OmniGraffle 3
The premier iOS diagramming app just got better
The unified navigation bar gathers document objects, layers and canvases
Free; Standard £48.99, Pro £99.99 FROM The Omni Group, omnigroup.com NEEDS iOS 10.3 or later
Testament to OmniGraffle’s versatility is the software's incongruous collection of
fans. Website wireframers, illustrators and process flow junkies all praise its unfussy approach to diagram creation.
OmniGraffle 3 for iOS remains delightfully straightforward. You drag elements to its canvas from a built-in collection of shapes and objects called stencils. The choice is extended through a link to Omni’s online stencil repository.
The obvious change is a fresh, panelled look. A lot of usability is packed into the unified navigation sidebar that gathers document objects, layers and canvases. It makes it easy to select objects based on their properties. Each OmniGraffle shape, line or symbol is endlessly adjustable through the Inspector sidebar; once a pop-up panel, this is now static. Fewer taps are needed to adjust properties, but it feels awkward to see the Inspector button along the document toolbar.
Sidebars on iOS devices are inimical to diagramming apps that thrive on space. But OmniGraffle alleviates this through a floating Tool palette that can be minimised with a tap, while tap-and-hold triggers fullscreen mode leaving only the canvas visible. The canvas dimensions themselves are no constraint now. At any time the canvas can be flexibly extended or made infinite, so you’ll never see the canvas edge.
Standalone features
If you’re used to OmniGraffle on the Mac, you’ll enjoy a near-frictionless transition. However, each version of OmniGraffle on iOS gives more reasons to rely on it as a standalone app. This version can import SVG images and Omni has squeezed in a crossplatform JavaScript engine to manipulate documents through scripts. The Pro version – which adds extras such as Microsoft Visio export – includes a scripting console.
There are still features we’d like to see – a variation of the macOS version’s outliner, which accelerates layout creation, for example. But the Freehand tool here compensates: draw a shape on the canvas with your finger and OmniGraffle converts it into an object.
A word too for Omni’s ‘try before you buy’ approach. You can download the app for free, try it for a limited time and upgrade to the full standard or pro versions via IAPs. If you choose not to upgrade after the 14-day trial, OmniGraffle 3 will switch over to a read-only viewer mode, where you can share or view any documents you created during the trial.