Filtering App: Circle by Disney

I haven’t written in a very long time, but I wanted to tell you about a new filtering device we love! We’ve used it for a few months, and I can’t say enough good about it!

Circle by Disney

It’s a small box (about 6-inches) that you plug into your router, and it controls all the devices in your home (iPads, phones, gaming systems, PC, laptop, and it even did our Blueray player!). It takes about 5 minutes to set up, and then you’re all set. The only catch is that you have to download an app to an Apple device so if you don’t have an Apple device, you won’t be able to use it. The app is where you control all the settings for the various devices (the devices do not have to be Apple products though).

There are so many great features, and it’s super user-friendly.

You can lump all the devices together, or keep them separate, or you can just select a few to control (like all the kids devices).

You can control which websites your children can or cannot visit (for example, you can turn off Twitter or Facebook or YouTube for your children, but keep them on for you).

You can choose different filtering levels for each device. It filters anything else out that’s above the filter setting you choose. (for example, our iPad is set for young children so my littlest can use it safely. And my phone is set for teen settings so I’m not restricted to just the little kid setting.)

You can also set time limits for each device (for example, my son can only spend an hour on the X-box each day, and then it turns off, or I can only spend 2 hours a day on Facebook, and when I hit that limit, I can’t access it anymore).

You can also see which websites have been visited and how much time you’ve spent on each device. It’s shocking to see how much time we spend on-line on Saturdays. (so, we didn’t spend a solid 3 hours on Netflix, but it says we spent 3 hours total that day, which is too much for our family. We can then adjust.)

My favorite feature is the bedtime feature. You can choose times that your internet is turned off. And it really turns it off! A screen pops up that says, “It’s past your bedtime!” and you can’t use the internet at all! It forces my husband and I to go to bed at a decent hour! It also keeps my early riser from getting on the X-box before he’s allowed. You can set different bedtimes for different devices, as well, which is great!

My other favorite feature is the pause button. I can pause the internet on all devices at the touch of a button. So when the kids are “too busy” to come to dinner, I just threaten to pause their devices! No need for nagging!! 🙂 All it took was one time for them to learn this!

It’s a bit pricey at $99, but it’s just a one-time fee. The app itself is included in the price. We ordered it and got it within a few days. They’ve made some changes since we first purchased ours, and we got notified to update our app– no charge!

We’ve had this device since March and have loved it!! I really have no issues at all with it. I love how simple it is to use and how much it does. Here’s the link again for your convenience. Take a minute to explore it in more detail.

I’d love to hear your experience with this if you’ve used it.

Note: I did not receive any compensation for this post (although I wish I had!). We just wanted to share a great device to help you keep your sanity in this tech-heavy world!