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Parenting

30th Aug 2017

Dad invents app making it impossible for son to avoid texts

This app doesn't care if your phone is on silent.

Jade Hayden

We could’ve used this on the last lad who ghosted us.

A dad has invented an app making it impossible for his son to ignore his text messages.

Nick Herbert from London was apparently sick of his 13-year-old son ignoring his messages, so he found a way to ensure that he couldn’t anymore.

The 45-year-old invented an app that caused an alarm to be sounded from his son’s phone when a specific message was received.

The alarm cannot be turned off, or put on silent, until the the phone is picked up.

replyasap

I mean, we’re sure this is super handy for parents everywhere who are run ragged trying to get in touch with their kids who conveniently ignore their texts all the time, but isn’t there a chance that the app could be misused as a joke?

Or, worse yet, as a means of forcing somebody who actively doesn’t want to speak to you to reply?

According to Nick, ReplyASAP is not an app for tracking people, it just makes users aware that they need to pick up their phone.

He told Digital Trends that:

“It is key to discuss with the child that they understand the reason for having it (…) It is not a punishment or a tool for tracking them, nor will it remotely lock (or) freeze their phone.”

Nick also added that he hoped his invention would make things “a bit easier” for his son.

“(He) hasn’t really said anything negative about the app. It is all about him understanding why it’s there.

If I have something important to say I will send an urgent message.”

ReplyASAP is available on Google Play for 99c.

The app requires both users to accept an invitation in order for its features to work.