Are there any apps that make text from handwriting

[macgrl]

I have seen that there are loads of apps for taking handwriten notes by writing on the screen with finger or stylus but are there any that will convert handwriten notes into text?

It would be create to take quick handwriten notes without having to get keyboard out - and then have them as text to email etc

On another similiar note I am considering Notes + as a way to take normal handwriten notes - any thoughts?

 

[jonter19]

For changing handwritten notes to text, try WritePad. Has worked great for me.

As far as handwritten notes, you can't go wrong with either Notes+ or Notetaker HD.

 

[palpatine]

7notesHD Prem (handwritten->text)

Note Taker HD (handwritten)

 

[NYs FURY]

I have seen that there are loads of apps for taking handwriten notes by writing on the screen with finger or stylus but are there any that will convert handwriten notes into text?

It would be create to take quick handwriten notes without having to get keyboard out - and then have them as text to email etc

On another similiar note I am considering Notes + as a way to take normal handwriten notes - any thoughts?

I've been playing with MyScript Memo and am quite amazed at the handwriting recognition. The app is free but you will have to in app purchase the ability to export your handwritten notes in text format. In-app purchase is $2.99 and is well worth it in my opinion. You can write notes and export text format to Evernote, Facebook, Twitter, email, SMS, and as a .note file

 

[macgrl]

Thanks so much for the replies guys. Are any of you lefthanded? I am and was wondering how that effects the use of these apps as I tend to brush the page with my wrist over what I have written.

How do these apps back up? can you save as pdf - I am just thinking of how I can read them on other devices

Many thanks

 

[Pete the Geek]

I just tried WritePad at a conference and was impressed, as it was extraordinarily accurate at writing to text with no training. I've been using NoteTaker HD for quite some time now, and it is currently my favourite note taking app.

Are any of you lefthanded? I am and was wondering how that effects the use of these apps as I tend to brush the page with my wrist over what I have written.

In the "zoomed" mode it won't matter, as the zoom area is at the bottom of the screen. There is a wrist guard mode (that I don't use) for writing in the non-zoomed mode. The app has a "Writing Wrist Position" setting that is described: "affects button positions and Unzoomed Wrist Guard". The choices are "Above writing (common for some who write with their LEFT hand)" and "Below writing (common for many who write with their RIGHT hand)".

The fact that I've been using this app for months and didn't need a wrist guard (where in others I did) shows that the design avoids the issue of brushing the screen.

How do these apps back up? can you save as pdf - I am just thinking of how I can read them on other devices

You can export notes in PDF to other transfer apps, including Dropbox. There is also a "backup all" button that backs up "everything to a single file" and offers the choice of "file" (presumably within NoteTaker HD for access via iTunes in the app screen), email, and "open in" which gives Dropbox and other transfer apps.

 

[palpatine]

yep. pete the geek is right.

 

[epicmar]

7Notes HD Premium seems to do an excellent job of converting printed or cursive handwriting to text. It can send a file as an email attachment or to be opened in another app (as text, PDF, or 7Notes format). As far as I can tell (I certainly may have missed it) it does not have the ability to back up data. I don't know how to tell if it has a left handed mode. I just bought it yesterday to try out because it was and appears to still be on sale for 0.99 (regularly 8.99). Probably best at this stage in its development to be used to take notes and then transfer to a more robust/full featured notes app or a file organizing app like GoodReader.

 

[macgrl]

I have bought a couple of them to play around wit

With regard to a handwriting one are there any other / good apps that have just an input box at the bottom? I have found with the full screen aps my wrist sets all manner of zoom and highlight options off

On another note. I use a stylus that has a soft round tip that is about 5mm wide. Can you get narrower ones/ are they easier for writing with?

 

[palpatine]

I have bought a couple of them to play around wit

With regard to a handwriting one are there any other / good apps that have just an input box at the bottom? I have found with the full screen aps my wrist sets all manner of zoom and highlight options off

On another note. I use a stylus that has a soft round tip that is about 5mm wide. Can you get narrower ones/ are they easier for writing with?

Can you tell us what you have? 7notes has it at the bottom.

Can you tell us what stylus you are using? Unfortunately, with the type of display used by Apple, you will probably be using a tip that is fairly thick. However, the zoom function on notetaking apps makes it very, very easy to write well. In fact, I kind of prefer it this way over pen and paper for notes.

Anyhow, I have had good luck with the Targus and Wacom styluses (styli?).

 

[macgrl]

Thanks for you reply I should have said exactly what I was using for apps and stylus sorry. I will post when I get home I can't remember

Ok I have... Note Taker HD and Notes Plus for handwritng and Write pad for handwriting to text.

Have played with them all and have got the zoomed thing to work on Note Taker plus - which is better?

How do I save to dropbox with them? I have had a look and can't work out how to save to db on any of them

I am using an acase stylus

 

[palpatine]

Thanks for you reply I should have said exactly what I was using for apps and stylus sorry. I will post when I get home I can't remember

Ok I have... Note Taker HD and Notes Plus for handwritng and Write pad for handwriting to text.

Have played with them all and have got the zoomed thing to work on Note Taker plus - which is better?

How do I save to dropbox with them? I have had a look and can't work out how to save to db on any of them

I am using an acase stylus

I am not familiar with acase. Judging by the picture, it looks the same as the Targus and Griffin ones. The zoom box is the key to making these work well, in my opinion.

I really like Notes Plus. It has a nice user interface and the zoom box works well. One cool thing about it is that it automatically saves your stuff to Dropbox. Once you go to settings and put in your dropbox info, you should see a folder show up in your dropbox.

I tend to use NoteTaker HD more. It seems to do a better job of recognizing my sloppy handwriting and rendering it clearly on the screen. If it has a dropbox setting, I don't know about it. Whenever I finish a note, I name it and email it to Evernote.

 

[macgrl]

Thanks so much for your reply. Very much appreciated

With note taker had you mentioned that The choices are "Above writing (common for some who write with their LEFT hand)" and "Below writing (common for many who write with their RIGHT hand)".

How do I change these settings? I have bad handwriting and am thinking it may be better for me than notes plus ?

 

[wizee]

For a stylus that is for writing check out Faraday.com, they make a cloth tipped stylus. It is like using a pen. $10 is the cheapest, but it works great. It does'nt stick to the screen or skip like the rubber ones. Give it a go.

 

[epicmar]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A334 Safari/7534.48.3)

I second the recommendation for the iFaraday stylus. It is way better than the rubber tipped stylus (I think Griffin) that I started with. It is so smooth that I can take handwritten notes much faster than with pen and paper.

 

[palpatine]

For a stylus that is for writing check out Faraday.com, they make a cloth tipped stylus. It is like using a pen. $10 is the cheapest, but it works great. It does'nt stick to the screen or skip like the rubber ones. Give it a go.

Not Faraday.com. iFaraday.com

 

[Pete the Geek]

With note taker had you mentioned that The choices are "Above writing (common for some who write with their LEFT hand)" and "Below writing (common for many who write with their RIGHT hand)".

How do I change these settings? I have bad handwriting and am thinking it may be better for me than notes plus ?

On the "Folders" screen, "App Settings" button, then there are two items to set:

Wrist Guard (Used when Unzoomed) -> On
Writing Wrist Position (affects button positions and Unzoomed Wrist Guard) -> Above writing OR Below Writing

Note Taker HD just had a big update, with a lot of little changes. It looks even better than ever.