since adding the energy that drains after 1-2 lessons, unless you pay you can only do 5-10mins every 25hrs
- about billing
- worked before an update
Captured on . See reviews on the App Store
DuolingoEarly signal
People run out of energy before they finish two lessons
3 people raised this across 3 weeks, on iOS.
iPhone users in Canada, the United Kingdom and Ireland, across three app versions.
In their own words
Neither app store gives a review a permanent public link, so each entry is a snapshot taken on the date shown and the link goes to the app's review listing.
They changed to a energy system and u can barely finish 2 lessons before you are out of energy
- about billing
- worked before an update
Captured on . See reviews on the App Store
my app is broken and it's putting me at a huge disadvantage
- about billing
Captured on . See reviews on the App Store
What people do instead
- wait for energy to refill
What you could do with this
These four are written from the reviews above. Everything else on this page is quoted or counted.
written
BUILD IT
A free tier metered by time practised rather than by mistakes made.
See how3 points
- Refill on a schedule a learner can plan a day around
- Show the refill clock before the lesson starts, not once it stops
- Never end a session in the middle of an exercise
Why it might not workThe limit is what persuades people to pay, so loosening it is a pricing decision rather than a design one.
written
START IT
Practice software where the daily amount is fixed and paid for once.
See how2 points
- One price, no meter, and no interruption at the point of learning
- Aimed at adults returning to a language after years away
Why it might not workA one-off price funds one version, and language material needs constant upkeep to stay worth opening.
written
STUDY IT
What happens to a practice habit when a meter sets the session length?
See how2 points
- Track streak length either side of the version that added the meter
- Ask whether a short forced break helps retention or ends it
Why it might not workSpaced practice genuinely works, so a meter and good teaching can look identical from outside the app.
written
WRITE IT
The lesson that stops in the middle of itself.
See how2 points
- Set the meter beside the streak it interrupts
- Quote the learner cut down to ten minutes a day
Why it might not workFree tiers tightening is a well-covered beat, and only the exact stopping point is new here.
Related challenges
Duolingo
People lose a daily streak when the lesson will not load
it also won't load kana or other character / writing lessons
Build itA lesson that is fully on the device before it starts.
Start itOffline-first practice for people with unreliable connections.
Study itDoes an outage break a learning habit, or only pause it?
Write itGamified learning that punishes you for its own outage.
Reported repeatedly
Duolingo
People are interrupted mid-lesson by prompts they cannot close
Duo now forces users to use AI
Build itEvery interruption carries a close control, and it is tested.
Start itNot a company. This is a policy question, not a product gap.
Study itDoes an undismissable prompt change lesson completion?
Write itLearning interrupted by the thing that sells you learning.
Reported repeatedly
Duolingo
People who cancelled a trial were billed for the year anyway
just take hundreds of dollars off your card with no consent and no way to get it back
Build itA trial that names the charge date and the amount before it starts, and again before it lands.
Start itA subscription record kept outside whoever is selling the subscription.
Study itHow many people who believe they cancelled were still charged?
Write itThe week between cancelling and being charged for the year.
Early signal