We are very proud to finally introduce Billings Touch to you.
Judging from the tweets, emails and forum posts, many of you have been eagerly waiting for Billings Touch and it’s finally here.
For Marketcircle, this is the second iPhone/iPod touch app. Both Daylite Touch and Billings Touch are major apps, not little utilities.
Billings Touch is different from Daylite Touch because it can be used by itself – without Billings Mac or with. This makes Billings Touch our first app available to non Mac users.
When we began our design process, we didn’t want to do a me-too timing app. We wanted to raise the bar – something we can be proud of. As you know, from my previous posts and my various interviews on BNN, we think the iPhone represents a new form of mobile computing. It’s the next phase. The iPhone is not just a “smartphone” – it’s a computer that happens to make calls and fit in your pocket.
A few of our beta testers marvelled at how much you can accomplish with Billings Touch. Much of it for free and some for pay. We’ve employed one of the App Store’s new features – Free download with “In App Purchase”. This will give you an idea of how the whole app works before buying. You can even pair with Billings Mac so that you can see it in action with your own data. If you are happy, unlock it to sync and/or to send invoices.
Get all the details on our new Billings Touch page. Download it and give it a try.
Until next time…
AJ
Cynthia Robertson Shaffer says:
Everyone should be super excited about this gorgeous app and it’s fantastic syncing with the Billings data on your computer. It’s truly a wonder.
Really nice work, guys! Again.
Danny says:
Any one else having trouble dowloading the full version (in app)?
ryan says:
@Danny We say your post on the forums. We’re looking into it – please check back soon.
Guy says:
Just downloaded and upgraded to full version Billings Touch on iPhone 3G. Big disappointment: sync is not working with Billings on my MacBook Air running Snow Leopard. Hope to get a fix soon.
ryan says:
@Guy I’ve contacted support to let them know – someone will get back to you as soon as possible. Sorry for the inconvenience.
One thing to make note of (if you hadn’t already), is that Billings Touch will only sync over a local WiFi network.
Thanks,
Ryan
Guy says:
Just found the problem, which had nothing to do with Billings or Billings Touch, but was due to a network configuration. Thank you for the quick support. Great app by the way.
Peter says:
Downloaded the free Billings Touch, attempted to sync to Billings for Mac, but Billings Touch hangs on the pairing stage, after entering the pairing code. Running MacBook Air with Snow Leopard, on iPhone 3Gs.
Brian Puccio says:
Any idea what the “network configuration” problem is because I cannot get them to sync and won’t be paying the $15 for the full version until they do sync. Yes, I have them both on the same wireless network. I can sync my 1password and my iBank apps on my iphone, so it seems to be an issues with Billings.
ryan says:
@Peter and @Brian:
Please contact customer service: support [at] marketcircle.com – they’ll help you get sorted out.
Thanks and sorry for any inconveniences!
Ryan
Mark says:
That’s great and all, but I’d much rather have undo functionality in the app than a pretty iPhone app. I know what’s more valuable.
ryan says:
@Mark Just sent you an email, please respond. Thanks!
Darren says:
I just want to say that I love Billings for the Mac, and Billings Touch looks like an awesome product. Too bad I don’t have an iPhone (and prolly won’t be getting one anytime soon.) However I would pay good money for a version of Billings available on webOS. Just a thought.
ryan says:
@Darren – thanks for the comments! Any particular reason holding you back from the iPhone?
Pat says:
Will you be demoing Billings and Billings Touch at MacWorld?
Rob says:
I have been using Billings for a long time, love it and recommend it, but I’m definitely NOT an iPhone person. I’d pay full-price for an Android app.
ryan says:
@Pat – We’ll be at Macworld showing off Billings Touch with a small kiosk – just waiting on a booth #
Darren says:
Hi ryan – yeah, I don’t use an iPhone because I don’t want to switch carriers. I’ve been with Sprint for 10 years in one the same number and to be honest, a lot of folks I know with iPhone’s get crap service on AT&T. Some have returned their phones and gone back to BlackBerries etc.
btinc says:
I love Billings, and Billings touch is a great addition for what I do.
One thing: I really need to be able to have the invoice template of my choice on Billings Touch. If I had that, I could finish timing what I’m doing and send out the invoice right then and there and be done with it. But I don’t want to send out inconsistent invoices.
How hard would it be to select one template style to sync with Billings touch?
ryan says:
@Darren Ah, thanks for the background info. Hopefully Spring will get the iPhone one of these days…
@btinc Unfortunately you can only send custom invoices through Billings on your Mac. The best workflow would be to track the time when you’re mobile and then sync and invoice from your Mac.
Glen McPherson says:
@Ryan
Is there any plan to fix this? I really wish I’d known about the invoice template limitation before outlaying $18 for the app. All I really wanted to do was check and send my invoices whilst traveling home from work.
Ryan Cash says:
@Glen
One of the reason we choose to use Apple In-App Purchase mechanism was so that people could see the whole app in action before purchasing. The invoice creation process is part of the free portions of the app.
There are technical limitations on the iPhone that prevent us from being able to use our templates on the phone. We’ve submitted bugs to Apple and we are waiting to hear back before we make a determination on the course of action.
ErickP says:
@Ryan: I just wrote a harsh comment regarding this very issue with custom invoices. I have to say that this is a huge issue. People are running a business and their branding is important. Hence, the consistency of sending the same custom invoices via the iPhone. You guys charge quiet a bit for iPhone application and for that price you set yourself up for an expectation from you customer base. I understand that you are working on bug issue with Apple but I would really try to convey to your customers that you are indeed aware and trying to make it happen. Oppose to just nonchalantly responding to a few comments. Frequent updates calm the angry mobs with pitch forks and torches.
By the way, I love the product overall but was really bummed with the a few of the exclusions from the iPhone app.
Ryan Cash says:
@ErickP
AJ has responded to you on the Forums: http://forums.marketcircle.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/321105844/m/307101054?r=784103874#784103874
Alex F. says:
I’m happy with the mobile app since I do a lot of on-site jobs that require hourly tracking. However, sometimes I do require the need to send estimates over to clients. It would be nice if the app allowed syncing of estimates created on the mac, and the ability to create estimates from the Billings Touch app. Are there any plans to incorporate this into future releases? Also, is there any update on the bug tracking for using custom templates for invoicing?
Ryan Cash says:
@Alex F.
Thanks for the feedback. We’re aware of the requests for both capabilities – sending estimates and using custom templates, however we don’t have any updates on these requests at this time.
Matt says:
I’m a happy Billings user who would love to see (and would buy) an Android app.
P Tulley says:
Now that you have released the app and it has been tested maybe I will dump my crackberry and get an i(diot)Phone
I love the way you respond to your customers too, top notch.
Philipp says:
Aaaaaaaaaalmost purchased both Billings Touch and Billings for Mac today! I know you’ve heard this before, but here’s why I didn’t end up taking the plunge (in the order of importance to me):
1) No Estimate support: I’m a freelancer. If I don’t work I don’t want to stay at home. But sometimes my clients need an estimate “OMG – RIGHT AWAY, ASAP!!!” So this is a must-have-feature for me.
2) Custom Templates: I know. There are technical issues. I understand and feel your pain. Still, make it work. Your customers clearly want this feature. Even if it means that you have to re-work your template engine for the desktop version (so it can be matched to the scope of the iPhone) and only support the most simple templates across all platforms at first.
3) MobileMe Sync. Truly appreciate that I can sync over a WiFi network. That’s a whole lot better than nothing at all. Still, it’s a task that I need to remember to manually initiate. I’m terrible at remembering things. First I’ll forget to sync, then I’ll forget about your application. In that order. Acrylic’s Wallet uses MobileMe to automatically sync data between it’s iPhone and desktop application. And I love it!
So here’s the deal: Your software looks great! I’d LOVE to use it. But instead I’ll have to go with Invoice2Go. Their solution isn’t perfect either (for one they only offer a windows client – shame on them), but I have to choose between “iPhone app that fulfills my basic needs but no desktop app” and “iPhone and desktop app that fulfill my needs in tandem but not on their own” I’ll have to go with the former. My needs are mostly simple and my iPhone is with me at ALL times!
At this point it’d have already been enough to tell me that these features are planned and coming, to convert me into a Billings user. I’d just have deal with the shortcoming in the meanwhile. That’s how badly I wanted to use your software. Seems the team is a bit too busy fending of criticism, however, and waiting for Apple to “fix” things. Instead of waiting, I’d much rather they start thinking about innovative solutions to the shortcomings we are complaining about.
In the end the customer doesn’t care why you don’t do things. Just do it!
That being said I’ll keep checking back here for updates.
Dylan van der Heij says:
I Just started using Billings and I love it! It really does the job for me and the Billings touch app gives me the option to review my project on the go. The only thing I miss is my personal invoice template for Billings touch. I would never send a invoice by my iPhone, but an proposal is something you can send by your iPhone.
Will this ever become available?
Ryan Cash says:
@Dylan
We’ve had quite a bit of request for this feature, so we’re definitely aware of it – glad to hear you’re enjoying Billings on your Mac and iPhone!
Eric says:
@ryan any idea as to when this feature will be added?
Andrew Michael says:
I am a Billings and Daylite user would pay for an Android App…Please Please Please
Ryan Cash says:
@Eric Unfortunately not ETA for this, sorry.
Casey says:
The fact is that the iPhone is a wonderful machine but with its current carrier it can become a fun brick outside metro areas (this is the case in many areas I need to travel too). As such I have chosen to go with an Android device on Verizon, an equally powerful device with a better network… There is only 1 iPhone and only 1 network it works with but at least 4 top rated Android devices covering several networks at the time I write this.
I was saddened to read through all these comments and Billings responses and not get a shred of hope that an Android version of the app is in development or on the horizon at all. By not covering both Android and iPhone you are alienating a large amount of your customers and I am definitely starting to look for other options for my desktop and mobile billing services.
Please respond with specific comment on plans, or lack thereof, of an Android mobile Billings app.
Thanks.
Ruth Krueger says:
I too almost purchased the Billings Touch and Billings for Mac combo! Unfortunately I rely heavily on instant invoicing on-the-go (photographer.) I’ve been using Invoice2go and just recently bought Timesheet2go (track time, send estimates, and invoice), but would love something more polished, like Billings Touch!!! The customizable invoices aren’t that big of a deal, but it would be nice to use similar templates seen in the desktop version. Thanks!