In this day and age, sometimes entering or writing down our tasks is not enough, especially for more complicated projects involving multiple items. I am always searching for a different solution to my to-do list woes, and have tried, unsuccessfully, different productivity and to-do applications that offer capabilities either not found in the Remember app or better suit my needs and the demands of the task at hand.

SlickTasks for BlackBerry 10 is one of many such programs available. It is one that utilizes the GTD workflow method of grouping tasks and projects and rearranging them in a comprehensive order to know which one requires completion first. Tasks can be shown in outline view that displays the whole project in a task tree with siblings and sub-tasks branching off from the main one. You may collapse or extend the to tree hide all or only certain tasks, filter by tag (in this case personal or business though a custom one can be created in settings), or group by frequency, priority or tag.

Unlike other to-do applications, SlickTasks goes a step further and organizes them by project so that tasks can be group or dragged and dropped together. This way you can monitor your progress and tick off items and sub-tasks as they are finished without panicking. Visually speaking, you get a much better sense of your progress, knowing what the next steps are, and how to manage your time.

It comes with a no-nonsense interface and easy controls to get things done. Tasks, siblings, and sub-tasks are arranged in a branch layout. Users can customize the color, height, divider and font type, backup and restore via the device or the developer's cloud service, or export as a PDF file.

What does set this apart from other applications is that they utilize their own cloud service to backup and sync tasks. This means that users can access, create, edit, and archive their tasks from any computer via the web. 

Tasks are integrated with the hub and this means that after establishing a due date for any given task, while it does not sync with the native calendar, it does create a notification under that heading. This is a decent workaround for due dates but keep in mind it must be running as an active frame. For reminders, a pop-up is displayed which you can either dismiss, mark complete, or ask to remind you later. 

The one thing I know most will be put off by is the hefty price tag of $9.99 for features readily available using a combination of other native applications. Regardless of cost, this is a powerful task management system. The interface is simple without being overwhelming, is easy to read especially if you choose to color code items, and presents no issues when navigating. It supports the the Z10, Q10, and Q5.

Good

  • Arranges tasks in a hierarchical or tree-like structure
  • Enlists color coding to distinguish tasks
  • Offers reminders and pop-ups in hub and the ability to set recurring tasks
  • Active Frame support displays snapshot of pending items when minimized
  • Manage and sync tasks via their cloud service and web portal 
  • Backup data to your SD card 

The Bad

  • No integration or syncing with local calendar 
  • Font size can be small at times
  • Unable to sync with other services besides theirs (i.e. Dropbox)
The Bottom Line

As someone who clutters up her calendar with reminders, I do see this application helping users become more disciplined in how they organize themselves so that nothing important slips through the cracks. If you don't mind the steep price tag or are just looking for something with more functionality than the native app, I would say give this a try. In addition, the developer will be releasing an update to include adding an entry into your BlackBerry calendar.  

More information/purchase SlickTasks for BlackBerry 10

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