YONDR ALTERNATIVE FOR AUSTRALIAN SCHOOLS
The Australian alternative to Yondr pouches
They pioneered the pouch. We added signal-blocking and a more flexible way to buy.
Signal-blocking option, shipping now
Compatible with existing setups, tested free
One person answers. It's me.
Almost every school that contacts us already believes in the pouch model. They are usually looking for a clearer answer to one of four things: a hotspot that walked through the policy, pricing they can see before a meeting, a product they can trial without a whole-school commitment, or a simpler way to buy and keep the equipment. Pricing is below, signal-blocking is stocked and shipping, and a pilot starts from ten pouches.
SCREENFREE VS YONDR
The comparison, in plain terms
Start with the three questions that decide most switching conversations: signal coverage, existing stations and price. The other differences are kept visible underneath.
SCREENFREE
Available now. Price below
Y0NDR
Confirm current options directly with Yondr.
Why it matters: This is the gap a hotspot walks through. Worth confirming in writing, whoever you buy from.
Signal-blocking option
SCREENFREE
Compatibility test free, with sample pack.
Y0NDR
Native infrastrucre
Why it matters: If yours are compatible, you change the pouch and keep the system.
Your existing unlocking stations
SCREENFREE
On this page. No meeting required
Y0NDR
Confirm current options directly with Yondr.
Why it matters: You can build out your solution immediatey instead of waiting on a discovery call.
Price
And the rest...
Yondr information is based on publicly available sources as at July 2026 and may vary by region or change over time; confirm current offerings, specifications and pricing directly with Yondr. Yondr is a registered trademark of Yondr, Inc. screenfree is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by Yondr, Inc.
What you're buying
A product. Priced per unit, yours to keep
A consultation-led phone-free program
Ownership decides what happens in year three, not just what the first invoice says.
Getting started
Sample pack (2 pouches), pilot from 10, or full rollout
Demo and program consultation
A small pilot tests the two things that actually decide a rollout, staff buy-in and student wear and tear.
Branding
Your crest, your colours.
Confirm current branding options directly with Yondr.
A pouch with the school crest on it reads as school uniform rather than a supplier's product.
Stock and turnaround
Held in Australia. Samples ship same or next business day.
Global company, US-headquartered
When a pouch fails in week three, the replacement is a domestic post satchel, not a freight timeline.
Who you deal with
The founder, directly
A global programme team
One person who knows your order, your stations and your term dates.
screenfree
DIFFERENCE
Yondr
WHY IT MATTERS
THE CONNECTION GAP
A locked phone is not a disconnected phone
The loophole schools discover after a standard pouch rollout: the phone is locked away, but it can still run a hotspot, still mirror a laptop or smartwatch, still hold a Bluetooth connection. The screen left the student's hands. The connection may not have.
Our signal-blocking pouches close that gap with a Faraday lining designed to block cellular, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth while correctly sealed.
Signal-blocking is our recommended option. A standard pouch is available at a lower price where connectivity isn't the concern. We'll tell you honestly which one you need, including when it's the cheaper one.
ALREADY USING YONDR
Testing compatibility costs you nothing
The question we get most often from schools already running pouches is whether switching means replacing the hardware bolted to the wall. Usually it does not.
STEP 01
Request a sample pack
Two pouches and a portable magnet, free. One standard, one signal-blocking, so you can compare them side by side rather than take our word for the difference.
STEP 02
Test them on your own stations
Every Yondr setup we have tested so far has worked with screenfree pouches. Setups vary, so we confirm it on yours before you change anything or spend anything.
STEP 03
Pilot side by side.
A small batch alongside your existing fleet, same stations, same corridors, same students. If compatibility is confirmed, your infrastructure and routine stay as they are. Only the pouches change.
BUSINESS AS USUAL
The routine your staff already run doesn't change
This matters more than any product feature, because the reason phone policies fail is rarely the pouch. It is asking eighty staff to hold a new line consistently. If you already run pouches, nothing your staff do in the morning changes.
01
Students keep the phone
No collection trays, no central storage.
02
The pouch stays locked
Access stays staff-controlled through the day.
03
Existing stations stay
Once compatibility is confirmed, your infrastructure remains.
04
Staff access stays immediate
A portable magnet opens any pouch when policy requires it.
The difference isn't the routine. It's what you paid, what you own, and the signal-blocking option.
FULL TRANSPARENCY
The prices.
One-time purchase. You own everything the day it arrives. Delivery is a flat $15 under $1,000 and free at $1,000 and over.
$20
Signal-blocking pouch
$16
Standard lockable pouch
$80
Portable unlocking magnet
$115
Wall-mounted unlocking station
Starting Point: We sugguest roughly one unlocking point per 15 to 25 students to avoid any unlocking bottlenecks. Too many? You're welcome to return them. Nobody every has.
We size the final mix to your entry points and dismissal flow, and we will recommend fewer magnets than you asked for if fewer is what you need.
STUDENTS CAN MAKE IT THEIRS
The pouch students don't want to lose
Black is a strong canvas. Paint markers, gel pens, stickers and gems all show up against it, which is why the pouches students keep hold of tend to be the ones covered in their own handwriting.
That matters more than it sounds. A phone policy fails when students feel something has been done to them. A Year 8 who has spent a lunchtime putting her name on a pouch in silver paint pen is not the same Year 8 who lost it by Thursday.
The school still keeps one consistent product. Same pouch, same colour, same routine. What happens on the outside of it is up to the student.
Bedazzle Your Pouch
School decorating competitions coming soon...
Optional ID-card holder
FAQS
Frequently asked questions
Will screenfree pouches work with our existing Yondr stations?
Yes, and they have worked on every Yondr setup we've tested so far. Setups do vary between schools, so we don't ask you to take our word for it. We send you a sample pack to test on your own stations before you commit to anything.
Is there a subscription or annual fee?
No. You buy the pouches, you own them, and that's the end of the transaction. There's no renewal date and no annual sign-off on whether the program continues. Replacements are available individually if you want them, which is a choice rather than a condition.
What's the difference between the standard and signal-blocking pouch?
Both lock the phone away. Only one of them takes it offline.
A lock-only pouch, ours or anyone else's, puts the screen out of reach and leaves the connection live. The phone can still run a hotspot, still feed a laptop or a smartwatch, still hold a Bluetooth link. That is the part your IT team can see on the network while the school believes it has gone phone-free.
Can we trial before committing?
Yes - most schools do. A sample pack is two pouchesand a magnet: try the routine, test your stations, weigh it up. Pilots start from 10 pouches.
Is this a signal jammer?
No. It's a passive Faraday enclosure. It transmits nothing and interferes with nothing; it shields the phone while correctly sealed, and the phone reconnects normally once removed. Signal jammers actively interfere with communications and are prohibited in Australia.
Test it before you commit
Tell me about your setup and I will send a sample pack. If you already run pouches, I will confirm whether ours work with your existing stations first, so you are not spending anything to find out.