Hey Collector, What's That In Your Pocketory?

Most of us love collecting stuff, whether it is classic cars, jewelry, or even iOS devices. Or, as a certain AppAdvice editor suggested, fishing lures. Now, a new app helps us catalog all of the stuff we like to pile up. Say hello to Pocketory, which arrived recently in the App Store. Available for free until Sept. 1, the iPhone app is the first collaborative inventory app for iOS. By using it, customers can keep track of everything they own and then share those lists with others. To get started, users must sign up for a free Pocketory account. From there, you can begin adding items by taking photos, scanning barcodes, or searching online to quickly locate items. Along the way, you may add additional photos and unlimited notes. For further customization, items are sorted into pockets, each which is easily searchable, which comes in handy when your number of lists grows. Where Pocketory really shines is when it is used collectively with other members of the Pocketory universe. By default, each pocket is private. However, pockets may be made public and shared with others. Additionally, you may assign other users as collaborators. To do so, you may add members using the app’s quick search feature. These users are able to edit the pocket, as well as add, edit, and delete items. As an added layer of security, they cannot delete the pocket or change the pocket’s list of users. Finally, the app shows who has viewed your public pockets. These users, appropriately called viewers, can only see your pocket online, and cannot change or delete these pockets. Full app features include:

• Barcode scanner
• Online product search
• Auto sync and sharing
• Public inventory pockets
• User permissions and password lock
• Offline mode
• Web platform accessible from anywhere
• Unlimited photos and attachments
• PDF report

Despite its potential, Pocketory comes with a number of issues. For one, the Pocketory universe is extremely small, despite being available for iOS for nearly three weeks. As anyone who has ever attempted to create a separate social network will tell you, success is largely defined by how active it becomes. Therefore, no matter how beneficial Pocketory is as a concept, its success will largely depend on how many use it over the long run. My suggestion: Pocketory needs to include Facebook and/or Twitter integration in a future app upgrade. Secondly, Pocketory should better promote its most promising feature, being able to search for items directly from the Web. For example, I created a list for my book collection. Rather than taking photos of each book, which takes time, I added them from the Web. This process is not only faster than the alternative, but it also imports key information about each item, such as its brand, and description. Another key concern is the app's inability to help users find shared pockets as there is no "explore" feature. Instead, the only way to find someone else’s pockets is to visit the Pockertory website, or become one of their collaborators. This limitation removes much of what makes social networking apps so much fun -- finding other people that share your interests. Finally, as much as I love Pocketory's import feature, the photos that are added are often fuzzy, regardless of size. On this point, something needs corrected. Overall, however, Pocketory works as expected. Hopefully, future app updates will make it even better. If you like to collect stuff, I recommend joining Pocketory and of course, tell your friends about it too. Given enough time, it could prove quite popular -- or die a quick death. Pocketory is available in the App Store.

Mentioned apps

Related articles