Coolors 4+

I’ve been using Coolors for years and this newer app version makes it even easier to find the perfect palette. The generator is intuitive and always picks thoughtful sets. The ability to lock, swap, and adjust colors makes customization a breeze. I love the addition of a projects filter. I love exploring what other users have created. This developer is really out here working to make the best possible palette experience a designer at every level could ask for.

This is a decent app for creating a color palette which supports exporting to procreate, which is convenient. That being said, all the knobs for adjusting the palette, which should be a fixed element for easy access, is hidden inside a menu under a tiny button. I have to click it once, and then again to access it, then close down. I found myself constantly opening and closing menus for simple adjustments. So much screen real estate is wasted on huge bars of colors, which look nice, but not very useful. Also another thing to mention, there was no indication on where to find a button to increase the number of colors. After struggling for 20 minutes I found it by going into the library, opening the palette, then accessing a different tab within the menu. I was on the verge of canceling the purchase via Apple support because I thought it was a misadvertisement. Something that should be a split second operation that would normally be out on the front in any other app is hidden behind by 5 second hassle. If you try to use it any seriously you will find yourself constantly opening and closing menus. It is inconvenience for the sake of making things look smooth. So overall, it functions okay, but UI design isn't very practical.

Sign-in doesn’t work; have tried to log into the service multiple times. No errors, even—it just never signs me in. And that’s a problem, because crucial things like saving a palette—something that most other apps allow you to do locally—require being logged in. If you have no internet access, you can’t save any palettes, or browse any of your saved palettes. The app is useless without a data connection. That should never be the case for an app that allows you to create content. Imagine if losing internet access meant you couldn’t save any of the photos you took. Even if they somehow get sign-in to work, that’s a major design flaw in the app itself. There is NO reason to be charging $2.99 for what’s basically just a front end to their website. One major reason to even offering an app would be working locally when you can’t access the website. I really feel cheated here. It’s a shame—the actual site is very useful, which is why I trusted Coolors enough to purchase the app. Wish I hadn’t.