Digital note taker / Digital notepad
Discussion
Hi All,
looking to bin off my paper notepads for work and branch out into the world of digital note taking.
I like to write notes and actions as don't like tapping away into a laptop during meeting and often walk customers sites and scribble as i go.
The big thing i would love to have is the ability to write notes and then as i go create an actions list that becomes my 'to do' rather than having to scroll back through multiple meeting notes and pick them out
not fussy about brands or cost right now, weighing up all options and fed up of trawling through 'the best tablet of ....' on google
Would really appreciate your real world experiences
looking to bin off my paper notepads for work and branch out into the world of digital note taking.
I like to write notes and actions as don't like tapping away into a laptop during meeting and often walk customers sites and scribble as i go.
The big thing i would love to have is the ability to write notes and then as i go create an actions list that becomes my 'to do' rather than having to scroll back through multiple meeting notes and pick them out
not fussy about brands or cost right now, weighing up all options and fed up of trawling through 'the best tablet of ....' on google
Would really appreciate your real world experiences
https://remarkable.com/ is the go to with people I know who use them extensively - although most prefer the 2 rather than pro for simplicity
Expensive mind - I prefer fountain pen and paper personally so can't comment directly
Expensive mind - I prefer fountain pen and paper personally so can't comment directly
sleepezy said:
https://remarkable.com/ is the go to with people I know who use them extensively - although most prefer the 2 rather than pro for simplicity
Expensive mind - I prefer fountain pen and paper personally so can't comment directly
I see people in meetings with these - they look very nice and easy to use.Expensive mind - I prefer fountain pen and paper personally so can't comment directly
I have a remarkable paper pro. Works seamlessly with mac integration on iphone and mac. We use it to share building site drawings etc and everyone has access to the cloud.
Nice to write on and easy to use. Obv full tax write off and you get the VAT back so whilst they are expensive its not too bad.
The biggest improvement is zero paper. My desk used to be a mess. Haven't had to print anything out in months.
Nice to write on and easy to use. Obv full tax write off and you get the VAT back so whilst they are expensive its not too bad.
The biggest improvement is zero paper. My desk used to be a mess. Haven't had to print anything out in months.
I have experience of two
Both the Remarkable and Onyx Boox use the e-ink type screens with a finish that really does make it feel like you are writing on paper.
the Onyx boox can also run Android apps so you can interact with them with the pen or popup/bluetooth keyboard.
The Remarkable can't use any other apps but does have keyboards etc and both have OCR.
I'd suggest watching some youtube videos of those to see which best fits the way you work.
Both the Remarkable and Onyx Boox use the e-ink type screens with a finish that really does make it feel like you are writing on paper.
the Onyx boox can also run Android apps so you can interact with them with the pen or popup/bluetooth keyboard.
The Remarkable can't use any other apps but does have keyboards etc and both have OCR.
I'd suggest watching some youtube videos of those to see which best fits the way you work.
I bought a remarkable 2 last autumn which I enjoyed for a month, then they announced the remarkable paper pro with colour e-ink..I used the 100 day no quibbles money back to return the 2 and went to the pro (which also has a money back/return policy).
I using the remarkable and the colour is a nice touch for highlighting amongst other things. That being said for notes the standard remarkable is fine and has a slightly nicer writing feel, but both are leagues ahead of writing on a normal tablet.
There are several strong alternatives (Boox to name one) which run on Android so can do more. However call me a fool but I trust remarkable (Norwegian I believe) with my data more than Boox (Chinese I think). Also I don't want a writing tablet to do much more than write notes or sketch anyway.
I wouldn't go back to paper, but I can't suggest it makes financial sense (they are not cheap). It also suffers with similar issues as paper notes in that it still requires you to actively go back to notes and update any actions lists etc. There are various templates, tags, filling structures etc that can help with organisation.
I using the remarkable and the colour is a nice touch for highlighting amongst other things. That being said for notes the standard remarkable is fine and has a slightly nicer writing feel, but both are leagues ahead of writing on a normal tablet.
There are several strong alternatives (Boox to name one) which run on Android so can do more. However call me a fool but I trust remarkable (Norwegian I believe) with my data more than Boox (Chinese I think). Also I don't want a writing tablet to do much more than write notes or sketch anyway.
I wouldn't go back to paper, but I can't suggest it makes financial sense (they are not cheap). It also suffers with similar issues as paper notes in that it still requires you to actively go back to notes and update any actions lists etc. There are various templates, tags, filling structures etc that can help with organisation.
NDA said:
I see people in meetings with these - they look very nice and easy to use.
They are - and to be honest I can see the attraction - particularly when you're attending not just different meetings but different companies - they're becoming heavily used on the boards I work on - easy file notes, separated into the right folder so easy to pick up the right previous meeting etc. and some have manged to integrate with the board papers document management systems (eg Convene). Much much easier and better than an archaic A4 spiral bound pad and fountain pen.But I do like my fountain pen!
5harp3y said:
Great advice so far, thank you so much
I'll have a look at some YouTube videos. I really want to be able to create task lists so will have a play.
Few people I used to work with had remarkables
You probably need to check how the task app you use best integrates with the Boox then.I'll have a look at some YouTube videos. I really want to be able to create task lists so will have a play.
Few people I used to work with had remarkables
Some apps work well, but others are limited
Another vote for Remarkable. I use the Pro, upgraded from the 2. Is the upgrade worth it, I'm not sure. There's the backlight and it's slightly bigger. I had to buy a proper case for it which included a space for the pen as the most annoying part is the pen falling off and getting lost.
Sync is nice with desktop so you always have your notes even when you forget the tablet. I don't use the more complicated features but I did download some template PDFs for it which are handy.
Sync is nice with desktop so you always have your notes even when you forget the tablet. I don't use the more complicated features but I did download some template PDFs for it which are handy.
miniman said:
Agree the standard case is poor with nowhere to securely store the pen. Yes the official pen should mag to the device but a simple elastic loop would be better all round.
I got a pack of about ten loops off Amazon. The Boox has a magnet on the spine, which is fine for use during the day, but it's not strong.Thought I'd bump this in case anybody else is considering them.
I swapped to using OneNote on a tablet a year or so back, and last summer I did research dedicated digital notepads (Boox, Remarkable, SuperNote and Kindle Scribe). For various reasons, I decided not to bother.
But, my wife saw somebody using a Remarkable on a business trip recently and was impressed - so I started researching again. I make occasional notes - but, a key requirement for me is that I can edit my notes anywhere - on the dedicated note taking device or on my phone / laptop - which influenced my decision. My main reasons for my choice were:
Kindle Scribe: Although it does allow note taking, it really seems to be primarily a Kindle that you can scribble on. I wasn't convinced
SuperNote: I remember liking the look of these last year, but you can't buy direct in the UK and that concerned me if it breaks
Remarkable: Clearly excellent devices - but I am not willing to pay a subscription to be able to search / edit notes on my phone.
That left Boox. The fact that it is Android - and hence can use OneNote - means it meets my primary requirement far better than any of the others do. So yesterday, I ordered a BOOX Note Air 5C. It is not really the format I want - it's too big, and I'd much rather something that's ~8" screen than ~10". But I wanted up to date(ish) Android, which meant the 5C (Android 15).
It arrived this morning and I had a quick play while setting it up (note, it was very quick and I'll update once I've had more chance to use it). These are my first impressions:
Nice metal body and seems well built - very happy with the quality of it.
The size is better than I expected. I have a Kindle paperwhite, and always thought that was the perfect size (hence i wasn't tempted to replace it with a scribe). But the 5C is not particularly heavy, and I think I'd be just as happy reading on the 5C. It is also better for notes - I was very aware (from watching reviews) that although smaller might be more portable, it isn't necessarily a benefit when trying to write notes on the screen. I tend to take notes at home or office - so carrying the 5C to work isn't a big deal anyway.
Battery life: Obviously it's too early to comment on that fully - but I am a bit confused by it. I saw reviews that tested note taking continuously and estimated quite a few hours. So from a fully charged battery, I'm a bit confused that if I go into the power settings the estimated battery life is 2.5 hours....... We'll see how it actually does while sitting asleep etc. If it really is that poor - I'm not sure why (I tried turning the light down and it made no obvious difference to the estimate).
Screen: All the reviews say that this type of screen is dark - and it is. But the brightness can be turned up to solve this, and it's very pleasant to look at. Obviously that will affect battery life but didn't seem to affect the estimated value much.
Security: It has a fingerprint sensor (on the power button) which is handy. Except - it's not really since it doesn't seem to work very well - especially when it's in a cover and hence the edge of the cover is slightly proud of the power button. Maybe I need more practice (obviously you can also use a password).
Android: This was a big plus for me - not only does it mean I can use OneNote and hence sync my notes across devices but it adds a bit of flexibility. I'm not sure I need to browse the internet on it - but if I want to, I now have Brave on it. It also made it much easier to sign in to accounts (like Kindle) - having long random passwords is great - until you have to type them in. But being able to put my password manager on there is great.
Note taking: Which is of course the main point of the device. And...... to be honest, I'm not wildly impressed so far.
Although being able to use OneNote is a big plus - I've always found that it's not the best app. On the tablet I was using, it would sometimes get confused by my palm resting on the screen and move the text / zoom in or something - which was really annoying. I was hoping that the 5C would suffer from this less - but a quick play around this morning suggests that it's a common issue.
Another problem is the refresh behaviour in OneNote. I did see this in the reviews - that what you write isn't necessarily displayed "correctly" until you refresh the screen. So the writing might be thicker / paler / whatever - and only when you refresh does it show it's final version - it's pretty irritating. For some reason, I find the behaviour slightly strange - if I switch to using the eraser (using the toolbar), when I go back to the pencil it's suddenly very pale until I refresh the screen. But - if I select the same pencil again (which causes it to open the settings for colour / line thickness etc) - the writing now looks correct (although still slightly thicker than it will be when the screen refreshes).
The other issue with OneNote is that - from first impressions - the built in note taking app is better. It doesn't suffer from my hand resting on the screen, and it also has built in handwriting to text conversion - which appears to be very good. The problem with it is, the organisation of the notes is nothing like as good as OneNote - and of course, sync'ing to the phone etc. There is a Boox app - but it's not available on Play Store, so I'm not sure how willing I am to download it.
I suspect I will live with OneNote - it is what I intended to use - but then it comes down to: Is taking notes on the Boox 5C better than on a Samsung tablet when using the same app?
From first impressions - I'm not sure it is. Yes, it is a nicer "feel" - I'm dubious that it feels "like paper" (although maybe it depends on the pen a bit) - but it is much more paper like than a shiny OLED display. But that just means it's different, which isn't necessarily better.
I think it probably is better to write on, and if you have nothing (i.e. you don't have a tablet with a stylus) then it's probably a very good thing to allow you to switch to digital note taking (my wife is in this camp).
But if you do already have a tablet you can take written notes on - then my first impressions are that the Boox is slightly better......... but not £500 better (plus the cost of a cover).
I will see how I get on with it over the next few weeks and will give an update then. It will also be interesting to see what my wife makes of it. I'm not convinced she would buy Boox - Android isn't a big plus to somebody who has an Apple phone, although the use of OneNote would be common. And when we were browsing, she seemed more interesting in the Remarkable Move due to it's form factor. But the Boox will work as a trial for whether she likes taking digital notes - she is still very much in the pen and paper phase.
ETA: There is a "Hand Touch" setting in the Boox settings - so this can be switched off when taking a note in One Note so that is one solution. Bit of a faff, but at least it is possible.
I guess since it's Android, Tasker would run on it so I could automate it..........
I swapped to using OneNote on a tablet a year or so back, and last summer I did research dedicated digital notepads (Boox, Remarkable, SuperNote and Kindle Scribe). For various reasons, I decided not to bother.
But, my wife saw somebody using a Remarkable on a business trip recently and was impressed - so I started researching again. I make occasional notes - but, a key requirement for me is that I can edit my notes anywhere - on the dedicated note taking device or on my phone / laptop - which influenced my decision. My main reasons for my choice were:
Kindle Scribe: Although it does allow note taking, it really seems to be primarily a Kindle that you can scribble on. I wasn't convinced
SuperNote: I remember liking the look of these last year, but you can't buy direct in the UK and that concerned me if it breaks
Remarkable: Clearly excellent devices - but I am not willing to pay a subscription to be able to search / edit notes on my phone.
That left Boox. The fact that it is Android - and hence can use OneNote - means it meets my primary requirement far better than any of the others do. So yesterday, I ordered a BOOX Note Air 5C. It is not really the format I want - it's too big, and I'd much rather something that's ~8" screen than ~10". But I wanted up to date(ish) Android, which meant the 5C (Android 15).
It arrived this morning and I had a quick play while setting it up (note, it was very quick and I'll update once I've had more chance to use it). These are my first impressions:
Nice metal body and seems well built - very happy with the quality of it.
The size is better than I expected. I have a Kindle paperwhite, and always thought that was the perfect size (hence i wasn't tempted to replace it with a scribe). But the 5C is not particularly heavy, and I think I'd be just as happy reading on the 5C. It is also better for notes - I was very aware (from watching reviews) that although smaller might be more portable, it isn't necessarily a benefit when trying to write notes on the screen. I tend to take notes at home or office - so carrying the 5C to work isn't a big deal anyway.
Battery life: Obviously it's too early to comment on that fully - but I am a bit confused by it. I saw reviews that tested note taking continuously and estimated quite a few hours. So from a fully charged battery, I'm a bit confused that if I go into the power settings the estimated battery life is 2.5 hours....... We'll see how it actually does while sitting asleep etc. If it really is that poor - I'm not sure why (I tried turning the light down and it made no obvious difference to the estimate).
Screen: All the reviews say that this type of screen is dark - and it is. But the brightness can be turned up to solve this, and it's very pleasant to look at. Obviously that will affect battery life but didn't seem to affect the estimated value much.
Security: It has a fingerprint sensor (on the power button) which is handy. Except - it's not really since it doesn't seem to work very well - especially when it's in a cover and hence the edge of the cover is slightly proud of the power button. Maybe I need more practice (obviously you can also use a password).
Android: This was a big plus for me - not only does it mean I can use OneNote and hence sync my notes across devices but it adds a bit of flexibility. I'm not sure I need to browse the internet on it - but if I want to, I now have Brave on it. It also made it much easier to sign in to accounts (like Kindle) - having long random passwords is great - until you have to type them in. But being able to put my password manager on there is great.
Note taking: Which is of course the main point of the device. And...... to be honest, I'm not wildly impressed so far.
Although being able to use OneNote is a big plus - I've always found that it's not the best app. On the tablet I was using, it would sometimes get confused by my palm resting on the screen and move the text / zoom in or something - which was really annoying. I was hoping that the 5C would suffer from this less - but a quick play around this morning suggests that it's a common issue.
Another problem is the refresh behaviour in OneNote. I did see this in the reviews - that what you write isn't necessarily displayed "correctly" until you refresh the screen. So the writing might be thicker / paler / whatever - and only when you refresh does it show it's final version - it's pretty irritating. For some reason, I find the behaviour slightly strange - if I switch to using the eraser (using the toolbar), when I go back to the pencil it's suddenly very pale until I refresh the screen. But - if I select the same pencil again (which causes it to open the settings for colour / line thickness etc) - the writing now looks correct (although still slightly thicker than it will be when the screen refreshes).
The other issue with OneNote is that - from first impressions - the built in note taking app is better. It doesn't suffer from my hand resting on the screen, and it also has built in handwriting to text conversion - which appears to be very good. The problem with it is, the organisation of the notes is nothing like as good as OneNote - and of course, sync'ing to the phone etc. There is a Boox app - but it's not available on Play Store, so I'm not sure how willing I am to download it.
I suspect I will live with OneNote - it is what I intended to use - but then it comes down to: Is taking notes on the Boox 5C better than on a Samsung tablet when using the same app?
From first impressions - I'm not sure it is. Yes, it is a nicer "feel" - I'm dubious that it feels "like paper" (although maybe it depends on the pen a bit) - but it is much more paper like than a shiny OLED display. But that just means it's different, which isn't necessarily better.
I think it probably is better to write on, and if you have nothing (i.e. you don't have a tablet with a stylus) then it's probably a very good thing to allow you to switch to digital note taking (my wife is in this camp).
But if you do already have a tablet you can take written notes on - then my first impressions are that the Boox is slightly better......... but not £500 better (plus the cost of a cover).
I will see how I get on with it over the next few weeks and will give an update then. It will also be interesting to see what my wife makes of it. I'm not convinced she would buy Boox - Android isn't a big plus to somebody who has an Apple phone, although the use of OneNote would be common. And when we were browsing, she seemed more interesting in the Remarkable Move due to it's form factor. But the Boox will work as a trial for whether she likes taking digital notes - she is still very much in the pen and paper phase.
ETA: There is a "Hand Touch" setting in the Boox settings - so this can be switched off when taking a note in One Note so that is one solution. Bit of a faff, but at least it is possible.
I guess since it's Android, Tasker would run on it so I could automate it..........
Edited by davek_964 on Thursday 12th February 14:37
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