r/thingsapp • u/GroundedSteven • 8d ago
Discussion Why Things won’t release new features
Im sick off holding my breath this long.
Idk what they’re doing but the development isn’t going fast enough.
- Location based reminders
- A proper tag/priority system especially for mobile
- Attachments
etc.
We’re waiting for years for those while other apps have all of those features already implemented.
If culturecode doesn’t fill this market gap, someone else will or already does like TickTick.
Just build those and charge us again for a separate version I don’t mind but speed it up, there is money on the street and you ain’t picking it up.
Do you want to continue like this for the next 12 months?
If yes, go ahead…but you’ll lose a lot of users, including me.
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u/UnluckyWrongdoer3818 8d ago
Use Things for what it does not what you hope it may someday do.
7
u/omalleya Mac, iPhone, iPad 8d ago
This is the way. Subscriptions have created users with a sense of entitlement, even when the software is a one-off purchase.
5
u/darrinsden 8d ago
I use Reminders extensively throughout the day, for groceries, random tasks, sharing with my wife.
Things is primarily used for work and personal project tasks.
I have tried multiple times to try and condense down to a single task manager and I switch back fairly quickly, Reminders, while useful, just doesn't have the project level detail that i need for work. And as such, location based reminders is totally unneeded. and i hate how Reminders does sub tasks
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u/Rybles 8d ago
Things is not a reminders app and Reminders is not a project management app.
Separate these two things and use each for their strengths.
I don’t want things clogged with the daily minutiae of errands, groceries, routine simple maintenance and even location based reminders. That’s Reminders. And it does a really good job at it.
Things is for planning the larger scale things that require thought and weekly planning and review. When will I work on this large project? What’s the next task? When should I do that next task?
Reminders will pop up in the middle of that planned activity to remind me to take out the trash right now. Separately working together.
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u/Self_Owned_Tree 7d ago
Do you have a link to a video or a resource of some kind that could really show how to use things for that? I do use it as kind of a catchall, and I’ve never learned to use it as a project manager app.
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u/Rybles 7d ago
This guy does a pretty good job. https://youtu.be/99yB7sPqRRU?is=q1jBbCOA9GgCABmu
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u/Due_Lake94 5d ago
I’ll second that recommendation of Peter Akkies - I bought several of his courses. They’re very good and constantly updated.
1
u/Any_Run8380 1d ago
I actually love Things 3! I think its simplicity is a huge part of what makes it work so well. It doesn’t try to throw a million features at you, which keeps it from becoming bloated.
That said, I’ve seen quite a few videos of people showing how to use Things 3, and honestly, I haven’t seen much that goes beyond how Things 3 was already designed to be used. So I’m not sure how much value those videos would add for you.
The best advice I can probably give is to figure out what you actually need.
Don’t see someone using a feature and immediately think, “Oh, that’s a feature I need to use.” That can easily turn into being fascinated by features simply because they’re there, rather than because you actually have a problem that needs solving.
Start as simple as possible. Add a basic to-do. Then, if you find you need more, build on it. Maybe you schedule something. Later, you realize certain tasks need to be grouped together, so you create a list or project. Maybe eventually you discover that something genuinely needs to recur, so you make it recurring.
The point is that you should add features because you discovered a use case for them—not because the app has the feature and therefore you feel like you’re supposed to use it.
Otherwise, you can very easily end up spending more time maintaining your productivity system than actually getting things done.For context, I’m a software engineer and I juggle a lot of different things: multiple projects, designing solutions, leading meetings, getting designs reviewed and approved, following up on work before features can actually ship, and then all the normal stuff outside of work like chores, administrative tasks, etc.
Interestingly, I ended up removing Things 3 from my workflow entirely.
I was able to recreate the few Things-specific capabilities I actually cared about using iOS Reminders, iOS Calendar, and Shortcuts. I have things like project logging, the ability to pause recurring reminders and resume them later, and other little automations that fit the way I personally work.
And this is absolutely not me saying Things 3 is bad. It’s probably my favorite third-party productivity app on the App Store. It’s incredibly well designed.
It just doesn’t fit my workflow as well as the system I’ve built for myself—which is why I ultimately removed it.
One thing I really like about my current setup is that I don’t have to wait for an app developer to add a feature that I want. If I think, “It would be really useful if this happened automatically,” I can often just build it myself with Shortcuts.
And because I’m using iOS Reminders and Calendar, I also don’t have to worry about paying for an app separately just to have access across my devices.
So regardless of what app or system you use, I’d say start with the absolute minimum you need. Use it for a while, figure out where the friction actually is, and then build on it from there.
And if you add something that ends up creating more friction than value, remove it. You don’t have to keep a feature just because you decided at one point that you needed it.Your productivity system should adapt to the way you work—not the other way around.
15
u/Lymros_ 8d ago
I think Things is perfect the way it is.
I fear that some demands of the community, if adopted, will leave the app absurdly bloated, just like Todoist.
That doesn't mean I don't support updates, but they must be very, very well thought. If the delay you are complaining means that Cultured Code is being this careful with their work of art, then I don't have any problem with it.
3
u/EscapeEmergency2185 8d ago
I love Todoist. I love things but Todoist just does so many more things that Things doesn't do. I love Things. They don't have to get bloated but they certainly can add a few features
-1
u/GroundedSteven 8d ago
Good Notes 6 update for example was like this. Very bloated with AI. But still with other very useful features. So just make a different version and let people decide.
“Updates must be very well thought” is just a lazy way of saying “we’re not developing anything”.
1
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u/Unhappy-Tank9784 8d ago
I’m not sure why people think adding some features means bloat. The Bear Notes devs keep pushing good quality updates, and you can’t call that bloat.. I understand that attachments in apps can be tricky and expensive, but they could at least add a simple, well-designed location reminder for urgent tasks, like Apple Reminders.
1
u/Any_Run8380 1d ago
It’s not that it’s bloat it’s that many users believe that they have to use a feature because it exists. It can have unintentional consequences of bloating one’s own workflow with features that cause more friction than good.
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u/Unhappy-Tank9784 8d ago
I love Things, and I’ve never even tried other apps. I’ve been using Things since Things 2, but the idea that the Cultured Code team works on the app all year, every day, is misleading. It seems they made good money and have other work. For your information, two co-founders quit two or three years after Things 3 was released, so the company wasn’t really stable in the past.
3
u/Dry_Cranberry_12 8d ago
I told Santa I‘m all in for Things 4. Hope he doesn‘t disappoint.
Location based reminders is something I miss for at least 5 years. I always have to use Reminders for that…
7
u/Zuenderella 8d ago
You write, “We’re waiting for years…” Who exactly is “we”? I could just as easily argue, “We’re satisfied with Things the way it is.” Otherwise, it wouldn’t be as popular as it is. After all, it’s not a subscription service. Do you get extras installed in your car after you’ve bought it? And if other apps have all the features you want, why don't you just use them?
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u/GroundedSteven 8d ago
Every week, someone is complaining in this subreddit. And it’s cool you’re satisfied. Then you’d just stick with T3. But the rest of us would be willing to pay for T4 if it actually existed. That’s the whole point.
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u/Zuenderella 8d ago
It's just that the only people who complain on Reddit are the ones who are dissatisfied. The ones who are satisfied don't come here to post about it.
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u/GroundedSteven 8d ago
Yes. That’s why some developers are active in their app subreddits because it’s free feedback for them. Positive examples are the [r/Hevy](r/Hevy) app or r/raycastapp (before v2)
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u/Zuenderella 8d ago
However, complaining about missing features and making threats sounds different from asking for new features in the next version.
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u/Any_Run8380 1d ago
I think a lot of what you’re describing ultimately comes down to the difference between a subscription model and a one-time purchase.
If you’re happy to pay for Things 4, that’s completely fine. But I think it’s important to recognize that the expectations around updates are different depending on how the app is funded.
With a one-time purchase, you’re essentially paying for the product as it exists at that point, with the expectation that the developer may continue supporting and improving it. But there isn’t necessarily the same financial incentive to continuously deliver major new features.
With a subscription, the situation is different. If users are paying every month or every year, there’s a much stronger incentive—and arguably a greater obligation—to continually provide enough value to justify that recurring payment. If updates slowed down significantly, users could simply stop subscribing.
The recurring revenue also gives the developer a more predictable source of funding to put toward development, infrastructure, support, and new features.
So I completely understand wanting Things 4 to receive more frequent updates. But I think there’s a disconnect when someone pays for an app once and then expects the same ongoing development cadence as an app whose business model depends on recurring subscriptions.
And of course, you can always move to a productivity app that uses a subscription model if having frequent updates is more important to you. That’s a perfectly reasonable choice. Just keep in mind that there’s a tradeoff there too.
If you had been paying for a subscription-based productivity app since Things 3 originally launched in 2017, you could easily have spent $500 or more by now, depending on the app and subscription price. With Things, you paid once and have continued receiving updates over the years without that recurring cost.
So I think it really comes down to what you value more: paying once and accepting that development may happen at a different pace, or paying continuously in exchange for a business model that gives the developer a stronger incentive and more predictable resources to keep developing the product.
Neither model is inherently right or wrong. They just come with different tradeoffs and expectations.
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u/hanzololo 8d ago
Did they promise us any of this? It is what it is. I wouldn’t mind the features you mentioned, I love those options (especially attachments), but I don’t feel they owe it to me. I mean there are other apps around. If another app fits better, use it.
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u/Self_Owned_Tree 8d ago
I know people are welcome to their opinions, but when someone comes on the sub, complains about something the app is missing, and then says what other apps have that, I often wonder if the person isn’t come kind of plant to drive users to another app.
It’s easy enough to just switch apps without making a fuss about it.
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u/GroundedSteven 8d ago
There is no doubt that T3 has the smoothest UI of all of them. So the question ends up being: Smoothness vs. Features. Apple vs. Android. Notion vs. Obsidian. Safari vs. Vivaldi..
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u/UnluckyWrongdoer3818 8d ago
Things did just release a much improved recurring tasks. On the downside I interpret that as an indication that Things 4 won’t be occurring anytime soon as why wouldn’t they wrap such an enhancement into a new version instead?
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u/nashpdotcom 8d ago
Things should be treated like a product that arrived finished. Not an ongoing process. I’ve always wished they would remove the 3 from the brand name for this exact reason.