When comparing Pocket vs Today, the Slant community recommends Today for most people. In the question“What are the best Material Design apps?” Today is ranked 3rd while Pocket is ranked 5th. The most important reason people chose Today is:
In addition to day, week and agenda views that have improved aesthetics and usability features compared to the stock app, there are also two views that combine agenda and month views in interesting ways. One approach shows a complete, color-coded month with agenda view beneath it and the second shows a complete month that pops up agenda view when clicked on a date.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Available on the web and mobile devices
Pocket is available on iOS, Android, Kobo eReader and on the web.
Pro Allows reading saved content in offline mode
Instead of only saving the link, the content is saved for offline use.
Pro Well-finished GUI and UX
Pro The Pocket plugin for Google Chrome is very stable
Pro Allows tagging bookmarks
Bookmarks can be tagged for search accuracy later on.
Pro Included in Firefox
Pocket is now integrated into the Firefox web browser, and you can login using your firefox/mozilla login, instead of having to create a separate account. This login method can even be used natively on their website, regardless what browser is being used.
Pro Integrates with over 500 apps
A key advantage of Pocket is that it is integrated in over 500 apps as a way to save the link, including Twitter, Flipboard, Pulse and Zite.
Pro Works well across Google Chrome on macOS and iOS
Pro Highlighting available on iOS
Pro Ability to filter by content type
Pro Has improved common views and two great views that combine month and agenda views
In addition to day, week and agenda views that have improved aesthetics and usability features compared to the stock app, there are also two views that combine agenda and month views in interesting ways.
One approach shows a complete, color-coded month with agenda view beneath it and the second shows a complete month that pops up agenda view when clicked on a date.
Pro Polished agenda and month widgets
The app has minimalistic, semi-transparent, good-looking and customizable homescreen widgets for agenda and month views. Attributes that can be customized include choosing between light and dark themes, 12 and 24 hour clock, if the widget header should be displayed as well as adjusting opacity level and date range among other options.
Pro Actionable notifications
On-screen notifications have a shortcuts for map and ability to snooze them.
Pro Clean, good-looking design
Google Calendar has an easy to overview interface, that doesn't overwhelm with options. It's based on Google's stock Calendar application with modifications to user interface and functionality.
Pro Straightforward event creation
To quickly add an event, each view has an option to either click a plus button somewhere on the screen or long-press a date to bring up a form. The long-press form will allow entering only the event name and assume that it's an all day event, while the plus button form allows setting the event duration as well.
Both forms have an edit button for a adding more detailed information. This way in addition to selecting an event name and date, there's an ability to add location, start/end times, guests, description, color-code as well as choosing if it's an all day event, how often it repeats, how many and what kind of reminders are needed and setting your availability and privacy settings.
Pro Color-coding support
The app will color-code different calendars in different colors as well as allow selecting a different color for each event.
Pro Free 2-week trial
It has a 14-day trial and costs $2.99 to use full-time.
Pro Can set on-screen and e-mail reminder notifications
Google calendar allows setting how many reminders are needed with each having the ability to set how long before the event the notification should remind and if it should be done via on-screen or e-mail notification.
Pro Integrates with Google Maps for directions
The app leverages Google Maps when adding location for an event by offering suggestions as well as offers opening Maps to help get directions to an event via shortcut on a reminder notification.
Cons
Con Only the paid version allows to search by tag
Con Correct and open export of bookmarks and tags are not possible
This means that Pocket is (currently) a total lock-in.
This is very sad, unfortunate and creates a no go decision for any seasoned user.
Too many bookmarking and tagging companies have stopped or have gone bankrupt these last years (e.g. Kippt, Spingpad, Delicious (to some extent), etc...). So, if you are going to invest a lot of your personal time and energy in curating your Internet findings (i.e. your bookmarks and tags), it is essential that a total, fair and open export (including all tags) functionality is provided. Personally tested the export "feature" and the resulting .html file that Pocket generates currently included only the URLs themselves, i.e. no save dates nor any of your personally curated tags, nor any other useful meta-data.
This is deplorable, because otherwise, Pocket is a very polished and well-functioning piece of multi-platform and multi-device software/app/web service, with a very easy and well-designed and implemented user interface...
Please fix this, Pocket !
These days of open and inter-operable web services, users are only attracted by valuable functionality, clean UX design and no lockins.
Con Search function in Pro version does not follow the proper date sequence
Although the pro version lets us search by tags, the search results unfortunately does not follow the time sequence of the saving of articles. Search results may show some old articles first, then a bunch of new articles, and then again old articles. It's so random and frustating.
I have been using Pocket pro for quite a long time primarily because it lets me have the permanent copy of a news (this feature is really useful in journalism). However, when I search tag wise for the old references, the absence of time-sequencing the search results really frustates me.
Con Can't rename the title of links
If the page title isn't correct/good for a link, there is no way for you to fix it.
Con Not really a bookmark tool but a tool to save webpages for later reading
A real bookmark tool has editable fields like title, url, folder, tags, notes. This saves webpages.
Con Deleted or edited tags do not go away from tag suggestions
For example, imagine you accidentally created a tag "US" instead of "USA," and saved some articles under "US." The unfortunate part is even if you edit the tag and rename it "USA" , the previous tag name will always appear in the suggested tags: so when saving an article, if you type US in the tag box, you will see two suggestions "US" and "USA."
Con Chrome addon doesn't let you open your library without saving current page first
Con Can't import Firefox bookmark tags
When importing bookmarks from Firefox, Pocket doesn't include the tags.