Buffer Review

Buffer is one of those apps that people will start using and then wonder how they ever lived without it.

At its core, Buffer is an app-based portal into a larger web-based service, which allows the scheduling or queuing of tweets and Facebook status updates, whichever happens to be the user's social network of choice. If you're like me, then you'll be using both!

Using Buffer is pretty straightforward. Users sign up for an account online and then plug their credentials into the app. From here it is simply a case of writing the messages which are to be queued, and selecting which service they are to be pushed out to. That is about as complicated as things get.

The times of day at which tweets are status updates are sent is all set up on the web site at bufferapp.com, but they can be re-arranged in-app, should the order not be to the user's liking. The app really us more for creating the content, rather than setting the account up as required.

When it comes to the Buffer interface, things are suitably minimalist. With so many of the services options and settings living on the web site, the app is uncluttered and focused - two traits I like in particular.

The app will offer users the option of installing an optional bookmarklet, which will take pages in Safari and send them to the Buffer app, ready for composing into either a tweet or status update. This saves some copying and pasting, and adds a feeling of integration with Mobile Safari.

Fans of stats will also be pleased to see that there is an 'analytics' section, giving feedback on how well a post performed. How many clicks a link got, for example, can make for interesting reading indeed.

I would perhaps have liked a little more control inside the app over when messages are sent, though that would obviously have had a negative effect on the clutter-free nature of Buffer. We can't have it all ways!

All in, this free app will be a real boon for any social media addict, especially if they need to cater for an audience that does not operate in the same time zone, for example.