Calendars: Schedule Planner

What it does

Calendars by Readdle is a productivity application designed to be a central hub for time management. It combines a powerful calendar with an integrated task manager, allowing users to sync multiple calendar accounts (like Google, iCloud, and Outlook) into a single, unified view. The app aims to help users organize their schedule, create healthy routines, and manage their to-do lists efficiently.

Where it shines

The app makes a strong first impression with a transparent and trustworthy onboarding flow. The "How your free trial works" screen (00:28) is a standout moment, using a visual timeline to clearly explain the trial period and when the user will be charged. This builds confidence right before the subscription ask. In the main app, the flexibility of the calendar views is a major strength. Switching seamlessly between month, week (03:00), and day views allows for both high-level planning and detailed daily scheduling. The ability to simply drag and drop events to reschedule them (03:50) is an intuitive and fluid interaction.

UX highlights

Natural Language Input: The app supports creating events with simple phrases like "Meeting with the Director tomorrow," which it parses into a scheduled event, speeding up input.
Integrated Task Management: A dedicated 'Tasks' section (04:18) lets users manage a to-do list alongside their calendar, creating a holistic planning tool.
Color-Coded Calendars: Users can assign different colors to events and calendars, enabling quick visual differentiation between personal, work, and other categories.
Flexible Recurring Events: When editing a recurring event (01:09), the app gives users the option to change only one instance, or all future events, providing necessary control.
Multiple Views: The app offers month, week, day, and list views, catering to different planning preferences and needs.
Weather Integration: The calendar displays weather forecasts for upcoming days (00:59), adding useful context for planning activities.

Monetization & growth

The app's primary monetization strategy is a subscription, introduced during onboarding via a soft paywall. The offer is a 7-day free trial that converts to a yearly plan. The paywall itself (00:28) focuses heavily on transparency and value, listing the premium features unlocked and providing the visual trial timeline. After a user subscribes, there is a soft ask to sign up for an email newsletter (00:44), an additional channel for user engagement and retention.

Who it’s for

This app is ideal for busy professionals, students, or anyone who juggles multiple calendars for work and personal life. Its target user is someone looking for more power and integration than a default phone calendar provides. By combining event scheduling with task management, it appeals to individuals who want a single, reliable application to organize their entire day and week.

Notes & opportunities

While the app is powerful, the user experience could be refined in a couple of areas. The permission request to access contacts appears abruptly when trying to add an attendee to an event (01:55) and results in a 'Permission denied' error if not previously enabled in system settings. A warm-up screen here could smooth out this interaction. Additionally, the default calendar view is immediately populated with many repeating events (00:54), which could feel overwhelming for a first-time user. A cleaner initial state or a brief tutorial on managing views might improve the initial impression.