Last July, I wrote about discovering 2Do. The developer previewed a significant redesign of the app during the summer and announced that 2Do version 3 would launch alongside iOS 8, set for release on September 17.

Also in July, I reviewed time-tracking apps including Hours, which I said I might start using. Well, I did download and start using Hours right away because I needed a more accessible tracker for my many gigs and projects. I also downloaded 2Do 3 as soon as it was available.

I have been happily using these two apps over the past couple months. This is the first of two posts reviewing these beautiful apps for getting things done (GTD).

2Do

2Do: So I Don’t Forget

2Do has been most helpful as a place to put all the things I want to remind myself to do. I set up 10 categorical lists, mostly mirroring the names and colors of my calendars.

As I noted about the previous version, 2Do is incredibly full-featured. However, it is also intuitively designed. Creating or editing a task is quite simple, whether I only want a due date and alert or also need a location-based reminder or an action item.

I have not bought the Mac version of 2Do and am not convinced that I need it, as most of my doings are away from my Mac. Additionally, 2Do just released an update with a Today widget, so I have a more convenient view of my tasks in Notification Center. The primary reason I might want the Mac version would be quicker entry and organization when I’m at my desk.

Pros + Cons

2Do has satisfied most of my needs in a GTD app, including remembering things I need to do periodically like submitting timesheets. Next, I want to try using it as a “today” list for tasks I want to complete right away. Normally, I write these on scrap paper instead. 2Do has a Focus mode that makes this level of attention easier.

I have only had one gripe with 2Do so far, compared to Cultured Code’s Things that I used before. For repeating tasks, Things creates copies and if I did not complete a task before a hard deadline, I could delete the copy without deleting the master task.

2Do lacks this functionality, so I am forced to mark the task as complete even if I did not actually do it. Otherwise, the task never repeats and gets stuck in an “overdue” state.

Hours: Keeping Track

Next time, I’ll talk about my use of Hours and how it has eased my documentation of time spent on each project or for each client.