Linden Mueller's Library tagged iphone →  View Popular

When you create a new list, you can choose a template to use as a starting point; if you do, your list is automatically filled with the Items from that template. For example, whenever my family goes to Costco, we buy eggs, tortillas, bread, and several other staples; I created a Costco template that I use when making our shopping list. You can add items to, or remove them from, a template-started list as needed.

The Items feature comes into play when you add items to a list. Instead of a text field, Checklists displays this Items screen; tap an existing item to add it to the current list. If you want to add a task/item not shown, you tap on the plus (+) button to create a new Item; this item is added to the current list, but is also added to Items for future use. The Items feature is useful for tasks/items you end up using frequently, since you have to type them only once; in the future, you just choose them from the Items screen. On the other hand, the Items feature is a bit of a hassle for one-time or infrequent tasks, as it requires an extra step and then leaves those tasks in your Items list. (You can delete them if they bug you.)

Another unique feature is that Checklists lets you add sublists—called Categories—within lists; each main list can have an unlimited number of hierarchically-nested categories. I also like that each list in the main screen shows, via a pie-chart icon, what proportion of the list’s tasks have been completed.

Finally, checklists offers a few useful interface-customization options. For example, you can choose separate text and background colors for lists, templates, and items. I eventually gave each a different color scheme so it was clear when I was looking at a list and when I was looking at a template. Also, by default, tasks, Templates, and Items are sorted by name and grouped by letter, but you can turn off this display option if you prefer to order lists and tasks manually. Unfortunately, these options aren’t located within the Checklists app itself. They’re instead found in the iPhone’s Settings app—a horrible interface decision which means that each time you want to tweak your settings you have to quit Checklists, launch Settings, make the change, quit Settings, and then launch Checklists. (Imagine repeating this process many times as you experiment with various options.)

Checklists doesn’t support schedules or task notes, nor can you e-mail tasks or lists or move tasks between lists.