Customer Reviews
Limited 
2008-07-18
DO NOT plan on entering a database of substance. Bento has its limits and when you hit it, in my situation is was 1280 entries you are dead in the water. Bento is for light and very basic use. It is not for those that need more than entering a few household items. I am very disappointed with the software and their support.
Far from perfect, but it's pretty darn good 
2008-07-14
Let's start with what Bento is not. Bento is not the end all be all database program. I deal with and have dealt with some of the biggest and baddest at the enterprise level such as: Oracle, SQL Server, Teradata, and Informix to name a few. So, I really understand what a database should be.
Face it, Bento was made to make databases easy for most users. And on that front, I think it succeeds, and that is why I wanted to get a copy. I wanted a very basic and user friendly database program. And, I thought, if it was easy enough, I would get around to doing some projects that I had put off because I didn't want to devote a huge amount of time completing.
Project 1: I track my work time on a daily basis. For years, I have been doing this in Excel. I knew that moving to a database program would be better but just didn't have the time. After Bento arrived, I jumped in and was able to convert my time tracking to Bento. Now for the downside, there is no reporting capabilities which is a problem when you are wanting to analyze your time. So, I did have to create an export from Bento to load into Excel so that I could do pivot tables. Once I got this set-up, the ongoing updates are easy, breezy. I just export from Bento, go to Excel, refresh the data and then refresh the pivot table. Really, it is just a matter of a few seconds to see the latest and greatest.
Project 2: I had done a bad job of maintaining a home inventory. Bento has a standard template for a home inventory that I just made some minor tweaks to and off I went. I am doing a much better job of keeping track of things and knowing what we have.
Project 3: Expense tracking was also in Excel. I converted it over to Bento and it is in a much more user friendly format now.
Project 4: I wanted to create a project tracking database. So, if I got a call from someone wanting to know the latest and greatest, I could open the page for the project and give a quick run down.
On the downside, I wish there was a better library of templates available. I had to build some things from scratch because there was simply nothing that was even close to what I was seeking. But, since Bento is new, it will take some time for those to appear.
Bottomline - I use Bento just about every day. I have integrated it into my tracking really pretty easily. I use several software packages, and I didn't think that Bento was very hard to pick-up. It seemed pretty intuitive. If you have been through the Office 2007 switch on PCs, I can promise that event was more painful that picking up a copy of Bento. If you don't think in terms of how to organize using a database structure, the built-in templates should be a big help. Once you look at those, it is pretty easy to make some changes if you want just another field to drop one that you will not use.
Bento, very useful and easy to use 
2008-06-20
Bento is of course, Filemaker light. It automatically picks up and creates a bidirectional data base with the information in your Mac address book program. Bidirectional because changes in either one automatically updates the other. I imported information from an Excel sheet with little effort. The excel sheet had to be saved as .csv. That's what I've done with it. The program places the information in a default template and has a variety of other templates that gives the information a professional look. It also allows table view with a single button click.
Nice product but still a limited 1.0 
2008-05-29
I like this product overall. It is easy to use and can do some nice things for simple form based databases. It has nice integration features if you use the ilife tools like contacts lists, etc, but since I honestly don't use the calendar or address book so that doesn't help me.
I used it for some simple tracking DBs, etc. It doesn't to a ton more then a spreadsheet does for that, honestly, except give a nice form interface.
I still like it overall but it needs some beefing up to be a great product.
Bento - a great solution 2008-05-27
Bento ended up being the perfect datbase solution for my work situation. I'd been looking for one since the discontuance of Apple Works and everything was either too complicated or too expensive or both.
Bento is inexpensive, complete at least for my level of need and fairly inuitive. Once I got the hang of it importing from a spreadsheet database in CSV format was simple an deasy. Definitely woth a shot. Especialy as you can down load a 30 day trial version.
Great Task Master 2008-05-18
Bento organizes all your important information in one place, so you can manage your contacts, coordinate events, track projects, prioritize tasks, and more.
Excellent Basic DB 2008-05-15
As a user of FileMaker Pro, I acquired Bento to create quick DB for home use. There is practically no learning curve for Bento. I used the included Home Inventory DB immediately, modifying it slightly for my purposes. I created a recipe DB in about 10 minutes. It includes photos and printable PDFs embedded in each record. I created an extensive Finance DB (Quicken replacement) in FileMaker Pro but export results by category by month to Bento for quick reference.
Two enhancements I would like to see, 1) i would like to share or send a Bento Library to another computer, 2) I would like a true, automated relationship with another Bento Llibrary or FileMaker DB.
Bento is an exceptional value for the quick creation of simple DBs (Libraries).
Great program, but I'm disappointed. 2008-05-14
Bento looks to be a great organizational program with a great look. I just purchased a new iMac and iWork software. Since iWork does not include a database component/program like Apple Works did, I was hopeful that I could transfer my Apple Works databases directly into Bento. Alas, it is not possible for this version - perhaps a future version will have this capability. I did not want to spend the considerable money to purchase File Maker Pro. I did some searching and found a suggestion for a workaround for getting Apple Works databases into Bento which does work but requires a lot of effort to accomplish. If you are just beginning to organize your contacts and other information, Bento is a classy program to use. If you are looking for an updated database program for your Apple Works data, you might want to search for other options. Hey Apple! Help us loyal Apple Works users out!
Mark Sealey MyMac.com Review 2008-05-08
Bento was released by the makers of FileMaker Pro with a very specific purpose. Interestingly, Bento was the name given to a layer in Apple's visionary OpenDoc architecture launched with System 7.5 in the mid 1990s.
Bento is a personal (as opposed to "enterprise" or networked) database that's meant to be as easy to use as the Mac itself. It has a carefully-identified set of features. These run parallel to those of iWork's Pages and Numbers. It could have been called i(Data)Base to aim at a comparable niche in the market. Bento complements Pages and Numbers nicely. The criticisms that some users (and reviewers) leveled at Bento, that it lacked, for example, scripting, Automator and network support, miss the point. It was never intended for those sorts of uses - or those types of users; look at FileMaker Pro for such extended power.
Bento was specifically designed and released without such features in order to concentrate on the less-experienced consumer and SOHO user. Some missing areas of functionality might be useful to the non-specialist user. On the whole, though, the balance between price and feature set, not to mention features, means that Bento can be safely recommended.
Bento is designed to accomplish everyday tasks using a pleasing and straightforward template-based interface The very fact that it is simple, has only one window, and just the right number and design of a few uncluttered menus adds to its accessibility and effectiveness as a flexible and powerful tool.
It only takes a quick glance at the lively, comprehensive and very well supported and moderated Bento forum to see how easy it is to achieve sophisticated date calculations and many-to-many implementation; Bento's apparent simplicity can be deceptive. Bento Users is another useful site. The documentation that comes with the product is excellent.
Everyday
FileMaker has compiled a list of some of the more likely projects that Bento can handle. These include:
* what FileMaker, Inc. calls "virtually unlimited" contact details
* coordinating events, parties, and fundraisers
* tracking projects, assignments, and deadlines
* prioritizing tasks; Bento has been used successfully in a Getting Things Done task management context
* inventories, donations, and items for sale
* track hours worked, payments due, invoicing
* rate service providers and sellers
* libraries for music, movies, and media
* store files and photos related to projects and events
and, rather cryptically, since this ought to be part of any good data model:
* connect related information together to see more details.
There are ample standalone products to achieve many of these tasks - Project Managers like OmniPlan and task management - the same company's OmniFocus. Bruji's outstanding BookPedia and CDPedia. There are dedicated time management and billing/invoice suites like TimeNet Pro - though none without some flaw; and iPhoto, Address Book and iCal themselves, with the last two of which Bento integrates closely.
It is what it is
So the criteria for MyMac's evaluation must not be, What's missing from Bento? Rather, how well does this reasonably-priced and robust Leopard-only product do what it's been designed to do?
First and foremost, then, is a courageous - and largely successful - attempt to make database design and management accessible to those who are not specialists or experts in such software, but who still have demanding needs such as some of those just mentioned.
Bento's main window consists of three panes:
The leftmost pane is the Source List of all your data Libraries. Libraries are Bento's top organizational level - like iPhoto 7's "Events." One Bento Library is for one set of data or project. Under these in the Source List are Bento's Collections; these are like iTunes' Playlists - subsets of the data in the Libraries. Then Smart Collections behave just as you would expect: they're Views updated in real time and as your filter criteria - or the records that matches them - change. You might, for example, want to create a Smart Collection of all unpaid invoices - as they get paid, they disappear; or of all unsold artifacts in a craft store - as they are sold, they disappear.
The records area is in the middle and is the largest pane. Data can be presented as a form (an individual record) or table of as many records as will fit into the space. You can have more than one form for any Library (each may display different fields - in different orders). This is emphasis on the user experience again; it drives the way you work. Each view is satisfactorily editable - columns can be dragged horizontally for display; you can chose which you will view too. The principles, of course, are analogous to those in FileMaker's "Align" routines and fit well with the sophisticated controls that Bento offers.
The Associated fields list for each Library is on the right. Fields are created here and dragged and dropped onto the Records area. There are only three attributes for each. There is also control over how many of these three panes will appear - you can focus on what you're doing.
This is a familiar interface; and it preserves the metaphors for data handling on which Bento rests. Similarly, searching, sorting, and summaries are all swift and intuitive. Searching can be very sophisticated and saved as a Smart Collection.
Note, though, that this means that there's no concept of separate datastores in Bento. All the data which you use Bento to maintain is managed in one place. You can still share Libraries with other users. Yet if you organize your data according to "domains" within your life (household, work, hobbies, friends, you may find it a disadvantage to access it all in and from one place by launching the Bento application itself as opposed to separately-located data files. On the other hand, this is very much in keeping with current Mac practice: it is the way that iCal, iPhoto, iTunes, iWeb (though not Pages or Numbers) all work. More evidence of the perceived target audience; for them it is assumed the task in hand is more important than file names, file management.
Data Types
Given these intentional restrictions, the substantial variety of data types (nineteen of them) which Bento handles is impressive: basic text, numbers, dates, drop-downs, Booleans, graphics, sounds, movies, ratings, addresses, phone numbers and e-mail addresses and more. There's also a FileMaker-like calculation field which can, for example, concatenate text and multiple fields values as well as perform simple mathematical operations. Inevitably there will be some function missing for someone, but on the whole it's comprehensive - and very easy to use.
Templates
For all its transparency, Bento is not a glorified Wizard. Fields can be controlled - use drag and drop. Fields are rearranged and resized with the mouse - usual Mac style. Some positioning and alignment of text is possible using a toolbar - though probably less than most people will come to want: five text sizes, no choice of fonts. One of the biggest hurdles that the marketing of Bento has to overcome is to make it plain that these are flexible means to an end - although the (new) user's first contact with the program will be the 20 templates that come with the software. These templates are shells; they are not one and the same as the data which they are used to present. If the designers of Bento have understood just what it is that a majority of users want in terms of the payoff between interface and ease of use as opposed to in depth functionality, then they have surely got a winner on their hands. The number of downloads (a quarter of a million) in the first few months since Bento became available suggests that is the case.
Address Book and iCal integration
By default Bento has Libraries for contacts, events, and tasks. These are the same as those in Leopard's Address Book and iCal; they are not synched. Although these Libraries can be removed - "Disconnected" - from Bento in its "Home" menu, to do so is to lose access to those applications' data. What's more, to edit in Bento - or worse delete - data that's derived from Address Book and iCal is to lose it directly from those same applications actually outside the Bento environment. Integration is tight: you could drag and drop a set of contacts from the Address Book Library right into Bento's Source list to create a Collection. This "disconnection" could usefully be supplemented by a preference letting you work from a duplicate and/or advising you that you could conceivably lose permanently (unless backed up) data of which you might have thought you were only working on a copy.
Import-Export
Bento supports only CSV (Comma Separated Value) for import and export of data, although there are ways aplenty to convert that after or before the fact. So that's a limitation only inasmuch as you may need another utility and two steps. The importer is drag-and-drop then Wizard-based and worked very well in testing. The Wizard asks which values from the file to be imported should correspond with which fields in Bento.
Relations
The way that Bento handles relations - the fields in other tables whose data you need to appear in the current one - is one of the program's main limitations: it's not a conventional relational database. But, again, it's an approach designed to give the greatest likely desired power with the simplest steps.
In your "local" Library you create a field of type "Related Records List"; then you indicate from which Library you want to use data. Dropping that field on your form displays a small empty table corresponding to the "remote" Library. You click the "Add related records from a list" icon at the bottom of the inset table to see actual data. Bento displays the corresponding list of records from the associated library. Changing records in the one changes them in the other. Deleting a record in the "local" Library only deletes it only from the Related Records List (the "local" dataset) and not from the associated Library. This more closely follows the practice of removing a record from a Smart Folder, Collection or Playlist. It's a way of preventing mistakes - although not entirely logical, until you're used to it. It's also another example of ease of use; accessibility takes precedence. Note, too though, that Smart Collections cannot include data from related tables. That may be a significant restriction for some.
What is likely to be a real drawback, though, is the fact that by "Related Records" Bento means essentially a "Portal" to all the records in the "remote" Library. There is no concept of a "Join" using Primary and Foreign Keys. This means that you cannot be selective in the way you relate and view such records.
Conclusions
Bento is a package. A compromise. MyMac's advice is that - after reading this review - you match what it can do against your needs. Almost certainly you may have requirements which Bento seems unable to meet. But look closely. Sure, its interface is user-friendly - and more important, perhaps, Bento itself is easy to use. But this doesn't mean it's in any way crippled and "less than" comparable databases of this level of complexity - relational features aside.
It's much closer to Pages, Numbers, iPhoto, iTunes in feel and scope than it is to FileMaker. But prolonged use for this review has revealed that Bento can easily be made to do more than might be apparent even from glancing familiarity with the delightful sophistication of the interface.
Given some of the things that Bento can do, there's a remarkably high ratio between effort and result. Whether or not it's for you will depend firstly on whether you have Leopard. Then on your data handling requirements: total size of data set, complexity of relations and perhaps the way (or whether) you use iCal and Address Book. Then you should decide whether one of the absent features (scripting, full control over template fonts, a missing calculation, say) rules it out.
For many users the extremely pleasing appearance of Bento will be a winner. How nice to be able to work in a fully Mac-like environment using an inventory of - car parts.
A balance has been struck: users with complex, evolving and intricately relational databases may still be best with FileMaker Pro. Those for whom the lure of an elegant user interface is important and/or who want a direct equivalent of Numbers, Pages and iPhoto/iTunes and/or seamless integration with iCal and Address Book should look seriously at Bento. Download the trial, use it carefully and draw on the many sources of online help, remember its very reasonable price, decide whether you'll be able to make Bento do a variety of things for you larger than the dedicated software mentioned at the beginning of this review can do - and see!
Pros: the interface - it's good-looking, simple and easy to use; many data types supported; integration with Address Book and iCal; templates work with many types of file; works with iPhone and .Mac
Cons: the interface - the changes you can make to its appearance are somewhat limited; poor relational capabilities; mass updates to records not supported
MyMac.com Rating: 4 out of 5
Originally published at : [...]
Bento Has Limitation but Is A Good Product 2008-04-28
Mac users who are familiar with the Apple i apps will recognize a similarity in Bento's layout. The Bento window is set up in three columns. The left column is the Source List, the middle the Records List, and the right displays the Fields List.
The source list consists of libraries and collections. Bento links to Address Book, iCal Events and iCal Tasks and sets up Libraries for each. If you have groups defined in Address Book they become Collections under the Address Book library in Bento, similar to an iTunes library. If a change or an addition is made in Address Book it immediately appears in Bento and if changes to the data are made in Bento they show up in Address Book. Same for iCal Events and Tasks. Other libraries can be created by selecting a ready-to-use template and importing files in CSV (comma separated values) format or by manually inputting the information.
Collections are subsets of information contained in the library. Creating a Collection is like creating a Playlist in iTunes. Select the items you want to include then click on New Collection from Selection or just drag the selections to the Collection list. Smart Collections are created from the criteria you set up and will automatically update as you add items containing this criteria to the library.
Records may be viewed in either table format or as individual records. The
Table View displays all the records in the selected library or collection. The table can be customized and changed by simply choosing the fields that you want to see. You can also choose the order the columns are displayed and the way data is sorted.
The form contains the individual record and is easily customized by dragging and dropping, adding or deleting, and resizing. Multiple pages can also be added to each individual form.
The fields list contains the fields that are already set up on the template plus additional fields that can be dragged onto the form. You can add your own fields to this list by clicking on the add button.
Records from one library can be linked to another library.
Bento furnishes over 20 templates to set up your databases. I chose a membership template and converted a current membership file to CSV format and imported it. It took three attempts before I had the form customized to correctly import all the information. Though I set the default setting to "home" for address and phone numbers they still appeared as "work" on the form. Everything else transferred with ease.
I next set up a library manually. I used the Contact template, modified the form to accommodate the information I wanted to track. I had this information in a format that I was unable to convert to CSV making it necessary to enter it manually. Bento only imports data in CSV format.
With Bento it is easy to set up new forms. Using the Blank template I created a form from scratch for my third library by dragging and dropping the fields onto the form, adding text boxes, and customizing with some of my own fields.
I created a form for one of my libraries that I wanted to use in another, but there was no way to copy it into the other. I would like to have the option to save forms that I have created so I could use them again.
You can customize forms by changing the number of columns to display, the theme or color of the form, and the size of the text. However, there are only 5 text size choices, and no font or color choices.
Bento is a database for a single user. To share the database you need to export it to CSV format, and then import it into the other computer. There is no networking component built into Bento. You can not sync the information from your desktop to your laptop. A problem that I hope will be looked at and resolved in the near future.
After setting up three libraries of memberships and contacts, I was disappointed to discover that you can't print mailing labels directly from Bento. In order to print mailing labels you must place the information in your address book library then open the Address Book application and print them from there.
Bento is weak in its report generating capabilities, and in its file relationships. With its limitations it will not be an adequate tool for most business purposes.
One of Bento's strengths is the variety of data types it handles, i.e. text, numbers, checkboxes, and drop down menus. You can store almost anything in Bento, movies, photos, sounds, addresses, phone numbers, even ratings. It also has a field for simple mathematical calculations.
One final wished for feature. I would like to be able to password protect libraries that contain sensitive information.
Despite its limitations Bento is an impressive, low-cost solution if you're looking for a simple way to keep track of data for yourself. It provides an eye-appealing, easy-to-use interface for storing and organizing all your personal information.
