Colleagues want to play table football, there are several conferences on the calendar, and then someone keeps calling. At the end of the day the question: Where has the time gone again? If you get distracted, it is difficult to concentrate on your work. Numerous apps promise uncomplicated time recording – the so-called time cube of the start-up Timeular should make it even easier.
The white plastic cube has eight sides and a position sensor. It communicates with the software via Bluetooth, which can also be used to set it up. It is available for the desktop as well as an app for iOS and Android. Any activity is assigned to each of the pages, for example telephoning or conferencing. When the phone rings, you turn the corresponding side of the dice up and the time starts running.
The Zei comes with a USB Bluetooth receiver for the computer, stickers and a pen for writing on the pages. The user is guided through the installation via a link. The eight sides of the cube should be enough for normal office work.
In the test with an Android cell phone, the setup and operation mostly worked well. From time to time, however, the time measurement did not change to the new activity despite the dice being turned over. It’s worth checking regularly whether the measurement is running correctly – which doesn’t quite fit the developers’ goal of making the time recording as casual as possible.
A cube for freelancers
The statistics give a good overview of how you spent your working days. For example, Zei is suitable for freelancers who work on various projects and bill on an hourly basis. But the cube can also help in everyday office life to identify time-consuming tasks and adjust processes accordingly.
In the starter version, the part costs 99 euros, not all software features can then be used. The Pro version is available for a one-time fee of EUR 49 plus a fee of EUR 9 per month, i.e. EUR 108 per year. Among other things, the time recording integrations for third-party programs can be used for this and an infinite number of activities can be saved. The cube also has a handsome price for its usefulness – after all, freelancers can still try to deduct it from their taxes.
