Benchpad vs Etched

Benchpad is a scratchpad, not a second brain. Three pads. You name them — Work / Personal / Scratch, Today / This Week / Someday, whatever fits your head. No folders, no tags, no filing decisions. Open, type, close. WRITE WITHOUT DECIDING Every note app asks "where does this go?" before you've written a word. Benchpad doesn't. Three pads means the decision is already made. WORKS ON A PLANE Offline-first, not offline-tolerant. Every keystroke saves to your device before any network request. Sync happens in the background when you're online — and merges conflict-free if you edited on two devices at once. CONSTRAINT IS THE PRODUCT Benchpad is for people who want to write things down — not maintain a system. A note app that knows when to stop. When you can't create infinite folders, you write instead of organizing. Constraint isn't a compromise. It's the product. A REAL EDITOR Headings, checklists, tables, code blocks with syntax highlighting, images, file attachments all with slash commands and a block editor. NO AI. NO ADS. NO DATA MINING. Nothing reads, summarizes, or trains on your notes. Notes are encrypted at rest. Plain markdown — copy everything out anytime, no lock-in. FREE FOREVER, REALLY One pad, the full editor, offline support, sync, and an archive of 100 notes — free, no credit card, no time limit. Pro ($10/year flat) unlocks all three pads, all six themes, attachments, voice-note audio, and Markdown/PDF export. Benchpad is for people who want to write things down — not maintain a system. A note app that knows when to stop.

Stop losing your own notes. Etched finds what you wrote by meaning — not just by keyword. Ask for "the note about slowing down to think" and it surfaces, even if those exact words were never written. Everything runs on your device. Write in plain markdown and watch it render as you type — no symbols, no preview pane, no modes. What you see is the file. Your notes stay portable .md, yours forever. FREE, and complete: • On-device semantic search — find notes by meaning • Live WYSIWYG markdown — bold, headings, lists, quotes, code • Tables, callouts, code blocks, footnotes, highlights, links • iCloud sync across your devices • Export to .md (raw or with rendered images), PDF, plain text ETCHED PRO — one-time purchase, yours forever: • Flashcards + spaced repetition — turn notes into memory • Diagrams from plain text (flowcharts, sequences, mind maps) • Typeset math and chemistry (LaTeX) • Charts from a few rows of data • Sheet music from ABC notation • Handwriting / sketches • Present mode — turn a note into full-screen slides • Per-note themes Reading every format is always free — Pro unlocks creating them. No subscription, ever. Pay once and keep it. Coming from Apple Notes, Obsidian, or Bear? Your markdown imports as plain .md, and you finally get search that finds notes by meaning — privately, with no account. Private by design: your notes never leave your devices except through your own iCloud. No account, no tracking, no ads. Your notes, etched in memory. — Made by Hyojin Mo. Support: support@vibeland.app