Over the past five years, Google has been teasing users with its Google Tasks app, leaving many frustrated with its lack of development and integration. However, in recent months, Google has made significant improvements and fixes to the app, making it more accessible and enjoyable to use. While there are still some missing features and limitations, Google Tasks has unique advantages that make it worth considering.
The most significant change Google made was consolidating all reminders into Google Tasks. This means that when you set a reminder using Google Assistant, add a task through your Nest Hub Max, or receive a task assignment in a Google Doc, it all goes into Google Tasks. This streamlined approach to task management eliminates the confusion of having multiple reminder-setting products and ensures that all your tasks are in one place. It’s a simple change that should have been implemented from the start, but it’s a welcome improvement nonetheless.
Although Google Tasks is not as robust as other project management tools like Todoist or Apple’s Reminders app, it excels in terms of ubiquity. If you use Google products regularly, Google Tasks is almost impossible to avoid. It appears in the sidebar of Gmail, Google Docs, and other Google products, tasks integrate seamlessly with Google Calendar, the mobile app is user-friendly, and you can even use Google Assistant to check your tasks for the day. This integration ensures that you don’t miss any tasks and makes it incredibly easy to add new ones.
One notable feature of Google Tasks is its compatibility with Google Keep, Google’s note-taking app. While Keep doesn’t directly integrate with Tasks, the ability to set reminders within notes provides some convenience. However, Keep remains a separate app, and it’s unclear whether Google plans to integrate it fully with Tasks.
Despite its improvements, Google Tasks still falls short in some areas, particularly when it comes to managing multiple Google accounts. If you have more than one Google account, there is no way to see all your tasks in one place, making it challenging to stay organized. Google Tasks should provide a unified view, similar to the Gmail app’s “All inboxes” feature, to make managing multiple accounts more manageable. Additionally, the ability to subscribe to Tasks, similar to subscribing to events in Google Calendar, would be a valuable addition.
While there’s a possibility that Google may neglect Tasks again in the future, leaving lingering issues unresolved for years, the current version of the app is worth using. It may not cater to power-users or offer advanced features, but it serves its purpose as a reliable place to store tasks without the fear of losing them. In fact, having multiple reminder tools can be more confusing than having none at all, making Google’s decision to consolidate all tasks into one app a step in the right direction.
In conclusion, Google Tasks has undergone much-needed improvements and fixes, transforming it into a more usable and enjoyable task management tool. While it may not rival other project management apps in terms of features, its ubiquity, integration with other Google products, and ease of use make it a convenient choice for anyone heavily invested in Google’s ecosystem. With a unified approach to task management and the elimination of duplicate reminder-setting products, Google Tasks has finally become a worthy app to consider for your productivity needs.
