By Yash Wate
Daily note-taking takes up a significant part of my routine, so I’m selective with the apps I choose. Over time, I primarily used Simplenote for my quick notes and Obsidian for more detailed ones. However, I recently sought a new option to replace Simplenote, as its simplicity began to feel limiting.
After testing several notable apps, Notesnook emerged as the most suitable for my requirements. I’ve transitioned to using Notesnook and wish I had made the switch earlier.
Have you tried Notesnook?
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Understanding Notesnook
Notesnook is a relatively new player in the note-taking sphere. Its distinguishing feature is robust end-to-end encryption and a comprehensive free plan.
The end-to-end encryption feature guarantees that your notes remain secure, whether stored on your device or on Notesnook’s servers. The free version is notably rich in features, providing essential tools while ensuring seamless synchronization across devices, thus avoiding tedious manual setups, a common issue with Obsidian. In addition, unlike some competitors, Notesnook offers a fully functional offline mode, allowing users to access, edit, search, and organize their notes without internet connectivity.
Notesnook is a cross-platform note-taking app that ensures your notes are always encrypted, whether on your device or online.
Available on major mobile and desktop platforms, Notesnook also includes a free web clipper for browsers like Firefox and Chrome, making it easy to save interesting webpages directly to the app. The clipper supports text selection for saving specific sections of webpages.
Why Notesnook Appeals to Me
By Yash Wate
Privacy is a crucial aspect of Notesnook, as it keeps your notes encrypted throughout their lifecycle—whether stored locally or in transit. This level of security is not commonplace in most note-taking apps like Simplenote. Knowing that my notes are inaccessible to anyone except me is a significant advantage, especially since I frequently store personal and work-related information.
Notesnook also allows attachments of various media types, unlike Simplenote, which focuses solely on text. You can incorporate images, and files (such as PDFs and audio files) directly into your notes, enhancing your note-taking for research and organization.
The app’s organization system is much improved. While Simplenote requires tagging for grouping notes, Notesnook offers notebooks for categorizing related notes, making them easier to locate. Each notebook can also contain sub-notebooks for more refined organization.
Notesnook excels in text formatting as well. Whereas Simplenote only supports basic Markdown, Notesnook provides a range of essential formatting options such as bold, italic, and strikethrough, among others. Additionally, it features tables, which simplify tracking progress and comparing data, all neatly arranged in its user interface.
Notesnook’s Limitations
By Yash Wate
Having only recently transitioned to Notesnook, I find myself missing some features from Simplenote. For instance, Simplenote is known for its speed, featuring a straightforward interface that allows for quick access to notes.
Another point of contention is the Markdown support; Notesnook does not allow raw Markdown entry. Instead, it renders shortcuts into rich text, limiting some aspects of customization. Additionally, the Markdown shortcuts are unavailable on the free plan, necessitating an upgrade for full access.
The revision history feature in Notesnook only works locally, preventing synchronized history across devices. In contrast, Simplenote offers universal access to revision history, making it more convenient.
Collaboration is another area where Notesnook falls short. Simplenote facilitates easy note-sharing for collaborative projects, which has been invaluable for tasks like planning and shopping lists. The real-time update feature is a major advantage that is currently unavailable in Notesnook.
Considering My Next Steps
By Yash Wate
While I appreciate many aspects of Notesnook, the few attributes I miss from Simplenote remind me to take my time before completely making the switch. Nonetheless, the advantages that Notesnook provides have made it a viable replacement for Simplenote. I’ve started using it for more permanent notes and moved some items over from Obsidian.
However, I won’t be transitioning away from Obsidian just yet, as it’s exceptional for managing extensive databases and knowledge bases due to its plugin features. The knowledge graph in Obsidian, for visualizing connections, alongside automation options and robust Markdown support, keeps it firmly in my toolkit — at least for the foreseeable future.
