• Posted Nov. 1, 2012, 8 a.m. - 11 years, 5 months ago

Should You Purchase the Signature App for Mac to Sign PDFs?

We found an article on Signature that was interesting.  According to the post, you can use the Signature app to sign PDF files.  You can also add doodles or drawings to PDF’s.

 

Caveat Emptor Sandwich

Operation seems simple and you can even use your finger on your multi-touch trackpad to create your signature, paste it onto the PDF and even store it for future use.  We would caution you to store your signature on you computer or laptop as anyone who happens to steal your system will also have a copy of your signature which could make identity theft easier.

The controls for Signature hides in your menu bar until you turn it on with a keyboard shortcut or clicking on the icon.  The write up looks pretty good and at $3 it looks like a good deal.

We went to iTunes to check out Signature (by Raj Kumar Shaw).  It costs $2.99 and requires OS X 10.6 or later.  This looks like it would not be available for your iPad.

The features listed in iTunes are:

+ Easy to place a signature on many platforms/documents
+ Environmentally friendly app leaving no paper trail
+ No scanner needed
+ Sign in black or color
+ Resize your signature
+ Easy to use by everyone
+ No Dock icon
+ Clean up your signature graphically
+ Transparent background
+ not just signatures, notes, doodles/sketches are possible

Now, here comes the interesting part.  The ratings for the current version (2.1) show 4 stars with 30 ratings.

Only three people have bothered to write a review and all three rate this app anything but a 4-star app.  A user named kikigeb says “Can’t even copy and paste on a PDF. Total Rip Off. No support anywhere. DO NOT BUY THIS GARBAGE no refund available either.

FilmmakerKimlin says “WARNING…DO NOT PURCHASE!  This application is a scam. It does not work at ALL and is a total waste of money. Your options to save and to copy/paste are only icons with no function to them. Then if you go to watch their tutorial, the interface is completly different than the actual app. This is what I consider an absolute scam. The app has no functionality and its only there to rip you off. Apple should pull this app and the vendor from its application menu.

App=Crap adds “I stupidly didnt read the reviews before wasting money on this crappy app. All of the problems described by other commenters are absolutely correct. The ratings system must have been gamed by the developer, because it seems that no one likes this app, including me.

With no grace time to get your money back, we did not even attempt to spend the $2.99 to see if the reviews speak the truth.  We do have some advice: Caveat Emptor!

If you have had  good experiences with this app, please let us know!

Caveat Emptor Sandwich photo via yelp by Perry’s Deli