AnkiMobile: an iPhone app review

Having been an avid student of Japanese and the JLPT now for two years I have developed a highly structured daily routine that took a lot of trial and error to develop. Of course, each person’s situation is different so the details aren’t important but I will say that I’ve made heavy, heavy use of the Anki flashcard application on my desktop for a long time.¹ Eventually I used it so much I bookmarked the Anki online website so I could use it from my iPhone but bandwidth limitations have made this slow and prone to issues. Recently though the developer of Anki released an iPhone app called AnkiMobile that I was eager to try. For the record, this review reflects my own opinion and is not prompted by the developer of Anki, Mr. Elmes, in any way. I was partly inspired by the iPhone app review I did for Ashura 360, while writing this one. I doubt I’ll ever be a tech-writer/columnist though, and probably for the better.

With that said, the AnkiMobile website, provides a nice explanation of the target audience the motivation behind the app:

This iPhone app is an attempt to give the regular Anki users something they were asking for, while simultaneously raising money for continued development. It has taken me months of 12hr/day development to port everything to Apple’s platform, and it continues to take up most of my time. The price is initially set at $24.99, of which Apple gives me $17.50. For people who’ve benefited from the desktop application, and want to use Anki on the go, I hope that is not too much to ask.

This app is currently targeted at people who are regular users of the desktop application, who now want to use Anki away from their computer. If you don’t have much experience with Anki, or study infrequently, you may find the learning curve to be steep initially. For serious studiers the initial setup is definitely worth it – when you’re looking at studying material for months or years, Anki’s proven algorithms, cross platform support, and open file format are essential for ensuring the integrity of your studies regardless of which device or program you choose to use in the future. But if you’re just looking to review a few questions before a test, and don’t care much about the long term, you may be better off with a cheaper alternative.

As a frequent Anki user I was initially hesitant to spend the money for the app, but I found that using the desktop application was getting harder to do. Not because of the application itself, but because my work schedule and parenting have become so busy. With my big JLPT N3 word-list (self-created while encountering words I read/heard), I just didn’t have enough time to sit down and process 200+ facts at a time.

Then I realized that if I bought the app and practiced it in smaller, more frequent chunks during those small breaks in my life (on the bus, lunch break, etc), I could keep on top of my list and progress in my studies. And not longer after that, I became the latest owner.

The app is much faster/smoother than trying to use Anki over cellular connections to the website, and integrates well with iPhone OS. Also, the coloration gives the interface a lighter feel and more fun to use. Separately, I like the overall interface, and its careful process of syncing decks between system. I say this because I still use the desktop app sometimes (to save on battery power) and forget to sync the phone or the desktop, so I have to figure out how to resolve the deck inconsistencies. Anki does a nice job of managing this, so I’ve not lost much work over the months, except when I was just being stupid.

With the current 1.4 version, there are some small problems such as the inability to delete cards. Since my deck is somewhat larger, this has caused issues where I have old cruft I need to delete, but can’t do so until I get home (I mark the cards for the time being). Also, the ability to edit is somewhat limited. According to the AnkiOnline site though, version 1.5 seems to address both, so I will be downloading that when I get a chance. Separately, the application has crashed on me only once after doing a really long session where I drained out all the new cards. I haven’t been able to re-create it though, and compared to some of my other apps, it’s still considerably more stable.

I’ve downloaded a few JLPT or Japanese language apps in the last year, but the only one I’ve consistently used for more than 2 days is AnkiMobile, and if you’re serious about the JLPT beyond the basics, you need something to organize your facts and acquired vocabulary. The key is not dumping word-lists, but adding words as you encounter them (just like the website says and verified by me the hard way), and this is where Anki as a whole becomes pretty useful because it reinforces what you’ve encountered. If you own an iPhone and plan on long-term language studies (not just Japanese), then this will definitely become useful as your studies advance.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars.

P.S. Downloaded the 1.5 version recently, and indeed it works better.

¹ I also used it for passing the RHCE Linux certification test too. Great for memorizing commands and flags.