App of the Week: Pushbullet

It’s safe to say we live in the digital age now, and piles of papers have become bundles of crossed wires, memory sticks and devices. It can be quite confusing, especially under pressure and to a time limit. I struggle to find the right remote control to change the TV channel, let alone remember where different documents are kept on which device. Then comes the digital mess of responding to different people on separate devices. I find myself having one conversation on Twitter while taking a call from someone else, responding to emails and waiting for a text to come through. So many screens, so little time. This is where Pushbullet comes in…

Pushbullet sets out to better connect all of our devices and screens by sending it all through your desktop computer. Turning your computer or laptop into a central hub for your phone, tablets and other devices, the app opens up your phone and mobile devices, letting you receive notifications straight to your computer. Instead of making you check your various screens throughout the day, your notifications, tweets, and texts all come through straight to your office worktop. Personalising what comes through, you can even view incoming calls and send text messages.

The app itself is free, but there is a ‘pro’ paid version, which comes at a surprising $40 (£30) a year. With the free option lets you view notifications from your phone, send files and links between devices with ease – which saves having to email or text yourself – as well as letting you send up to 100 text messages a month. The paid version ups the size of files you can send between devices from 25MB to 1GB and gives you unlimited text messages.

The Verdict
For PAs managing different devices – sometimes even dealing with multiple phones – this is a very simple way of centralising your screens and minimising stress. I found it very handy to get pop-up notifications on my office computer to tell me when I receive an important text, instead of having to check my phone, which not only looks unprofessional but also takes extra time. Given it’s free and can be used across Apple, Microsoft and Android devices, it’s definitely a valuable app for the busy worker.

You can read more information on their website. What do you think of the app? Let us know on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn.