Innovative Smartphone Case Design Reduces Screen Time Through UI Minimization

Smartphone technology has created connectivity challenges that many users struggle to manage. While dumbphones offer a complete digital detox, they remove access to valuable tools that improve daily life. Engineers at London-based studio Special Projects have developed a potential solution that maintains smartphone functionality while limiting distractions.

The concept, called Aperture, applies interface design principles to create a minimalist user experience through a clever mechanical approach: a phone case that, when flipped around, covers most of the screen except for a small window where the camera cutout would typically be.

The Aperture design emerged through experimentation with existing hardware. The cofounder and director of technology at Special Projects, Adrian Westaway, noticed that flipping a phone case backwards revealed a small window through the camera cutout. The team developed this observation into a functioning prototype.

“One of the words that is quite key is friction,” explains Clara Gaggero Westaway, cofounder and creative director at Special Projects. “You cannot use it compulsively. You almost have to have a conscious behavior to say, ‘Okay, now I’m going to take it off and doomscroll again.'”

The physical action of removing and flipping the case creates an intentional barrier that discourages impulsive usage. This mechanical friction represents a fundamental design principle in the project – making technology more mindful through physical interaction.

The technical implementation relies on a specially designed application that reformats content for the small visible portion of the screen. The interface presents only essential functions in a simplified format, often using black-and-white displays to reduce the dopamine-triggering visual elements common in standard interfaces.

Senior designer Matteo Bandi created UI renderings demonstrating how the system would deliver compact versions of necessary apps. These include:

• Step-by-step navigation instructions
• Recipe instructions without distracting ads
• Camera controls
• Basic messaging functionality
• Focus timers for productivity

When using social media apps like Instagram, Aperture reinterprets the function entirely—it presents a focus timer instead of the feed, encouraging users to engage with their surroundings rather than continuing to scroll.

Bringing Aperture to market presents several technical hurdles:

The physical design requires precise engineering to ensure the case fits properly when reversed. Standard cases aren’t designed for this dual functionality so that a custom case would need careful structural development.

Software integration presents more significant challenges. To access and reformat content for the small window display, the application would need extensive permissions and deep integration with the operating system. This presents particular difficulties on iOS, which has stricter limitations than Android systems.

“It’s a vision,” Westaway explains. “We’re now trying to see how much of this we make real.”

The ideal implementation would require collaboration with major operating systems developers, such as Apple and Google, to enable the necessary permissions without compromising user privacy or security.

The concept leverages emerging AI capabilities to create what the team calls “generative UI” – interfaces dynamically created based on user needs. Through voice commands, users can specify exactly what information they need: “Can I have directions to Brick Lane highlighting record shops on the way, let me play music, and only allow calls from specific contacts.”

This natural language processing approach would require sophisticated AI to interpret commands and generate appropriate minimalist interfaces on the fly.

Content adaptation represents another technical challenge. When a user flips the case while viewing a content-heavy webpage, the system must intelligently reformat and distil that content, potentially using AI to extract only the most relevant information.

Beyond individual use, Aperture incorporates social awareness features. The interfaces can communicate when multiple users with Aperture cases are detected in proximity.

The implementation demonstrated by Special Projects shows playful interactions between phone interfaces. Digital mascots from each device acknowledge each other and form social groups before eventually turning off entirely, subtly encouraging users to engage with each other rather than their screens.

This functionality would require device-to-device communication protocols, likely utilizing Bluetooth or other proximity detection technologies.

What began as a concept is now moving toward potential commercialization. A client has expressed interest in funding the idea’s development, likely through a purchasable case.

Special Projects is gathering user feedback to understand the most valuable features before finalizing any commercial design. They’ve created a dedicated website (focuswithaperture.com) to collect input from potential users.

“We were just putting this out as a thought piece, and were absolutely not going to try and commercialize it. Then this funding opportunity came up,” Westaway says. “Rather than disappear for a year, we thought we could have an exploratory approach.”

The project builds on previous digital well-being work through Special Projects, including Paper Phone and Envelope projects developed for Google, which explored ways to distil phones to essential functions.

Aperture exists within a broader technical ecosystem of solutions addressing digital overuse. Previous research has shown that hard-blocking mobile internet access can boost attention spans and mental well-being. Aperture applies this principle through physical means rather than software-only approaches.

The project highlights how engineering and design can work together to address behavioural challenges. Rather than creating entirely new devices, Special Projects demonstrates how reimagining existing technology can create new possibilities.

“We never think that taking away technology altogether would be the right choice,” Clara Gaggero Westaway explains. “But how can we help people to use the phone, to use technology rather than be used by it?”

If successful, the implementation would represent a practical approach to digital well-being that doesn’t require abandoning smartphone technology’s benefits. The engineering challenge is making this concept reliable across phone models and operating systems.

As development continues, the project raises important questions about interface design, attention engineering, and how technical solutions can help balance digital connectivity with mental well-being.