What it does
CleanX is a comprehensive utility designed to help iPhone users reclaim storage space. The app scans for and helps remove similar or duplicate photos, screenshots, and videos. Beyond media management, it includes tools for cleaning spam emails, merging duplicate contacts, and compressing large video files to reduce their size. It also offers a 'Secret Space' feature to hide private photos and contacts behind a PIN.
Where it shines
The app excels at reducing user friction in tedious tasks. The similar photo cleaner (00:53) is a standout example. It intelligently pre-selects a 'Best' photo to keep and marks the rest for deletion, transforming a manual review process into a quick confirmation step. The video compressor (01:55) provides clear before-and-after size information and a simple 'Low, Medium, High' quality selector, making a technical task accessible to anyone. The overall interface is clean, with clear categorization on the main dashboard (00:49), guiding users directly to the area they want to clean.
UX highlights
- Animated Value Props: Onboarding (00:02) uses animated charts and gauges to dynamically show benefits, which is more persuasive than static text.
- Smart Defaults: The 'Best' photo tag (00:54) in the duplicate finder greatly reduces cognitive load for the user.
- Contextual Confirmations: Deletion prompts (01:07, 01:40) include thumbnail previews of the files, preventing accidental deletions.
- Clear Success States: After each cleaning action, a celebratory screen (01:09) confirms the action and quantifies the storage saved, providing positive reinforcement.
- Integrated Tooling: The app seamlessly integrates multiple cleaning utilities (photos, contacts, email) into one dashboard, offering a one-stop-shop solution.
- Action-Oriented UI: Buttons are clearly labeled with actions like 'Keep', 'Unsubscribe', or 'Delete All' (03:32), leaving no ambiguity about their function.
Monetization & growth
Monetization is introduced immediately after the value-prop onboarding with a prominent paywall (00:24). The app uses a soft paywall strategy, offering a 7-day free trial for its weekly subscription plan. The paywall clearly lists the pro features and uses a toggle for enabling the trial. After subscribing, the core cleaning features are unlocked. The app also uses in-app rating prompts (01:45) after a successful user action to encourage positive App Store reviews.
Who it’s for
CleanX is for any iPhone user who feels their device storage is cluttered and running low. Its primary audience includes people with large photo and video libraries, those who frequently take screenshots, or individuals who want a simple way to manage years of accumulated digital files. The user-friendly interface makes it suitable for non-technical users who might find manually sorting through files intimidating.
Notes & opportunities
The app is highly effective, but the constant and rapid flashing of the storage numbers on the paywall screen (00:25) can be visually jarring and might feel gimmicky. The email cleaner requires full Gmail access (03:25), which could be a point of friction for privacy-conscious users. A more granular permission request or a clearer explanation of data handling on that screen could build more trust.