Virtual Pets, Nostalgia, and Engravings

and satisfying micro-interactions

Hello again, and a happy 2025! 👋

Here are some of the cool things I’ve found over the last month, mostly while digesting Christmas food and consuming large amounts of cheese 👇

Birbs 🐦

It sounds silly, but I love little Peanut. They’re currently adventuring through Japan, thanks to me regularly looking after myself with simple wellbeing techniques.

It’s January, and while you may not buy into the idea of resolutions, many of us start the year with aspirations to grow and change. Too often, though, we set ourselves unrealistic goals that leave us feeling disappointed or defeated.

For me, Finch has been the antidote so far. It’s a tamagotchi-like virtual pet that thrives as you care for yourself; small things like drinking some water, stretching, or taking a moment to breathe.

Without diving into a full UX analysis, my favourite thing about Finch is that everything you can do benefits you. This is a rarity in a world of time-sucking distraction apps, and especially so for an app that’s perfectly functional without upgrading to the premium subscription.

Cursor’s pricing page

Small interaction details make digital experiences special, and this will become even more important in 2025 and beyond. To give you an example, I love Cursor’s transition between monthly and annual pricing. The smooth animations aren’t essential, but they add a subtle polish that builds user trust and sparks joy — the exact feelings you want a user to have on a pricing page.

Social Impact Capital

The engraving-inspired illustrations for Social Impact Capital’s website are stunning. They remind me of the ballpoint pen doodles I’d make in the margins of my History classes, back when doodles were my main contribution to historical discourse.

I’m not a huge fan of how aggressive the smooth scrolling effect feels on desktop — it’s like you’re wading through a thick tangle of ornate engravings. But across all screen sizes, the scroll interactions and subtle intro animations make for a polished and satisfying experience.

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Eastern and Western app design 🌍

Phoebe Yu offers a concise introduction to the cultural, political, and psychological factors shaping the dramatic differences in app design worldwide. They summarise a highly complex topic in an approachable way that encourages the ‘design for all’ mindset that makes us better humans.

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Nostalgia Lucky Dip 📺

Finally, a website that serves up random, unnamed iPhone videos uploaded to YouTube before 2012 — small snippets of other people’s lives.

My personal favourites from a 5-minute browse include:

• Grainy Vampire Weekend concert footage.

• “This is Karl’s first sax solo!”

• Someone striking a pose next to a pizza, followed by, “No, it’s a video!”

💡 Do browse with caution, though: While I didn’t spot anything problematic, there’s always a chance an old, overlooked YouTube video with questionable content could appear here.

Thanks for reading ☺️

I hope you found something cool in that mix of things from the internet.

Expect to see some new article-style content arriving in your inbox soon. My main focus will still be this monthly round-up of cool things, but embracing some vulnerability and trying the occasional new thing seems like a good idea too.

Best wishes,
Tom 🐢

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