Tasker – fully automate your Android

by Paul Wilks Jun 26, 2012 12:57 PM – 4 Comments

Install

Tasker is a hugely powerful profile creator for your Android device. Create all manner of settings based on several conditions and factors. From ensuring your phone is silent while you are asleep to getting your device to smartly switch to Navigation mode as soon as you jump in your car, Tasker makes your Android even smarter.

Price: Free to Try, ~$6.49

Tested on: HTC One X
Content Rating: Medium Maturity

AndroidTapp.com Android App Review:

Pros & Cons:

Pros

Massively functional!
Lets you create all kind of profiles based on a wide variety of conditions!

Cons

Tricky to use for beginners.

Features:

A number of days ago Apple announced the forthcoming release of iOS6 for their mobile devices. One new feature many Apple fans got incredibly excited about was the one called ‘Do Not Disturb’ which hides all calls and notifications for a pre-set period such as night time or when you’re in a meeting. While iPhone users were giddy with joy over this, this kind of functionality has been available on Android for some time now. Alongside so many of their ‘new’ features it perhaps suggests that Apple continue to play catch up, even with older versions of Android such as Donut (1.6). Although there are several, one Google Play Store app that can do this (and a whole lot more besides) is the mighty Tasker.

This powerful little app lets you create all manner of profiles to suit conditions around you. If you want to ensure your beauty sleep isn’t disturbed by notifications you can create one which makes your device silent during the night. If you need to keep your phone quiet while you are at work, you can use Tasker to switch your device to silent when it notices you’ve arrived at work via GPS. One setting I’ve configured is one where my alarm app (Alarm by doubleTwist) launches at around 11.30pm. This means I get the slick night clock it features without having to open it up myself. These, and literally hundreds more settings are there for you to create with Tasker. Trust me, these simple examples are barely the tip of the iceberg.

Here’s just a fraction of things you can do to automate your Android phone or tablet with Tasker:

Create a ‘Do Not Disturb’ silencing feature.
Tun on Car Mode or Work Mode without touching the phone based on GPS.
Create wicked alarms for any occasion.

While hugely functional, I would suggest that some caution might be needed by beginners. There are a few profile apps in the Google Play Store, some- like Actions Pro and PhoneWeaver, are perhaps a little easier to use, although perhaps not quite as detailed. The wealth of options in Tasker is quite staggering so definitely worth some exploration if you’re wishing to automate some of your device behaviour. The app is one you pay for and, at over $6 is quite expensive. However, you can download a trial version of the app if you visit the developers home website which will let you test Tasker for yourself.

: Tasker – Quick Overview

: Tasker – Create new scene

: Tasker – Display action selection

: Tasker – WiFi Sleep settings

: Tasker – Select third party action

: Tasker – Active profiles

Usefulness:

Tasker has more tricks up its sleeve than any one Android owner might ever use. Featuring over 200 actions, several triggers and tasks, in addition to self-designed scenes, it’s incredibly useful and easily something that could become integral to your Android experience.

Ease of Use:

I’ve tested and reviewed literally hundreds of apps and I have to confess I didn’t find this the most user-friendly available. With some patience and practice you can find your way around and find the right solutions but it’s not particularly straight forward.

Frequently Used:

If you require lots of different settings it’s certainly something you might use very frequently. If perhaps you set the app to launch your favoured navigation app whenever you get in your car, it could even be something that works for you several times per day.

Interface:

The interface is a little dated to be fair to other slicker-looking applications, but it’s highly detailed and offers a broad range of menus and sections. Definitely one that takes a little exploration.

AndroidTapp.com Rating

AndroidTapp.com Rating! (4.6 out of 5)

Should you Download Tasker? Tasker is a multi-faceted beast of an app that automates your Android in ways you probably didn’t think possible. It laughs loudly in the face of iOS6′s ‘Do Not Disturb’ feature and has been around for some time now. It’s not the easiest app to use at first, but certainly gets better with practice. Definitely try out the trial described above for yourself and then you’ll know whether a full purchase is right for you.

Developer: Crafty Apps

Tags: Actions Pro, Android App, Android App of the Week, Android Apps, AndroidTapp.com App Review, Automate Actions, Automation, iOS6, PhoneWeaver, Profiles, Tasker

Categorised in: Tools

4 Comments

By sanjay on June 26, 2012 at 7:44 pm:

I tried this application about 3 months ago. Massively frustrating. I wanted to set a condition that if plugged in, during working hours, launch k9 mail, and get mail. Absolutely no way to script this or manually do it. Gave up after hours of fruitless effort.

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By Leona on June 27, 2012 at 7:46 am:

I use an app called My Profiles, been using it for over a year now, I find it easy to set up and use, does much the same as the app you reviewed but its a lot cheaper (and Free version).

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By Spiff on June 29, 2012 at 5:51 am:

I only bought about 3 apps for my Android and Tasker was one of them. It was not cheap but it easily replaces 4 or 5 other apps. I have coded rules to do all sorts of stuff, for instance, reducing screen brightness at night and turning off Wifi (when I go to bed) and reverting in the morning.

You can do a lot with it if you have the patience to tweak the profiles and tasks.

Reply
By Cretin on August 7, 2012 at 3:48 am:

I found Tasker to difficult to get my head around after fiddling for a while. I now use an app called MacroDroid, which is pretty powerful (for my needs) and was a lot easier to configure.

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