iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Hey Iain – I’m working on some new ways to platform small creators. If you want one of your apps to be considered, please fill out this form! forms.gle/tmaj68CVjYQt... I'd recommend submitting just one app for now – best foot forward. Thanks :)

forms.gle

Swipe App Submission

Pitch me your app! I'm always looking for new apps to write about, and I'm particularly interested in platforming smaller studios and solo projects at Swipe. Fill out a few details about your app and...

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Hey Maciej – I’m working on some new ways to platform small creators. If you want Headlines to be considered, please fill out this form! forms.gle/tmaj68CVjYQt... No promises on coverage of course, but this is the best way to put yourself in the conversation. Thanks :)

forms.gle

Swipe App Submission

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Hey Josh – I’m working on some new ways to platform small creators. If you want Trophikos to be involved, please fill out this form! forms.gle/tmaj68CVjYQt... No promises on coverage of course, but this is the best way to put yourself in the conversation. Thanks :)

forms.gle

Swipe App Submission

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Hey Johan – I’m working on some new ways to platform small creators. If you want one of your apps to be considered, please fill out this form! forms.gle/tmaj68CVjYQt... No promises on coverage of course, but this is the best way to put yourself in the conversation. Thanks :)

forms.gle

Swipe App Submission

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Hey Adrian – I’m working on some new ways to platform small creators. If you want Auralog, please fill out this form! forms.gle/tmaj68CVjYQt... No promises on coverage of course, but this is the best way to put yourself in the conversation. Thanks :)

forms.gle

Swipe App Submission

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Hey Tijs – I’m working on some new ways to platform small creators and thought of kilowatt. If you want to be involved please fill out this form! forms.gle/tmaj68CVjYQt... No promises on coverage of course, but this is the best way to put yourself in the conversation. Thanks :)

forms.gle

Swipe App Submission

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Hey Danijela – I’m working on some new ways to platform small creators. If you want one of your apps to be considered, please fill out this form! forms.gle/tmaj68CVjYQt... No promises on coverage of course, but this is the best way to put yourself in the conversation. Thanks :)

forms.gle

Swipe App Submission

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Hey Gil – I’m working on some new ways to platform small creators and thought of your app. If you'd like it to be considered for coverage, please fill out this form! forms.gle/tmaj68CVjYQt... Thanks :)

forms.gle

Swipe App Submission

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Hey Nico – I’m working on some new ways to platform small creators. If you want one of your apps to be considered, please fill out this form! forms.gle/tmaj68CVjYQt... No promises on coverage of course, but this is the best way to put yourself in the conversation. Thanks :)

forms.gle

Swipe App Submission

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Update: everyone who commented here, thanks so much. It's really kicked off something cool and I've got plans to platform small creatives even harder later this year. Please add your apps to my new submission form to ensure you're considered for future coverage – even if you were already featured!

forms.gle

Swipe App Submission

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Another dev callout: I've had so many submissions for my monthly Indie Apps Showcase, it's becoming difficult to keep track! If you've made a cool iPhone app you want me to consider for the Showcase, drop it into this form so I don't miss you. Thanks! #indieapps #madeinpublic #solodev

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Swipe App Submission

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

Hey Zaxxon, thanks for sharing this! I love your philosophy of no BS, it's exactly how indies should do things. Have added you to my spreadsheet of apps to check out for the next showcase, feel free to ping me a DM when it's live!

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

Great stuff. I studied architecture many moons ago so I've tested a fair few apps like this, will check it out when I get the chance. The web export is great as sharing complex files like this can be a real battle sometimes! Cheers Gil :)

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

Hi Gil, Apologies, I missed this when you first posted it amongst the influx of comments. It looks great! Will add it to my "apps to check out" spreadsheet. Can you tell me what makes 5DPlan different/better than similar room-scanning layout-building apps? Are you cheaper, faster, smarter? Thanks!

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

I love it when apps make your device feel like an entirely new gadget. COPY is a charming little walkie-talkie that *mostly* gets that right with its retro-styled knobs, dials, bleeps and bloops.

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

Congrats. This looks fab, I really dig the concept and the themes are lovely. I hid a retro gameboy-inspired theme in my app and it doesn't look anything like as good as these. I might have to cover this for tapsmart.com, do you have a press kit?

tapsmart.com

TapSmart

Read the latest iPhone and iPad news, guides and tips for everyday smartphone users, plus games and apps reviews.

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

Here's the piece I was working on, several of your submissions in the comments made the cut. Sorry I couldn't include you all – I'll do another roundup next month! www.tapsmart.com/apps/indie-a...

tapsmart.com

Indie Apps Showcase: 6 hidden App Store gems for July 2026

Apple gets more than 1,000 app submissions every hour, meaning it’s tougher than ever to find something that’s worth your time.

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

It's here! The first in my Indie Apps Showcase series features a handful of faves from the comment section of my callout post last week. Thanks to everyone who submitted an app – those I missed this time might turn up in the next one.

tapsmart.com

Indie Apps Showcase: 6 hidden App Store gems for July 2026

Apple gets more than 1,000 app submissions every hour, meaning it’s tougher than ever to find something that’s worth your time.

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

I've had a lot of submissions for my indie apps spotlight. It's been fun checking out all your work! The article's getting a bit unwieldy... is it better to give everyone a brief shout-out, or pick a few favourites and give them more airtime? Either way, I think this will become a regular series.

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

That's a shame! I don't hear many good things about Spotify from any angle really. Shame because for the moment I'm locked into a family plan there so I can't give your app a proper whirl. From what I can see it looks great though..!

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

Hey Nico, this looks really nice, thanks for sharing. Love it when indie devs take things into their own hands like this. Feature doesn't exist in your favourite app? Ah well, guess it's time to make your own version from scratch. Good job!

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

Het Germán! This is really lovely, what a charming tactile UI. My record player is broken IRL so this could be just what I need. Any chance you'll add support for other streaming platforms in the future? P.S. You're in luck because where I am in the UK you're only showing 14 reviews.

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

Hey Josh! Lovely stuff, thanks for sharing. Congrats on getting your first big side project out there! I've tried a few recipe apps and they never quite stick with me so will give yours a bash and leave a rating.

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

Hey Neil, thanks for these! Widget cast looks like something you'd expect to be able to do in vanilla iOS... but as we know Apple always leave gaps like this for indies to fill in. I really like your tape-inspired UI, it's very fun. Have you tested whether there's much effect on battery life?

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

That sounds like a good solution, I have a mix of podcasts where I want everything and those I just dip into.

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

Thanks for sharing Davide, a nice suite of apps catering to very different demographics there! Glad to see I'm not the only one putting a kids app out there, what did you find was the biggest difference in making that one? Personally I found stress testing with my kids was... eye-opening

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

Love it, thanks for sharing. I've tried many a feed reader app and many a podcast app – but this is the first time I've seen the two together. No settings is bold but telling people what they want is very faithful to the Apple visionaries of old!

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

Great philosophy. This is the kind of indie app I love, solving a specific, personal problem that nobody else has done yet. Even better if it's not doubling as a get-rich-quick scheme. Thanks for sharing!

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

Thanks to all the indie devs who shared their apps in the previous post. I'm slowly working through them. Here's mine! Lemon Squeezy is a minimal first camera for little photographers aged 2-8. It's made for children to use independently, with a built-in photo library so they don't wreck yours.

apps.apple.com

Lemon Squeezy Kids Camera App - App Store

Download Lemon Squeezy Kids Camera by Thomas Rolfe on the App Store. See screenshots, ratings and reviews, user tips, and more apps like Lemon Squeezy Kids…

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

Hey Iain, this looks neat, just had a browse and left you a rating. I like you've got a full suite of 'calm' apps – are they all free? That's a hell of a selling point if so.

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

Hey Adam! Nice work, making a word game is on my bucket list so watch this space. Failed the gauntlet first try but I’ll be back. Love that it’s free with no BS. Thanks for sharing!

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

Thanks Kris. 5 apps published is impressive stuff! I particularly like the scoreboard app, as a big board game and party game fan I can see that coming in handy a lot.

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

Thanks Adrian, that would be grand. Could you email it to tom@lemonsqueezy.camera please?

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

Hey Danijela! I love the name and the little fork dude. Looking forward to checking it out properly - I’ll be sure to leave you a rating when I do. Thanks for sharing.

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

Hey man. I’m also an indie dev in the UK and parent of 2! Thanks for sharing, I could definitely have done with the baby sleep tracker a year or two ago… morning club looks very smart too, even if the CEO grindset is not my cup of tea. Thanks for sharing and I’ll drop you some App Store ratings!

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

Hi Jay, this looks really useful! I’ve only released one app myself but at my day job we have many and it’s such a pain to trawl through the stats in App Store Connect. Let me know if you need any help testing.

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

This is the hard-hitting content I joined bluesky for

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Because I'm in the UK and my bluesky account is new, it won't let me DM anyone without age verification... which is taking a while. In the meantime you can email the code to tom@lemonsqueezy.camera if you like! Thanks!

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Love it, this looks good. Bet you were pleased to see Apple shoving adverts into Maps - it gives you another leg up as an alternative! Just tried the code, it says expired. Maybe a sneaky lurker grabbed it before I did haha. Could you DM me another?

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Hi Johan, thanks for sharing! Bartab looks genuinely useful and I love the pile of shame in Vitrine. Will try to dig into these in a bit more detail when I have time and leave you some App Store ratings, I know how much it helps!

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Thanks for the intel and the warm bluesky welcome! I’ve dabbled with godot before and loved it so will get on that for sure…

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Do you have a promo code going spare? Full disclosure I don’t have an EV so I’m probably not the right person for testing… but I’ll have a look anyway!

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Looks great. You’re actually showing 59 ratings to me (UK) but that was a fairly arbitrary limitation so I’ll check it out anyway and add another rating while I’m there. Congrats on building a following, relative to the rest of us on this thread you’re smashing it!

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Hey Charanjit! Thanks for sharing, this looks cool. Brave move to charge up front these days but I respect it! If you send over a code id be happy to give it a whirl, I’ve got a trip coming up next month. What would you say is the biggest difference between this and Apple Maps for trip planning?

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

I love that. Especially zine mode! This is all really well thought out, definitely what I was looking for in terms of apps that deserve more attention. Just left you a review, I know how important those first few can be for getting more traction.

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Makes sense, I know Apple loves it when devs use new features of iOS. I also have a sister with procreate on hand for illustrations haha! And I just realised I called you Christ in my last message… whoops! 😅

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Agreed, gamification certainly has its place but I respect the philosophy here. My kids camera app is the same - I don’t think it’s necessary to bribe kids with arbitrary rewards when photography is already fun!

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Tom Rolfe @rolfebox.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Hey Christ, thanks for sharing. I like the concept of Please Don’t Rain - I feel like very specific use cases like this are where indie devs can shine. I will say I find the creepy AI baby in your screenshots a bit offputting though! Let me know when the workout app goes live, good luck with launch.

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