launch, Dial works locally on your iPhone. If you later choose Dial Plus sync, your data travels through your private Apple iCloud account. There is no Aether server and no Aether account.

Read the Privacy Policy
Available now

Try the Dial beta.

Dial is available now as a free TestFlight beta ahead of its App Store release.

Join the beta