TheBrain

Version 12 requires macOS 10.14 and not 10.10

Moderately useful mind-mapping software, but interface is clutzy and becomes impossible to see when many items exist on any level. Price is excessive; upgrades far to expensive for what's offered. (And this is from a user who purchased v5 for $249, a v6 upgrade for $120, and a v7 upgrade for $100.) Just not worth the money for the usefulness/productivity provided.

At first sight, it looks like a good rival for Mindjet MindManager but it gives me errors when trying to import MMM's maps, so I couldn't push my trial very far... Will wait until they correct the import issue, hopefully in a future version.

TheBrain 9 is the official release at this point, even thought the company stills says it is in Beta. If you go to TheBrain website, version 9 is what you will download. It is, for the most part, superior to version 8, starting with the fact that the developer has abandoned Java and has created native apps for both Windows and Mac. If you've tried TheBrain in the past, you should evaluate it based on version 9.

To the dev: That's a very minimalist image of your app above; couldn't you have chosen something containing a bit more visual information? OTOH, don't go overboard like the Tinderbox crew!

There's no info on how data is stored and if it can be easily migrated to other environments. I can't waste time with a tool that locks in my data, so it would be wise for the the developer to state upfront the details about this.

I've had this for awhile - as the individual free version. I really WANT to like it, but honestly don't use it a lot. That is partly because I expect it may evaporate as a "free for single use" app, though it hasn't yet. I'd like to own it, despite people griping that it is un-mac-like, but this price is insane, imo. No product seems to have hit mindmapping perfectly yet & the prices are outrageous for software that may turn out to be a bust. I haven't found the ideal brainstorming app which is within my budget. This one has a sort of pleasant interface compared to some competitors (who ALSO were originally targeting the Windows platform & keep a very ugly interface with icons which feel as though they were designed by 1st graders!) And who are more a subscription than owned software. At least that's the perception of this Mac user. I have price limits beyond which I would not drift these days.

As a Mac user, probably one of the first things you notice using this software is that it was not made for Mac originally. It is a bit clunky, but overall I must say it is stable and works the way it should most of the time. The most powerful and most anticipated feature of this software, the fact that it works 'like a brain' is a big disappointment. It becomes a big mess if you interlink too much thoughts, witch is why that feature is unusable. Unfortunately making it fancy-looking, overpriced and simple mindmapping software (with promise). Make it possible for users to interlink as much thoughts as they wich, without creating a big mess, and this software will do it's name (and price a little bit more) right.

This is a trivial comment I know, but is there a corresponding app called "PinkyAnd"?

Hate trials,although love the app

While the download is free, it does not seem free to use indefinitely. When launching the product opening window indicates it is a trial version with an expiration. Checking the website indicates the paid version is a $100 or more. As such it might be more appropriate to list it as Commercial. Additionally it asks for personal information when launched as the App seems to be a portal so some kind of a social network. At this point I closed it and deleted from my computer.

I wanted to update my review from a couple of years ago. I continue to use PersonalBrain on my office PC and on my MacBook. Using WebBrain, I can keep "Brains" on both computers in sync. Beyond this, PersonalBrain is simply fun to use. It's one of the few applications I've found that inspires me. I think of it as a GPS system for my information.

well, just not a cocoa application... it would be worth to transfer real OS X interface aka a real mac development

Bought and used Personal Brain Pro 4,great expensive application, bought upgrade to PB Pro 5, still a great but overpriced application. Have tried to buy the new upgrade, but the website payment routine now consistently tells me I`m not eligible for a paid upgrade to version 6. Yes, I have sent an e-mail explaining the situation, including my personal information and previous key numbers. No answer received after 3 weeks. Yes, I am disappointed!

In the interests of transparency, here are the prices for PersonalBrain: * Pro US$249.95 * Core US$149.95 * Free US$0.00 I do not now and nor do I ever want to seem like one of those who come to this site and post complaints for the sake of it. I do politely request, however, that developers are more open about their "free" products. For example, what are the differences between these versions? What do you get for your $150 or $250 beyond what the free version offers? (Or, to put it another way, what's missing from the free version?) I don't like feeling like I'm being gulled into paying for something. To me this is a fairly low form of marketing technique, and very often seen in the Windows community. I'd hate to see it gain more traction in the Mac world than it already has. No disrespect, but could the developer of this software please take these comments on board.

PersonalBrain is an excellent application, but has a few faults. To adequately describe PersonalBrain would take more space than I have here, and there is no need to, because the developer provides wonderful videos and screencasts. Essentially, the application allows you to drill down to any level of detail in your information and still see the bigger picture, and it does so far more effectively than any other piece of software I've used... and I've used a lot of them. I also like the fact that I can run PersonalBrain on my PC at work and on my MacBook at home, sharing some of the same databases via Dropbox. I do wish PersonalBrain had a more robust note editor. Right now it is really only useful for jotting simple notes, not composing long text. But you can associate RTF documents with your PersonalBrain items, and quickly open those in your favorite word processor. Copies can be stored internally or externally, and are fully searchable. In short, PersonalBrain is a well thought out information manager with a unique and very powerful user interface.

Interestingly, their website says there's a new version 5.5 available, but the only download you can do is for a 5.0.4. The new 5.5 version does have some way cool enhancements: http://www.thebrain.com/site/personalbrain/download/PersonalBrain_5.5_Feature_List.pdf

Overpriced for HTML export. No OPML, .doc, keynote, rtf export. Too long time to start. No service in text. Not too much responsive... Seem bloated like Word.. But a good tool !

Um, this is not a free product ...

Excellent product but : Overpriced Some features missing for Mac version : export to format OPML export to Word document. It is a shame to overprice the possibility to export in HTML format.