Comparison

Neo Notes vs Notebook

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Neo Notes

This app digitizes your handwritten notes, allowing you to store, edit, and share them easily. It offers transcription to digital text, voice recording synced with notes, and cloud backup options. Enhance productivity and learning by keeping your handwriting accessible anywhere.

Highlights
  • Digitize handwriting instantly
  • Edit and format notes
  • Transcribe handwriting to text
  • Record audio synced with notes
  • Cloud backup and sync
  • Share notes in various formats
  • Tag and search handwritten data
Read full description

Neo smartpen is an innovation which transfers the handwritten data to digital text by using technology. Now, you can keep your handwriting in a digital form and bring them everywhere. Neo Notes is a dedicated application of Neo smartpen. You can digitize your handwriting instantly and simultaneously. It also provides an offline mode that stores your handwriting and transfer when the pen is connected with your smartphone. Transferred data can be easily edited and shared in a variety of platforms. Enhance your work productivity, learning, and self-development. [Main Updates] - The search function has been enhanced. From now on, you can search without running transcribe. - The design has changed from Notebook cover to the Settings. - You can share your handwritten documents in Microsoft Word(.docx) and PowerPoint(pptx) format. This function is experimental, and it will be stabilized gradually. ------------ Main Features ----------- [Digital Storage] Neo smartpen saves the handwritten data to the connected smart device. Its sensitive pressure recognition saves the handwritten data on the Ncode notebook accurately. [Editing Function] You can edit and change the font color and size as you prefer or delete any unnecessary data. You can also emphasize important information with a highlighter in edit mode. [Text Transcription] You can transcribe handwritten to digital text with a simple touch with a fingertip. Convert your written data to a digital text and copy & paste it on your memos or emails. Neo Notes support up to 15 different language transcriptions. [Auto Save Options] Use our “Authentication Center” and log in with your choice of Cloud services; OneNote, Evernote, Adobe CC or Google Drive. Then you can toggle on Auto Save Function at “Auto Save Options”. Now, you can check your data anywhere. [Easy and Convenient Share] Your handwritten contents can be shared via email, SNS and different applications in PDF, image, text and vector format. [Google Drive Backup and Restoring] If you upload your written contents to Google drive, then you can download it to other smart devices and continue to write or edit. Even if you wish to use different devices alternatively or change it to brand new one, you can save and download the existing data from Google drive. [Record & Playback] Record your voice while you write down your notes. You can playback the audio files that are synced with the pen strokes. Do not miss any important parts of your lectures or conversation by using the record function. [Tag & Search] You can easily search for any data by using a tag function. You can effectively manage your handwritten data by tagging it into different subjects. You may easily search your saved written contents by data or text. [Offline Sync] Neo smartpen saves written data on the offline mode and then automatically transfers and saves data once it is connected to your smart device. You can write without connecting it to your smart devices. (Neo smartpen is able to save up to 1,000 pages of written data) [Notebox] You can lock the used notebook before you use the same kind of notebook with this function. (If a used notebook is not locked your handwriting on the new notebook may overlap with used notebook) [Calendar View] The calendar view helps you to quickly search the data by date. Not only the date, but also the written place and the weather are recorded, so it is convenient to remember the environment at the time of writing. [Calendar Sync] Once you write your schedule on to “N Planner” it will sync with the designated online calendar. (Google Calendar, Outlook Calendar)

About

Notebook

Capture your thoughts, ideas, and tasks with a versatile digital notebook. Create rich notes with text, files, audio, and video. Organize content visually, collaborate in real-time, and access everything across your devices.

Highlights
  • Rich note creation with text, files, audio, and video
  • Checklist creation for task management
  • Bookmark collection and offline reading
  • Kanban-style note organization
  • Real-time collaboration and sharing
  • AI-powered journaling suggestions
  • Cross-device and cloud synchronization
Features
Read full description

Zoho Notebook is a free, ad-free note-taking app for students, teams and researchers: capture, find and reuse what you write down — typed notes, Apple Pencil handwriting, voice recordings with AI transcription, checklists, files and document scans in one note. Syncs across iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and other devices. WHAT PEOPLE USE NOTEBOOK FOR 1. MEETING AND LECTURE NOTES Record with audio or video cards; Notebook AI turns it into searchable text with timestamps, so you jump straight to the decision instead of replaying it. Structured minutes with title, participants, decisions and action points sit in the note beside your highlights. Record screen and self at once; longer videos get chapters. 2. STUDY AND RESEARCH Record lectures and search the transcript weeks later. Scan textbooks and business cards, handwrite and sketch with Apple Pencil, use OCR to find text inside photos and handwritten notes, so nothing you captured becomes unfindable. A long note becomes an AI mind map before an exam. 3. DAILY TO-DOS AND JOURNALING Dedicated checklist cards keep tasks beside your notes, and recurring reminders keep them on schedule. Journaling prompts come from your own activity, easier to keep than a blank page. 4. FILES, SCANS, AND SAVED READING Add PDFs, Word docs and spreadsheets with file cards. Articles, videos, recipes and how-tos become Smart Cards, formatted automatically, readable offline and ad-free. Group it all into nested collections. QUESTIONS PEOPLE ASK Is it free? Yes, with 2GB of free storage and no ads. Notebook Pro adds more storage, longer notes, larger attachments, Email-In to save emails as notes, premium covers, and custom recurring reminders. Can I move my notes from Evernote, Google Keep, or OneNote? Yes, with dedicated migration tools; it arrives organized. Is my data private? Notes are encrypted in transit and at rest. We never sell your data and never show ads. Lock notes or notebooks with a password, Touch ID or Face ID; previews stay hidden until unlocked. Does it work offline? Yes. Create, edit and read offline, then pick up on another device once it syncs to the cloud. What can Notebook AI do? Transcribe audio and video, build mind maps, summarize and simplify, fix grammar, set tone (casual, professional, friendly, direct, or confident), translate into any language, draft notes, checklists, tables, code or a template from a prompt, and suggest tags. Notebook AI is a separate add-on. Does it use on-device AI and Siri? Yes. An on-device Knowledge Graph links ideas across notebooks and answers questions from your own notes. Siri creates and updates notes by voice with the app closed, and On-Screen Awareness summarizes what's on screen without switching apps. Can I share with non-users? Yes. @mention people to collaborate in real time, or publish a public note or video by link. MORE INSIDE - Search by title, content, tag, collaborator, or notebook; filter by any card type, contact, or link; search within one note; sort by date or relevance, with auto-suggestions and recent searches, offline and across languages - iPhone: text-search audio notes, share via iMessage, dictate with Siri, recent notes from the Notification Bar, SharePlay in calls - iPad: drag and drop, split view, slide over, multiple windows, Stage Manager - Apple Watch: record audio, scribble notes, check off lists, add photo notes, record in one tap from a watch face complication - VoiceOver and a dark interface - Roll back to any of a note's last 10 versions Subscriptions auto-renew unless cancelled and are charged to your Apple Account. Prices vary by location. Manage in your account settings. Privacy - https://www.zoho.com/privacy.html Terms - https://www.zoho.com/terms.html

Screenshots

Neo Notes4 screens
Notebook4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Notebook at 4.7 against Neo Notes's 2.3. Notebook also leads on update cadence (every 6 days vs every 2 months) and ratings volume (24K vs 41). Neo Notes's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 8) and iOS requirement (9.1 vs 16.0). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Notebook sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $2.49 per month. Neo Notes asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Notebook holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 2.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notebook has 24K ratings behind it against 41, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 41% of Neo Notes's written reviews are positive against 65% of Notebook's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Neo Notes ships an update every 2 months, Notebook every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on June 11, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Neo Notes versus Notebook: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNeo NotesNotebook
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.3 (41 ratings)4.7 (24K ratings) — better
Positive reviews41.1% of reviews64.6% of reviews — better
Number of ratings4124K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 6 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Requires iOS9.1 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size179 MB220 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNeoLAB Convergence IncZoho Corporation

Customer experience

Neo Notes

All ratings41 ratings
Positive22.0%
Neutral17.1%
Negative61.0%
Written reviews141 reviews
Positive41.1%
Neutral17.7%
Negative41.1%

Notebook

All ratings23,853 ratings
Positive93.2%
Neutral3.1%
Negative3.7%
Written reviews604 reviews
Positive64.6%
Neutral10.6%
Negative24.8%

Bugs and requests

Neo Notes

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Notebook

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Notes disappearing or getting corrupted
  • Freezing and crashing issues
  • Inconsistent behavior when editing notes
  • Syncing problems across devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Improved sorting and reordering options for notes
  • Enhanced search capabilities
  • Ability to export notes in various formats
  • More customization options for notebook covers
  • Integration with other productivity apps

In-app purchases

None

Neo Notes

No in-app purchases

7 purchases

Notebook

Subscriptions7
  • Notebook Pro$2.491 Month
  • Notebook Pro Plus$3.991 Month
  • Notebook AI$4.991 Month
Show 4 more
  • Notebook Personal$14.991 Year
  • Notebook Pro2 variants$24.991 Year
  • Notebook Pro Plus1 Year trial$39.991 Year
  • Notebook AI$49.991 Year

Questions

Is Neo Notes free?
Neo Notes is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Notebook free?
Notebook is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Neo Notes or Notebook?
Notebook is rated higher. Neo Notes averages 2.3 out of 5 from 41 ratings, while Notebook averages 4.7 from 24K ratings.
Do Neo Notes or Notebook have ads?
Neither Neo Notes nor Notebook shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Neo Notes or Notebook?
Neo Notes ships an update every 2 months, and Notebook every 6 days. Most recently, Neo Notes was updated on June 11, 2026 and Notebook on October 1, 2026.

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