Apple’s Journal app has arrived – here’s what’s good and bad

I feel confident saying that Day One is not staring down an existential threat — at least not yet. Keep in mind we’re talking about Apple has a well-known history of Sherlocking new apps with feature updates (it was, after all, the company that gave rise to the term), but in its current form, the new journaling app still has a ways to go to catch up with Day One’s head start.

 

After all, the Automattic-owned app has been kicking for more than a decade, at this point. It’s worth mentioning here that Apple’s long been a fan of their work, naming it “Mac App of the Year” in 2014 and giving it an Apple Design Award two years later.

 

“Rather than seeing this as competition, we embrace Apple’s entry into digital journaling as a testament to its growing importance,” Paul Mayne, head of Day One told TechCrunch. “This evolution is not just beneficial for Day One, but also for our valued users.”

 

It’s the rising tide approach to facing down a juggernaut. I think it’s safe to say that Apple entering your small slice of the App Store is a kind of validation of your mission. Day One has a pretty loyal fanbase, from what I gather, and switching over to another app entirely may be more trouble than it’s worth. We’ll have to reassess the situation when Journal has a wider feature set and is (hopefully) available on more platforms.