Swipes is a to do list manager for Android, but one with a difference. It works around the idea of swiping tasks away, just as you would email in Inbox or Gmail and like you would with notifications. There’s more to it than that however, as the app easily shows you tasks for Today, those you’ve completed and Scheduled tasks for later in the day or a defined date in the future. You can use tags to organize tasks by work and home or by specific project name and you can always search for tasks whenever you’d like to. It’s an app designed with Material Design in mind and there’s a free web app as well as syncing with Evernote available, too. Let’s take a closer look, shall we?
To get started with Swipes, you’ll need to download the app from the Play Store. In a refreshing move, you can opt to try out the app with practice tasks before you sign up for an account.
These few tasks give you a neat overview of how you interact with the app and its three columns that almost become like a sort of desk or noticeboard on your device.
Signing up for an account is nice and easy as well, and you can even log in with Facebook, but I would have preferred Google+ sign in to be here as well.
Creating a task of your own is nice and simple, just hit the plus icon and start typing. Unlike other to do list apps, you can add notes, actions and more without having to pay for anything, and these all come together nicely.
I’m not going to email Sergey towards the end of the week, so I’ll email him Monday. To do this I can “snooze” the task and choose from a number of quick choices.
You can choose a specific time by long-pressing on an option, but it’s a little fiddly if I’m honest, and not exactly clear at first, or explained by the app.
There are also tweaks in the settings of the app allowing you to change the quick schedule options.
There are tags here as well, with the ability to create as many tags as you like. I often create one for “Work” and for “Life” to split out AH related tasks and things I need to get done around the house before my girlfriend moans at me.
You can then assign these tags to a certain task and sort all your tasks into different “Workspaces”.
For those hooked on Evernote, they’ll be happy to know that Swipes integrates well with Evernote. It’s very easy to set up and will soon fit into your daily Evernote usage.
I’ve spent a lot of time with the different to do list apps, mostly Wunderlist and Todoist, both of which have their good and bad points. For instance, Wunderlist is basically a big list with different lists within it, and it’s not good for much else. Todoist is often my favorite and I use it most, but the more advanced features are piled away in the premium subscription and some are a little too complicated to use. In Swipes, I feel the balance is just right, there are advanced features like tags and different lists, but everything is very obvious. There’s no remembering why a task was put where it was or anything like that, they’re just all in front of you with the option to sort them as you go. The interface on Android looks great as well, the Dark theme is particularly fetching, but the Web App feels like an iOS app and isn’t consistent, there’s no Chrome app either, however there is a Chrome extension coming in the next few months. All-in-all, this is a to do app that makes me want to stay more organized, I’m famous here at AH for hating calendars and putting a time on things, but the way Swipes does it is obvious and almost calming.
Ratings
- Speed (4/5) – Swipes is a speedy app and works well without any hassle.
- Features (4/5) – There’s definitely room for improvement here, but the obvious and easy to manage approach to tasks – be them today or next month – is refreshing and the use of tags is great too.
- Theme (5/5) – The use of Material Design here is lovely, and the Dark theme is an excellent option as well. It’s fluid, easy to use and unlike other to do apps it’s far from depressing and rigid.
- Overall (4/5) – For a new to do app, Swipes has a lot going for it, and if you’re into the way Inbox handles email, then you’re going to love this.
Pros
- Makes good use of the latest Android design guidelines and works well on tablets.
- Syncs with Evernote for those into keeping every note or idea they ever had together with things that need to get done.
- Tags keep your tasks organized and gives you a quick and easy way to sort them by project, personal life or whatever.
- “Snooze” ability makes it super-easy to schedule tasks for later in the day or tomorrow, making it easier to focus on what needs to be done today.
Cons
- Web app doesn’t feel as familiar as this Android version, but a redesign is underway.
- Hard to set a specific time from the “Snooze” menu.
Overall, Swipes is a nice, fresh new take on the to do list app. There are plenty of them out there, and some people – like myself – rely on one daily list to keep on top of things. Apps like Wunderlist simply give you room to make lists, but Swipes makes it easy to organize all your tasks and search by date and more, giving you a way to focus on what needs to be done today, letting you leave the worries behind for things you can’t do right now. The Android app looks great and syncing with Evernote is sure to please many. There’s room to grow, definitely, but this is an excellent start for the new app.