# Elfinbook - Scanner & OCR — Take goodnotes, pdf expert > Mobile scanner and OCR app for digitizing handwritten notes and documents. (iPhone/iPad app by Hangzhou Qihui Technology Co., Ltd.) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/elfinbook-scanner-and-ocr/id1186551971 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [Hangzhou Qihui Technology Co., Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/1026642913) - Category: Productivity, Utilities - Price: Free with in-app purchases - Rating: 4.40/5 from 338 App Store ratings · 94 written reviews indexed - Age rating: 4+ - Requires: iOS 11.0 · 215 MB - Languages: American English, French (France), German (Germany), Japanese, Russian, Chinese (Simplified, China), European Spanish, Chinese (Traditional, Taiwan) - Released: 2016-12-18 - Data updated: 2026-09-03 - Monetization: free with in-app purchases - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/elfinbook-scanner-and-ocr/id1186551971/reviews.md ## What is Elfinbook? Instantly transform your handwritten notes into clear-written images right in the power of your own hand! Here comes the ELFINBOOK app that goes hand in hand with your ELFINBOOK notebook. With notes written in your eco-friendly, reusable and waterproof notebook, automatically sync it in your choice of cloud services like Evernote, Google Drive, OneCloud and more. Whether you are a student, teacher, engineer, designer, writer or an artist, you’re going to need the ELFINBOOK to fully experience the power of your ELFINBOOK notebook. This user-friendly app makes accessing notes, capture thoughts and saving them much easier and more accessible. We bring you the pleasure of the paper and pen experience with the ease of technology much easier and more fun, we give you the ELFINBOOK App! ¬¬------ INTEGRATES THE USE OF CAMERA FOR MOBILE SCANNING -With the use of your smartphone’s camera, scan handwritten notes for a high-quality image. -You also have the choice of cropping and auto-enhancing to make the texts and graphics sharp and clear. RECOGNIZES TEXTS FROM IMAGES -The help of the new and improved Optical Character Recognition (OCR) feature extracts texts from sketches and illustrations that makes it easy to edit, revise and share. MARVEL IN THE PAPER AND PEN EXPERIENCE -You can add photos, capture handwritten notes, and type text through the app’s writing pad. -Bask in the variety of pens available for you to use! You have fountain pen, rollerball pen, and highlighter. -What’s more is that it has an auto-advancing zoom that you can use like how you write on paper. ORGANIZE, SEARCH AND SECURE NOTES -Organize your notes in an easy-tree diagram to aid you while studying. -Comes with a portal system that you can use to pin frequently-viewed documents and it automatically sends notes to the portal document section. -Easily search for your handwritten notes as the application uses OCR technology. -To ensure privacy on your mobile app, you can add a password to safeguard your notes. AUTO-BACKUP AND AUTOMATIC CLOUD SYNC -In order not to lose your notes, we added an automatic cloud sync and auto-backup so that you can access them in your devices and retrieve them while you study or while you work. -To view your saved notes, visit the ELFINBOOK website. SHARING YOUR IDEAS MADE EASY -You can easily download your notes as PDF or JPEG format and send them through Google Drive, Dropbox, Evernote, ICloud, OneNote, WeChat or Email. ------ CONTACT US Email: elfinbook@hzqihui.cn Website: www.elfinbook.com Follow us on Twitter @Elfinbook13 For more information about our reusable notebooks, please visit ELFINBOOK.com. If you have any concerns and feedback regarding our ELFINBOOK app, you can comment down below and we’ll do our best to improve the app for you. ## Key features - Mobile scanning with camera - Optical Character Recognition (OCR) - Digital pen and writing pad - Note organization and search - Cloud sync and auto-backup - PDF and JPEG export ## Pricing and in-app purchases Base price: Free. **Subscriptions** | Subscription | Price | Period | | --- | --- | --- | | Annually Premium | $10.49 | per year | | Monthly Premium | $1.99 | per month | **One-time purchases** | Purchase | Price | Type | | --- | --- | --- | | Elfinbook Premium One Year | $7.99 | one-time | | Elfinbook Premium One Month | $0.99 | one-time | | 12 Months | $14.99 | one-time | | 1 Month | $2.99 | one-time | | 1GB Cloud Space | $1.99 | one-time | ## What do users think of Elfinbook? Overall sentiment: negative **Pros** - 👍 Easy to use - 💡 Innovative concept (notebook + app) - ♻️ Reusable notebook - ✍️ Good handwriting recognition (sometimes) - 📄 Scans documents well - ☁️ Cloud storage integration - ✅ Works with physical notebooks - 📚 Good for organizing notes - 🌎 Environmentally friendly **Cons** - 🐛 Frequent crashes - ❌ Login/signup issues - 📉 Poor OCR accuracy - ⏳ Slow performance - 💸 Premium features required - ❓ Unintuitive interface - 🗑️ Data loss issues - 🚫 Limited export options - 📱 Incompatible with some devices - 🗣️ Language support issues (OCR) - 📷 Camera issues - 📧 Poor customer support **Commonly reported bugs** - App crashes immediately upon opening - App crashes during launch - Cannot export to PDF - Batch scan is too slow - OCR text recognition does not work - App crashes when trying to take pictures - Premium membership disappears after reinstallation - App crashes when moving pictures - App crashes when trying to write something - Slow upload to cloud - Cannot log in or sign up - Camera not working - App crashes when capturing a new page - App crashes when moving picture order - Lost notes after upgrade - Failed to upgrade data - App crashes when trying to scan - App crashes after update - OCR cannot recognize Russian - OCR only works with English - OCR produces gibberish for German - OCR scan takes too long - App does not recognize text - Flash control icon missing - App does not sync documents - OCR not working properly - App stretches documents to A4 size - Cannot turn flash on or off - App signs out every time it's closed - App does not remember login details - Cannot set phone and email under account - OCR is not great, requires editing - No return/enter to start a new line when editing notes - Cannot register as a user - App stops and cannot go back - Email error code during registration - Unable to connect during registration - No registered message when trying to log in - Camera never works - App won't start after reinstallation - Paid app is unusable - Lost data in the cloud - Cannot link with Evernote - Password for Evernote is incorrect - Corrupted documents in the app - Documents become unrecoverable - Recognition button thinks text is in different languages - Writing reappears after heating - App crashes when scanning - Lifetime membership not staying connected - App lags - Does not keep user signed in to premium account - Often will not log in at all - OCR unreadable even with best penmanship - Password lost and cannot reset - No help from support - App is confusing and difficult to use - iPhone XS Max unusable after update - Cannot bind phone number to app - Cannot type or use options for phone number binding - OCR function not found - App written in Chinese, no translation - Imported document never arrived - Writing fades away when touched too much - App is a cheap knockoff - App is an insult - Pages are soft and indent, cannot be reused - Sync issues - OCR is bad - App not intuitive - Customer service is terrible - Cannot change phone number easily - Notebook pages stain easily - App is unstable - Lost all work notes - App doesn't detect margins of pages - App doesn't work on certain pages - Software is atrocious - Software is a letdown - Picture editing is basic - App doesn't support Traditional Chinese OCR - App doesn't support Russian OCR - App crashes during installation - App doesn't work after last update - App cannot be opened after update - App doesn't work after update - Cannot register with phone number **Most requested features** - Improved OCR accuracy - Faster batch scanning - Better language support for OCR - More intuitive UI - Smoother syncing - Google Drive integration - iCloud sync for iOS - Ability to set destination folders for scans - Improved camera detection of borders - Dark mode - Ability to hear environmental information and read documents via camera (for visually impaired) - Automatic scanning when over the document - Spanish language support - Option to scan with or without black frame - Better customer service response - Ability to change phone number/email easily - More advanced picture editing options - Improved pen holder placement on notebook ## Recent user reviews (10 of 94) All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/elfinbook-scanner-and-ocr/id1186551971/reviews.md ### 5/5 — 简单好用 *2026-01-14, version 4.7.5* 如题 ### 5/5 — Самое недооценное приложение для сканирования с телефона *2025-01-13, version 4.7.5* Не хватает, конечно, доработак и более качественного перевода, но для бесплатного пользования подходит идеально. ### 2/5 — Does this app still works? *2024-01-09, version 4.7.5* Can’t log in nor sign up??? ### 1/5 — Crashes immediately upon opening! *2023-12-06, version 4.7.5* What else is there to say. I just downloaded this and it won’t stay open. Disappointing. ### 1/5 — Crash *2023-02-13, version 4.7.3* App clash during launch ### 1/5 — 圖檔無法導出變成pdf *2023-01-11, version 4.7.3* 浪費一堆時間…花錢變高級會員到底是有什麼用？ 現在功能爛到爆 ### 4/5 — Good *2023-01-04, version 4.7.3* Batch scan a little bit too slow. The rest is good. ### 3/5 — Braucht dringend ein update! *2022-12-16, version 4.7.3* OCR Texterkennung funktioniert leider nicht mal bei gedruckten Seiten! Ziemlicher Kauderwelsch der da rauskommt. Demnach für diese Funktion unbrauchbar. Schade, das wollte ich hauptsächlich nutzen und hab leider auch schon die 10.49 € Jahresgebühr für Premium bezahlt. ### 1/5 — No update over one year *2022-09-13, version 4.7.3* Waste time to take 15 pictures and crashed then began again. Please update app ### 5/5 — Elfinbook *2022-08-26, version 4.7.3* One of the most helpful things I have!! I bought one of the notebooks a long time ago and I still use it… but the app is what makes my life so much easier! Scanning my documents, it can read my handwriting, it’s so easy to use! ## Frequently asked questions about Elfinbook ### What does the Elfinbook app do? The Elfinbook app allows you to scan your handwritten notes from your physical notebook using your smartphone's camera. It then uses OCR technology to convert your handwriting into editable digital text. You can organize, search, and sync your notes to the cloud. ### What are the key features of Elfinbook? Key features include mobile scanning with image enhancement, Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for text extraction, a digital writing pad with various pens, note organization with a tree diagram, password protection for privacy, automatic cloud backup and sync, and the ability to export notes as PDF or JPEG. ### Is Elfinbook free to use? The app is free to download and use, but it offers in-app purchases. These purchases likely unlock additional features or enhance existing ones, providing a freemium model for users. ### What devices is Elfinbook compatible with? The app is designed for mobile use, meaning it is compatible with smartphones and tablets that run on mobile operating systems. Specific compatibility details for iOS and Android versions are typically found in the app store listing. ### How can I use Elfinbook for studying or work? For studying, you can digitize lecture notes, textbook highlights, and study guides, making them easily searchable and shareable. For work, it's useful for capturing meeting notes, brainstorming sessions, or project ideas, ensuring they are backed up and accessible from anywhere. ## Version history (last 5 releases) ### 4.7.5 — 2023-05-11 - Bug Fixed ### 4.7.4 — 2023-03-09 - Bug fixes ### 4.7.3 — 2021-08-02 New Feature - Template: You can create a template by importing a PDF of images so that you can add a new handwriting page from the template - Sign up with Facebook or Google Optimization - Increase the size limit of imported PDF files - Save some settings Bug fixes By the way, the reviews are helpful for us. If you think Elfinbook is great, would you mind taking a moment to write a nice review? If you've got a question or something that isn't working quite right, please contact us from the [Help & Feedback] in App ### 4.7.2 — 2021-07-22 - Bug fixes By the way, the reviews are helpful for us. If you think Elfinbook is great, would you mind taking a moment to write a nice review? If you've got a question or something that isn't working quite right, please contact us from the [Help & Feedback] in App ### 4.7.1 — 2021-07-03 - Adapt horizontal screen and split screen on iPad By the way, the reviews are helpful for us. If you think ELFINBOOK is great, would you mind taking a moment to write a nice review? If you've got a question or something that isn't working quite right, please contact us from the [Help & Feedback] in App ## Apps similar to Elfinbook | App | Rating | Price | Category | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [CamScanner - PDF Scanner App](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/camscanner-pdf-scanner-app/id388627783) | 4.8 (1,880,994) | Free | Productivity | | [Microsoft Lens: PDF Scanner](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/microsoft-lens-pdf-scanner/id975925059) | 4.8 (142,096) | Free | Productivity | | [CamScanner + \| OCR Scanner](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/camscanner-plus-ocr-scanner/id388624839) | 4.9 (17,235) | $0.99 | Productivity | | [Scanner Mini – Scan PDF & Fax](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/scanner-mini-scan-pdf-and-fax/id581365763) | 4.9 (21,258) | Free | Productivity | | [vFlat Scan - PDF & OCR Scanner](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/vflat-scan-pdf-and-ocr-scanner/id1540238220) | 4.8 (6,107) | Free | Productivity | | [Mobile Scanner App - Scan PDF](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mobile-scanner-app-scan-pdf/id1461747901) | 4.8 (55,248) | Free | Productivity | ## More apps by Hangzhou Qihui Technology Co., Ltd - [一田一墅-特价订民宿酒店客栈](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/id1304816231) All apps by Hangzhou Qihui Technology Co., Ltd: https://appshunter.io/developer/1026642913 ## Related topics [qihui](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/qihui) --- *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 2026-09-03.*