When the folks at BusyMac showed BusyCal off at Macworld Expo, I was excited to see an iCal replacement. Unfortunately, at the time, it didn’t handle CalDAV and we were using CalDAV at work. So, I didn’t have a use for it. The BusyMac folks do great work and I’ve known John and Dave for years. Now that BusyCal has been released, things have changed for me. I’m not using CalDAV at work (some people are, but some are now using Google Apps for Your Domain). I downloaded BusyCal, installed it, and within about 10 minutes, purchased it!
While on the surface, it looks like just an iCal replacement, it isn’t. It integrates with Google so well, that it simplifies my calendaring tremendously. I have 3 calendars I use for work, and 3 for home. All of the calendars are on Google in 2 separate accounts. I’m not really sure what to say about it, but it is much more pleasant to use than iCal; iCal feels like a dog compared to BusyCal. iCal’s CalDAV syncing (to Google) is problematic and has many quirks. For instance, if I receive an ics file sent to one account that is forwarded to another, iCal won’t let me add it. If I do the same thing with BusyCal, it lets me add the event without problems. In addition, I trust that the BusyMac folks will listen to feedback and make more frequent updates than iCal.
I’m not going to go in depth here as the trial version will give you the opportunity to test drive it in the comfort of your own home.
Pros
- Excellent syncing with Google.
- Ability to add .ics events without strange error messages.
- Easier setup for Google syncing than iCal.
- Responsive tech support.
- Weather icons are a nice touch and saves me from having to watch the weather on the news.
- The details for calendar events is much easier to use than iCal.
Cons
- It’s not cheap at $40 per copy.
- Doesn’t handle CalDAV calendars like iCal does.
Summary
If you use Google for calendaring, this application is a must have. If you have BusySync, it’s only a $10 upgrade, so it is definitely a no brainer. If you don’t have BusySync, but want easy calendaring, I don’t think you’ll regret this purchase. Go grab the trial and give it a whirl. If you’re like me, you’ll be hooked pretty quickly!