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Utterly ๊ง๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐!๊ง
I am obsessed with notebooks. I am so much so that I sometimes write stuff down on a notes app like this one before I mess one up by accident! This app is perfect for an extreme notebookholic like me.
Now I have not tried a lot of notes apps on which you are intended to write with your finger, but all the ones I HAVE tried have been lame-o. Either I can't zoom in, my handwriting looks terrible, or it's just...blah. This one stands out. Not only is it all-purpose and relatively easy to use, but the stickers are free and mostly nice. I could hardly believe there was washi tape!
I would say the only downside is that, in the free version, one can only have a single notebook at a time. Yet you can do a lot with a single notebook sometimes. (You have no idea.) Do not be misled by some of the worse reviews. This app is a gem, and I would give it Editor's Choice if I were an editor. But I'm not downloading this app for you; you are. Don't take my or their word for it. Just try it.
(PS, how do you delete a notebook, devs? Thank you.)Show less๐บ๐ The Lupine Fish ๐๐บ
Utterly ๊ง๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐!๊ง
I am obsessed with notebooks. I am so much so that I sometimes write stuff down on a notes app like this one before I mess one up by accident! This app is perfect for an extreme notebookholic like me.
Now I have not tried a lot of notes apps on which you are intended to write with your finger,
but all the ones I HAVE tried have been lame-o. Either I can't zoom in, my handwriting looks terrible, or it's just...blah. This one stands out. Not only is it all-purpose and relatively easy to use, but the stickers are free and mostly nice. I could hardly believe there was washi tape!
I would say the only downside is that, in the free version, one can only have a single notebook at a time. Yet you can do a lot with a single notebook sometimes. (You have no idea.)
Do not be misled by some of the worse reviews. This app is a gem, and I would give it Editor's Choice if I were an editor. But I'm not downloading this app for you; you are. Don't take my or their word for it. Just try it.Show lessFantastic in many regards, lacks quality of life features
Hello penbook team and and others reading this review.
I really enjoy this app in many regards, and prefer it to the native iPadOS Notes app. However, there are a few quality of life features that I earnestly desire, and feel that lack of said features distracts from my overall usage and enjoyment of this app.
Here they are:
1) I use an iPad ninth generation. The performance of Penbook, relative to the iPadOS notes app, is noticeably more laggy. Scrolling through pages, and writing, does not feel as though it runs at the refresh rates my device is capable of (the notes app is โsmootherโ).
2) I wish this app responded to light and dark mode on my iPad. When I open up journals with a white background at night, I donโt want to look at them after a few minutes. The native notes app will toggle this for me automatically, and I wish there was a way for me to do the same in Penbook.
3) When you are on the last page of your journal, it would make sense for the forward arrow to just create a new page, rather than a different button for that.
3a) I feel like the date at the top should not appear until you write something down on the page. That way, with the create new Page mechanic currently, you could spam a bunch of new pages without feeling like theyโre all dated on the day you made them.
Thanks for reading, and keep up the good work!Show lessBigOldeDoinks69
Great Concept Bad Execution.
I love the concept and all of the tools are lovely not to mention the beautiful cute little stickers. ๐ป๐ฏ๐ฌ ๐บ๐ป๐ฐ๐ช๐ฒ๐ฌ๐น๐บ ๐ณ๐ถ๐ถ๐ฒ ๐จ๐ด๐จ๐๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ. But an issue I encountered is that it is way too glitchy. For example I am using the ruler and I click on one of the various writing utensils to change the one I am currently using ๐๐๐ my ruler location gets changed after five years of trying to place it in the perfect spot. Additionally maybe I am using a sticker and I click undo because I made a mistake or something
else ๐๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐ฌ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฅ๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐๐ค๐๐ซ ๐ ๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐ซ๐จ๐ฎ๐ฉ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ. Also using the ruler is just a hassle and you could say โแแแT แชOแT แแแด Tแผแด แแแชแดแ Yแฉ แชแแแแดโ I could but straight lines are hard and literally every art app has a ruler. Also I know that it isnโt my device causing this. In all it is too glitchy to handle and I would rather us Zinnia. Although I would love to use it if it was less glitchy and simpler. In conclusion great tools & stickers but horrible quality and execution. Thank you if the developer actually read this because a lot of them never reply to the lower reviews. But itโs an amazing app it just needs a few fixes. Thank you!Show lessIhatemylifesooooooooomuch
The longer you use, the worse it gets
I wrote a review a bit ago giving 3 stars an a list of everything wrong with it, those problems really mess with the whole experience and Iโm finding even more problems, 3 biggest problems is zoom, copy and paste, and lasso feature. When zooming it almost immediately unzooms you, before it was a decently rare thing but now itโs non stop. Copy and pasteโs problem is when pasting is almost guaranteed it will paste on a random page instead the one you on, this always was a big problem and common but most definitely happens even more the more you use the app. Lasso problem is just that sometimes it highlights completely differently then what you said to, zooming out typically fixes that tho, if not restarting the app, this problem never happened until recently. Itโs not a problem with my device as it ONLY happen on Penbook. I would give this 0 stars honestly if I could, thereโs so much wrong with it that thereโs no upside to using the app.Show lessMaximum bugs
Needs fixed by a lot, extremely irritating
Itโs a good app for handwritten notes but thereโs a lot of problems that make it so irritating to use. 1 the copy and paste is glitchy , when pasting things itโll go onto a random page almost every time, thereโs no way to make sure itโll go onto the page youโre viewing, 2 you canโt zoom in properly, the sides/edges of the page is almost impossible to zoom in on but if you can itโs supper finicky or may just punch your view back to the middle, 3 pen/pencil size doesnโt stay a consistent size, depending on how zoomed in you are itโll make it thicker or thinner then what you have selected, 4 pen sizes arenโt a slider but like 4 or 5 set sizes (that onesie again doesnโt stay consistent), 5 when holding down to make a line a straight line it turned into a circle, 6 the holding mechanic to make a perfect shape or line doesnโt work with the back button, 7 holding mechanic wonโt pick up any shapes other then circle and square but it struggles with the squareShow lessExactly What I was Looking For
Iโve been looking for a handwriting app for a long time, and finding something that matches my needs has been challenging. I always wanted to replace the need for carrying physical notebooks, but every app out there seems to love putting tons of UI all over the place. This was the first app I found that finally hides all the UI, and it truly feels like a replacement for a physical notebook. Itโs also extremely full-featured and contains a fantastic selection of extras such as washi tape and even some special notebooks that make it seem like youโre getting a notebook from an actual store. This, combined with the fantastic price, makes this one of the best notebook replacement apps out there. Thereโs some UI that needs to be polished, especially around handling notebooks and organizing pages. Still, the fantastic note-taking experience makes it totally worth it.Show lessProJedi1234
Change of review
I really want to apologize to previous review stating there was no way to resize pictures uploaded to pages. I found the pdf with instructions and yes pictures can be resized. What also said in previous review was I really really hate subscription models and have been actively looking for replacement apps for many apps I use that have gone that way. In this case I appreciate you include a lifetime purchase and think Penbook is super special and well worth it :) So fun and customizable with great tools, paper, stickers and really every ability to let freak flag fly! Update, this has become my favourite notebook app because even the boring chores of lessons and todos notes are so customizable and fun. I bought the lifetime membership love it so much. Missed out on testing the new beta but really excited to see what future improvements and features the app will have. Right now this app is constantly updated which makes it worth buying out right or subscription and in general I hate a refuse to subscribe to most things.Show lessClurichaun
Stickers and sticker function need to be improved, but otherwise, great!
I love this app! the free version only allows for one notebook, so I use it for my planner! It helps me ACTUALLY use one (I always say I will, and never do)! I only wish there were more stickers and washi tapes, or the ability to add in our own, or access frequently or recently used stickers.
The one actual flaw that Iโve found, is that every single time I try to resize a sticker thatโs been rotated, the app freezes and crashes and doesnโt save the location or size of the sticker. The ONLY partial work around Iโve found, is to make each SMALL change one at a time, exiting the edit mode after every single small alteration, and even then, sometimes that doesnโt work [Note: both my iPad and app are up to date].Show lessTryingMyBestt
Wacky reviews. Itโs a good up but lacks enough intuitiveness
So many apps now that it gets to a point where unless there is a lot of urging by credible people my brain just lets out one big tired sigh just like everytime an app that wants to give more notifications which Iโm already swamped with and must deny permission. This app is at a high number 14 productivity and recommended by Apple Store staff.
So why did I uninstall it so quickly? I was overwhelmed with the book creation buttons everwhere. I just wanted an easy guided intro and try the drawing. Seems good. If an app is good enough I donโt mind paying for it. But it looks too complicated to learn to risk finding out itโs not a fit in the end so Iโll stick to Procreate for drawing and real journal sketchbooks.
Good luck devs. By the way, I think you have some fake bad reviews in your recent reviews. Keep an eye open.Show lessJ. Grimm
