Offline Mode

One of the top requests we get for new features is offline mode. That’s no surprise - why shouldn’t you be able to view your private moments even without a network connection?

Now Plus subscribers will be able to use Happyfeed in 100% offline mode. (Don’t worry if you aren’t subscribed, you’ll notice a few significant improvements related to these changes too!)

Why Offline Mode?

From the start, we wanted to leverage the fact that you’re on a connected device with all the capabilities of a tiny computer. We want your journal to last you a lifetime, and we know your current phone probably won’t. For the sake of simplicity, Happyfeed has traditionally required a network connection. It was the easiest way to ensure consistent data and reliable backups.

We want your journal to last you a lifetime, and we know your current phone probably won’t.

Lately, more and more people are understanding the benefits of taking mindful breaks from the internet and all the negative effects of social media and constant comparison. We also considered a few key situations where you might want to use Happyfeed w/o internet:

• 🏕 Escaping to nature - I’m an avid hiker myself. A few nights camping away from the chaos of life is the best thing for my mental health. It’s also one of the best times to read, write, and reflect.
• 🚇 Commuting and travel - A long commute home can be a wonderful time to practice gratitude. Just because the subway doesn’t have wifi doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be able to record a moment or two from your day.
• 🌏 International trips - You can fit more experiences into a week in a new country than months at home. Now you won’t need an international phone plan to remember more of those places, people, and happy memories.

How Does It Work?

If you are subscribed to Happyfeed Plus, you shouldn’t notice any difference in the app whatsoever. We built Offline Mode to be smart about when you are online or offline and handling each appropriately.

1. All new moments and images are first saved locally and uploaded only if a connection is available
2. Whenever the app is restarted, it checks for un-synced moments and uploads them if necessary
3. With your moments stored locally, if you can’t find a connection you can still scroll through your past posts and images

Now when you’re commuting through tunnels to make your way home from work, traveling abroad to experience something new, or camping in a lush valley to find yourself, you’ll be able to record your happy moments, save photos, and scroll through your feed.

Something For Everyone

As with every update, we like to make sure all of our users get something out of it. So even if you’re a free user (like most people) you’ll be getting a few benefits.

• ⏱ Image uploading: The slowest and most “breakable” part of Happyfeed has always been image uploading. Sending image data up to the cloud can easily fail on a bad connection, leaving you to find that photo again and try to remember what you wrote. Now image uploading is done in the background. If you lose your connection, it’ll try again next time you load up Happyfeed. No sweat!
• 💯 Streaks: Your streak data is now stored directly on your device, as well as in the cloud. This means we don’t rely on a network connection to determine if you are continuing or breaking your current streak. In rare cases where the data isn’t available, we now err on the side of caution (keeping that streak going 🌈)

What’s Next?

Building Offline Mode required us to really change some of the key functionality behind how Happyfeed works. There are a few parts of the app that still need updating to work with Offline Mode, like the Magic Calendar, Happiness Jar, and editing or deleting past moments. We are slowly working our way through the updates, and are prioritizing the most frequently used functions first.

Share the Joy!

We put a lot of effort into building Happyfeed with the same quality you’d expect from the top apps on your phone. Unlike Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, and Instagram, we aren’t social. Privacy is important, but it creates a real challenge for growth!

If you love using our app, please tell a friend or two. Hopefully it will help them find more little moments of joy. The more we grow, the more we’ll be able to improve the experience for all our current and new users. ☀️🌱