Maybe the single biggest type of program I have missed the most on the iPhone since Day One has been a local task or to-do management app. Sure, I’ve used and been very happy with Remember The Milk and reviewed several other worthy browser-based efforts, but I have to admit I still look forward to being able to have a fully local, always-on application for this purpose.
OmniFocus is a task manager app that will help fill this void when the App Store opens and is another winner of one of last week’s Apple Design Awards for iPhone apps – as Best iPhone Productivity Application – that is described in part like so:
Getting things done is simple with OmniFocus, a professional-grade personal information management tool utilizing a proven task-management methodology. Already a popular application for Mac OS X, the iPhone version of OmniFocus takes its powerful functionality mobile. OmniFocus for iPhone makes it easy to create and manage tasks, projects, and contexts on-the-go while staying completely in sync with your desktop via .Mac or WebDav. With the built-in iPhone-only geolocator, OmniFocus can also log photo snapshots of a user’s current location as well as recommend things to do nearby.
OmniFocus lets you incorporate the hugely popular Getting Things Done (GTD) methods within the program to manage your tasks and projects. I’ve been trying out its desktop version over the last few days, just to get a feel for whether it’s one I’ll want to work with on the iPhone and desktop when it launches. My very early impressions are that it is very powerful and flexible, maybe just a tad complex for my personal tastes in this sort of program, but definitely an app that feels like it will be a compelling contender for many folks on the iPhone. 
I’ve seen some very nice recent writeups on OmniFocus’ iPhone app, including a very good one recently at iPhone Central that offered some cool background on some of the unique abilities this app will offer.
Like … some location-aware abilities that can tailor your to-do lists according to where you are:
OmniFocus can take advantage of the iPhone’s location feature to tailor your to-dos to where you are.
For instance, by tapping into the phone’s ability to pinpoint your current location, OmniFocus can create a list of actions you need to complete nearby. Imagine heading downtown, tapping a button and noticing that you needed to pick something up at the grocery store.
OmniFocus can also give you directions to the store based on your current location.
Users of OmniFocus will have a full range of syncing options – wirelessly via WebDAV server, via your Mac, via MobileMe – and over EDGE or WiFi.
OmniFocus is due to be ready to go when the App Store opens. No word on pricing for it yet – but this looks like another app that will be getting a lot of attention in a few weeks time …
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