Taking Notes on the iPad

Thinking about getting a ipad to supplement my laptop and use Skype. I do a lot of field work and take a lot of notes. No need for 3G as wifi is generally available. Notes, calander and email will be my main uses.

Anyone in a similar situation care to give me some pro's and cons?

Thank you

i would not go for an ipad as it runs ios and a macbook runs osx this makes it mor versatile for every day situations and no flash on ipad and a top range ipad is the same as a regular macbook so i would go for the macbook

For note taking the iPad has a bunch of nice apps. It is one of the main reasons I got one. Taking notes on a laptop is OK if you have a place to type. Most of my notes are done at customers while talking face to face. Typing on a laptop becomes impersonal. I wanted a more natural note taking device.

For Calendar and Email the iPad is a good choice - especially if you don't need all the fancy features (also depends on what kind of groupware you are connecting to)

Downside is as mentioned above - not a full fledged laptop, that being said I find myself reaching for the iPad more than the laptop in day to day situations. Easy to use, most websites come through well (flash of course is the exception, but if you are burning for flash you could always try cloud browse in a pinch)
Cloud Browse - Use Flash and Java on iPhone and iPad | AlwaysOn Technologies

Here are the note takers I like
Recommeneded but haven't tried
Awesome Note - Brilliant Idea

Great for handwriting (not recognition) Has a zoom type window
Note Taker HD for iPad on the iTunes App Store

Writepad - for handwriting recognition (not good for drawings)
WritePad for iPad for iPad on the iTunes App Store

Penultimate for drawing type notes
Penultimate for iPad on the iTunes App Store

Smartnote - general purpose note taking
smartNote for iPad on the iTunes App Store

Noteshelf - another general purpose note taking with templates
Noteshelf for iPad on the iTunes App Store

Corkulous for brainstorming
Corkulous for iPad on the iTunes App Store

I use Notes Plus. So far, it hasn't disappointed at all.
Notes Plus - Handwriting, Note Taking, Shape Drawing, and Sound Recording for iPad on the iTunes App Store

Didn't know about some of these other ones, like Noteshelf. That looks really nice from the looks of it.

I have had my iPad for nearly a year now and absolutely love it. Of course, it is a 1st gen without a camera, but I have a iPhone4 for that. I use the iPad way more than my regular computer. If you type a lot of emails (or long emails) you might want to opt for the wireless keyboard.

I use my iPad a lot at work... but mainly just to show customers something from our website, looking up info from manufacturer's websites, or pulling up a PDF file. I do a little bit of work email, but not usually enough to need the wireless keyboard.

I don't do much note taking, but I have been thinking of getting a stylus for such purposes... now that it's fresh in my mind, I may pick one up on the way home tonight.

I bought an airprint capable printer, and now consider it a must-have for my iPad. The wife and I can also print directly from our iPhones. Of course, the printer works wirelessly from both of our computers (PC and Mac), and it will scan a document wirelessly to either computer as well.

My final comment is regarding 3G. If it is within your budget, you may want to get it, even if you don't think you'll use it much. You don't need a contract, and you can start and stop it any time from the iPad itself. I use the 3G all the time... especially as a giant GPS screen. It is wonderful for looking up info while on the road without having to find a wifi spot. I can't imagine having my iPad without 3G.

Notes Plus - that is the one I always forget about. I picked up that one too. That was a more recent purchase so I haven't used it as much - I do like the shape recognition. It has the close up window like Notetaker HD too.

Seems there is a third entry which I haven't tried with a closeup window called upad
UPAD for iPad on the iTunes App Store

Mac Mad said:

i would not go for an ipad as it runs ios and a macbook runs osx this makes it mor versatile for every day situations and no flash on ipad and a top range ipad is the same as a regular macbook so i would go for the macbook

Click to expand...

I have a laptop but as the user below stated the note taking on a laptop can be awkward. The other thing is pulling a laptop in the car to note after a stop. I should have been more clear.

jon206 said:

Thinking about getting a ipad to supplement my laptop and use Skype. I do a lot of field work and take a lot of notes. No need for 3G as wifi is generally available.

Click to expand...

Depending on what you mean by "field work" (if you were a biologist...you could actually be in a "field")...so in that case I would think that you would want a 3G model.

- Nick

pigoo3 said:

Depending on what you mean by "field work" (if you were a biologist...you could actually be in a "field")...so in that case I would think that you would want a 3G model.

- Nick

Click to expand...

I do end up in fields from time to time, but mostly meeting with customers and potential customers and making notes during and after the visit to later be copied/pasted into another system.

You should also look into apps that have Dropbox integration. I looked up Notes Plus -- the app I use, Dropbox is in the works.

I'm going to rename this thread, since it's really helpful and useful to many.

I am in sales and busting out a laptop to take notes comes across as impersonal. Writing on something paper like seems much more agreeable to people when in a meeting. I used to use a smart pen from logitech - but it doesn't work with the Mac. I was thinking about the livescribe pen but I went with the iPad instead. Still comes across as pen and paper when in meetings.

I'd have to go through but some of the apps I mentioned sync with either google-docs or dropbox or both. I don't remember which does what.

As indicated above, taking notes on the iPad is definitely possible.
For me personally , there was a learning curve on how to type fast on the iPad keyboard... Took me a few days because it is different from a normal keyboard.

Cheers ... McBie

I use my new iPad for note taking in classes too. It was one of the main reasons I first became interested in the iPad. Although I'm still searching for the perfect app, here is some personal feedback on apps I have purchased (I'll link apps I do not already see a link for in another user's post) that I use for school:

Penultimate - great for drawing graphs or diagrams (think: chemistry or biology) but not as great for writing sentences IMO. There is an option for graph paper, lined paper or blank. With pen and paper my handwriting is typically on the smaller side of the girly range. And in this app, I have a hard time writing small enough so it is legible and fits in the lines. Therefore I don't end up using it as much as I had hoped. Although, my 5 year old uses this app daily for practicing her spelling words.

neu.Notes - eh, it is ok. I'm not overly impressed or overly unimpressed. I like that you can mail individual note files as a PDF easily within the app. I don't like that there isn't (or I can't find) any way to use a stylus and avoid written marks coming from the palm of your hand touching the screen.

iBrainstorm - I like this app for drawing brainstorming charts before starting papers. I like the pencil color choices and use them to categorically list things I'm trying to organize.

Pages - This app functions like MS Word (and I'm guessing its an iPad version of a Mac program? I don't own a Mac so I can't say for sure.). I do not think it has a handwriting/stylus input available. If it does, I've not tried using it. But it works well with the keyboard for note taking. Until I find a better app that is stylus-friendly, this is the app I use most often when taking notes.

iAnnotate - I love this app! Two of my classes discuss documents from professional annals and journals, usually we download them in PDF format. This app lets you notate and manipulate PDF documents. Right now, its the best $10 I've spent on apps so far.

iAnnotate looks pretty good but spendy at $10. Consider goodreader too.
GoodReader for iPad for iPad on the iTunes App Store
Syncs with just about anything in the cloud (dropbox and googledocs of course) and has support for other file formats. $5 vs $10 of iAnnotate.

Pages is a document creation program made by Apple - part of the iWorks suite. They "ported" the entire suite to the iPad. OK mobile replacement but a little spendy at $10/app - and limited features (as opposed to their desktop version). That being said I bought all 3 - Pages (like MS Word) - Numbers (like Excel) and Keynote (like Powerpoint). I use them both on my Mac and on my iPad.

I have bought and tried a few more. So far my number one is now Underscore notify
Underscore Notify
$1.99 but you need to buy the write pad handwriting recognition - $2.99 as an in app purchase. Key features
-has the handwriting recognition of writepad
-edit and mark up anything
-cut from the web, camera, add audio, add maps
-has shapes, wrist pad, zoom area of other apps.
-caveat - has crashed on me a few times - but the features are so good I'll put up with it.
-caveat -pages and page management take some getting used to.

I tried upad - and it's good too. I think I like notetaker hd better but upad does come with some interesting templates in PDF format.

Bottom line - I think notify with handwriting recognition is worth the money - and is the one I'll be using for note taking for the forseeable future.

With the New iPad ( iPad 3 ) - I've had to revisit my note taking strategy. I started using uPad as Notify was a little unstable. uPad was working great with my iPad 2 - but with the new retina display - uPad no longer works. They should be updating - but I haven't even heard an acknowledgement of the problem from the developer. See this macrumors thread
Problem with upad app on my iPad 3 - MacRumors Forums

I still like the idea of handwriting recognition and Phatpad seems more stable than notify.
Smartphone and Tablet PC Software from PhatWare Corp.

I dropped back to notetaker hd as it has the pdf templates, zoom, and a sweet transcribe feature - where I can view the hand written notes - and type them up. One would argue that recognition would be better as that skips a step - but the recognition is a little less natural. That is - I tend to pay attention to the recognition like typing - whereas with hand writing - it may be messy but it still flows like writing on paper. I also put a few templates onto dropbox for use with a note taking app. For some reason uPad didn't show up as one of the "open with" choices from the Dropbox App. Notetaker HD was recognized. That is another reason I switched.

I've found 2 styli (styluses?) that I like and recommend. For a firmer capacitive tip - I like this one
Amazon.com: New Trent Limir Stylus/Styli Touch Screen Cell phone Tablet Pen Champa Dual-Purpose with Micro-Knit Technology Capacitive Stylus and Fine Ball Pen IMP62B for iPhone 4 4s iPod touch iPad 2 Samsung Galaxy Motorola Xoom Blackberry Playbook,
Plus it has a pen for analog note taking. This is a good general purpose stylus, but it is on the short side. If you like long pens you may not like this stylus. I think iFarady makes a similar tip with more options - but I haven't tried those - I am only going off the look of the pictures.
iFaraday.com

For drawing and a more precise pen feel I like the Adonit by Jot.
Amazon.com: Adonit Jot Pro Stylus for iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, and Other Touch Screens (ADJPG): Electronics
A few things - first you need responsive note taking software. I would recommend the Jot for use with Notetaker HD (with zoom on) and Penultimate - some of the other ones didn't seem to work as well. Notes Plus seemed to be a little laggy with this stylus. Second - it is a piece of plastic and I worry about getting some dirt between that and the screen and causing scratches. I put a screen protector on - for now, to see if any scratches show up on the protector. I am a week into using it - but if I find some scratches I'll update. With this stylus and Penultimate - IMHO this feels closest to actual pen/paper. Another neat feature is there is a magnet in the pen. You can attach it to your iPad (2/3) via magnets - no need for clips or a pen holder. Sticks to the magnetic power side and turns off the iPad, or you can stick it to the clasp side of the smart cover as well.

Mac Mad said:

i would not go for an ipad as it runs ios and a macbook runs osx this makes it mor versatile for every day situations and no flash on ipad and a top range ipad is the same as a regular macbook so i would go for the macbook

Click to expand...

You are aware that Apple doesn't make a MacBook anymore right? They only have the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro.

The MacBook Air's minimum spec is $999.

The iPad's top-end (wi-fi) is $800, with LTE its $930.

The OP didn't say anything about needing more versatility. He said he wants to use the iPad to take notes. The iPad can take notes just fine, thanks, in fact it would be a lot easier to take notes using an iPad than a MacBook Air if you don't have a desk in front of you. Also, the iPad has the option of using a stylus for handwritten notes. The MacBook Air, not so much.

I'm not knocking laptops, just saying I think you're superimposing a bit on the OP's message.

chas_m said:

You are aware that Apple doesn't make a MacBook anymore right? They only have the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro.

The MacBook Air's minimum spec is $999.

The iPad's top-end (wi-fi) is $800, with LTE its $930.

The OP didn't say anything about needing more versatility. He said he wants to use the iPad to take notes. The iPad can take notes just fine, thanks, in fact it would be a lot easier to take notes using an iPad than a MacBook Air if you don't have a desk in front of you. Also, the iPad has the option of using a stylus for handwritten notes. The MacBook Air, not so much.

I'm not knocking laptops, just saying I think you're superimposing a bit on the OP's message.

Click to expand...

All good points - but I apologize - I dug up an old thread to keep my information on Note Apps in one place. The OP and that comment are "so last year ago"

Also - is there a disconnect between US and CAN as far as pricing? The minimum MBA price in the US is also $999 - but the iPad is $699 and $829 for LTE in the US.

Taking notes on an iPad is very easy and very convenient in many ways. I didn't think I would prefer the iPad over my MacBook Pro, but once I had it in the classroom setting I preferred taking notes on the iPad. To me the virtual keyboard works just fine. I don't have issues speed typing on the keyboard that is used on the iPad. To me, the iPad is the perfect device for taking notes because you can hold it in your lap in many different positions you can't hold a MacBook Pro. With my recent upgrade to the new iPad, third-generation, the improved retina display is also a big plus when it comes to taking notes and visibly seeing everything you're typing in better detail than the previous iPad 2 I owned.

Ed