Why We Created Lion
First let me introduce myself. My name is Patrick Adams. I’m one of the co-founders of Lion. I’ve been a user of accountability software ever since XXX Church released x3Watch. I am a big fan of the way accountability works as opposed to having someone decide which websites need blocked and which don’t. Most blockers get it wrong a lot. I’d rather have my options open and and get in the habit of making good decisions.
For those unfamiliar with accountability software: it usually comes in the form of a browser or a plugin that tracks explicit websites that you visit and sends them in an email (usually weekly) to a partner of your choice. This creates for open communication about achieving better online browsing habits.
When using accountability software I just kind of accepted the fact that the software would be less superior than more traditional browsers such as Chrome and Safari. You can’t have your cake and eat it too.
Frustration
Over time, using x3Watch became frustrating. It’s 2016 now, the iPhone 6 has been out for almost 2 years and the app still hasn’t really changed at all since it’s initial release. The app doesn’t even support the iPhone 6 and 6+ phone resolution. Back then I couldn’t actually do anything about the fact that the software wasn’t great. But now that I have been an iOS developer for over 3 years and focus heavily on good UI where I work I decided it was time to make something better. Something on par with the browsers people use most. I didn’t want users to have to sacrifice a good browsing experience just to use accountability software.
Development
This was when I came up with the idea for Lion. I started a blank project, named it Lion right off the bat (cool name huh?) and got to work. My first thought was that this would be something I could easily cook up in a month but little did I know it would take much longer in fact, almost 6x as long.
A day or two after I came up with the idea I presented it to one of my co-workers, Brad. I knew we could get it done faster if we worked together and convincing him wasn’t hard. He saw that there was a market for something like this and was on board. The evidence was there, people were frustrated with the current offerings. After a while we decided to enlist our good friend Anthony to help us manage the project as well as get some pre-traction excitement going. Adding Anthony to the team really took Lion to the next level. Now with a dedicated team passionate about helping people live healthier lives we worked to get Lion ready for release.
Lion - Accountability Browser
When working on Lion we wanted to stay true to 3 main points:
- No Sign Up - We didn’t want to burden the user with account creation, this is why Lion does not even offer the ability to create an account (at the moment). You can jump right in and start using the app instantly.
- No Monthly Fees - We wanted Lion to be a one-time purchase with no monthly subscription fees. We think its important to make it affordable so everyone can achieve healthier browsing habits without having to worry about the cost.
- Frequent Updates - We want to constantly improve Lion based on feedback. We are listening to our users because they have great ideas too. (Send them to us!) This is what really makes us different — we are fast to iterate.
Lion is an accountability browser that you’ll actually want to use. Unlike the competition it feels like something for the modern day and we hope it’s something you will come to love. With Lion on iOS are goal is to someday bring it to other platforms. We also don’t want Lion to just be another browser and we have big plans for the future.
If you think Lion could have a positive impact on your life or the life of others download it here.
— Patrick & Anthony
If you are interested in following us more closely you can find us on the following social networks:
Lastly, you can find more information about Lion at our website — http://lionapp.io
*Update: Read about why we created our second app, Lion Chat, here — https://medium.com/@LionBrowser/why-we-created-lion-chat-d78718e7c089
