Fantastical Calendar App Expands to Windows

[iamdmann]

This is a $10.5 per month subscription… what am I missing here? Is there so much this app can do that is not already possible in the stock Calendar app or the plethora of free ones available? All of them sync across devices too.

It didn't used to be. They used to sell the app as a single purchase. They switched it to a subscription model after some of us had purchased the iOS version, the iPadOS version, and the macOS version. As good as the software may be, and as feature rich as it may now be, I'll never subscribe, because of how they handled the change.

 

[Kulfon]

The only way Fantastical is better than other apps is the natural language. Cannot understand why Apple cannot do it with their calendar

 

[aevan]

I assume this subscription is useful for some folks

I just can't imagine paying a subscription for a calendar App, but to each everyones own

Fantastical helps me organize my life and business and is one of my most used apps. A good calendar app that is well designed is worth it to me.

 

[aevan]

The only way Fantastical is better than other apps is the natural language. Cannot understand why Apple cannot do it with their calendar

It’s also more clear and has a better view of upcoming events and reminders. It’s a really great design.

 

[iObama]

I've tried to quit this app so many times, but it never sticks. It's too damn good, especially with Reminders integration.

 

[BornAgainMac]

I tried it for one year. Didn't see any benefit over the standard Apple Calendar. For those too young to have missed it, Steve Jobs himself introduced the Calendar app on the Mac and it was a really nice introduction to it as ical. It is probably on YouTube but I couldn't find it with a casual search. It was introduced back in July of 2002 at MacWorld by Steve Jobs.

 

[Mr. Rod]

Fantastical is great, but you're out of your mind to pay $60/year for a calendar app.

It’s a great app and I happily paid for it when it was $36/year. When they bumped the price I canceled. I miss some features, but for the subscription to make sense, you really need to exploit all the functionality like scheduling and bookings. I just used it as an excellent calendar, but it’s overpriced for just that.

If you can exploit the features then get it. It’s great software from a great developer.

100% this. I used the Fantastical subscription for years until they raised their annual price to that. Very useful utility but not for that price.

I eventually replaced it with Calendar 366 after some searching and it's a great alternative, works pretty much like Fantastical with natural language support and all! Also, it's a one time payment for $14.99 and it's regularly updated.

 

[phillytim]

This is a $10.5 per month subscription… what am I missing here? Is there so much this app can do that is not already possible in the stock Calendar app or the plethora of free ones available? All of them sync across devices too.

Fantastical allows more than 3 alarms for calendar events; something that iOS Calendar limits.

I'm grandfathered in with Fantastical, so I don't have a subscription and keep Fantastical around - it is a beautiful app.

But having extra alarms would not be worth $10.50/month to me, if I had to subscribe to the app.

 

[AF_APPLETALK]

I wonder if they did this as a separate native app, used a hybrid framework, or a translation layer...

 

[coolfactor]

I'm kind of shocked this survived the transition to subscription. I used it before they changed over and it was ok, but I'll keep a paper calendar before I spend this kind of money for something so basic.

The point is that it's not "basic". It's a powerful calendaring app. But I agree with the subscription struggle. What happens if you stop paying? Does all of your calendar data go poof? Become inaccessible?

Apple's latest Calendar app is usable again, but was barely useable on my previous Intel-based MacBook Air. Slower than a slug in mud, so much so that I stopped using it entirely. But now I'm back to using the built-in Calendar on Apple Silicon.

 

[peneaux]

After they backstabbed their customers who purchased version 2 by updating to version 3 and turning it to a subscription app, I decided to never give them a single cent more.

 

[svish]

Surpising news. Very useful for those who need it. I don't like paying subscription charges for a calendar app.

 

[MacFarmer]

Good for them, and glad to see they are around as I would never pay for subscription. But smart move to branch out!

 

[zedsdead]

I don't use Windows - but if I ever have to this will be great.

 

[lukesassa]

Also included in a Flexibits Premium subscription is full feature unlock for Cardhop, a Contacts app alternative that works across Apple's platforms with natural language parsing, widgets, Shortcuts support, simple contact card sharing, business card scanning, and more.

This statement is a little confusing. It makes it sound like Cardhop is also available on Windows now. But I haven't seen any way to use Cardhop on Windows yet.