Time & duration on tasks

Two related properties (due time and estimated duration), plus a filter that lets you answer the classic GTD question "I have 15 minutes before my meeting, what fits?" in one click.

Both fields are optional. A task with no time and no estimate works exactly the way it always has.

Due time

When a task has a date, you can also pin a time of day to it.

• Where to set it. Open a task, click the Due chip, and pick a date as usual. Underneath the date row there's a time editor. Type 3pm, 15:00, or pick from the suggestions.
• How it displays. The Due chip reads Apr 28 · 3 PM instead of just Apr 28. List rows show the same compact form.
• What it's for. Hard time-of-day commitments that don't deserve a calendar event. "Doctor at 3pm," "leave for the airport at 6," "pick up Aiden at 3:15." Anything you'd otherwise put on a sticky note next to your monitor.

Due time isn't a reminder. To get notified, set a reminder on the task. The two are independent.

Estimated duration

Mark how long a task usually takes. The estimate becomes a small chip on the row and feeds the time filter.

The Estimate picker: preset duration chips plus a Custom (minutes) field.

• Where to set it. Open a task and find the Estimate chip in the chip rail (or use , m, mnemonic: minutes, for the keyboard shortcut). The picker shows a grid of presets (5m / 10m / 15m / 30m / 45m / 1h / 1h 30m / 2h), plus a Custom field for anything else.
• How it displays. A small 30m pill on the task row, sized to match the other meta chips.
• What it's for. Honest planning. You don't need to estimate every task, just the ones whose size you genuinely know. Even rough estimates (5/15/30/60) make the time filter useful.

Capture syntax

Quick Capture (n) understands time and duration inline, so you can drop a fully-populated task without touching a single chip:

You type	What MLW parses
Doctor 3pm tomorrow	Title "Doctor", due tomorrow at 3 PM
Standup 9 AM	Title "Standup", due today (or next workday) at 9 AM
Renew passport ~30min	Title "Renew passport", estimated duration 30 min
Triage inbox [15m]	Title "Triage inbox", estimated duration 15 min
Doctor 3pm tomorrow ~30min	All three at once

Both bracket forms (~30min and [15m]) work. Bare times like 3pm, 15:00, 9 AM get treated as a due time; ~Nmin / [Nm] / ~Nh get treated as a duration.

The time filter: "what fits in 15 minutes?"

On Today and Next Actions, the chip rail has a duration filter (⏱) pinned to the left.

• Presets: ≤5m / ≤15m / ≤30m / ≤45m / ≤1h / ≥1h (six buckets)
• Toggle: "Also show unestimated tasks". Off by default. With this off, tasks without an estimate are hidden so the filter answers exactly "what could I finish in N minutes." With it on, the filter relaxes to "anything estimated at ≤N minutes, plus everything else."

The chip has a stable width so toggling it on/off doesn't shift the rest of the chip rail.

Combine with other filters to slice further: ⏱ ≤15m + Personal area + @phone, exactly the calls you can knock out before your next meeting.

Tips

• Estimate the ones you know. Don't try to estimate everything. Even just having 5m / 15m / 30m on the calls and admin tasks makes the time filter genuinely useful.
• Capture-syntax beats chip-picks. If your hands are already typing, Doctor 3pm ~30min is one motion. Reaching for the Estimate chip is two.
• Time on the Due chip ≠ a reminder. They're different surfaces. The Due time is just metadata so you remember; reminders are what actually buzz your phone.