TECHNOLOGY
The Solution You Need for Cross-Platform Task Management
Apple says that there are over a billion active iPhones in use today. That’s an incredible number and a testament to how popular this device has become.
However, as popular as the iPhone is, not all iPhone users are Mac users. Many of them are, but millions more use a Windows computer as their primary computing device. Unfortunately, that introduces some roadblocks because Apple does not have Windows (or Android) versions for all the apps that come on the iPhone.
Apple Reminders is a good case in point. Without a Windows version of the Reminders app, there is no native way to access your tasks on Windows.
However, that’s not to say it can’t be done.
Option 1: iCloud.com
In my experience, not many people use it, but you can access online versions of some of Apple’s most popular apps by navigating to icloud.com in a browser of your choice. Mail, Contacts, and Calendar can be found at icloud.com, and so can Apple Reminders.
Although Reminders is technically available online, the user experience is not great. You can view and add reminders, but that is about as good as it gets. You can’t add dates or times to a reminder. You can’t move reminders to another list. You can’t create, edit or delete lists. And if that isn’t bad enough, the sync is slow.
Apple clearly doesn’t devote a lot of time to improving icloud.com. If you just need to check on something that you added on your iPhone, or you have a simple reminder to add, then icloud.com could work. For everything else, it’s just not an adequate option for managing tasks on Windows.
https://medium.com/macoclock/have-you-tried-the-new-icloud-beta-493ac1a17dc4
Option 2: Sync Apple Reminders with Microsoft
It’s not a well-known fact, but you don’t have to use iCloud to sync your tasks in the Apple Reminders app. Other services can interface with Reminders. One of the best examples is Microsoft.
You can connect a Microsoft account to the Reminders app and have tasks sync with your Microsoft account instead of iCloud. When you are on your Apple devices, you can use Reminders to add and view tasks. When you are on a Windows device, you can do the same in the Microsoft To Do app.
If you add a task in the Reminders app, it will be synced to the Microsoft To Do app. Likewise, if you add a task in Microsoft To Do, it will be synced with Apple Reminders. So, if you want to use Apple Reminders on Windows, all you need is the Microsoft To Do app. Easy, right?
Wait! What? Why?
Why would you do this? Why wouldn’t you just use the Microsoft To Do app on your Apple and Windows devices? You absolutely could, but the most common reason for setting it up this way is access to Siri.
If you pick up your iPhone and say, “Hey Siri, remind me to call Julie at 4 pm,” it will be added to the Reminders app. The same is true if you summon Siri to add a task with CarPlay while driving to work.
Siri isn’t great at a lot of things, but it is good at adding reminders. If you use Siri for Reminders and you want those tasks to be on your Windows PC, then you need to sync Reminders to your Microsoft account.
https://medium.com/macoclock/have-you-tried-the-new-icloud-beta-493ac1a17dc4
How to Sync iOS Reminders with Microsoft To Do
To sync Reminders with your Microsoft account, follow these directions.
- Open the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad
- Tap Reminders and then tap Accounts.
- Make sure your Microsoft account is listed here. If it isn’t, tap Add Account, and log in with your username and password.
- Next, tap on your Microsoft account, and enable the toggle next to Reminders.
How to Sync macOS Reminders with Microsoft To Do
- Open System Preferences.
- Click on Internet Accounts.
- Make sure your Microsoft account is listed here. If it isn’t, click Microsoft Exchange, and log in with your username and password.
- Next, click on your Microsoft account, and check the box next to Reminders.
When you have enabled syncing with your Microsoft account, you will see a new group of lists in the Reminders app. They appear under your existing iCloud lists. Only these lists will sync with your Microsoft account, so feel free to create some new lists under the Outlook or Exchange header or use copy and paste to move existing reminders to your Outlook/Exchange list.
You can also turn off iCloud Reminders if you don’t need them.
How to Change Your Default iOS Reminders List
Once your Microsoft account has been connected to Reminders, you can set your default list to match a list in your Microsoft account. To achieve that, open the Settings app and tap Reminders > Default List to choose a list.
https://medium.com/macoclock/have-you-tried-the-new-icloud-beta-493ac1a17dc4
What About an Apple Reminders App for Windows?
As someone who moves between devices and operating systems daily, I would love to see an Apple Reminders app for Windows. However, I feel like the chances of that happening are somewhat slim.
The only Windows apps that Apple makes right now are iCloud and iTunes. There is no incentive for Apple to bring Reminders to Windows. Why? Apple wants you to use its devices. That’s also why there is no iMessage app for Android or Safari on Windows.
So, that means that you are left with some workarounds, and these are the best and only options for using Apple Reminders on a Windows PC.
Which method do you use?
https://medium.com/macoclock/have-you-tried-the-new-icloud-beta-493ac1a17dc4
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