Still confused on handwriting/notes apps

[brn2rnjk1]

I have read the myriad of good articles on these but still confused on what (if any) would work for my needs. All I want to do is take notes at meetings that I would otherwise take on a legal pad. So, just needs to be clear on handwriting. Don't want issues that not all letters appear or anything like that. Also what stylus works best?

Don't really need conversion or the like to start with


Thanks

[mattdeezy]

I have read hundreds of threads and articles on this and tested heaps of apps and half a dozen stylus' and have concluded;

App: Notability
Stylus: Wacom Bamboo Stylus Duo

[Luis2004]

I too have read a thousand articles and have tested apps beyond number, and my wisdom says:

Best App: Noteshelf

Best stylus: Boxwave Evernote mesh stylus

[GerritV]

Noteshelf, beyond a doubt - I use it constantly.
It's highly responsive, so for quick and short notes I don't use the zoom.
When taking notes during long meetings, I do use the zoom. Surprised each time how it makes even my handwriting look good and... readable.

Bamboo Stylus is very good. I recently got a Maglus, which takes some getting used to. So far, I prefer the Bamboo for sketching and the Maglus for writing.

[robdam1001]

SO MANY threads asking this same thing.

App: Remarks or Notability

Stylus: Maglus or Jot Pro (both are magnetic)

[jojoba]

Originally Posted by mattdeezy

App: Notability
Stylus: Wacom Bamboo Stylus Duo

Agree with this. I really like Notability, I've written about how I use it here.

[Luis2004]

Notability is fine for writing notes. But if you want to annotate PDFs, it blows because it lags on rendering PDF pages when scrolling. It drove me nuts.

Also, the UI is awful. I love Noteshelf's, well, note shelf.

----------

Originally Posted by robdam1001

SO MANY threads asking this same thing.

App: Remarks or Notability

Stylus: Maglus or Jot Pro

I've wanted to try Jot Pro for a long time, but scared to death that it will scratch my iPad. I don't use screen protectors, and some of the reviews on Amazon mentioned fine scratches because of it. . . .also that it's loud on the glass, with a clicking sound, and that it also gets "stuck" if you have a screen protector on.

[jojoba]

Originally Posted by Luis2004

Notability is fine for writing notes. But if you want to annotate PDFs, it blows because it lags on rendering PDF pages when scrolling. It drove me nuts..

I prefer dedicated annotation apps for marking up PDFs. I use iAnnotate, but PDF Expert and GoodReader are also good alternatives.

[TJ61]

Hopefully this is helpful to the OP and not just a thread hijack:

I recently purchased my first and only stylus (Wacom Bamboo CS100K) for my iPad mini. I was very disappointed with how much pressure it took to be recognized. I tried it with a few different apps (Notability, SketchBook). I thought the problem might be my screen protector, so I peeled it back, and...no difference.

In contrast, I barely need to touch the screen with my finger in these apps to make a mark, even with a screen protector. The pressure required for a stylus would make it difficult to write fast.

I'd be interested to know what other stylus users think about pressure required to write. Did I get a bad stylus?

Regards,
Tom

[GerritV]

I recently got a Maglus. Not only heavier than the Bamboo, but also a very smooth tip - it's already my favorite above the Bamboo. The combination of weight and high quality tip calls for no pressure at all. At the same time, these very same qualities make the Maglus less fitting for drawing and sketching - at least to me. On those occasions, the light weight Bamboo allows more "swing of the wrist" so to speak.
Hope I make sense.

[Luis2004]

The BoxWave evertouch fiber-mesh tipped stylus requires barely any pressure to register. It's very responsive, and I use it for note taking (almost daily) and occasional sketching.

You should try it. It's less than $10 on amazon.

[robdam1001]

Originally Posted by Luis2004

Notability is fine for writing notes. But if you want to annotate PDFs, it blows because it lags on rendering PDF pages when scrolling. It drove me nuts.

Also, the UI is awful. I love Noteshelf's, well, note shelf.

----------



I've wanted to try Jot Pro for a long time, but scared to death that it will scratch my iPad. I don't use screen protectors, and some of the reviews on Amazon mentioned fine scratches because of it. . . .also that it's loud on the glass, with a clicking sound, and that it also gets "stuck" if you have a screen protector on.

The new Jot Pros has a supposedly "silent" tip available. I have the original and it is loud.

http://www.amazon.com/Adonit-Dampeni...ds=jot+pro+tip

[Luis2004]

Originally Posted by robdam1001

The new Jot Pros has a supposedly "silent" tip available. I have the original and it is loud.

http://www.amazon.com/Adonit-Dampeni...ds=jot+pro+tip

Yeah. . . .one of the reviews mentions "micro scratch hell".

Do you have any fine or micro scratches because of it?

[robdam1001]

Originally Posted by Luis2004

Yeah. . . .one of the reviews mentions "micro scratch hell".

Do you have any fine or micro scratches because of it?

None that my 20/15 eyes can see, no.

I just pre-ordered the new Adonit Jot Touch with BT.

http://adonit.net/jot/touch/

[MrPeripatetic]

Originally Posted by brn2rnjk1

I have read the myriad of good articles on these but still confused on what (if any) would work for my needs. All I want to do is take notes at meetings that I would otherwise take on a legal pad. So, just needs to be clear on handwriting. Don't want issues that not all letters appear or anything like that. Also what stylus works best?

Don't really need conversion or the like to start with


Thanks

I have tried many of the popular note taking apps. Here's my ranking of the BEST note taking apps based on a combination of best inking engine (which is itself a combo of smoothness, speed, quality, customizability), UI, and features:

1. Goodnotes
2. Noteshelf
3. Upad
4. Notes Plus
5. Note Taker HD
6. Notability
7. DocAS

I consider all of the above to be very good. IMO these beat out the rest of the popular note taking apps (Ghostwriter, Remarks, etc.), which isn't to say that some of these others aren't decent.

[TJ61]

Originally Posted by MrPeripatetic

I have tried many of the popular note taking apps. Here's my ranking of the BEST note taking apps based on a combination of best inking engine (which is itself a combo of smoothness, speed, quality, customizability), UI, and features:

1. Goodnotes
2. Noteshelf
3. Upad
4. Notes Plus
5. Note Taker HD
6. Notability
7. DocAS

I consider all of the above to be very good. IMO these beat out the rest of the popular note taking apps (Ghostwriter, Remarks, etc.), which isn't to say that some of these others aren't decent.

Thanks for the recommendations -- I just tried Goodnotes, since they have a very functional and free lite version. I don't have my stylus on me, but using a finger it appears to have a noticeably faster response than Notability, the only app on your list I already have. For that, I would give it the nod for taking notes.

Regards,
Tom

[Luis2004]

Goodnotes has great stylus response and their "advance" feature in zoom mode is second to none. Very quick to respond.

I just wish they had better notebook and paper selections. Their shelf UI is gorgeous and nicer than Noteshelf, but Noteshelf has a wide selection of notebook covers (leather, etc) and paper which makes it extremely customizable.

Argh. If Goodnotes had a wider selection of notebooks and paper, it would literally be perfect.

Notes Plus actually has a zoom advance feature just like Goodnotes, but their UI is awful. Shelf is non-existent. Just terrible.

[GerritV]

Hey Luis, you got my curiosity peeked enough to open GoodNotes once again.
Good app indeed, I can even live with their list of paper types - the covers on the other hand are poorly designed. But in the end, the wrist protection of Noteshelf is something I don't want to be without.

Oh, and allow me to chime in on the Notes+ UI - what a waist of pixels all around.

[Luis2004]

Originally Posted by GerritV

Hey Luis, you got my curiosity peeked enough to open GoodNotes once again.
Good app indeed, I can even live with their list of paper types - the covers on the other hand are poorly designed. But in the end, the wrist protection of Noteshelf is something I don't want to be without.

Oh, and allow me to chime in on the Notes+ UI - what a waist of pixels all around.

Hold the phone! I just discovered you can import your own templates on notebook covers and paper in GoodNotes!! (I'm working on some in photoshop as we speak. . . .yes, it's a slow work day today.)

Goodnotes also has wrist protection; you can move the pane a little higher up than on Noteshelf.

And that bookshelf UI is gorgeous, with the glass shelves.

I don't know. I think Goodnotes has just won the battle for being my daily driver.

[GerritV]

Managed a template? Did you make it in iPad's Retina resolution?

[Luis2004]

I was able to import a notebook cover simply photoshopping a leather texture, but haven't gotten around to the paper yet.... There are instructions on how to do it for retina display on their website, goodnotesapp.com, under user guide, then "Templates". I will give it a try a little later.

[Luis2004]

Well I spent a considerable amount of time yesterday making a template for paper on Goodnotes, and it just isn't as seamless as Noteshelf. Also, while messing around with note taking and writing, I have come to the conclusion that Noteshelf is simply the best with ink selection, handwriting clarity and ease, and overall UI.

I'm done experimenting... Noteshelf is my daily driver, with my nice imported paper and covers.

Now if only I could make a decision on a stylus. I'm using the Boxwave mesh right now, but I hear a lot of good things about Bamboo.....

[Taustin Powers]

I finally tried Noteshelf this weekend and I was a little underwhelmed. Maybe I just don't know how to use it right?

- Typing text:
Is there a way to just type continuous text on the page, with automatic page breaks? I only found the "text box", which disappears off the page when you type too much.

- Handwriting Zoom Window Advance:
I don't like their technique of auto-advancing the zoom window. Notability (and I think Remarks) employ the same concept. Notes Plus and GoodNotes got this one right, IMO. Makes a huge difference for me. If handwriting were very important to me, I wouldn't even consider other apps.

- PDF's:
Still no importing / annotating PDF's, it looks like?


What I do like is their handwriting engine. It's very responsive and looks great.

I've been using both Notability and GoodNotes lately, depending on what I need to do. I really want to like Notes Plus for all its features, but the UI is not intuitive, and the performance is too sluggish on my iPad2.

[Luis2004]

I know your message wasn't directed at me personally, but I thought I'd respond regardless :

Originally Posted by Taustin Powers

- Typing text:
Is there a way to just type continuous text on the page, with automatic page breaks? I only found the "text box", which disappears off the page when you type too much.

I'm not sure about this, as I never use note taking apps to actually type. It's all handwriting for me. When I do need to type something out for any reason, I use Pages or the stock Notes app on iPad.

- Handwriting Zoom Window Advance:
I don't like their technique of auto-advancing the zoom window. Notability (and I think Remarks) employ the same concept. Notes Plus and GoodNotes got this one right, IMO. Makes a huge difference for me. If handwriting were very important to me, I wouldn't even consider other apps.

I, too, prefer the auto-advance feature in GoodNotes and Notes Plus. Haven't tried Remarks. You're right, it does make a huge difference, and I don't like the hesitation when you are ready for it to advance.

- PDF's:
Still no importing / annotating PDF's, it looks like?

Nope. It's a crappy oversight. iAnnotate is good for PDF annotation, but right now I'm using PDF Max Pro. Not as full featured as iAnnotate, but I like the feel of it a bit more.


What I do like is their handwriting engine. It's very responsive and looks great.

This is why I've decided to stick with it. If GoodNotes had customizable ink and a Calligraphy pen set (they call theirs "fountain pen" but it's not nearly as nice or realistic), I probably would have been tempted to stick with it. But they don't.

I've been using both Notability and GoodNotes lately, depending on what I need to do. I really want to like Notes Plus for all its features, but the UI is not intuitive, and the performance is too sluggish on my iPad2.

I used Notability when I first got the iPad (3rd generation), but what drove me nuts was the pdf rendering was sluggish. If it had images in it, it would all blank out for a second before rendering. I hated it. That's one reason I'm not so crazy about GoodNotes. They have the same problem, although not as bad as Notability.

I hated Notes Plus' UI layout.

[AMC89]

Just got noteshelf. So far so good. Happy with it