The original Fantastical was only a menu bar app. With Fantastical 2, we've reinvented Fantastical and made it a full Mac application, without losing the benefits and convenience of the menu bar window.
Fantastical for Mac is a compact tool to help you manage your Calendar and Reminders, all from one convenient interface with just a few clicks. Once you've linked all of your accounts to this app, you can instantly access appointments, make new entries, and prioritize tasks right from the app's drop-down main screen.
Pros Easy access: The app sits in the top Menu Bar, and when you click on it, the interface appears like a drop-down menu, with a calendar on top and lists of Reminders and upcoming appointments below. Clicking on a day on the calendar shows you any events scheduled for that day, and you can quickly add items directly by double-clicking on the date. You can also configure a hotkey to bring up the interface, if that's more convenient for you. Consolidation: When you set up this app, it will locate and ask you to log in to all of your calendars to consolidate the information they contain. That means that when you pull up this app, you can see all of your upcoming tasks, meetings, and more in one place, so it's easier to keep track of everything. Cons Setup time: Since you do have to give permission for the app to access all of your calendars and reminder accounts, the setup for this program can be a little time-consuming.
You also need to make sure you check the box to save the log-ins for each account as you go so that you don't have to log in to each again the next time you open the program. Bottom Line Fantastical is a good tool to help you stay on top of everything you have to do in a day. It's convenient to access, and you can quickly add or edit items straight from the app. You can try it for free for 14 days, and it costs $14.99 to buy. Editors' note: This is a review of the trial version of Fantastical for Mac 1.3.17.
Creating an event with Fantastical is quick, easy, and fun: open Fantastical by clicking the menu bar icon or pressing a customizable keyboard shortcut, type in your event details and press return-and you're back to what you were doing with a shiny new event in your calendar. Fantastical's natural language engine is expressive and intelligent so you can write in your own style. Fantastical will even recognize the location of your event and let you invite people from your Address Book to the event.
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Natural language input Today it’s common to see apps incorporate natural language input, but Fantastical was one of the first apps to do so. Natural language input makes it possible to type how you speak. The app will automatically interpret what you mean, and create a corresponding calendar item or reminder. Mini window Fantastical had humble beginnings — it originally started as a menu bar utility supplement for the Calendar app. With, it graduated into a full-fledged release. But the app didn’t forget where it came from; thus, it still ships with a handy mini window feature that operates from the menu bar. The mini window allows users to quickly access calendars and reminders without opening the full app.
Video walkthrough for more Friday 5 Keyboard shortcut Fantastical 2 features a built-in keyboard shortcut (⌃+⌥+Space) for quickly accessing the mini window from anywhere and at any time. Similar to the shortcuts featured in popular to-do apps like 2Do and Things, it makes it super-easy to create and manage events and reminders using only your keyboard.
Reminders integration Wouldn’t it be nice if you could have reminder functionality integrated with your calendar app? Instead of needing to swap between two apps, you can easily create, view, and edit reminders right from Fantastical 2’s interface. Interface With a clean design, and highly-customizable interface, Fantastical 2 is one of the better looking apps for the Mac.
But it’s not just about being easy on the eyes, it’s about functionality, reduced friction, and ease of use. The interface is designed in a way that makes it easy to hone in on specific calendar appointments, seamlessly view reminders, and scroll through individual specific appointments as they’re highlighted on the particular day that they’re set to occur. Fantastical 2 comes bundled with many useful features, yet does so in a way that doesn’t feel overly busy or needlessly cluttered. Conclusion There is a of Fantastical 2 on the developer’s website for those wishing to take it for a test drive. If you like what you see, you can find the full version of the app available on the.
There are also standalone and versions available as well. What are your thoughts on Fantastical 2?
Would you consider making it your go-to Calendar app on the Mac? Sound off in the comments section with your thoughts and opinions. Previously on Friday 5 On last week’s edition of Friday 5, my favorite writing app for iOS and Mac. Catch up and watch our hands-on video on Ulysses below.