Today we’re going to take a look at a couple apps that can help you post content directly to your Tumblr account. As you no doubt already know, Tumblr is one of the hottest blogging platforms on the web today, largely due to its strong emphasis on being social and incredibly easy to pick up workflow.
The two apps that we are comparing are Tumblita and PostWarden. At first glance, they seem quite similar, but let’s find out just how different they are.
Tumblita For Mac
While Tumblita is perhaps known more as an iOS app, it also has a Mac version which is surely worth a look. It’s a pretty simple Tumblr editor that runs in your menu bar, but it probably has more features than you would expect it to have. At $0.99 (at the time of this writing), Tumblita is the cheapest (and perhaps, lower-end) competitor in this review. Let’s get deeper into its details.
Interface
Tumblita
Tumblita has no real windowed interface, it runs from your menu bar and if you want to post something new you just select the option from the drop down and an editor will appear in a new window. This makes it more based on speed, ideal for sharing just a quick image or note.
When you try to add a new post, you have a very similar sight to the Tumblr editor. You have the different post categories or templates on the top, just like on the site. These are Text, Quote, Video, Link, Image, Audio and Video; and all of which are represented by an icon. You can even quickly select one of these by using keyboard shortcuts.
Features
Posting in Tumblita
Depending on the type of post you selected, the editor below will display different fields for you to fill, again much like Tumblr’s editor does. For example: if you select a link post you get to fill out the title, URL and description for the post; if you select an image you get a description field and an uploader so that you can share content from your desktop or a URL.
Every feature that you can find on the Tumblr entry editor, you can find here. It’s basically just a little desktop version of that editor. You can upload videos, images, audio files and anything else text-related with as much ease as you can with Tumblr’s web interface.
Extras
Along with all the post types and all the options available for you to post, the app also has a sidebar where you can tweak a few useful things, like the account and blog that you are going to be posting from (you can have several blogs under one account, in case you didn’t know), select the tags for the post, the URL you’d like it to end to, and the option to save it as a draft or publish it right there.
One of the most useful things I found that I honestly wasn’t expecting this app to have, is the “Share to Twitter” field that the Tumblr editor has. In it, you can select whether you want to send your new post to Twitter and what you want the tweet to say (the link to the post is automatically added).
There are also some extra hidden features under the settings, like the ability to publish something right as you drag it to the app, and to send posts to Tumblr as Markdown text.
PostWarden
PostWarden is the more expensive (it’s currently at $9.99 on the App Store) and more complete app that we are going to be reviewing. It actually feels more like a real app and not like a simple menu-bar tool. Unlike Tumblita, PostWarden is a little bit more professional and complete. It actually reminds me a little bit of some email client apps.
Interface
PostWarden
PostWarden, unlike Tumblita, has its own main window where you can find your different accounts neatly arranged. In the main window, you have the text editor right in the center of the app, and a sidebar where all the posts for your active blog are shown. There’s a drop-down menu above this sidebar where you can switch accounts or blogs, as well as add new ones. You also have another drop-down where you can select the posts you want to be shown, if you want to see them by date or if you just want to see your drafts.
The entry editor is also similar to that of Tumblr, as it also has the division for each post type. Although the editor seems a little bit more complicated than the Tumblita one does, it also has all the same features that you would expect (even Twitter, tags and custom URLs).
Features
Posting in PostWarden
The first and most important advantage that PostWarden has over Tumblita is the ability to look and edit old posts. It’s also very easy to do so. When you are reading any of your posts on the main app window, you can just hit the “Edit” button on the top and start typing away.
On the text editor, the available features are a little bit harder to find than in Tumblita, but they’re there. It’s also not quite as pretty as the Tumblita editor, but it still gets the job done quite well. Actually, it has a special feature that Tumblita does not: saving offline drafts of what you write, which gives the app a very cool ability to become an entry editor even when you don’t have access to Internet.
Extras
An advantage of being a complete window app is that PostWarden has fullscreen Lion support, which makes it a much more comfortable app for writing and editing posts. Besides that, there aren’t many extras other than what we’ve mentioned here. It actually lacks a few things that Tumblita has, like Markdown support, although it makes up for that by having other features like an offline mode.
Verdict
I should begin my conclusion by stating that none of these apps really provide a complete substitute for Tumblr. They don’t let you browse your feed or interact with users, which are both big parts of what Tumblr is about (after all, it is a social network). These apps are just a quick way to post stuff from your Desktop to Tumblr, something that you might find convenient if you share tons of content periodically.
Does the “you get what you pay for” phrase work here? It’s hard to say; while the difference between the two apps is quite noticeable, deciding on which to get also depends on what use you plan on giving to these apps. PostWarden is more elaborate than Tumblita and has more features, but they both achieve pretty much the same results. If you’d like to edit old posts and have a more full writing experience, then PostWarden is the way to go. But if you are just looking for a cheap and quick app for posting pictures and related content to your Tumblr, then Tumblita might do just fine for you.
Which one would you choose? Perhaps you’d rather keep using the Tumblr web interface? Do you even use Tumblr, or are you absorbed by the other dozens of relevant social networks available? Let us know in the comments!