In middle school, a friend and I would hang out on the weekend and live out our rock-n-roll dreams with Guitar Hero. As the notes would come down the line, we’d press sequences of red, green, yellow, and orange, jamming to songs in the iconic and aesthetically innovative game.
I haven’t thought much about Guitar Hero recently, but an app I downloaded a couple of weeks ago reminded me of it. However, it’s not a rhythm-based guitar game, or even tied to music at all.
It’s a calendar app called Vantage.
A Lot to See
Vantage is not a calendar for power users. Instead, it’s most likely to appeal to people who have used the same calendar app for years and are looking for something different.
Vantage is definitely different from anything you’ve ever seen in a calendar app. The presentation of information is what reminded me of Guitar Hero, with its long line of information that emerges from the horizon.
The differentiating feature of Vantage is its design. All of the usual calendar features are here. You can create, view and edit events, for instance. However, it’s the way the app displays your calendar items that is the main selling point.
In general, Vantage strikes a good balance between being visually innovative and usable. The vertical timeline is reminiscent of a to-do list. Each day consists of a series of cards for the events on your calendar. Tapping the date collapses the cards into a stack, an animation that fits well with the overall feel of the app, which is full of bold animations.
To minimize the amount of scrolling to reach future dates, Vantage displays a slider along the top of the screen for jumping ahead weeks or months. Along the right side of the screen, a pull tab peeks out to draw you into a more traditional streamlined calendar view if you want a break from the timeline approach. Tapping the list button at the top changes to this view for you.
Vantage’s “Color Packs” section lets you choose from six themes to change Vantage’s look. I’ve tended to stick with the traditional “Black,” but “Lava Rock” and “Stealth” are also great options.
Conclusion
Vantage is a viable replacement for almost any calendar app you’re currently using. The app’s fresh, unique, and customizable UI should appeal to people tired of an app category that isn’t known for experimental designs. Although I will be sticking with Timepage for the time being, there are a lot of interesting ideas in Vantage that I’m going to keep an eye on as the app is developed further.
If you’d like to check out Vantage, you can pick it up in the App Store for $3.99 (Universal).
