Users of TikTok frequently express concern that they will spend too much time on the app, particularly before bedtime. To address these issues, the business is already conducting tests on new sleep reminders, which allow users to set alarms for when it’s time for bed and to silence notifications during the required seven hours of sleep. On Friday, TikTok confirmed that a small group of users around the world are participating in a beta test of a new sleep reminder feature.
Watchful.ai, a company specialising in product intelligence, has released screenshots showing the new functionality in the app’s “screen time” settings. Members of the test group will have access to a new “sleep reminders” feature. Using the app’s sleep reminders, you’ll be able to “know whether you hit your sleep time on TikTok to help you get to bed when you want to.” If you set an app to automatically close at a certain time, such when you go to bed, you won’t have to worry about forgetting. If you set your sleep time on TikTok, the app will silence alerts for seven hours so you can get some shut-eye without being interrupted.
According to a business representative, this new tool is an expansion on TikTok’s existing digital well-being capabilities, and the firm is always looking for new ways to enhance customers’ wellbeing. In February of 2020, the app debuted its initial tools for managing how much time is spent in the app, and since then, it has added features designed to give users even more discretion over their app use.
In June of 2018, TikTok introduced a built-in mechanism to assist users manage their session length by setting reminders for when they should take breaks from using the app. It recommends10-,20-, and 30-minute breaks by default, but users may set reminders for a unique duration if they prefer working for a longer or shorter period of time without interruption. Teenage users may set the app to disable notifications throughout the night. Push notifications are blocked for users aged 13–15 at 9 p.m. and those aged 16–17 at 10 p.m.
Numerous psychology studies have examined TikTok’s addictive tendency due to the app’s exceptional capacity to divert and interest users using cutting-edge recommendation technology. It’s thus not unexpected that TikTok is experimenting with new features aimed at giving users more agency over their own experience on the platform. TikTok’s sleep reminders function is now only available to a limited number of users as a test, and it is unclear whether or when the company will make this tool available to a wider audience.