Benchpad vs Nook

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.

Nook is a quiet corner for focused work. Set a timer, work in short bursts, and take real breaks in between. No character to feed, no leaderboard to climb, no streak shaming you for a day off. Just the time you gave to the thing you were doing. COMPLETELY FREE No trial countdown. No subscription. No paywall. No ads. There is nothing to buy in Nook, now or ever. FOCUS TIMER Work, short break and long break lengths are all yours to set. A breathing ring marks the session so you can tell at a glance where you are without reading numbers. Pause, skip a phase, or stop whenever you need to. STOPWATCH When 25 minutes is the wrong shape, count up instead. Take laps to mark stages inside one long stretch. Stopping saves the session to your history like any other. YOUR HISTORY See any day, week or month. A chart shows when you actually focused, and every session is listed with its start and end time. Plain numbers, no scores. OPTIONAL GOALS Daily, weekly and monthly session targets, off unless you switch them on. Missing one does nothing at all. GENTLE REMINDERS Pick the days and times you want to be nudged. Nook says something short and encouraging, then leaves you alone. MADE TO STAY OUT OF THE WAY Six alarm tones to choose from, or none. Light, dark, or follow the system. A quiet accent colour if you want one. Haptics you can switch off. Breaks that start on their own, or wait for you. PRIVATE BY DESIGN No account. No sign-in. No analytics. Everything you enter stays on your device. Nook has no server to send it to. Nook is for students, for people with ADHD who need a timer that does not nag, and for anyone who just wants a calm place to put their attention for a while.