The Hanx application is a very simple yet rewarding productivity software that lets the avid user turn his/her ipad into a portable typewriter. The one responsible for this charming little app is the one and only, oscar-winning actor, Tom Hanks! It turns out Tom has been a fan, as well as a serious collector of various models of typewriters since before he was famous. Tom says tpewriters are "beautiful works of art. I've ended up collecting them from every riduculous source possible." The Main features of this application is the ability to simulate a typewriter in a modern way. a review from ndtv summarizes it "a smooth animation showing the letters strike the page. All this, with a very satisfying clicking noise, and the joyous ding as you hit the end of a line - very retro indeed!" The delete is also unique in that it has the option to "X" out a mistyped letter which makes the difficulty increasingly stressful. Though with such features this could prove useful in school systems; as said by classmate Shawn Matsuura "This app could also train people to type without mistakes for each mistake leaves an X." Though, in this new generation of technology and increasingly demanding need for easier productivity, will this application find a spot on the interface of one's idevice? The answer seems to be a firm "Yes!" The Hanx writer was released in mid August and has since than been the conquering software of apple's app store for "free apps." Although, the Hanx writer is free, it also conatains IAP (in-app-purchases) which can be used to unlock extra content like; being able to save multiple documents, background color change, and ribbon selection. The extra content is not essential, however, the ability to type in a golden font feels surprisingly classy! Now from a user's perspective, before i downloaded this app i was a bit skeptical. I thought to myself "why would anyone want an app that just typewrites? isn't evernote and microsoft word more convient?" Well the asnwer to that question is yes. Word and evernote seem to be better as far as 'productivity' goes. ndtv writes that the "Hanx Writer is, by modern standards, a terrible word-processor." However in uniqueness and sincerity, the hanx writer seems to accomplish that feeling that the other apps cant seem to grasp. Ndtv continues the review by stating
"Typewriters are not the best tools to write on anymore - but there is a huge amount of romanticism imbued in them."
The 'click click' sound of each letter hitting the page and 'ding!' for the return bar makes the Hanx writer aberrant in a way that other word processors can't capture. When i first started using the Hanx writer i felt that nostalgia from when i was a wee toddler playing Nintendo. My parents would sit in the corner and all i would hear was