The earlier iteration of Apple Notes was a simple note accumulation platform with a lack of functionality and sharing. Now with iOS11, Apple Notes has a lot more functionality and ‘cool things’ that makes it a great alternative to Google Keep. When you line them up next to each other on a mobile device, which one comes up trumps?
[bctt tweet=”Apple Notes integrates so well across all the Apple apps as well as third party apps in the Apple ecosystem.” username=”adifrancis”]
What is Google Keep?
In a nutshell, Keep is a note taking app within the Google ecosystem. Keep is web based for a computer, and has mobile apps for Android and iOS. It offers a variety of tools for taking notes, including text, lists, images, and audio.
[bctt tweet=”With Google Keep, having reminders both at a time and date and location has saved me a few times.” username=”adifrancis”]
What is Apple Notes? 
Notes is Apple’s note taking app. It is native in their iOS and macOS operating systems. As with Keep, Notes offers a number of tools for taking notes, including text, video, images, information from other apps and more.
Let’s imagine we have a mobile device (like a phone or tablet) with Notes and Keep lining up for the 100 metre sprint. Let’s go feature for feature and see who wins.
- All these comparisons were done in iOS11, so some of the functions may not be available in the Android ecosystem and vice versa.
And the winner is ….
I think it comes down to two things to decide a winner.
Are you operating in one ecosystem, for example only in iOS? If so, then Notes just integrates so well across all the Apple apps as well as third party apps in the Apple ecosystem. In the classroom, this seamless integration is a plus. Google Keep will work in both.
What are you using the app for? If you need reminders and want to use any device on any platform, then Google Keep is nudging ahead. If you want to utilise the integration of apps in the iOS environment, then Notes nudges ahead.
As with any comparison, there needs to be a caveat. There are some fantastic features that each offer. With Notes, the ability to scan a document in, sign it and then send it as a PDF is excellent. If you adjust the settings, any document will be automatically scanned in when the camera is activated. The ability to search handwriting is also a game changer and this happens on the device and does not rely on online connection for it to happen.
[bctt tweet=”With Notes, the ability to scan a document in, sign it and then send it as a PDF is excellent.” username=”adifrancis”]
With Keep, having reminders both at a time and date and location has saved me a few times. A quiet ping from my phone on the way past the shops to remind me to pick up milk has saved many a u-turn. The search function in Keep is also quick and allows searching via categories, which is excellent.
With both apps, the ability to share and collaborate is great and is what we now expect. Building a collaborative list, like a shopping list, means that anyone can add to it, making shopping easier and more efficient.
So, taking the cowardly position, I am going to call a draw!
