Bento 2 is a $50 powerful but easy to use database for the Mac. It doesn't have all of the features of a professional database program like its big brother FileMaker Pro. For example, Bento is designed for a single user, not to be shared and updated by multiple users in an organization. But if you use a Mac and you need to create a database to keep track of just about anything for yourself, Bento 2 is a great fit. It is designed to look like iTunes, and is just as easy to use.
A few weeks ago,
I noted that FileMaker released a
Bento app for the iPhone. I have been trying out this $4.99 app for the last week, and I am impressed. When used in connection with Bento 2 for the Mac, the Bento app is a fantastic companion that allows you to keep all of your databases with you wherever you go. As a stand-alone app, Bento for iPhone is still very powerful but is limited by the inherent limitations of entering a lot of data directly on the iPhone.
When you open Bento, you see each of your databases. The default view is a "cover flow" view in which you can flick back and forth between databases. Alternatively, you can view a list of your databases.
If you use Bento on a Mac, tap the Sync button to synchronize databases with a computer on the same Wi-Fi network as your iPhone. The first time you do so, you will need to enter a four-digit passcode on the Mac from the iPhone app to confirm that you want to pair -- a process very similar to Bluetooth pairing or pairing an AppleTV with iTunes. From then on, the iPhone app and your computer can sync files with just a simple tap.
The sync works great. Virtually all of the fields are carried over to the iPhone, including any fields that contain pictures. (See
here for a list of fields not synced, such as iCal events, automatic counter fields, and movies over 10 MB.) For example, I use Bento 2 on my Mac at home to keep track of boxes of items that I store in my attic, a database with over 200 records, each of which contains eight fields including a description of the items, the box number, category (such as "Christmas" or "Baby Items") and the general location in my attic. I used to be limited to using that database when I was at my computer, but now with the Bento iPhone app, I can access it from anywhere -- including, for example, when I am in my attic and I am trying to figure out what is in a sealed box.
You can browse through the items in your database by looking at a list that shows the contents of two fields, and you can choose which fields are displayed and how the fields are sorted. In my Attic Items database, for example, I chose to display the fields containing the Items and the Box Number. You can also search for items in a particular database, or you can even search across all of your Bento databases.
Tap on an entry and you can see all of the fields. For fields containing a picture, a thumbnail is displayed which you can tap to see a larger picture. Unfortunately, you cannot rotate the screen to see the picture in a larger landscape view, nor can you pinch to zoom:
Adding new records is as simple as tapping a + and entering information in one or more fields. Likewise, it is simple to edit field entries in a previously-created record. You can add to a picture field either by adding a picture already on your iPhone or by taking a new picture with the iPhone.
You can also create a new database from within the Bento app. Indeed, if you don't have a Mac running Bento 2, then this is the only way to use the app. When you tap the "New Library" button you can create either a blank database or can start with a pre-designed template and then edit it. Templates are included for the following: Projects, Contacts, To Do Items, Recipes, Diet Log, Events, Files, Inventory, Event Planning, Time Billing, Home Inventory, Expenses, Exercise Log, Vehicle Maintenance, Classes, Digital Media, Student List, Membership List, Products for Sale, Equipment, Issue Tracking, Items Sold, Customer, Donations, and Notes. I named each one of those templates because those are excellent examples of the types of databases that it would be handy to keep on your iPhone. While some of these templates are business-related, such as Time Billing and Expenses, I must admit that for a long time I thought of Bento on the Mac as primarily something for home use. But as
I noted a few weeks ago, San Francisco attorney Grace Suarez tells me that she uses Bento 2 for work. She has been
interviewed on her use of Bento in her law practice, and her blog includes posts on using Bento in a law practice such as
this post on using Bento to manage clients. Thus, while all attorneys could find Bento a useful way to keep track of items in their personal lives, attorneys may find Bento useful for tracking business items, especially if they have a solo practice.
The Bento app also, by default, includes a database called Address Book. This database contains all of the contents of the Contacts on your iPhone and is always synced with the latest info. This can be useful if you would like to create fields that are associated with your Contacts but are not included in the Contacts app. For example, if you want to keep track of which mailings you have sent to different people, additional pictures associated with different people, etc., you can create those fields in the Bento Address Book database. I currently do something similar in the Contacts database itself by just using the notes field for each person to enter additional info that I want to associate with a person, but the Bento approach is more organized. The Bento app also plays nice with other built-in iPhone apps, including Safari, Mail and Maps.
If you use Bento 2 on a Mac, then I strongly recommend that you spend $4.99 for the Bento iPhone app. It is a wonderful companion to Bento 2 and it reminds me, once again, how much my iPhone allows me to easily manage important information in my life and keep it always within reach. I see room for improvements in an update. For example, the app occasionally crashed on me (although I never lost any data so it was just a minor inconvenience) and the app was sometimes slow to respond. Also, while you can change the order in which fields are displayed, you cannot change the size or layout of the fields. It would be nice to have the ability to have a picture field take up a larger portion of the screen, have one field stretch across two lines, have two other fields share the same line, etc. But even this 1.0 version of the app is very useful and functional. If you use Bento 2, you will love this app.
If you don't use Bento 2 -- for example, if you use a PC instead of a Mac -- then you will have to spend a little more time to decide whether the Bento app is right for you. I say so for two reasons. First, while Bento is a jack of all trades, you might prefer a dedicated app that is specially designed for the task at hand. For example, instead of using Bento to track billable hours, you may be more happy with one of the many time tracking apps for the iPhone which have a layout customized for the task. There are also a large number of dedicated "To Do Items" apps that you might prefer. Having said that, the advantage of a true database app like Bento is that you can customize the fields to your heart's content. Not that any of us lawyers are control freaks. If you want to set up a database on your iPhone with complete control over the fields but you want something easy to start using quickly, then Bento would be a good choice even if you don't use Bento 2 on a Mac.
Second, while the Bento iPhone app is powerful enough to create a large and sophisticated database, doing so on an iPhone is inherently more cumbersome then using a computer with a large screen and keyboard. If you don't currently use any database program on your computer and if you use a Mac, then consider getting both Bento 2 and the Bento app. But if you already use another database program on your computer, such as Microsoft Access or FileMaker Pro, you should check out apps such as HanDBase Database Manager, FMTouch and Database Viewer Plus that sync with those other programs (but which I have not yet tried). Moreover, if use a Mac and want to track your books, DVDs, CDs or videogames, then you might be better off with the gorgeously designed Delicious Library program on your computer along with the companion iPhone app which will be released shortly.
Kudos to FileMaker for creating a great companion to Bento 2. I now want to create even more useful databases on my Mac with the knowledge that I can always keep the databases with me on my iPhone.
Click here to get Bento ($4.99):
Bento for the iPhone is a great product, but one much needed word of caution. Bento for the iPhone users must realize that if their phone is stolen or lost that ANYONE can access their client data and their data. I say this because nearly 8 million phones are lost or stolen each year - and I do not think that "sensitive" information should be on the iPhone unless it is encrypted. My iPhone was taken last year at Devcon - luckily it was new with very few contacts - but a lot of pictures of my family and friends. If they will steal your phone - they will not be honorable with the info they find in your database.
Both HanDBase and FMTouch offer 128 bit encryption. Companies have to apply and go through an exceptance process with the United States government to be improved. This is not a mash against Bento for the iPhone - I am simply saying that you should be very cautious as to the information you place in Bento.
HandBase works with PC and FMTouch works with both Mac and PC and FileMaker.
Posted by: Ed McNeil | May 27, 2009 at 10:26 AM
Ed, that is an excellent point, and obviously one that is not unique to this Bento app. Because my iPhone is set up to work with my law firm's Exchange server, I have the ability to do a complete remote wipe of my iPhone if it is lost. We tested this option at my firm and it does work. But if others have an iPhone without a remote wipe capability, they should be as careful with an iPhone as they are with a briefcase or anything else with sensitive information.
-Jeff
Posted by: Jeffrey Richardson | May 27, 2009 at 03:46 PM
How do you completely wipe out iphone using exchange server? That's an interesting thing. I know that the addressbook can be wiped out but can you wipeout bento databases too?
Posted by: sunil | September 02, 2009 at 12:02 AM