# Carbo › Pencil Notes & Drawing — user reviews

> 146 indexed App Store user reviews of Carbo › Pencil Notes & Drawing by Creaceed SRL, rated 4.30/5 from 51 ratings.

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/carbo-pencil-notes-and-drawing/id956811074/reviews
- App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/carbo-pencil-notes-and-drawing/id956811074.md
- Rating breakdown: 5★ 37 · 4★ 5 · 3★ 2 · 2★ 0 · 1★ 7

## What do users think of Carbo › Pencil Notes & Drawing?

Overall sentiment: mixed

**Pros**

- 👍 Great for sketching ideas
- 👍 Pleasantly surprised by subscription plan
- 👍 Laser-focused on B&W scanning
- 👍 Excellent for capturing notes
- 👍 Manipulate scans easily
- 👍 Perfect for long-term reference
- 👍 Great for illustration on the go
- 👍 Amazingly useful for handwritten notes
- 👍 Good for capturing whiteboard notes
- 👍 Great for math applications
- 👍 Nice for organizing notebooks
- 👍 Simple and effective organization
- 👍 Bridges paper and digital notes
- 👍 Great for diagram capture
- 👍 Vectorizing photos for clear scans
- 👍 Fast and works in low light
- 👍 Syncs with Evernote
- 👍 Simple yet powerful
- 👍 Captures monochrome notes nimbly
- 👍 Good balance of capture and editing

**Cons**

- 👎 Lacking features for daily use
- 👎 Difficult for diagrams and notes
- 👎 Rudimentary editing tools
- 👎 Lacks color
- 👎 Crippled by lack of export options
- 👎 Not what I was looking for (handwriting recognition)
- 👎 Organization is limited
- 👎 Proprietary format for notes
- 👎 Can't bundle pages into PDF
- 👎 Overpriced for PNG creation
- 👎 Can't place all scans in one document
- 👎 Needs more drawing options
- 👎 Poor interface
- 👎 Uncomfortable to use on iPad Pro
- 👎 Limited sketching engine
- 👎 Not useful for $8
- 👎 Basic scanning app
- 👎 Clunky or doesn't work
- 👎 Not much functionality
- 👎 Resolution of captured images not good
- 👎 Not as advertised
- 👎 No edge-detection
- 👎 Imports lines from lined paper
- 👎 Text box or drawing function missing
- 👎 Captured image quality not good
- 👎 Selection is too 'intelligent'
- 👎 Overpriced for basic scanning
- 👎 Limited editing tools
- 👎 No color options
- 👎 Not intuitive to navigate

**Commonly reported bugs**

- Keeps crashing on iPad
- Update bricks app (crashes on launch)
- Carbo keeps crashing
- Sync problem with Evernote
- Exporting pages (archiving) doesn't work
- Buggy on iOS 9.01 and iPhone 6S
- iPhone keeps switching off sync with Evernote
- App crashes frequently
- File import from iCloud shows files but can't be opened
- Beta Evernote sync does not work
- Randomly selects other bits on the page
- Clunky or doesn't quite work
- Sync with Evernote was easy, but iPhone keeps switching off attempt to sync

**Most requested features**

- Adding colors
- More pencil sizes
- Ability to handle multi-page docs
- Viable export options (PDF, etc.)
- Ability to bundle pages into PDF
- Put a title on scans
- Copy and paste selected objects
- Export an entire notebook as PDF
- Desktop client for reassociating tags/annotations
- Save notes as pictures to Photos
- Select multiple vectors and change color/thickness
- iCloud Drive support
- Invert image
- Copy/cut/paste selections
- Export svg file
- OneDrive cloud option
- Scan a whole page of doodles and separate them
- Improve paper edge detection
- Multi-page option
- Text box or drawing function
- Improve captured image quality
- Edge-detection feature
- Better handling of lined paper
- Sync with Evernote
- Choice of line sizes for annotations
- Color picker and highlighter pen
- Support for different writing utensils on one surface
- Multiple page support
- Different sized pens
- More customization for page size
- PDF vector export
- Filter multiple tags
- Re-editing scanned documents
- Cloud sync for notes
- Copy feature for local and cloud storage
- Save to Photos app
- Ability to use notes as pictures
- Select multiple vectors and change color or thickness
- Scan entire page of doodles and separate them
- More cloud options (OneDrive)
- Text box or drawing function
- Better paper edge detection
- Multi-page option
- Improve captured image quality
- Edge-detection
- Better handling of lined paper
- Sync with Evernote
- Choice of line sizes for annotations
- Color picker and highlighter pen
- Support for different writing utensils on one surface
- Multiple page support
- Different sized pens
- More customization for page size
- PDF vector export
- Filter multiple tags
- Re-editing scanned documents
- Cloud sync for notes
- Copy feature for local and cloud storage

## Newest reviews (15 of 146)

### 4/5 — Handy little tool

*2025-02-08*

This is great for sketching ideas as they come to mind.

### 2/5 — Приложение не работает

*2021-10-16*

Стало вылетать при запуске после последнего обновления

### 4/5 — Alles funktioniert wieder

*2021-02-19*

Mit dem letzten Update alles gefixt – das Pro-Pack wurde wieder hergestellt. Danke für die schnelle Reaktion.

**Developer response:** Great to read. Thank you! /TC

### 4/5 — Bug corrigé: je retrouve mon vieux Carbo

*2021-02-19*

Pour ceux qui avaient acheté l’ancienne version, cette version corrige bien le problème qui en limitait l’utilisation. 
Toujours aussi bien pour modifier les schémas repris, par exemple, un tableau blanc. 
En revanche, toujours pas de prise en compte de la couleur; c’est dommage, car les originaux sur le tableau, eux, sont en couleur, et on perd de l’info.

**Developer response:** Super, merci! Nous prenons également note de votre feedback. /TC

### 2/5 — Recht heftige Nachzahlung

*2021-02-17*

Seit Mai 2015 ist keine Neuerung dazugekommen!!!
Um die bisherige Nutzung lediglich weiter nutzen zu können, muss der Kunde nun kräftig in die Tasche greifen - das wird die Bewertung heftig nach unten drücken.

**Developer response:** Hello. Please download Carbo's latest update (version 2.2.1) which fixes the issue. /TC

### 3/5 — Frechheit weicht Unverständnis

*2021-02-17*

Nach meiner Kritik meldeten sich die Entwickler umgehend und ich solle die App löschen um sie neu zu installieren. Das war ein workaround. Aber, die Daten die ich vorher nicht mehr öffnen konnte, da sie im Netz irgendwo verknüpft waren (anscheinend zu viele für die neue Version) sind nun verschwunden. Die willkürlichen Eingriffe in meine Freiheit mit meinen Daten eigenständig zu hantieren, kann ich nicht akzeptieren. 
Da jetzt aber wenigstens mein Kauf wieder hergestellt ist, gebe ich noch den dritten Stern. 

Ich hatte Carbo gekauft. Jetzt wurde ich enteignet. 
Der Kapitalismus, der sich der sozialistischen Errungenschaft der Enteignung bedient.
Ich bin sauer. Ich werde natürlich meine Daten sichern, die App löschen und nicht mehr verwenden. Es gibt Alternativen.

### 4/5 — キャンバスサイズが自由に変更できれば★5

*2020-03-29*

主に手書きメモをスキャナAppでスキャンし、Carboで編集、ノートAppに貼り付けて利用しています。編集の際に取り込んだキャンバスサイズが足りなくなったり、余白が無駄に大きくなることがあるので、自由にトリミングと拡大ができれば文句ナシで★5です。

**Developer response:** Thank you for your feedback. We take note of it. /TC

### 3/5 — Danke für den DarkMode..

*2019-10-30*

ABER:
Wieso werden gleich alle Inhalte im DarkModus ausgegeben? 😕🤔🙄🙈🤪

**Developer response:** Hello. When in Dark Mode, Carbo notes are also displayed as dark so that they remain easy on the eyes even in a dark environment. Should you have further questions, you can email us at support@creaceed.com /TC

### 5/5 — Illustration Untethered.

*2019-08-21, version 1.7*

Carbo keeps crashing on iPad, for about a week now

Carbon is a great little app; perfect for illustration with an iPad on the go.

### 3/5 — Идея хорошая

*2019-07-21*

1. Сделайте так, чтоб можно было отправлять изображения в другие приложения. 
2. Следует улучшить алгоритм написания от руки. Слишком уж нереалистичное, а поэтому и неудобно. 
3. Улучшить алгоритм распознавания документов от формата а4 и выше.

**Developer response:** We thank you for your feedback. We take note of it for future versions of Carbo. /TC

### 5/5 — Удобное приложение для ручных заметок

*2019-07-11*

Выглядит красиво и сделано достаточно удобно, много возможностей по созданию и редактированию заметок.

**Developer response:** спасибо! Your kind words are really appreciated. /TC

### 2/5 — Ok, but won’t be using it for note taking

*2019-02-25*

Ok app, but lacking too many features for it to be useful for day to day usage. I was hoping to use the Evernote integration to draw up diagrams and notes for work, but the lack of features is making it difficult. 

Adding colours and more pencil sizes would be a great start and would start making it more useful

**Developer response:** Thank you. We take note of your feedback and workflow in order to improve our app in the future. /TC

### 3/5 — スキャンの精度がイマイチ

*2018-12-26*

1枚1枚追加する必要があるので複数の画像を扱えるようにして欲しいです。

### 5/5 — 利用頻度がとても高いソフトです。

*2018-12-23*

独特のインターフェイスなので、使い慣れるまではとっつきにくいかもしれませんが、手書きのメモなどの整理にとても便利です。
利用頻度がとても高いソフトです。

**Developer response:** Thank you for the kind words about Carbo! They're really appreciated. /TC

### 4/5 — Needs ability to handle multi page docs

*2018-12-19*

Amazingly useful app. I can scan in my handwritten notes and send them to Onenote where I keep my digital notes.

However, to be a perfect solution it really needs the ability to scan multi page documents.

**Developer response:** Thank you for the kind words! They're really appreciated. We do take note of your feedback. /TC

## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated)

### 1/5 — Funktioniert nicht

*2024-05-15*

Zu teuer, Monatsabo funktioniert auch nicht, trotz aktiviertem pro pack 2 keine zusatzfunktionen wie Export usw verfügbar. Vorsicht beim Kauf

**Developer response:** Hello. We thank you for your constructive feedback about Carbo and we take note of it. Kind regards. /TC

### 1/5 — Пропали почти все заметки

*2021-08-21*

Pro пропали заметки

**Developer response:** Спасибо! /TC

### 1/5 — Horrible  and unjustified pricing!

*2021-02-17*

I have been using this application for years. I had already purchased the application at that time. Now the application is asking for subscription or to pay very unjustifiedly price for using the application with no additional or new features added! It means to use the same application as it is we are supposed to pay the unjustified price. What about previous purchased?!

**Developer response:** Hello. Please download Carbo's latest update (version 2.2.1) which fixes the issue. /TC

### 1/5 — Inking is worst

*2019-10-19*

Inking experience worst I have ever seen.please don’t buy the app.my money got wasted.

**Developer response:** Hello. If you are experiencing any issues with Carbo or have questions about its use, please don't hesitate to get back to us at support@creaceed.com. /TC

### 1/5 — Ruim

*2019-06-09*

Qualquer app gratuito de tratamento de foto faz o que esse app faz, me arrependi de ter comprado.

**Developer response:** Hello. Carbo is not like any photo treatment app as it introduces a unique pixel-free technology that preserves all the expressiveness of the original drawing. Your notes are editable with vector-like accurac: scaling or rotating parts of the image won't reveal any pixels. Moreover, Carbo fully supports modern iOS features including the Apple Pencil. /TC

### 1/5 — Update bricks app

*2018-10-15, version 1.6.6*

The update has bricked the app on my iPhone 6s. Pretty bad update. Just crashes when I click on it.

### 1/5 — Ripped off

*2018-06-03*

7.99 for a below average pencil app. You do the math.

### 1/5 — Needs viable export option

*2018-05-02*

Carbo makes pretty good scans, but it’s crippled by the lack of a viable export option. Users need to be able to select multiple scans and export them to PDF or other file formats. Until that happens, save your money and consider this unusable for most purposes.

**Developer response:** Hi. You can export multiple notes as an archive. We take note of your feedback about multi-note PDF export.

### 1/5 — Apple Pencil sketching limited

*2018-04-25*

Was hoping for same sketching engine as on Inko, but it isn’t. And with no demo version, no way for me to test without costing $8. 

At this point, I won’t use this app and wish I could get a refund.

**Developer response:** Hi. Carbo and Inko share the same pencil support & pixel-free rendering technique, but Carbo is monochrome and Inko is in color (which is a recent addition). That is expressed in the description. They are otherwise very different apps with differents scopes (handwritten notes vs. collaborative drawing). You can contact Apple directly for a refund, as they are the seller.

### 1/5 — Dropbox access

*2018-01-29*

Why do you need full access to my Dropbox folder. What are you going to do with my other personal data. I can’t change that settings in Dropbox either.Stop being so greedy and be ethical.

**Developer response:** Hi. We never have access to your Dropbox without your consent. The full access is justified by the fact that you can then select whichever folder to stock your notes in (the choice is not limited to the Dropbox sandbox third-party app folder).
Please note that Carbo never accesses files contained in other folders.
If you wish so, you can log out at any moment by going to Dropbox’s settings then “Connected apps” and unlink Carbo.

Feel free to contact us via support@creaceed.com should you have further questions about the matter. /TC

## Most praised reviews (10 highest-rated)

### 5/5 — В отсутствии альтернатив — 5/5

*2024-04-29*

Нужно было оцифровать рукописные заметки с удалением фона для дальнейшего использования в моей базе obsidian, где я меняю цвет штриха и фона с помощью css-пресетов. Единственное приложение, которое помогло мне решить проблему. Благодарю.

### 5/5 — excellente pour votre schéma d’explications

*2022-07-18*

J’utilise Carbo occasionnellement et à chaque fois avec grand plaisir. 

J’aime beaucoup dessiner à la main des schémas explicatifs pour le boulot. Carbo me permet non seulement de numériser mon schéma intelligemment mais aussi d’y appliquer des effets qui font leurs petits effets ! J’aime tout particulièrement le tableau noir et le blueprint qui donne une touche pro et sérieuse. 

L’appli n’a pas moultes fonctionnalitées mais ce qu’elle fait elle le fait bien et je la recommande.

### 5/5 — She what’s

*2022-04-02*

Mystery woman is over there,she is miss more and second bag
Is rich.who is many’s in a town.she said,I miss you.

### 5/5 — Pleasantly Surprised

*2021-06-28*

I was worried when I saw that this app went to a subscription plan, especially after losing functionality in other paid apps after they’ve done the same. Im happy to see that I haven’t lost any of the functionality of the app and it still works great. Thanks!

### 5/5 — 5 из 5

*2021-04-14*

Гениальное приложение!)

**Developer response:** Cпасибо! /TC

### 5/5 — The best at what it does

*2021-02-20*

This app is laser focused on scanning and editing black and white images and documents. I’ve relied on it for years for capturing whiteboard notes and receipts quickly. Love the editing functions which easily allow clean-up and rearranging of image elements. I was upset that the v3 update looked like it wanted me to pay again for feature I already had bought but the developer rapidly fixed that bug.

**Developer response:** Great to read. Thank you! /TC

### 5/5 — Muito bom, mas específico!

*2020-07-13*

Em geral um scanner gratuito ja deve fazer o trabalho, mas se você quiser escanear desenhos fazendo correções e convertendo-os para linhas com fundo transparente e rapidamente exportá-los ao dropbox e, por fim, colorir no computador, eu acho que esse aplicativo faz muito bem o trabalho! bem prático e confortável!

como disse no título é bem específico, mas se for uma situação parecida com a minha acho que vale a pena, só certifique-se de ver outras opções de scanner tbm!

**Developer response:** Thank you for the kind words about Carbo! Really appreciated! /TC

### 5/5 — Great for what I need

*2020-01-18*

Carbo has long been my go to for scanning written notes. It’s clear and allows me manipulate the scan exactly as I want. Its export options work well. I haven’t used the pencil option much, but it has come in handy. As someone who prefers to write on paper then scan for long term reference it’s perfect for me and well worth the investment.

**Developer response:** Thank you for the kind words! Really appreciated. /TC

### 5/5 — 非常によく出来ている！

*2019-11-13*

今のところ、★５つ。
データをどんどん蓄積していくのが楽しみだ。

**Developer response:** Thank you for the kind words! They're really appreciated. /TC

### 5/5 — Fantastico! Auch für große und kleine Künstler ✨

*2019-10-18*

Cargo Ink ist sehr vielseitig einsetzbar für graphische Projekte und Collagen. Schrift ist mit Skitch zB als png freistellbar. Es sind manuell im Anschluss Strich- und Schatten-Stärke und -Farbe zu justieren sowie Überflüssiges per Radierer aus dem Bild zu entfernen, um das Schriftbild und die evt. enthaltenen graphischen Elemente den eigenen Wünschen anzupassen.
Wundervoll auch die Variante, die eigene Handschrift als KreideBild umzusetzen, auch farbig.
Ein Anwendungstipp: Einfache KinderZeichnungen sind über die Freistellfunktion im Nu in andere Apps exportiert und können so mühelos auf Hintergrundbilder “appliziert” und in ihrer Kunst zum Strahlen gebracht werden. ...oder ganz neue Fantasiewelten erschaffen. 
...das funktioniert natürlich nicht nur mit KinderZeichnungen :)
Leider finde ich die Menüführung der App nicht vollendet und relativ unübersichtlich, daher “nur” 4 Punkte.

**Developer response:** Thank you for the kind words! They're really appreciated. /TC

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-09-01.*