Each summer you’ll find us hard at work, doing our best to ensure all of the Omni Group’s suite of apps will be ready for Apple’s platform updates on the first day they’re available. Getting our apps ready for day one is a challenge, of course, since it means developing for platforms that are still under development themselves! We think it’s important to be ready on “day one” since many of our customers are eager to update their devices as soon as possible (perhaps because they’re buying new hardware), and since we know our customers really rely on our apps.
People who use productivity tools, like Omni’s apps, need for them to work on day one—and everyday! With schools back in session, academics at all levels are using OmniOutliner to get their materials or homework ready. Many projects kick off in September, from constructing websites to starting new businesses—and people putting together timelines for those projects can really put OmniPlan through its paces. Whether folks are headed back to class or planning presentations for work, many are relying on OmniGraffle to help them communicate thoughts visually. And with so many projects in motion, many people are using OmniFocus to keep track of what they can do next, to keep moving forward towards achieving their goals.
Thus, our top summer priority is to ensure our apps are ready for Apple’s new platforms when they ship—today—and I’m pleased to share that all of the Omni Group’s suite of apps are ready today!
Of course, one of the reasons so many of our customers update their platforms so quickly is because they’re excited about the new features being introduced in those updates, and so are we!
This year’s features particularly benefit OmniFocus. OmniFocus 4.4 introduces new Quick Entry, Quick Open, and Open Perspective functionality across all supported devices. On devices running iOS or iPadOS 18, new Controls for accessing these features are available to add to your Lock Screen and Control Center, or you can configure them for even quicker access via your iPhone’s Action Button. You’ll also find these features in your Spotlight search results on supported operating systems, as well as available as new shortcuts on any app platform. It’s never been easier to access the most powerful features of OmniFocus 4!
Plus, if you’re excited about customizing the appearance of your iOS or iPadOS 18 Home Screen, you’ll also find that OmniFocus widgets and the OmniFocus app icon (as well as the app icons for OmniGraffle, OmniOutliner, and OmniPlan) have been optimized for tinted Home Screen display.
OmniFocus 4.4 also brings new functionality to the Apple Watch, with support for creating and completing items via the double tap gesture on watchOS 11. We’ve also updated our complications and widgets, optimizing for watch face tint color, adopting interactivity, and introducing a new widget that displays Inbox, Forecast, and Flagged item counts in the the Smart Stack and on supported watch faces.
So here we are, shipping updates to all our apps on day one for macOS 15 Sequoia, iOS 18, iPadOS 18, watchOS 11, and visionOS 2—and of course we’re already looking ahead towards the debut of new features related to Apple Intelligence. But we’ll talk more about that soon!
At the Omni Group, we make powerful productivity apps which help you accomplish more every day. Feedback? We’d love to hear from you! And, if our apps have empowered you, leaving an App Store review is a great way to share that experience with our team while helping others discover our apps in the App Store. We hope you enjoy these updates!
(You can find me on Mastodon at @kcase@mastodon.social, or send me email at kc@omnigroup.com.)
