Simple,Cheap iPhone GTD App:eToDo Review
Introduction
eToDo have in recent weeks zoom to the top of the productivity category on app store. So what makes etodo so appealing?
eTodo as a late comer to this task management and to do list space have to really distinguish itself from the competition.
What it offers is to carry out task management GTD way in the simpliest way. but that doesn’t mean that it is shitty, rather I see that it appeals to users who aren’t thY big on gtd and just want a simple way of managing tasks
The Presentation
eTodo have the nicest to do list interface I have ever seen, but you may disagree with me. Take a look at the screenshots below and you will see that it’s high on the colors and funky icons.
eToDo Front End
let’s be frank here. I am an engineer by training an while I like to prefer functionality for my todo list over beauty, it will turn me off if it’s really ugly. thankfully I don’t see many of those at the app store. at the configuration you can change the background wallpaper as well.
The Front end
eTodo provides task bins much in the Gtd way. If you guys are familiar with my post on Appigo Todo you will know that Appigo provides lists which houses projects and tasks. these task bins are like this list, only thing is it’s fixed based on what is required by Gtd.
- Inbox- basically your starting point. any thoughts that is vague will go here. you should have one daily or weekly mind sweep to add to your inbox.
- All- all your tasks whether it is anywhere will be here.
- Actions- all your actionable tasks (which to me is almost everything). the key distinction here is between Actions and Someday. This is where your tasks in your Inbox that are actionable will be shifted to.
- Someday- tasks that do not have a definite start date. pending tasks. If your Inbox tasks are nit gonna be carried out anytime soon and might be a project or task next time, shift it here.
- Next- the tasks that should be carried out next. The next task from your actions bin that u will carry out next.
- Completed- your completed task will be housed here. More for review purpose.
Task Creation
Touching the cross will bring you to the task creation screen.
Main Task Creation
This screen to me is freaking colorful and I think it’s a bad thing as the user have a hard time perceiving if this is a textfield.
You can enter the standard stuff:
Due Date – A joy to enter. The developer took note to include frequently used reference dates such as Today, Tomorrow and Next Week. I feel people should stop using the date roller tool. Its really sickening to roll for far reaching dates!
Due Date
Repeat
Repeat - Great here. The standard outlook level recurring tasks options Days, Weeks and Months. The developer also includes standard reference recurring options as well: Day, Week, 2 Weeks, Month, 3 Month and Year.
Tags – You can tag each task with multiple tag contexts so you can better filter your tasks during review or do phases.
Multiple Tag/Context Selections
Priority – None,Low,Medium,High,Urgent. Personally i think priorities don’t work haha.
Images – You can append images that will be shown describing what task this is. The range of images is limited, they look good and imo it clutters the screen.
Task Filtering for Review and Do
How you use eToDo to carry out your task in an efficient manner differs from person to person. If i were to use this, I would reference the All List quite alot.
No of Tasks are shown next to the Tags
One thing that you would really appreciate about eToDo is really the number next to the titles that tells you the number of tasks in there. I mean, If there isn’t any tasks in there I wouldn’t want to bother reviewing it and doing it right?
You select tasks that are Overdue and are Errands
Touching the Filter Icon allows you to filter not just by Starred,Overdue,Today,Tomorrow,Next 7 Days and Future Tasks but also by the Tags. The filtering is eToDos strong point and it is a very important aspect of Getting Things Done as
- You need to Tag your tasks with the right context during Organize
- You need to filter and do tasks when you are at the right Context/Environment
- You need to filter well to make Reviewing of your Actions easy
The Filter is shown Here for Concise reviewing
This gets an A+ for me as this is where Appigo ToDo lacks. The number of tasks in each category is very useful!
Search
eToDo has a search as well. Not Sure when i will need this really!
Mailing Actions List
I love this option! What you can do is that you can use Task Filtering to Filter
-Specific Tasks meant for Certain Colleagues
-List of Tasks You are Waiting for
-List of Tasks Tag with a certain category for others to review
and then send it out. Another A feature.
Touch Mail Button to bring up this functionality
You can filter then email this list of tasks to your colleagues
Conclusion
Overall, at USD 0.99 cents this application is a winner. It still won’t pull me away from Appigo ToDo as
- It does not have Sub-Projects
- No Sync backup to online server
But for folks that is looking for a flexible, well thought out to-do list 0.99 cents is a small price to pay.
Best iPhone apps at AppStoreHQ
About the Author
Kyith Kyith is a blogger with interest in all things on Wealth Mastery, Technology, Business and Productivity.
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