Somebody very sensible once said that, it is very easy to criticize somebody, but try and walk a mile in their shoes and see how difficult their world may be and you will understand that every achievement is worth applauding. These lines are very apt for people like us who review consumer technology. We throw opinions like Santa distributing sweets, everyone in the queue gets their fair share. But, app development is a tough job. And taking this challenge up and making a giant leap from being a good writer to a developer is our own team member Saket Narayan.
You have read plenty of articles by him on Techsplurge pinpointing the little details of what is good and bad in a certain app or product. Today it is his chance to be on the receiving end, as we review Bunk-O-Meter, Saket’s first foray into the world of Android App Development.
Before, we get to the business end of the thing, we promise to stay fair and provide unbiased opinion regarding the app
What is Bunk-O Meter?
It is very clear from the name of the app itself that it has got something to do with bunking and missing classes. Yes, so obviously the app is not for those who pride on having 100% attendance in their colleges.
The app is designed to make sure that you keep enough attendance in the locker room to be allowed to appear in your exams. Not just for college students, the app is particularly useful for those who are running on tight percentages in offices, hospitals or even schools.
The UI of the app is familiar, simple and easy
The UI of Bunk-O-Meter is very minimalistic and very neatly done. It does seem like the developer has used up all his experience of paying with Android apps to come up with a UI that is not only familiar but also extremely functional and good on the eye.
The app has the same cards like UI that you might have seen on the likes of Google Now and now Google+. The Holo look of the app means the learning curve is very minimal when you use the app. You have the same swipe to dismiss the action like you have been doing with Google Now.
Features of the App
When you open the app for the very first time, you are prompted to enter in your subjects you are taking in the college, or whose attendance you wish to track.
You simply enter in the name as well as the classes you have already bunked and what is the limit for bunking. You can add in as many subjects as you wish to. Once you have done that, the subjects are automatically stored and you simply have to click on the plus icon in case you bunk one more class.
So, what you have to do is simple, click on the plus icon just when you are set to bunk the class and in case you are walking the tight rope, the application will warn you that one more bunk and you are going to have to sit for an extra semester.Basically, managing your attendance. You can always add in extra subjects from the add button on top right hand corner of the app.
Long pressing on an already added subject will allow you to modify the entry, you can either edit the details of the subject or simply delete it, in case you do not want it to track it anymore.
You can share about the app to your friends and the developer makes sure you know that you rock if you decide to share the app.
The app also has a neat notification setting where it will remind you at a set time during the day that you have to record your bunk. This is a handy feature and the app will play a tone as well as vibrate to make sure you tap that plus icon if you bunk. You can obviously turn notification off.
So everything is perfect?
The app has been live on the play store for less than a week, although the team has been testing the beta version for a while, to expect everything to be perfect is asking a little too much. There are several features in the pipeline that are to be added and as a user, although the app does what it aims to do, there is very little beyond that.
There are two ways of looking at this, the first obviously that keeping things minimal makes the app extremely easy and simply to use, but the other side of the argument is the app has massive potential, which can be fulfilled. Things like multiple notifications; addition of a dark theme can be useful additions. Also maybe the ability to share with your friends via twitter or even facebook that you just bunked a class can be a useful add on.
The bottom line is, what is on the table works very well, but the concept is so interesting that we want more, and dead sure we would be pushing the developer for it.
I want this awesome app; where do I get it?
The application is available for download for free in the Google play Store. You can download it to your Android smart phone from the link below. The app requires you to have at least Android 4.0, so if you are running an Android phone below that, then you are out of luck.
Play Store: Download Link for Bunk-O-Meter
Conclusion
It is a matter of great pride for us to have one of our team members developing an app, but beyond all the bias, Bunk-O-Meter is a terrific concept. It is an app that can be very useful for the college going students at least. The simplicity of the app makes it very desirable and we cannot wait to see what more features would be added to it.
Do let us know your views about the application, do not forget to rate it in the Play Store and leave your comments here and on the app page. And in case, you have any questions, feel free to write them down in the section below.
