Google makes nice apps, however these aren’t it when you ask me

Google is a software program firm and is aware of tips on how to make nice apps. I imply, I exploit apps like Gmail, Maps, YouTube, and Drive regularly. Then there are its AI-focused apps like NotebookLM, which is by far probably the most underrated app in Google’s arsenal.

Nevertheless, there are just a few apps I believe are means underdeveloped and wish some critical work. They’re just too fundamental for me, or lack most of the options you get with the competitors. I do know Google is all about simplicity at instances, nevertheless it’s taking issues too far with a few of its apps.

I need to talk about 4 of them and clarify why I believe they desperately want an improve. Let’s dive in.

So far as note-taking apps go, Google Hold is as fundamental as they get. Even basic issues like textual content formatting are very fundamental, with Hold solely providing just a few choices. Whereas the app itself launched over a decade in the past, these fundamental formatting options have been solely broadly rolled out to the Android app in 2023, with the desktop model catching up two months in the past.

You will have two heading choices on supply, in addition to the power to daring, italicize, and underline textual content. That’s it. You’ll be able to’t change colours, regulate the font measurement exterior of the out there headings, or create a bulleted record.

When you can add pictures to a word, you may’t place them in a selected space, as they robotically present up on prime. You’ll be able to create labels to try to set up your notes, however you may’t create notebooks like with most of Google Hold’s rivals.

I get that Google is making an attempt to maintain this as a easy note-taking app, since lots of people are into that. Not everybody needs an app that’s as feature-packed as Evernote or Notion. Nevertheless, there’s a restrict, and I believe including issues like improved formatting choices and a greater system for organizing notes would nonetheless retain that straightforward nature Google goes for and considerably enhance the app’s total usability. I used to be a Hold consumer for years however in the end determined to maneuver to a rival app for these very causes.

I attempted this for some time and actually wished to like it, particularly because it’s well-integrated with Gemini, however I simply can’t stand it. In the event you assume Hold is fundamental, check out Duties. It’s as barebones because it will get.

I’ve been utilizing Todoist for years, and it nonetheless seems like a quite simple app to make use of. Nevertheless, it’s filled with options that enhance the general expertise and don’t get in my means if I don’t need to use them.

I really like that I can write out “Do laundry each Wednesday at 6 PM” and the app will create a recurring activity immediately. Because it helps pure language enter, I don’t need to manually choose a date or time; I simply sort it out. That’s easy and environment friendly.

I additionally love that I can provide a precedence degree to every activity, use filters and labels for improved group, create sub-projects, and see what’s on my to-do record simply right now for improved focus, amongst many different options.

With Google Duties, you get none of that. The one options I can spotlight are the power to create lists and add a star to a activity so you will discover it quicker. All very fundamental stuff, actually. With the amount of cash, data, and manpower Google has, it ought to have the ability to make a correct to-do record app as a substitute of giving us this barebones providing, which I don’t assume many individuals use.

That is by far probably the most developed app on this record. It’s a great one total, I’ll give it that, nevertheless it nonetheless wants work because it’s dealing with robust competitors from Spotify and the likes.

I need to decrease the variety of apps I exploit, so I’d ideally like YouTube Music to be my important app for podcasts, however that’s not going to occur anytime quickly. The podcast function on YouTube Music seems like an afterthought as a substitute of being well-integrated into the general expertise. It’s very arduous to seek out podcasts to hearken to, as its discovery function isn’t nice in comparison with rival apps. If what you need to hearken to, you may seek for it, and that’s that. However if you wish to discover new podcasts in particular genres or see what different persons are into, then YouTube Music isn’t that nice.

Then there are the restrictions of the free plan. The music stops enjoying as quickly as I flip off the display screen, which isn’t an enormous deal after I’m at dwelling, as I have a tendency to look at movies and take a look at lyrics whereas listening to my favourite jams. However after I’m in my automotive, turning off the show is a should as I need to protect battery life. I can’t do this with YouTube Music, however I believe I ought to have the ability to, particularly since Google will get loads of money from the 2 adverts I’ve to pay attention to each fourth or fifth tune.

Spotify’s free plan, as an example, permits for background playback when the display screen is off, and what’s much more fascinating is that the variety of adverts I’ve to hearken to is considerably decrease in comparison with YouTube Music. Positive, Spotify has different limitations YouTube Music doesn’t, however I can reside with these whereas listening to music in my automotive.

I lately broke my telephone and needed to swap to an outdated OnePlus in the intervening time. I turned it on and located a Google Wallpaper app put in that I forgot existed. A wallpaper app from the maker of the Pixel and all these fancy apps I exploit always sounds thrilling, however that pleasure went away a couple of minutes after opening it.

The app is tremendous fundamental and has a really small choice of wallpapers, particularly in comparison with a rival app like Zedge. The wallpapers are separated into solely ten classes, which appears extremely low contemplating what number of classes related apps supply.

Not solely is the choice restricted, the wallpapers themselves aren’t actually that good. Most are very generic for my part, though I did handle to seek out just a few good ones. What I discover fascinating is that Google hasn’t even bothered connecting the app with Gemini, which might permit customers to create customized wallpapers primarily based on prompts. Google has a aggressive benefit right here that it’s merely not using. The app itself is simply so fundamental that I don’t know why Google made it within the first place.

These are the 4 apps Google must work on, however let me know within the feedback if there are any others you assume are sub-par.

A few of these convey again recollections of apps like Google Podcasts, which have been so fundamental for causes unknown to me that Google determined to kill them