Blankbook - Paper Note Reviews

by Hvsxbix

It won't let me edit or created anything. when i Open up Blankbook after i downloaded on my mac computer it wont work but it works on my iphone but i wanted it work on my Computer :( :( :( :( :(

by Biotechnology Grad Student 22

I am an app developer and a student , and this reminds me of an app that took probably max two hours to write using a tutorial online. Not worth the price at all.

Let me save you the time. Get another note-taking app, unless you want a worse version of Apple Notes.

The developer must be new because there are so many elements of Blankbook that are broken and unfixed. I’m willing to bet most of the four and five star reviews are from family and friends.

Running on iPad OS 14 on an iPad Pro 12.9 the loading animations are extremely choppy, scrolling does not move the canvas with the writing, and the paid version is not worth it at all.

The grammar and English in Blankbook is unreadable at times, and it’s obvious it wasn’t written by a native English speaker.

Gestures are unintuitive, and going to the next screen prompts the same sliding animation, which does not make any sense. Animations are choppy and it’s clear that the developer does not have a good grasp of SwiftUI transitions or pagination.

For $7 get Notability or GoodNotes instead.

The Default Apple Notes app is superior to this. It allows for infinite scrolling, the canvas moves with the text. Blankbook does not allow for PDF annotation or export, nor does it allow for scrolling while writing, like the default Notes app. Blankbook is just a worse version of Apples default Notes app and is not being maintained, it seems.

by The_fakefrenchfam

I wish it worked on Macbook. I was going to use this everyday but I wanted it on my Mac

by Summer Rex

I was very excited about Blankbook but it is not compatible with the MacBook.

by Anonymous Person The First

I found that in Blankbook when I tried to add one more blank page to write on I saw that you had to pay money to actually have more pages. It was seven dollars for A life span and three dollars for a month. I believe that people should be able to not have to pay for more papers. Therefore Blankbook gets to start from me.

by Thisisreallystupid12345

It’s really annoying the capacity for pages is only two.

by Dragons101w/yourgirlSaphira

The general concept of Blankbook seems pretty good, but if I can’t even get to the actual content without paying $7.99 then there is no use for it. Maybe the developers could create a limited version so we can still take notes for free but keep all the pro stuff on the pro version? Just a suggestion.

by Notereviews23546

Update: the settings button is working now, and overall, I really like Blankbook . I do have some suggestions for improvement, just a few small things that I think would improve Blankbook greatly.

1 - I think Blankbook should allow for snap shapes and lines, I don’t know if this exists but it doesn’t seem like it does from what I can tell and have tried in Blankbook .

2 - scaling dots/Lines for paper: the zoom feature is great, but sometimes with more zoom, the dots are too far apart to be helpful, especially since snap lines don’t work. Being able to scale dots and lines would be incredibly helpful, or at least the ability to customize the density of lines and dots for the entire paper, so just more options if scale can’t work

I think these two changes would make Blankbook better!

Another thing: I bought the lifetime subscription, but my app doesn’t seem to be recognizing or restoring that, I don’t know what’s going on but this is the second glitch that I’ve experienced with Blankbook, I don’t see how many glitches this could have

This is a big issue, I bought Blankbook today but if this isn’t fixed soon I will have to cancel.

Also wondering if snap shapes work but have no idea because like I said before, settings don’t work! Good concept, wish execution was better

by GinnyV777

It’s pretty nice features wise, the main problem I have is that you can only have two pages per category of notes that they offer, and that’s a big problem for me because I like to have separate notes for each section and unit I take notes on. And if you don’t delete the sample notes, you only have 1 page with notes. If you want more note documents, you have to pay for Pro, and then you either have to pay 2.49 a month or 6.99 for permanent “life” use.

by Styronna

Blankbook is perfect for my note taking/homework as an engineering student. I would just really like an opportunity to organize notes by class in folders that I could name, rather than the existing names.

The endless scrolling is really nice and I’m very happy with how easy it is to create and share a pdf.

by Noooche

Blankbook itself is wonderful. I love the concept and the user-friendly layout. However, Blankbook crashes at seemingly random times while I’m using it. I’m not sure if there’s an issue on my end that’s causing this, but I’ll be checking my settings just in case.

PS: a folder feature would be a wonderful addition! I use Blankbook for a variety of purposes; I would love to be able to organize it all!

Sending a big thank you to the developers of Blankbook! Despite the issues, Blankbook has been a lifesaver. Wonderful job!

by Frankgrim

I have only been using Blankbook for a few days and I am in love, I have no thoughts of switching to any other note taking app. The only gripes I have with it are random dots appearing whilst I am writing and wishing there was some way to remove the double tap feature in pen mode to avoid having a screen pop up while I’m writing. I also wish there was a way to make files within Blankbook . Besides this I am extremely happy and are truly the only things holding Blankbook from being absolutely perfect in my book.

by The Captain73683

Great, simple app but I would really like a function to insert pictures. With other note-taking apps, I’ve always been able to copy pictures from my lecture slides and paste it onto my notes. Blankbook doesn’t seem to have that function however! Otherwise, Blankbook is exactly what I’ve been looking for.

by Aslkjdfioaopseinvas

I wish I could insert from pdfs or some sort of picture file. The other feature I would really like is to be able to resize when using the lasso tool. If it had these to features it would be perfect.

by Mcabme

I like Blankbook . No problem with it except that the info isn’t shared on both devices. This is an inconvenience if I want to do a list on my iPad and later review the same list on my iPhone.

by Alindal

I love taking notes on this, I just wish there was a feature where you could have folders to keep the notes separated by category. Please add that and it would be a five star rating!!!

by Mhmdj337

Blankbook is great, but adding folders would make it one of the best out there, i like to organize my pages by courses/ folders. It'll make things much more organized and allow Blankbook to attain its full potential.

by Cynthiadsign

After trying a lot of infinite canvas app for sketching I settled with this one because I can create multiple projects and the exporting resolution is pretty good, I feel I need though the capability to select> rotate and scale, thank you

by Almostlucky321

This is great with my Apple Pencil but especially with the infinite page as I often sketch out horizontal tables and that’s fantastic without the restrictive page width.

by Catpig23457157

I got this so I could use it to solve my math in school and I am very happy. It writes nicely. I really like how you can change the way the paper looks, and the different types of pens. I only use it for math but it could be good for many other things. It does not have many colors but that’s not a big deal.

by Constanto

Purchased. Tried to change settings of sheet. Setting text/button does not respond to either finger or pencil on current year iPad Pro. Neither does help or feedback. I installed Blankbook on an old iPhone 7 Plus to try to change sheet settings there and the buttons don’t work on that old device either. So Blankbook is probably fundamentally broken on a wide range of iOS devices spanning multiple years. One of the videos for Blankbook shows the buttons in use so it’s clear how to do it.

No choice but to return immediately for full refund. I want to give the developer a chance but Apple won’t give me a refund if I keep Blankbook for weeks while this is resolved.

by Benni C

Blankbook randomly zooms out when I don’t intend for it to, so I end up drawing at different scales the more I draw. I’ve tried to disable the zoom gesture in settings, but it doesn’t seem to work— it continues to misinterpret my gestures as zooms.

by Ryguywms_

Blankbook is great for note taking, the only thing I wish it had is the ability to create my own color swatches. I’m not really a fan of the shades of greens, but other than the mag Blankbook is great.

by Hdjcndkwosbksl

I would like to suggest longer naming space .I can only type in two to three words per note . It’s not enough

by NicAshby

-option to set default tool shortcuts
-more than three shortcuts
-lock/snap to specific zoom levels
-snap canvas to grid lines

Also:
-zoom options seem semi-broken
-tool selection doesn’t work great after using a tool shortcut(have to tap tool and then a sub setting to actually select the tool)

by Crimeg

Only swipe right and down.
Is this infinite space?

by Aetnaria

This is a viewer for the iOS version. That said, it does exactly that - you draw and edit and tweak and draw some more on your iPhone or iPad, then open it up on your Mac to read. It is essentially read-only here.

by Vrajibear

Easy to use and its a great digital handwriting tool

by Jblaise1

I love writing and I absolutely love the ease of use of Blankbook. It’s worth the purchase!

by Spgfip

I love Blankbook. It’s become my go-to ‘whiteboard’ app for remote teaching, and is quickly becoming a primary component of how I add written derivations or figures to PowerPoints because of how well the export option works via airdrop to my laptop (literally 2-3 seconds from hitting the ‘share’ button to having it placed in my slide). I also really like the infinite page for doing long math problems and board work—it really is the closest digital replacement I’ve found for a university lecture hall sized board. And I love that you have options for both a pixel and object (vector) eraser.

I do wish it had a few additional abilities:
- organize notes into folders
- copy/duplicate entire notes (or paste with positions preserved)
- pin the canvas to the paper lines/grid—right now if you scroll or zoom, the lines/grid stay put, with no was to keep even spacing unless you carefully line things up again
- resize and rotate things after lassoing them
- ‘smart’ shapes (circles, squares, etc)
- adding/pasting typed text or photos
- option to export as a vector file instead of a raster
- I liked another reviewer’s suggestion about ‘snap-to-grid’ options—also letting vectors snap to each others’ ends or midpoints

Overall though, I’m using it to replace a whiteboard which certainly doesn’t have any of the above abilities—so it’s doing at least as well as the real thing and has some perks on top. Given how much time and stress it’s saved me, it’s already been well worth the money for the unlimited notes. I’ll definitely continue to use it even once we go back to in-person teaching, especially if new features continue to be added. Thanks for a fantastically functional and intuitive app!