Writeroom Review

Developer: Hog Bay Software
Price: $4.99
Version Reviewed: 2.7

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Overall Rating:

It's just those darned distractions.

Writeroom aims to solve the problem of "distracting" interfaces and instead presents you with a clean, simple alternative to the Notes app. Its features are few—basically, the interface and its web-based syncing—but it's a compelling, bloat-free alternative to Notes, and the connection with simpletext.ws alone makes Writeroom a godsend.

When you first boot the app, it's immediately apparent that Writeroom is simple, and proud of it. Black background. White text. A list of documents. Opening a document lets you type. But the devil is in the details, and Writeroom nails them by adding functionality in subtle ways. Shaking your iPhone lets you lock the orientation (yup, portrait and landscape are fully supported) while the zoom-in gesture lets you enter fullscreen mode. If you don't like the default white-on-black Writeroom theme, you can change it using a variety of settings.

The app's best feature, however, is online. Writeroom lets you sync all your files to simpletext.ws, a free web app maintained by the developer. You don't even have to create an account; simpletext.ws uses Google accounts for log-in. I found myself using simpletext.ws as often as Writeroom itself; the website follows the same minimalist attitude as the app. And the painless syncing is a godsend.

Writeroom isn't a complicated app. The app itself warns you that it's "human-sized"; in other words, please don't trust the service with your senior thesis! Also, it's not a good place for sensitive info like your passwords. And there are plenty of features like italics that the app doesn't support.

Still, if you need a hassle-free writing environment...it's hard to beat Writeroom. For sheer ease of use, this one takes the cake!