Name: minutiae: Real Life
Rating: 4.49526 (949 reviews)

User Reviews for minutiae: Real Life

4.5 out of 5

949 Ratings

1 year ago, Mackenzie Wingate

Last moments with Minutiae

I got this app because I couldn’t follow the BeReal trend as well as intended, and I wanted something to capture the every day moments once the idea was in my head. I didn’t realize that this would turn into me capturing my mothers last moments. Minutiae is fun and carefree, which made me fall into the habit of capturing every moment I can. When my mom was put on hospice in December the only pictures she took were when my minutiae went off, because I would be so excited she couldn’t say no. The hospice process was longer than expected, and while no one wants to be remembered as ill, it was a blessing for me to care for my mother and I’m so thankful that I did get pictures of us during the time. I never would have thought to document those moments when I was in them, but I’m so thankful I did. My mom passed on May 19, 2023, and I am thirsty for every drop of her existence. Start your minutiae habit now, you have no idea what moments you will want to drown in later. *With the sentimental junk over- It is such a cool idea. You get to see a random user’s moments for a few seconds after you capture yours if you’d like. What a great way to feel some human connection! I regularly see users from other areas of the world with the same mess of life going on around them. It’s humbling! This is such an easy app to really enjoy, it doesn’t take more than a minute away from your day.

3 years ago, Kate_Perkins

Appreciating the minutiae of life

So often these days our lives become muted by social media. The need to highlight the cool, amazing, wonderful things we’re doing (not any of the seemingly boring, mundane, or less appealing sides of life). Minutiae aims to fix that. By surprising you with a notification at a random minute each day, you have exactly one minute to take a picture of whatever is in front of you. Yes, I happen to miss almost 50% of the notifications as I’m sleeping or away from my phone, I count these as wins as I’m just living my life (away from my phone). The moments I do catch a notification, I get to capture a random moment in time of my life, like a time capsule! This is my 2nd time participating in Minutiae and I look forward to the digital copies of my photos at the end of this 4 year stint. Last stint I was reminded of my living room in my old house, getting to see something I made for dinner, a cute cat pose on my couch, some friends I was hanging out with, or pictures of my wall from my bed. I love my Minutiae photos as they show me my life as it was - no filter, no planning. Just the special moments in the days of my life I would otherwise take for granted. If you’re looking for a new way to interact with social media or a new perspective on life, Minutiae is a fun social experiment bringing you just that!

7 months ago, Vufss&);

Love this app!

I read about Minutae in the NYT Wirecutter it sounded intriguing so I downloaded it right away. Instructions for using the app are a bit vague but as they are few it doesn’t take long to figure it out. I used the option for turning it off at night but finally opted to have it on all the time. My phone I by my pillow, the app sound wakes me up and I let it take the photo. Not the most interesting photos but I wouldn’t have them if it weren’t for Minutae. Click on the tiny icon below your photo to see someone else’s photos. It’s great fun to see where they are from. All over the world. The first ones I saw were from Finland where I had been this past summer visiting relatives! I wish I had kept a list of where they were from the get-go. So many cute kitty photos far fewer pups. Figuring how see other’s photos was the most confusing. I have found it worthwhile to pay for it to get the extra time. LOVE LOVE LOVE this app. I was unhappy that I was unable to read where paired photos were from when Minutae went off in the middle of the night due to not enough light for my old eyes. I now take a screen shot to look at in the morning so glad I did as I had Ukraine the other night! I did have to search the country name as it was as they spell it.

2 months ago, moenkopi

One of my priority apps

I’ve had Minutiae a little over a year now, and I absolutely adore it. It was one of the first apps I downloaded when I upgraded my phone, one of the only ones I’ll drop everything for (within reason!), and one of the only one allowed to give me notifications (when I’m awake). Every time I capture a basic moment, I know it’s likely to bring back memories of a certain time in my life. And every time it goes off during something momentous — dinner with friends, a concert, sight-seeing on vacation — I’m thrilled because I know flipping through my photos will bring back that memory. Plus, there’s just something special about sharing moments of my life with others, and seeing theirs, too. It feels a little like eaves-dropping on the people at the booth behind mine in a restaurant, or people-watching at the mall, only with permission. At first I was worried about what I would encounter during other people’s unfiltered moments, but drugs, nudity, etc. have been no problem so far. I don’t know how they do it, but this place stays clean and respectful, which I think shows both the caliber of the app and the people who use it.

12 months ago, Yissa33

Love the concept, but I seldom capture a picture

I have 13 squares so far. 10 are black. For two, I went to pick up my phone across the room and accidentally took a picture of the floor when I picked it up. I didn’t touch the screen so I don’t know why it chose that moment to take a pic. I wish it would let me know when it went off to see if it’s even working! I received alerts two days in a row, but then nothing for 10 days. I realize some of them may be going off during the night, but I can’t believe I’m missing all of them! I don’t have my phone with me 100% of the time but it seems strange I’m not getting notifications. I will leave it on my phone to see if it gets better, but I canceled my subscription. Too bad because I love the idea! Update: Things have improved although I don’t know why. I have been able to capture more images and the notification goes off daily. It has been much more fun. It takes a while to get used to - you have to think quickly about what you want to capture for your moment - but that makes it more fun!

5 months ago, vlhcihxkhdoychlh

Fun concept, not perfect

My main issue is a very rarely actually get the notification to take a photo. I don't know why. I have app notifications on and very rarely put my phone on do not disturb, I get the notification probably twice a week. When you miss the notification you just get a black square on the screen. It would be much more fun if you could take the photo at any point in the day rather than just when the notification goes off. Similarly, ENOUGH of the black squares. It makes the screen look drab and pathetic rather than full of life. Edit: After reading some replies i see that the reason people don't get notifications is because they all go off at the same time world wide. I now understand the reason but i'm not changing my review. It's not exactly fair for if people paid for the app to get daily notifications but don't actually get to take their photos. 2 pm in one part of the world is 2 am in another. It would be much better if the notifications were completely random or went by time zones. Edit: Daily notification comes in about 6 times in a row. TBH Im considering deleting the app atp. I thought it was cute but I dont wanna deal with my phone blowing up everyday

7 years ago, ssirenss

Who cares about the glitches see this for what it is

A moment a day that forces me to pause and take stock, appreciate and reflect this life, that instant. To truly stop and drop everything for the sole purpose of consideration of the importance of that fleeting minute that is there and vanished. To look at my child and appreciate her in her beauty at that moment that I will never get back. To reflect how much time is wasted by busy, and work, and transportation and ask hard questions on what is truly important. The opportunity to take stock and evaluate if my life choices are in alignment with my true self. To revel in the darkness and quiet of early morning. To look at my partner in rest and contentment. To understand that anxiety and worry will also pass. A daily reminder to be present in this minute in this life that ticks away. To try not to reflect on those minutes with melancholy and regret. To vow to be better. To reflect on the gift of another day in gratitude. To connect with others in the intimacy and humor of this shared experience. This is the only app I have ever reviewed. Thanks to the minutiae team for pulling this together.

1 year ago, DoubleSeattleSag

Love my Minutiae moments

I downloaded and started to use your app last fall. I have captured 143 images and 31 missed moments. Before I would turn my sound off, leave my phone in other rooms, etc., but not now. I have my phone nearby, volume is on. Missing a moment frustrates me because I have so much fun capturing them. Knowing that people around the world get the same alert makes it even better. It's like being in the minutiae club. I love the manifesto and think you came up with an amazing art project in which all of us get to be a participant. My favorite time with the app is the moment after I capture my image and then I have just a short time to see into the minutiae of another person, especially when they live in another country. What better way to learn visually about another country's life and culture. I thank my friend who turned me on to minutiae and spread the word to other friends. The best laugh was when my friend sent me a screenshot of my latest captured moment and I popped up as the person to explore their minutiae.

5 months ago, Aliciak34

Everyday isn’t an Instagram Story

I love how excited I get when I get a minutiae notification! When I’m at work, it’s a fantastic and brief hiatus the monotony of earning a wage. When I’m doing something out of my normal routine and that notice pops up, its usually a way to talk about this app! Every time I snap my picture, I take a few minutes to review my previous pictures and their time and date stamps and I realize how important the “boring” aspects of life actually are. Work was hard that day. Something was making me cry. Something was making me laugh. Something was taking my full effort to not roll my eyes. Something was exactly as it always was or never would be again. Most of my pictures are of the same place, same window, plant, coffee mug…but that’s life. It’s so much of the same thing but that doesn’t mean it isn’t impactful or important or should be forgotten. Most of life isn’t a highlight reel or instagram story, but quiet, or routine, but never not unimportant as to be forgotten.

1 year ago, skadelig

Like A tiny unexpected package …

I never write these things. Like this is maybe my first? Being part of minutiae is like getting a little surprise package in the mail everyday, only the package is from you to you, and it’s a picture of your everyday life. The app randomly picks a minute every day and every user across the world using it gets notified. You have the opportunity to take an unedited snapshot of your life IN THAT VERY MOMENT and then it’s over. If you miss it, you miss it. Which is why it feels like a surprise gift/package/piece of mail (what can I say? I’m a sucker for postal deliveries 😂) every time I *actually* get the notice and get to grab a picture. Because it’s unpredictable, it feels special when it happens. For some this could be really frustrating and I’ll admit for me it was at first. I didn’t like seeing how many moments I’d missed (hi, I’m sleeping at 3:45am…) but now I’ve just settled into the joy of the moment when it does happen, and releasing the moments that don’t. I appreciate their recent updates giving you slightly longer than a minute to get the notification and get to your phone (um, my phone is often AWAY from my hand-I know, I know, who am I trying to be?) as well as tweaks to the visual landing page. Mostly I just love the idea that at the end of this I can buy a book of unedited surprise moments of my life and I love being part of this artistic experiment. Try it-you won’t regret it!

3 months ago, colebansky

Great Concept

It has bugs but what doesn't - introduce me to an app or other software which doesn't have bugs and I will eat the sky. Hint: neither will happen. I do have... A LOT of missed moments eg the month of June I captured a whooping 11 moments. I barely pay attention to when I actually get and when I don't get the notices but sometimes I do wish for redo's of missed moments. Albeit it wouldn't be in the constraints of the project design. **edited to add bug info** Well, it is the notifications - sometimes there are none at all for days and days. Other times, like two/three days ago I received two notifications maybe four hours apart max six hours apart. Regardless they were in the same 24 hr period no matter how it's sliced. And just today I missed one a few hours ago and when I tapped the notification it brought me to a subscription screen - asking that I support the app that I have been supporting for over a year now. And just a minute ago I received another notification which prompted me to get this bug edit done.

3 years ago, TronWeasley

The best thing I can say

You know when an app inevitably gives you a pop up asking you to rate it? If you’re anything like me you either treat that moment with an benign dismissal or a strait up “eff this app” depending on how many times you’ve already gotten it. Well after god knows how long, a year or two, Minutiae finally asked to rate it… and for once I’m rating and reviewing because that’s how much happiness this app bring me. On most days this app gives me 60 seconds to capture a real moment or challenges me to spark some in the moment creativity. And I’m feeling the nostalgia of a single minute from my own past or briefly looking in on a stranger’s present and past each day and feeling connected beyond my bubble of only for a minute. Time feels insanely repetitive and flat and immeasurable and dumb these days but this app gives you a minute each day that manages to set itself apart from the rest and that’s something.

1 week ago, Κατινα Τ

I want to like this app

I really want to like this app but it’s more frustrating than fulfilling. I like the concept of taking a picture at random times of whatever is right in front of you, but the 4 minute cut off is too short. Even if you pay for the app you only have 8 minutes from the time your notification goes off (I even missed it when I still had 1 minute left) but I am not a person who is glued to my phone so I have more “missed” moments than captured, which really just means I’m more living in the moment than waiting to capture it. I would like it more if there wasn’t a time limit and it just took the photo when you opened the app after notification. But it’s so frustrating when I “miss” a moment because I am cooking , or feeding my pets or spending time away from my phone. There is no way I am paying for this app because of this. Great concept but poor execution. I am not sure if I am going to keep going with the app because it’s honestly so frustrating to “miss a moment” so often. I guess this is better if you are constantly connected to you phone. I am not

4 years ago, Pearandgreen

I still love this app

Currently, I have 469 captured moments, 298 missed moments, and 673 left. This app forces me to take a cursory glance at everything around me to snap the most interesting thing I can see. Often, it’s late and dark and the only photo that will get enough light is my window. So there are many photos of that. I try to give my photos composition and color. I love scrolling through other people’s pictures. Most people have no idea how to compose a photo. Maybe these same people don’t have Instagram. Twice I was paired with the same person, so twice I got to see his photos. He lives in Boston and is a caterer or chef or definitely works in the food service industry. I love puzzling and piecing together the lives of people. I’ve seen gambling addicts or maybe they work at the casino. It’s true, the lives of people is mostly mundane. I love it. I love seeing it. I love this app. Sometimes, mostly, I wish people were better at taking photos.

2 years ago, uvakid244

Love it! But could be a tiny bit better

I’ve never left a review but I wanted to share how much joy I get from taking my daily minutiae moments and seeing what a total stranger is doing at the same time! It’s a great idea and I can’t wait to complete my cycle. The only “issue” I have with it is that the alert is so quiet and short compared to other apps (think iphone clock alarm). I have my iphone on max ringer and vibration and persistent notification setting on so I won’t miss any alerts, and even then when I’m 5 feet away from my phone doing something else - I will miss an alert. This has now made me want to have my phone very close to me at all times. I read somewhere the creators tried to make the alert an “amber style” alert, and although they couldn’t do that, I wish there was a way to make the volume of the alert longer and louder and make the phone vibrate for the full minute or something like some other clock apps have their alarms.

5 years ago, JoJoMiksa

Minutiae is amazing

I’ve had it for about 2.5 years, and once a day it randomly pops open and I have a short time, 1 minute, to snap a pic of my life. It captures a moment in time that I would not otherwise captured. Then for the next minute, 60 seconds, a can scroll through my past captured moments in time, or I can choose to peek into the window is someone else’s life, often on the other side of the world, who has joined my world and experienced exactly the same capture of time that I have just experiences. Maybe they are petting their cat, or shaving their face. It’s just random and fun. And I can leaf through their past captured moments, or I can come back to my world and look around. At the end of 1 minute the app closed the window of time entirely and I can see only little square, that are all the past moments that have been captured. But they are tiny little blurs. They stay little blurry squares until sometime in the next 24 hours this happen again and I get to do this all over again. At the end of 4 years, 1440 days of captured moments, Minutiae will be send me, in download form, or I can opt in to having a print version of all my captured memories. And then there is a mystery at the end of this journey. Cause they say, at the end of 4 years they will let me know something else, something more... This is one of the coolest things I’ve ever had, and I love being part of this community. Thank you!

4 weeks ago, KarenB Me

In Love

This app is absolutely phenomenal. For about five years I have kept my phone on silent. About one month into using this app, I decided it’s worth keeping my sound on so I can easier be notified 😂 I love every part of this app. I love the slow nature of it. I love the rhythm of it. I love the realness of it. I love the intimacy of it. It seriously feels so special to be able to see some random person’s extraordinary ‘mundane’ life and that someone can see mine. The magic that the entire world is ‘lit up’ in the exact same moment with people taking a quick snapshot of their life. The joy of seeing what sort of repetition is in my life. The excitement when it goes off and I’m doing something unique. Man oh man. It’s really hard to even put into words how much I love the entire essence of this app/project. Thank you for creating this. Thank you for letting me be a part of your magical art project.

4 years ago, PammyG15

Love this app!

I’ve been using this app for well over a year and I love it! I get excited when I hear the alert go off (and hope I’m doing something fun!) I love looking back at my old pictures, mundane as they may be—they’re fond memories of what’s important in my life and what my life is truly about. There may be times I get annoyed I’m not taking “fun” pictures, but riding that wave out and sticking with the project through thick and thin is also part of the experience. I feel like I’m growing as a person too, by staying committed to the app and taking my pictures! At this point I have friends and coworkers sharing in the fun too! They all know I’m doing this, as I’ve pulled out my phone to take a picture many times during meetings, etc. I see my coworkers in the hallway and one of the things I’m always asked is “did you take your picture yet today??” :) What a cool idea, I’m so happy I stumbled across this app! Highly recommended!

1 year ago, Flagstone Sal

Loving Minutiae

I never leave reviews, but felt compelled to share how much I love participating in this lovely project. Documenting my in between moments and then getting a glimpse at other peoples in between moments is satisfying and so interesting. I am hooked. For those who are just starting out, there are bumps in the road getting used to the alerts and timing. I have heard its stressful and alerts are too quiet, but once you hit your rhythm you will be surprised how long a minute is and really enjoy getting your alerts. 2 Helpful hints, allow notifications on your smart watch if you wear one. Also remember that the daily cycle is GMT - Greenwich Mean Time, know what time that is where you live. It helps to know when the next 24 hour cycle starts and if you have taken a picture you can relax until the new 24 hr cycle begins. Enjoy it and i hope to glimpse your pictures one day.

7 years ago, Michelle Joyce M

Love it!!

I absolutely love the concept. There's a satisfaction when you're able to take the picture and sort of see whatever the rest of the world is doing. I would also say it isn't for everyone. Some people love the concept, others don't. But I love the fact that I'll see a little booklet in four years of all the random pictures in my life. I wonder if I'll remember what I was doing that day or if they'll really just look like random pics One suggestion though. I don't know if it's possible but the other day I was on my way home on the train and had no service. I still got the notification but my picture did not upload bc I did not have service. The app should maybe save an offline version to upload. Obviously I'd get that I wouldn't be able to see anyone else's pictures or mine but it's unfortunate that I still got the notification but was unable to save it on the app.

4 years ago, e_steppy

Unique and (seriously) special app

This is by far my favorite app. When I get the notification everyday even my boyfriend and coworkers get excited about it. After taking my photo for the day it’s so great to be able to scroll through past, random moments and remember days and times that were previously forgotten. Since the photos are timed randomly throughout the day there’s no way to prepare for them, and so your memories are captured in such a way that reveals your unedited, real days. In many ways it is much more rewarding than scrolling through your camera roll; not being able to delete/edit photos from your past ‘random moments’ can, at times, be a surprisingly emotional thing - capturing both the good and bad times of life. ANYWAYS - great app, highly recommend to anyone and everyone (Addressing app ‘glitches’: there have been some, but what app doesn’t? They are insignificant)

1 year ago, magmarocketsssss

Cherishing the memories of my dog with Minutiae

I have had my labradoodle Hershey since I was 8 years old in the midst of third grade, and I am now 21, going into my last year of college. He’s the first dog I’ve ever had and had been with me through it all. Through elementary and awkward horrible middle school years, and then high school and the untimely pandemic right before my graduation, to now college, he’s always waiting for me at the door when I get home. Since Minutiae notifications come so randomly, I often am home sitting at the table working or watching a movie on the couch and Hershey is always right there. I have taken countless Minutiae moments of him and I just received my book with all the memories of him. I know I’ll cherish these forever, and am so grateful for this app because I know I wouldn’t have really remembered to capture as many moments of him as I have. Thank you.

1 year ago, aim96

Love this app

This is the only app I allow notifications to come through when my phone is in do not disturb.. that’s how much I love it. The idea of getting a book of 4 years worth of memories at the end is worth the time and money invested. All my friends and family now get just as excited as I do when I get that notification and yell ‘omg it’s my moment!’ I love that I get to peek into someone else’s life for a few seconds and reflect on my own. There have even been times where I’ll be crocheting and the person I’m paired with is also crocheting at the exact same time, or I’ll see someone else is also a wedding photographer because they’re editing photos or at a shoot. It reminds me that we all have so much in common, but also that the world is so much bigger than what I see in a day. Truly a novel app offering a unique experience.

2 years ago, K-fray

cool concept but frustrating execution

so i love the app and the idea of capturing your real life outside of social media and what not, but for someone who isn’t ALWAYS staring at their phone for literally every hour of the day, it’s really frustrating because you’ll miss about half (or more) of the notifications to “capture your moment.” they go off while i’m asleep most of the time, and even during the day, because i don’t have my phone 24/7 it’ll go off while i’m in the bathroom or something and i’ll come back to the notification two minutes later and it won’t allow me to capture it. it’s so annoying and frustrating. it should at least give you a few minutes to capture the moment after the notification goes off, because if you’re even two minutes late to see the notification, it doesn’t let you do it. it’s incredibly infuriating, especially because im paying for the app and can’t even use it two thirds of the time.

1 year ago, Ava R!

My favorite concept

The little kick of energy I get every time I catch minutiae is so worth it! I stumbled upon this app and loved the idea so much (it’s especially unique compared to some other similar apps) that I signed up immediately about a year ago. I love watching my grid fill up every day and the little bites of my past year I see when I can scroll through my snapshots daily. I love the experience but I also can’t wait to have my moments to hold onto after four years. The new update makes it much easier to keep up with the project but the only thing I’ve noticed that needs a fix in the next version is the fact that the notifications no longer vibrate!! If my ringer is off I don’t even hear the vibration which is important in meetings or my phone is in my bag!

2 months ago, ParasonicHD

Frustrating, lacking, and not as fun as it could be

Sometimes I don’t get notified but that’s okay. My main gripe is that I can’t view my past photos. I also wish I could put brief captions under my photos to give brief extra context to other users about what they’re looking at. My biggest main gripe is that I can’t re-view the “strangers” complementary photos. You only get to see it once; when you close out of the app, you can never see the strangers’ photos again. Which is sad. I think we should be able to revisit all the strangers’ images we’ve been paired with. Finally, it’s a downside people cannot retake their photos. The reason why this is important is: out of courtesy for the stranger who will be seeing our photos. A couple times, I erroneously took a blurry photo or one with extremely bad lighting. The stranger photo I got in return is cool looking and I feel guilty for giving them something unappealing. I understand the sentiment of not being chronically online or on social media. But BeReal executes this concept exponentially better. The minimalism of this app can be beautiful and endearing but is also a tremendous detriment. The minimalism should not be at the expense of the user’s fun. I’ll continue to use the app for its novelty. But I have many complaints, all of which I feel need addressed to better the app. And I don’t think my suggestions impede on upon the developers philosophy either.

1 year ago, ulanishn

I’m done

I’ve had the subscription for about 8 months now and I still find the same issues as always. Not only is the app really buggy but it’s really irritating wanting to document your life but to find out it only goes of at 2 am! Supposedly it’s random but 3/4 of my images are black images due to being at night. It’s so frustrating I wish they had at least a time zone setting but NO! It feel like I’m just wasting my money and I decided to finally unsubscribe when I realize just how much I hate the app. I just get filled with anger whenever I get a notification now. Also if your gonna have your notifications go off at night AT LEAST have a flash option!!! Ugh I’m just so done there’s so much more but truly this app is so impractical and the fact you have to pay for it is LAUGHABLE. You would think paying for it for 4 years would be able to cover the book cost BUT NO! What’s the point of even having to pay for it if you’re gonna charge for the book it self Is it to just to limit users? Never have I been so dissatisfied with something I wouldn’t even want the app even if it was free! And it’s upsetting because I previously made a review suggesting some solutions and the response I for was so mild, frustrating and VERY unhelpful. Overall the app was cute at the beginning but you’ll soon come to learn it’s just frustrating to work with. BeReal is so much better and it’s free! Smh!

5 months ago, Monikai5

Love the concept but it needs improvement.

I love the idea behind this app and the simplicity that it brings. But realistically, I’m not always checking on my phone, especially at work where it has to be silent. I don’t hear or see the notifications ‘cause I’m busy. So I’ve missed like 3 or 4 moments since I downloaded it this week. I understand that the membership is what helps the developers to continue improving or maintaining the app, but even after subscribing… if I miss a moment to capture it’s just gonna end up black? I wish there could be a way to create a “second chance capture”. I know after paying we get 4 minutes to capture and some other perks which are great. But again, even after paying missing a lot of times and just having black squares doesn’t make sense to me. Really, consider incorporating a “second chance capture” to the membership, at least.

4 years ago, Ianmcg777

An important experience

I only have 200 moments left to capture, so i thought this would be a good time to encourage anyone looking at this app to pick it up. Minutiae is a receptacle for your real lived experience that you don’t need to curate or edit, and it encourages you to remember and enjoy the mundane everyday moments in your life, not just the spectacular ones. Once a day it reminds you to look around and think about life, whatever that may mean to you. More importantly, this app is a window into other folks’ experiences around the world. It’s a treat to see how other people live and what other places are like. It reminds me every day that people are just out there ordering takeout, working hard, going for walks, playing video games, taking out the trash, just being regular people like me. Even though I’ll likely never talk with these perfect strangers, they make me feel more human and connected than any social media platform ever has. There’s nothing like this app, and after more than three years of living with it, I can hardly imagine life without it. It’s truly a perfect antidote to the oversaturation and hyper-realism of the social media age, and it’s the only thing on my phone that makes me feel better every time I open it. I can’t recommend it enough.

1 year ago, qwertyme100000

Minutiae helped me capture my real life

I first discovered minutiae during such a transformative time in my life, and I am so grateful I did ! I was going through my last year of college and struggling on how I was going to capture the truest form of my day to day. Minutiae gave me that opportunity to take photos of things I never would have thought to be so nostalgic over like my favorite spot to study on campus or the way my room looked after a weekend. Now, a year later I purchased and just recently received my 360 book and I cannot believe how amazing it is to see the past year in a physical form as well. With the new version of yearly books, I think it will be extremely valuable to be able to watch my books change over the course of my minutiae journey :)

4 years ago, Niceoldguy

Daily Joy

This app stands alone. An artistic project in which we get to participate. A daily reminder to stop, just for a minute, and notice what is going on. My stats aren’t great, but I have captured 440 snapshots. The little buzz I get from mi:nu:ti:ae whenever the alert trips is great—I snap out of whatever fog I’ve been in, take a picture of whatever I’m doing. Then I have 60 seconds to either scroll through my previous shots or see someone else’s snaps. I’ve had these glimpses into other lives on every continent but Antartica, and dozens and dozens of countries. Just seeing someone else’s mundane activities helps me get out of myself for a bit. I should say that this is the only thing approaching social media that I engage in. No facebook, instagram, twitter, snap, etc. I’m old, started in punch card days, still participate in Usenet newsgroups/Listservs. I love that there is no chance to pose, agonize, curate. Just be in the moment, take the shot. I’ve been a photographer for over 50 years, still active, but I prefer to print my pictures to having them in my hand. I’m looking forward to the end of the project when we can buy into the book project. Thanks, guys, for conceiving and hosting this great experiment. Can’t wait to see what you come up with next!

7 years ago, Dr. Nim

Inspiring!

It requires some getting used to, but I really love this app. It takes a basic (and very original) concept and does it well. One pic a day and the subject is wide open. Just minutia, as implied? Only your alarm clock if you're in bed? Only red objects between 4 pm and 5 pm? Some of the tiles are just going to be black: deep sleep, driving, at a movie, on a plane, in a pool - but that pattern will help tell your own story too. Then, seeing other people's pictures is fascinating (sort of like a glimpse of super-private webcams). It's hard not to feel a sense of human connection to all of the other people taking a picture in that day's minute. This app is the sort of thing that wouldn't even have made sense to me 15 years ago. This is social media in the same way that Journey is a multiplayer game.

2 years ago, Crystalmyst

I Can’t Wait To See The End Product

I’ve attempted the “photo a day” journalism so many times.... and failed. But this app? This app does NOT let me fail at capturing a random moment a day. Literally - it’s random - just like my photos. After you capture your photo, you’re given a minute to peer through another person’s photos - assigned to you at random. I love this. I’ve cracked up at some of the photos, awww’d over other people’s critters and fallen in love with views in other countries. This app talks to my Fitbit so I never miss the notification when my phone isn’t in hand. Do it. You’ll love it. Capture your friends. Capture your critters. Capture your partner that hams it up for every photo. This is by far my fave app on my phone.

2 years ago, disnutt

It really is the little things that matter

This app is allowing me to track the little parts of my life that don’t get much attention, yet still make up so much of my life. This has been especially nice as I’ve lived in 3 apartments in 2 years due to job changes and required moves. I’ve now got pictures of my apartment cabinets, office equipment, and daily commute route that remind me of those times. I may not have these memories without this app since I usually don’t think of my office coffee pot as memorable, yet it was so important in making it through many a day. Getting similar glimpses into other people’s lives proves that no matter where we live we have way more in common than it might appear.

2 years ago, imsuicidal123

Notifications?

I love the concept of this app and just started! Unfortunately, the notifications glitch quite often. I set my time to not be disturbed from the app and the app still will send a notification during that time!!! I really want to build up a collection of pictures everyday with this app, but the glitch makes me miss out on so many photos. EDIT: I received a reply from one of the developers, but I’m still confused. If the picture notification goes off when I put in do not disturb time for the app, it will just appear as a black screen in my minutiae photo library? And then eventually be replaced when the notification goes off in time for me?

2 months ago, Wayfaringstranger

This is brilliant!

After 2 months of using Minutiae I am in love with this app. Each time I get the tone, I stop what I’m doing and for 10 seconds focus solely on what is directly in front of me and taking a photo of it. I value these few seconds of intense focus on my immediate environment - I find it akin to setting a ‘reset’ button in my head. The feature that allows me to see another user’s photos is wonderful. For a few seconds I get glimpses into the daily lives of complete strangers as they are naturally, not as they are posed to be as in the photos they post on social media. I look forward to getting the printed version of my moments when I’ve completed them.

2 years ago, swamp_33

Good idea, poor execution, lack luster support team

The apps team refers to itself as a “art project” not a start up- but if it’s just an art project I don’t understand why they charge an fee to use the app. The apps support team also doesn’t seem at all open to taking criticism or suggestions from its users because it’s an “art project”. Personally I feel if your going to charge money to use the app, you should also take into consideration user complaints. If the app was free, and people only had to pay to get the book at the end of the 4 years, people would enjoy the app much more and they would probably have better ratings. I think they either need to make changes based off user complaints, or refund people of the annual/ monthly charge. Good idea- poor execution, art project or not.

1 year ago, Jaclyn-123

Wonderful

Love this app. I’ve been using it almost 6 months and I still get a slight gentle pang of excitement every time the alert comes for me to take the daily shot. (And I feel a pang of disappointment when I’m unable to break away from what I’m doing to respond to it) One of my favorite parts to this app is being able to see the moments of a random stranger each time I contribute to my cycle. Anonymous peeking into another’s daily normal life. Also, the time limits are tiny blessings - I couldn’t spend any wasted time in this app if I tried - it just doesn’t let you. It’s here for you for a brief moment each day, that’s it. It creates a consistent daily habit for you with a pay-off that is 4 years away. I’d say that I can’t wait to see how my 1440-day archive looks once I complete it, but I’m gonna have to. And I’m okay with that. PS - this app is like a little nudge reminding me that we can create these consistent daily habits for ourselves - if I can sustain responding to a photo a day for 4 years, what else could I manifest in 4 years with a small effort each day?

5 years ago, Fuc7-y0u

One Minute

I can’t say enough positive things about this app. I first learned about it in a WIRED magazine article, and decided to give it a run. “4 years!” I thought, “How am I supposed to keep this up for 4 years!” The answer is incrementally. Once a day I receive a notification at a random time each day, once per day (though sometimes I receive a notification, then another a few hours later—I chalk this up to wherever Minutiae’s base of operations passing a 24-hour window). I open the app and have 5 seconds to take a picture, then get paired with someone in the world who took a picture at the same time. Rarely is it a person I’ve had before (though it has happened), and having a person doesn’t mean they have me (I got paired with a coworker once, who had someone in China). The feeling of getting to stop and appreciate all the little moments in another persons life, to “stop and smell the roses” so to speak, is priceless. And as each little box fills up in the home screen, I find myself realizing just how many “moments” fill each and every day. Thanks!

2 weeks ago, Farrah-ri

Might be a scam

I signed up cause I thought this was a very cool idea. I paid for the premium version as it said it would give you 4 minutes to take pic and access to your photos and another user every time you take a picture. Even though I paid for premium I wasn’t able to see my own photos let alone anyone else’s it. It always said “error uploading will upload at a later time” or something to that effect. This didn’t allow you to see any pics! Also the 4 minutes promised didn’t work. It took a pic seconds after opening the app, which was probably the ground or a blur as I moved my phone to try to position it. I emailed the app developer several times to ask for a solution and when they didn’t provide one I asked for a refund. They stopped replying. I think this is a scam. Does anyone know how to contact Apple for a refund?

5 months ago, mezzeninja

Cool idea, but not for me

I liked the idea of capturing mundane moments of my day at a random time, at the same time as thousands of others. I downloaded the app and submitted my first picture almost instantly. I turned on notifications and set a pretty narrow “do not disturb” range - something like 3am to 8am. Over the next week, I would keep an eye on my phone throughout the whole day (almost obsessively), just to wake up and see that a black square had gotten filled in during my early dnd hours. There was only one day that I had missed the notifications at around 2 or 3 in the afternoon. I realized at the end of the week that I had turned on my settings loudly, removed the “do not disturb”, kept it on while I’m sleeping so it would wake me up, and kept rushing to check every notification on my phone, just to keep missing it at 4 or 5am. I was looking for something that was less obsessive than FB or IG, and this wasn’t it (for me). Cool idea, and it really sounds like many enjoy it, which is great, but I feel like the obsession with not missing my small window of opportunity was turning me into the antithesis of what this app set out to do.

4 years ago, Cat5006

Love love love

I personally love storing memories for myself. This is such a unique spin. Saving my “mundane” every day moments makes those moments special. When I look back at them I realize I remember that specific moment and since mine is filled with loved ones I don’t often get to see, it’s a nice surprise to see their faces when I get to scroll through my pictures. Its fun to see what other people are up to across the world and sometimes even in my own city. It’s also helped me see where I spend most of my time (unfortunately in front of a computer screen) so it’s also created an awareness. I can’t wait until I’m done and have the finished product in my hands!

1 year ago, Aquastar34

literally my favorite app

this app is such a cool idea! i love how you are able to capture your moments without the social media aspect. i have absolutely loved seeing what peoples lives look like around the world, and it is one of my favorite parts of the day when i get the notification. my family has a group chat where we screenshot our pictures and send them to each other and it is such a fun way to stay connected and see what we are doing at these random moments throughout the day. i am in college so i absolutely love this idea of being able to collect these moments because everything around me is constantly changing and i am so grateful i have a way to remember all the little moments i would otherwise forget. i am going to graduate right at the end of my 4 year cycle and i am so excited to get my books and look back and be able to see my life via this app. i have shared this app with almost everyone i know trying to get them to join it too because i enjoy it so much!!

1 year ago, Jordan E Brooks

My whole family loves minutiae

I am in college and my mom recommended minutiae to me before I started my sophomore year. I am so glad she did because I was able to capture moments that I wouldn’t have without the app reminding me to. My younger sisters both use minutiae too so my entire family ordered our individual 360 edition books after our first year and we just received them today! We had so much fun comparing all of our moments — it truly connected us. It’s comforting that I am able to see what my family has been up to while I am away from them at school. Everyone needs to have this app.

5 years ago, Hotsoi

Disappointed after 2 years

Capturing mundane, everyday moments is a beautiful concept and why I enthusiastically downloaded, without second guessing the hefty price tag. Getting away from picture perfect squares was initially refreshing. I have been using the app for over 2 years now ...but 360 captured moments 540 missed moments later, I’m feeling like deleting the app all together. It has become disruptive and more of annoyance - imposing effort, interruption, and time into moments that I would like to just be present. Im sad because I was so excited initially about this app. But it has failed at what I wanted to get out of it: Documenting life’s ordinary moments while trying to be more present. For those really looking to get away from social media and being more present, this is not the app - perhaps the only answer is putting our phones away.

5 months ago, Mamma.monster

Love it

I adore this app and the idea behind it. The only issue I seem to have is even tho I have all permissions granted and push notifications on, for three days in a row I did not receive the message to take my picture. Today I randomly opened the app to make sure it was not crashing and it opened fine, and then five min later I got an alert to upload. So I’m not sure what happened those three days, I know it’s random times, but it seemed to alert me today, so hopefully it worked itself out! I do see three black squares so that lets me know it was saving like I just didn’t upload.

7 years ago, OneRedFugu

🖤

This app is definitely not for everyone but I love it! After reading through a lot of the reviews, I have to wonder did anyone read about the project and how it would work before trying it... lol I don't care that it wakes me; I'll put my phone to "do not disturb" if I don't want that to happen. I have a lot of black squares of my bedroom ceiling :) Of course I miss moments, we all have lives to live. Sometime I'm doing something awesome and think now would be a great time for the app to go off but then I get home and take pic of my refrigerator. It's perfect and makes me laugh. I can't wait to see the pattern my life's moments create. I am truly enjoying this.

4 years ago, ashafer

Cool concept, easy to use

Love the idea behind this app but disappointed by the large amount of “missed moments.” I have lots of black (blank) pics and found out that if you order the book at the end the blank photos would be printed . . . What a huge waste! I know the idea is to have a set amount of time but either remove the missed days from the final product or provide users the option to keep going with the project until they’ve managed to take the maximum number of photos . . . Maybe some people would take longer than others to finish but I think it would be more satisfying. But I have no complaints about the app itself—it’s a great idea!

4 years ago, Abczyxdefwyughitsr098123

Beautiful idea, great execution

Love love love this app and what it stands for. I’m a couple of years in on my project and can’t wait to see the finished product. I love seeing what others are photographing during the amount of time when we’re allowed to look, but sometimes I also enjoy swiping through my own to remember moments I had forgotten or see how my life has changed. My best advice? Don’t get so caught up in needing to take every single picture. Do it as you can and when you’re able. Remember, this is about not being a slave to social media. If you miss a day’s prompt, it’s not a big deal. Thanks to the developers for a great app!

7 years ago, Chompin' Skip

Frustrated Love

Ever be madly in love with a person that at the same time drives you crazy? That's this app. The concept is amazing and it's exactly what I need right now. Probably what a lot of us need. But I'm extremely frustrated with the app because I keep missing my opportunity to take my pictures. And not because I was asleep or because I was missing the notifications. I'm getting the notifications but when I open my phone/app I keep getting shut out of the photo part of the process. And I'm experienced enough with the app to understand the 60 seconds time-frame - there's some glitch with my phone/app when I unlock my phone. And it means I'm missing opportunities to catch my minutiae - which are rare enough as it is. Sort of a bummer.

Description

minutiae: Uncurated, unfollowed, unfiltered. An art project created by Martin Adolfsson & Daniel J Wilson Description minutiae is an anti-social media app that helps participants capture ordinary moments of life -- moments we don’t fully value until they’re gone. //////////////////////////// HOW IT WORKS //////////////////////////// 1. Once each day, at a random minute, all minutiae participants around the globe receive an alert simultaneously. 2. You have exactly one minute to respond to the alert and open the minutiae app. 3. Capture whatever is in front of you, there and then. 4. Once you’ve documented your moment, you have 60 seconds to explore previous moments. Both your own, and those of one random stranger you are matched with each day. 4. Repeat for 1440 days (once for every minute in 24 hours). 5. The final outcome of this long term collaboration between artist and participant is a digital archive of all of your captured moments, with the option to turn this archive into a physical book. *NOTE* Notifications happen at the same time for all participants around the globe. This means that there will inevitably be notifications that happen while you are sleeping. To avoid receiving a notification at night you can put your phone on ‘do not disturb’ mode. //////////////////////////////////////////// THE minutiae MANIFESTO //////////////////////////////////////////// YOU ARE NOT YOUR TIMELINE Social media was supposed to keep us in touch with our friends but has instead turned us all into unwitting monkeys filling out the world’s longest consumer survey. Facebook doesn’t want your money. It wants your time. minutiae is a response to our current moment: an anonymous anti-social media app that forces its users to document the in-between moments of life. A collaboration between artist and participant that retrieves forgotten moments and celebrates the ordinary. minutiae IS NOT A NORMAL APP minutiae does not provide instant gratification minutiae is not interested in your data minutiae will not increase your efficiency minutiae is not a popularity contest minutiae is (let’s be honest) not for everyone minutiae IS YOUR AUTOMATED SELF-PORTRAIT minutiae is random moments. minutiae is forgotten memories. minutiae is life. Real life. Uncurated. Unfiltered. Unfollowed. minutiae is a marathon, not a sprint. //////////////////////////// SUBSCRIPTION INFO //////////////////////////// Your payment will be charged to your iTunes account at the confirmation of purchase. Your subscription will automatically renew 24-hours before the end of the current period, and your credit card will be charged through your iTunes account unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Automatic renewals will cost the same price you were originally charged for the subscription. You can turn off auto-renew at any time from your iTunes account settings. //////////////// By using this app, you are agreeing to the minutiae Terms of Service (http://www.minutiae-app.org/tos/). //////////////// For more information please visit the minutiae webpage at www.minutiae-app.org where you can find an FAQ. //////////////// We encourage feedback and appreciate your reviews. For any questions, ideas, or proposals please contact [email protected]