Pages

Tasker turns your Android Smartphone into a Superphone!




Tasker is an incredibly powerful automation app, that allows you to run certain tasks based on specific conditions.

    Though other apps like Profile Scheduler, Llama, Locale and Motorola Smart Actions do precisely the same thing, frankly, they are just toys, compared to what Tasker can do. Basically, in Tasker, you set up various 'Profiles' that link contexts (the triggers) to tasks. As simple as that. But what makes Tasker so powerful, is the vast number of contexts and actions (that make up tasks) available in this powerful application.

    Besides this, there are scenes, that allow you to make your own user interfaces (popups, in layman terms) with buttons, sliders, text input boxes, plain text, images, maps and whatnot. Then there is the ability to add your own widgets on your homescreen, which makes it all the more powerful.

    Here are some simple examples of what you can do in Tasker:
  • Turn on "Screen Rotation" when Gallery or Maps is opened. 
  • Open your favourite music player as soon as you connect your headphones. (Or alternatively, show you a menu of apps that you usually use with headphones) 
  • Silence your phone when at work, or in meetings. 
Open Maps or Navigation when connected to your car Bluetooth The above examples merely scratch the surface of what Tasker is truly capable of. Anything you can imagine your phone should be able to automatically do, can probably be set up in Tasker. Except for, maybe, toasting your bread.

    Like, for example, I have used Contexts, Tasks, Scenes, and Variables (pretty much everything in Tasker) to make a setup that, whenever I silence my phone, a Scene pops up asking me for an excuse. Whatever I type in there, gets automatically SMSed to any person who calls me while the phone is silent. Amazing!

     But, the only problem with Tasker, is that it has a steep learning curve. The best way to learn Tasker is by tinkering around with the different buttons to see what happens, until you get the hang of it. 

    As of the time of writing this article, Tasker costs Rupees 199.99 (Approximately 3 and a half dollars), and can be downloaded from the Play store. Otherwise, a 7-day trial version is available from Tasker's official website.