Android App: Calendar Event Reminder

Please help us to translate CER to different languages: http://bit.ly/MGO4Ly

If you have any questions or problems with CER please read the FAQ first before getting in contact with us. Thanks!

THE App for calendar reminders – never forget an appointment anymore! Perfect for business user!
This app adds a repeating calendar reminder and extends the stock calendar application. You can customize the duration, repetitions, sound and vibration pattern. Works with every synced calendar.

When alarm / reminder goes off the device will be turned on and a popup window with information about the event (title, time, location) is displayed. Alarm / reminder can be disabled by clicking the dismiss and snoozed by the snooze button.

Features:
– Settings per calendar
– Repeating reminder / alarm alert for all synced calendars (even corporate calendar)
– Customizable vibration pattern / alarm sound
– Lock screen style sliders or wheel to snooze / discard alarm
– Froyo / Gingerbread / ICS look & feel for sliders
– Text-to-speech
– Stays open after every/last/no reminder
– Multiple snooze buttons with adjustable snooze logic and layout
– Wakes up device display automatically
– Supports Android 2.1 or greater including Froyo, Gingerbread, Honeycomb, Icecream Sandwich and Jelly Bean!
– Shows notifications in the notification bar
– Supports LED flashing
– Supports to flash screen during alarm
– Customizable orientation
– Clean and simple

In combination with the Android calendar this app can be used as a personal assistance to automatically notify you about upcoming birthdays / anniversaries, when to take your medecin or other things of life you don’t want to forget.

!! Please note: !!

– You have to disble your alarm sound within the calendar app. Otherwise the alarm sound of my app may be suppressed
– You have to exclude my app from any task killer app

Touchdown and Lotus Traveler not supported!

If you have any comments, feature requests or questions please get in contact with me. You can vote for new features on my website. You can also follow me on twitter @invalidobject_ for recent infos.

We would also appreciate your help in translating this app into your favourite language! Just send us an email.

Explanation of the permissions:
– android.permission.VIBRATE
Control vibrator: Used for the alarm to vibrate the phone with the desired vibration pattern
– android.permission.WAKE_LOCK
Disable standby modus: Used to make sure that the screen isn’t turned off during alarm
– android.permission.READ_PHONE_STATE
Phone calls / read phone state: This is to not interrupt active calls by the alarm and to stop the alarm when a phone call comes in.
– android.permission.READ_CALENDAR
Read calendar events: This is to get the time, title and location from the event when an alarm is raised.
– android.permission.WRITE_CALENDAR
Modify calendar events: When an alarm is snoozed my app has to store a new reminder for the event. This is stored in the calendar database.
– android.permission.GET_TASKS
Retrieve running applications: Used by the home helper to get the Launchers which can be associated with the home key
– android.permission.SET_PREFERRED_APPLICATIONS
Set preferred apps: Used by the home helper to replace the launcher for the home key
– android.permission.HARDWARE_TEST
Test hardware: Used to set the screen brightness for flashing screen
– android.permission.RECEIVE_BOOT_COMPLETED
Automatically start at boot: Checks for unfinished / missed reminders when phone is started
– android.permission.MODIFY_AUDIO_SETTINGS
Change audio settings: Used to set a custom volume for the alarm
– com.android.vending.CHECK_LICENSE
License check: Used to check if the user is using a valid license
– android.permission.WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE
SDCard access: Used to read/write settings file for im/export
– android.permission.WRITE_SETTINGS
Change system settings: Used to overwrite the display timeout

Note: If you want to use your own sounds like mp3s for notifications or alarms please read this hint.

Update Version 5.3.2:

  • Added option to enable/disable LED flashing during quiet mode
  • Enhanced Czech, French and Russian translation
  • Added Hungarian and Hindi translation
  • Fixed: Blink rate for notification light didn’t work as configured (slow, fast)

Which Feature for the next version? (select 2)

View Results

Follow me on Twitter @invalidobject_ to get infos on recent develeopment.

Please feel free to leave feature-requests, bugs, ideas, questions or other feedback through the comments below.

chart

[flash]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kgwIq3EqUQ[/flash]

– Added customizable sound for alarms
– Now you can choose for which modes (silent, vibration, normal) sound or vibration is used

310 thoughts on “Android App: Calendar Event Reminder”

  1. This is a very usefull app! It helps me every Day.
    But I have a problem with the button to open the event when the reminder is showing.
    I use the app Business Calendar as Standard Calendar app. After I used the open button the reminder is closed and the reminder stopps.

  2. Hi Frank

    I’ve just purchased this app as I thought it has the potential to be a great app (good as it is) especially with all the additional planned / future features.

    However, I notice one immediate important feasture that is missing, i.e. the additional reminder DESCRIPTION / NOTE is not displayed on the notificatin dialogue when it’s triggerred. I think this piece of information is crucial as one might be missing out the key message within the description.

    Also, please can you include an option to just close the notification dialogue box as one might just want to read without amending the snoozing times.

    I’m particularly interested to see the integration with Google Tasks which would really set this app apart from others.

    Regards

    Eric

  3. Elipn,
    i will push out an update soon which will be optimized for memory consumption. On my devices it will then stay at about 5-8MB.

    Regards,
    Frank

  4. t1000,
    actually i’m storing all information about alarms in the standard Android calendar database, so this SHOULD also be synced back to Outlook. Unfortunately it doesn’t work and it even doesn’t work with the default Android reminders (disabling my app). So i think this is a fundamental problem of the Android sync, which i’m not able to solve 🙁

    Regards,
    Frank

  6. Eric,

    thanks for your feedback. You are right. Currently the description is not shown, because it might break the layout. But i will think about how to integrate it (maybe optionally).
    The feature request about just closing the reminder window (without dismissing) is a bit tricky. Maybe you could use the option to not remove the notification when the alarm is dismissed?
    And be sure that i’m already working hard on the GTasks integration 😉

    Regards,
    Frank

  7. Frank & t1000: Outlook’s reminder box is completely independent of all other clients. There is no way for CER to sync that status back to Outlook/Exchange because that status is simply not capable of being synced.

    This is an annoyance (or a feature, depending on your perspective) that has been well known for some time through Exchange+Outlook deployments. A reminder goes off, you need to dismiss your phone, your laptop, your tablet, and your Outlook Web Access. Ugh.

  8. Frank – I think you can just close the reminder activity. Currently I just disable home helper integration so I can “close” CER by clicking my home button without dismissing the reminder. It works well. The only disadvantage is that it takes me to my home screen instead of the app I was previously on. Oh well.

    Also, I second showing the description/notes field on the screen as an option. It should be optional due to possible privacy concerns from some people.

  10. I, too, have had a couple of force closes in the last couple of days. I’ve used the “Report” function to send in data about them, but I’m not sure if that makes it back to you or not.

  11. David, Travis,
    thanks for your feedback. The reports reached me and i will push out an update for these bugs as soon as possible.

    Regards,
    Frank

  12. Parrotlover77,
    the problem with the “close” is that i have to dismiss the reminder explicitly. Otherwise it will reoccur sometime in the future. So actually the close has to do the same like the dismiss.

    Regards,
    Frank

  14. I’m missing the update in the androidpit store!
    There is only Version 4.2 available.

  15. I’m very sorry for those numerous bugfix-releases. The last one was a result of an IDE update…so: many thanks to Google :-\

    App is out now with v4.3.3 (also on AndroidPit).

  16. I’ll wait and see if 4.3.3 fixes this… but in 4.3.1, I can’t actually open CER to see the options menu. I see the title bar with “Calendar Event Reminder” at the top… and gray over the rest of the screen.

  19. Your app does not seem to work with Jorte Calendar even though I have your app set to work with “all acalendars.” I have a Razr Maxx with Android 2.3.6

  20. Susan, thanks for your comment. After you installed Jorte, you will be asked which type of calendar to use. You have to select Google then, because the jorte calendar isn’t supported by my app. This is, because jorte has its own implementation for alarms which my app cannot hook into.

    Hope that helps.

  21. Is there a way to set custom alarm settings (e.g. MP3, vibration, etc.) that vary depending on the calendar that is the source of the alarm? My wife is used to setting custom ringtones for calendar events (e.g. Song A for work meetings, Song B for other work items, Song C for meeting with friends, etc.) on a “feature” phone, and now that I’ve gotten her onto Android she’d like to be able to do the same thing.

    Thanks,
    Alan

  22. Alan. If you are using different Google calendars than this can be done with my app. Just uncheck the ‘global settings’ and you get different settings for each calendar. Then you can set up different alarm ringtones.

  23. Great, thanks. You might highlight that, it may be the only way people can get semi-customized alarms whole using the stock calendar of they’re used to them on other platforms.

  24. I’d love to be able to see the details/description on the same popup with the reminder. I can’t find any way possible at the moment, am I wrong? Is it currently possible?

  25. Alyssey,
    thanks for your comment. Currently there is no chance to put the details in the alert window. But this feature is already planned. You can also vote for it for a faster implementation.

    Regards,
    Frank

  26. Thanks for answering! I don’t know which one is it, in the voting section, maybe I’m misreading, which one is it? I’d definitely vote for it!

  27. Woops, i thought i added an entry for this already. Now you can find the entry “Option to show details of event in alert window”.

    Regards,
    Frank

  28. Hello,
    I needed a nagging notificaiton on my Galaxy S2 Skyrocket’s calendar so I just downloaded your app. However, even after reading the usage guide, I am still confused about the “home” key. When I used to press “home” it took me to my home screen. Now I get “Complete action using Calendar Event Reminder Home or TwLauncher”. I am nervous to set either of these as default because I don’t know what’s going on and don’t want to screw up anything in case I decide to uninstall the app. I just want to get back to my home screen like I used to be able to. Thanks for helping!
    Sheila

  29. Hi,

    First off, thanks for this great app.
    However, I’m having an issue with the volume being modified when the calendar event is activated.
    I have a problem with it in these two cases:
    1. I’m listening to music with headphones (Medial volume is at 40%), then a calendar event occurs, volume is adjusted to high, which causes my ears to explode because the music also starts playing loud.
    2. I use Llama – Location Profiles, so that when I’m at work, ring/notification volume is reduced to 20%. But , when a calendar event occurs, its volume is high.

    Any way of adding a feature to not adjust the volume?

    Thanks.

  30. Sheila,

    thanks for your message. The Home Helper will work like a proxy and sends the event of pushing the home key back to your original app. So when there is no alarm you will get to your home screen just like before. But in case of an alarm my app will absorb the push event so you won’t send the alarm window to the back.

    Hope this makes it clear.

    Regards,
    Frank

  31. Hi Dayvan,

    thanks for your message. You can solve this issue by selecting a different “volume type” from the sound preferences. There you can choose to use i.e. “media” so the system setting for volumes of media streams is reused. So if the volume is reduced this will also apply to any alarm that is raised.

    Hope this helps.

    Regards,
    Frank

  32. Ahh, :facepalm: , I can’t believe I didn’t notice that before.
    Works great, thanks again 🙂

  33. Hello,
    I have a Sony Ray smartphone with Android 4, Jorte calendar and your Calendar Event Reminder. Unfortunately it seems to me that the combination does not work as expected or it doesn’t work at all.
    Therefore the following queston: does Calendar Event Reminder (CER) cooperate with Jorte Calendar (free version)? Cooperation means: CER generates a nagging reminder for Jorte events.
    What are the main configuration mistakes which prohibit the combination to work properly?
    Is it possible to let CER switch on at the event (not only 5 or more minutes before the event)?
    Regards,

    nIk Spitz

  34. Dear Nik,
    after installation of Jorte you are asked how you want to store the events added to your calendar. You then have to choose Google Calendar. If you choose “Jorte” then my app won’t be notified when an alarm gets raised. This is because Jorte provides its own notification functionality and doesn’t use he Google calendar notifications.

    You can fix this by first exporting your events to the Google Calendar and uninstall / reinstall Jorte. After that you can choose the Google Calendar as data storage and you should get alarms for your events. But please mind to always set a reminder for every event that is added to the calendar.

    Regards,
    Frank

  35. Samsung Galaxy S3 on Ice Cream Sandwich: I’m getting most alarms, but the first one of the day gets missed about half the time. If I use the “Check missed alarms” feature, it pops up. I can see the notification is set in the event, too. Is there any log or anything I could look at to see why that’s getting missed?

  37. I have a Galaxy S3. I use the stock S Planner calendar all the time but cannot use a custom event notification on it. If I set it to use one I imported it defaults back to a stock tone of short duration. I am hard of hearing and need the event alarms to be longer that a second or 2. Will your app allow me to use custome ringtones of longer duration and maybe even up the volume as I carry my phone in a horizontal leather holster that attenuates the sound. Thanks

  38. Mike,
    you can of course use a custom notification / alarm sound and it also will be played as long as you whish (default is 60 seconds) ;). If you want to use an mp3 as alarm ringtone just follow
    this guide.

    You can also customize the volume you want to use and this can be one of the system configured volumes (like alarm, music, notification…) or just one for my app (default).
    You can find the sound settings below the calendar settings / all calendars.

    Hope this helps. If you need any further assistance, just let me know.

  39. Hi,
    Seems like a great app, however I am having trouble getting it to work. I have a Samsung galaxy Player 4.2 – android gingerbread 2.3.6. I have tried to follow all suggestions here to use with default calendar that comes on device ( turning off alert, setting alert tone in Event Reminder instead, setting reminder for scheduled event, etc.) Are there any known issues with this device or a troubleshooting guide I can follow?

    Thanks
    Peter

  40. Frank,

    Are you ever going to add the increasing insistant reminder option? It has been number two on the list for the next version through 4 or 5 versions now. Would some kind of donation help?

  41. Hi!

    I have used this app for a long time now, but I miss something I’m quite sure I saw in earlier versions? I have an iCal calendar i sync to Google, but it doesn’t contain any alarm information. I think i saw an option before to “make” alarms for events that didn’t contain any alarm? Is it removed, or have i confused it with another app maybe? It would be a great feature that I really need if it’s not there otherwise.

    Keep up the good work!
    Michael

  42. I just saw that it actually was Nudnik Calendar Reminder that had that option. I really hope you will take this feature in consideration for feature version, it would be a great option to have reminders on events that doesn’t have that as default (like if I sync a iCal online calendar).

    Sincerely
    Michael

  44. David,
    the increasing insistent reminder will come with the next release. A first implementation is already done.

    Regards,
    Frank

  45. I am using Calendar Event Reminder for a longer period of time now and I still like at.

    But as there seems to be some Problems with all day events in Android generally (always remind me at 02:00 amm which is annoying), i’ve tried Calendar Snooze that provides a feature to postpone all day events (mostly birthdays in my case) to a specific time. It seems to work in a short time test, but I returned to CER, as I don’t like the UI and usage of Calendar Snooze. Most of my all-day events now have a custom reminder date, so it’s not a problem currently, but when syncing new birthdays with Thunderbird again, it might get one again 😉

    This feature would be nice in CER.

    Regards,
    Michael

  48. Request to please add support to GTasks. I use GTasks, simple calendar and Calendar Event Reminder. Simple Calendar already supports GTasks. It will be really great if Calendar Event Reminder can also support GTasks. It would be perfect.

    Thanks,
    Naveen

  49. My samsung galaxy two home screen had a nice digital clock at the top of the home screen. Your home screen does not include it and I don’t see it in apps. To add a widget under samsung I just press and hold an empty spot on the screen and then press add a widget. On your screen when I press and hold a blank spot I only am offered a choice of wallpaper. How do I add a widget under your program?

  50. Michael’s suggestion sounds awesome! I’m usually awake at midnight, but it is very annoying that the reminder dings at that time.

    Frank – Can you announce a timeline for new features? Several features that are uber important to me personally, but are not high on the list, have been on the list for a year or more. I’m just curious if I can realistically expect any of those features in the future or not.

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