Put your voice and your face in the capsule

How do I choose the open date?

Chips cover New Year (opening at 00:00 on 1 January, local time), your birthday, in 1 year, in 5 years and in 10 years. A calendar and time row handle any other date, with 09:00 as the default time. The earliest date is tomorrow and the latest is twenty years out.

New Year and birthday capsules form the yearly ritual and are always free: they never count toward the three-waiting limit.

How do I build a capsule, step by step?

1. Tap Seal, then choose For future me.
2. Name the capsule if you like. Untitled capsules show as "Untitled capsule".
3. Pick the open date from the chips or the calendar.
4. Add guesses, then the letter, which starts with the line "Dear me on {date},".
5. Add a photo from the picker, a voice note and, if you want, a "then" photo.
6. Review the summary and hold the seal. The review screen refuses an empty capsule and asks for at least a guess, a letter, a photo or a voice note.

How does the voice recorder work?

Tap Record, speak, and tap Stop. You can play the take back, re-record it, remove it or tap Use this to keep it. At the limit the app says "That's 30 seconds" with an option to get 5 minutes through Plus.

The microphone is on only while the recorder is recording. A voice note is the part of a capsule that people tend to enjoy most on open day, because it carries mood and the background of the day.

What is the then-and-now photo?

When you seal, you can take a "then" photo. On open day Sealday asks for a "now" one and makes a split card with both dates. It works as a small before-and-after for a year, a trip or a phase of life.

Which permissions does Sealday ask for?

The camera only when you take a photo for a capsule, and the microphone only while you record a voice note. Photos you pick go through the system picker. Notifications are optional and local: one reminder on the open day, no daily nudges.

More in the privacy policy.

The content itself goes into encrypted files on your iPhone, and nothing is uploaded. If you want a safety copy, export a vault file that stays sealed.

What happens to a draft before I seal it?

Drafts stay on your iPhone until you seal them. If you leave the composer, Sealday asks whether to discard the draft or keep editing. A draft is ordinary local data and is not time-locked yet, so the lock begins at the moment you hold the seal.

What do I see on the review screen?

A summary with the open date, what is inside and who it is for. Below it sits one honest line: sealed until the date, with the early-opening exit explained for capsules to yourself. You also choose a seal style and a paper. The free plan has 2 seals and 1 paper, and Plus has 12 seals, 6 papers and a monogram.

Dates beyond ten years add a note that the beacon network is run by independent organizations, so you read the limits before you commit.

What does open day show?

You hold to break the seal while the phone fetches the key for the date. Then your content appears in turn: the letter, each photo as "Photo 1 of 3", the voice note headed with its date, and your guesses. A skip button jumps straight to the guesses. After grading, the app asks for the "now" photo if you sealed a "then" one, and then shows a set of cards you can share.

What does a one-minute capsule look like?

Choose New Year as the date. Write three guesses from the starters. Add one line, such as "Dear me on 1 January, I hope you finally fixed the sleep thing." Add a photo of your desk. Hold the seal. The whole thing takes about a minute, and it is enough to create a surprise a year later.

What makes a good letter, photo and voice note?

• Letter: describe an ordinary day, then ask one question you cannot answer yet.
• Photo: shoot something you would never think to keep, such as your desk, your street or your fridge.
• Voice note: speak for 30 seconds about this week, and say the date out loud.
• Then photo: use a face or a place that will look different in a year.