Craft: Write docs, AI editing Reviews

by SBCpp

Updated after develop[er responded:
Yes, I know signing in with Apple can hide my email but that does not address the question of why requiring users to sign in in the first place when other similar apps do not requiers this. What is the reason for making the simple process that is already in place that allows users to download, try then purchase an app if they like a bit more complicated by adding an additional setp (signing in) which other developers of similar apps did not think was necessary.

Original review
Seriously? This is the second App I wanted to try in two weeks that requieres me to create an account with the developer before even moving beyond the first screen. My understanding from reading through the developer website that now I can use iCloud to store and sync my data; if this is the case then why do the developer wants to force me to create an account? They could have this requirement only for those who choose to use the developers servers for Sync, storage and sharing. By requiereing this from everyone, they raise the suspecion of harvesting user data which most of us who buy theorugh Craft store and use iCloud try to avoid. Unfortunately there is no way I am going to do this, so I guess this it for me. I am truely disappointed.

by John Roland

this app is trying to be the everything of writing tools. I am a big fan of single focus, simple and fast tools. That is to say the fact that I've come to appreciate this app is testimony to it's craftsmanship and performance. An attention to detail is everywhere, the interface is very nice, mobile first works beautifully, and the ability to slice and dice and rearrange your content then make it pretty has me sold.

Why only four stars? They are still building out some important features and made some confusing decisions about export. The markdown export works fine, but I need to see the feature set (grouping and linking) better translated to markdown syntax.

No this won't replace Bear or RoamResearch for me unless I decide I can't afford all three anymore, but it fits a need as a multi-use writing and work-related notetaking tool and I could see it being the 'one to rule them all' for a lot of people.

by Red.planet

I'm a long-time user of Evernote who's constantly searching for a less problematic writing app. For the past 8 months, Evernote has been troublesome, including syncing problems, spinning disk issues when opening Craft , disappearing files and other issues. The developers have also added a bunch of nonsense that NO ONE was requested, such as a task function and calendars.

this app is the closest I've found to a solid app that could replace Evernote. It is highly capable, syncs nicely and has a solid preferences menu. It also looks loverly -- the developers have obviously put a lot of care and attention into Craft . It also starts up quickly, since it's built in native apps and not some third-party platform like Evernote uses that makes it work more like a web app.

The deal breakers for me with this app were the lack of tags (which I've come to rely on in nearly all my photography and writing work), the fact that it won't work outside of the Apple ecosytem (I have an iPhone 12 Pro Max and a Samsung Galaxy Fold 2) and the lack of tables. If you can live without these elements, this app will suit you well. As a bonus, this app costs roughly half of what Evernote is charging annually.

by DarkIllusory

Great ingenuity, creative possibilites... but upon several delves into Craft, I began to realize that there are some glaring (albeit not-too-severe) setbacks that I believe stifle Craft from being amazing & merely only good. For instance, formatting can be cumbersome, navigation can be tricky, & the layout & workflow can be tricky & clunky. Don't get me wrong- the amount of features and creative possibilities is impressive (esp. for a free note-taking app), but I found myself lingering for many minutes-at-a-time on occasion trying to accomplish numerous formatting tasks that I was figuring would be more fluid only to realize it couldn't be done or was hidden/clandestine behind various icons/preference settings and/or buttons (e.g- font styling/ configuring page layouts). Anyhow... beyond these quirks, a very solid, intuitive app that allows for a myriad of flexible list-devising, table-making, agenda planning possibilities... you just have to get accustomed a wonky/clunky layout before you can reap the rewards of this very beautifully crafted (no pun intended), innovative app.

by Dougsamsel

***UPDATE*** I went ahead and purchased this app, for two reasons. First, I had reached the limit of the free version for data. Second, I just love the wrting experience and how it makes a page beautiful to work on. However, another thing I want to see added soon is the ability to do columns and tables. ***Original Review*** i love apps that use apple-like attention for functionality, form & beauty. this app does all of this. it seems as writing, connecting information, and acessing it may be their sole focus, and they're doing it well. the experience reminds me of things 3 for GTD. i only give 4 stars because the program i'm looking for could also handle tasks and procedures. i know that's what notion is, but i really don't like how notion handles your data, and in it's flexibility it's compromised on beauty, plus it can get laggy. i'll continue to use the free app for now, but i'd give it 5 stars and purchase the upgrade if they expand.

by Zach Shea

I usually don't leave reviews, but Craft is great. Been using it to this app documentation for my coworkers. Unfortunately, some things don't always work as expected.

One is the grab handles to rearrange items. Sometimes, I'll be hovering over where the grab handle should be, and it just doesn't appear. I have to do a little dance of moving my mouse away and back again until it appears. Sometimes, even when it does appear, I still cannot drag with it.

I'd also expect to be able to click into the middle of a line and start typing there, but instead, this takes two clicks: one to select the line, and one to place the cursor. This is quite annoying when trying to be speedy. I think text editing should be prioritized over things like selecting.

Finally, when two images are stacked together, I can't find a way to type between them. The workaround I use is to cut an image, then type the text, and paste. You can also select the first image and then go to Insert > Text, but this only works if the images are stacked on top of each other, not side by side. Not ideal, especially if I want to drag in a bunch of images and then add descriptions to each.

Overall, great app, but would love to see more refinements in these areas.

by Rebannford

Took me awhile to grab onto this app despite all of the buzz, and now it has become my essential app, especially with the recent calendar and daily note integration. This fits the way I think/operate, and my most productive workflow so well, as it has become a place where I can keep a daily log of journal reflections, tasks, phone calls, meetings, etc, while also giving me easily accessible and connectable spaces to dive in and focus on projects, brainstorm, keep and plan long-term someday tasks and keep everything organized. It helps me think, plan and write, which is your mission.....but it really DOES help me do all of that!

My only request is for a way to make Craft text font size larger and easier to see. The control plus option that I usually use to do this currently functions to transform the text into larger bold headings, rather than to simply make the text larger so that it is easier to see. I can increase font size on the web app using this shortcut, but the web app still lacks many of Craft features. For aging eyes looking at a laptop screen on a lap, for example, a way to make the font size larger and easier to see would be so appreciated!!

by Ben5339

Okay, I seldom write app reviews, but this app is a game changer for me. this app has allowed me to give my business a makeover. I’m a graphic designer and every document or proposal I send to clients and potential clients needs to stand out to reflect a savvy business that you want to do business with. When I discovered this app I took all of my marketing information that was in MS Word and put it in this app using pictures, and videos setting each in blocks. Now rather than a pile of emails or attachments I send one link with everything and It changed my business.

With the latest update that added the calendar I can reference my documents or add them under a block in the days of the calendar. Outstanding this app team, keep it coming.

by Jmonda

Is there some work to do? Of course such as if. They could OCR handwriting and make that searchable Craft would rule the world 🤣.

However as it stands it is an amazing app. I am a pastor and currently all of my sermon that I have written since getting this app are stored in this app I love the layout I love the fact that I can have graphic on my page. Additional I can back link to other sermons and stuff if I want to.

I also keep podcast notes and other notes in here. Before that was about the extent of what I used this app for mainly just notes on stuff and sermons. I once tried to use it for kind of file management but I just did not care for how it did it.

But now with the calendar feature this is game changer. You can now have a daily journal. You can take quick notes for phone calls. You can take notes for counseling. You can can jot down a note and link it to another not or even another day.

Additionally you can have all of your reminders right in front of you I cant wait to see what they come up with next. I use Craft just about more than any other app on my Mac, iPad, and iPhone. Keep it up.

by Iamuptheroad

This is a great app and I use it for formatting and sharing documents. Three things missing from Craft that keeps it from being my primary note taker (and worthy of the subscription cost IMO). It doesn’t have a quick entry capability, it doesn’t accept screenshots from the share tray and it doesn’t have tags. I paid for one year to support development.

Update from my previous review. First of all I misstated when I said there was no quick add capability because there is a button for a quick add in Craft . I’ve just been spoiled by all the apps out there that have the big, colorful Add button like Things and Evernote. As I get more familiar with Craft , I’ve found that the “linking/backlinking” capabilities can be used to create a “sort of” tagging system. I mentioned the lack of being able to add screenshots using the share tray. That’s less of an issue for me because I am using this as a writing app vs a note app like Notes or Evernote. The developer has said that these functionalities are coming and based on the current rate of development, I don’t think they’re going to be far off. Thanks for a Great App!

by Hex_xed

I've tried Evernote and found that it's strictly for catching notes, not for the obscure thinking that I find myself in, and Notion has all the options and flexability if you are a tech driven creator, but it lacks the intuitiveness and structure I needed as a purely imagination driven creative. I've tried a few "By creatives for creatives" apps and there wasn't enough structure to keep me in line. I would think about all the ways I could create rather than actually creating anything. this app is the perfect ballance of everything you need to produce content, and they listen to their users feedback and are constantly updating towards the end users needs. Just try it and see if it's not the one subscription you wouldn't unsubcribe too.

by Mr. Ekted

I love the flexibility of Craft. It really can do a lot. I was recently looking for the perfect note/task/gtd/etc app that had solid collaboration abilities so that me and my family can do things in real time, while also having our own sections for our things.

I think the pro subscription is a bit expensive and I hope to see the cost come down a bit. Craft currently costs as much as a year of unlimited photo storage and while I truly am a fan of Craft , I can't see it being worth the current cost. Luckily, I haven't needed to upgrade. I'd hate to dive head first into this and bump into a limitation down the road and have to make a hard choice. Perhaps with the continued success of Craft , costs will come down.

Cheers!

by Sean.albo

The first thing that pulls you in is the looks. But you stay for the robustness. Then as you tinker, you find how many functions and roles it can fill (but cautiously avoiding single-app delusion, that is, the belief that it's ideal to have one app do all jobs).

What's the secret? I believe, personally, it has a goldilocks of features - not too much, not too few, just right. It hits the right balance - which is always going to be individual/case-specific, but in my case, it works well for...

A zettelkasten - though I'm always concerned about the potential to lose my notes, and would love a way to see my files accessible as markdown, for example.

Project notes - with deeplinks, it's easy to make references from a task list/manager.

Sharing programs and notes in such a way that adjustments are synced immediately and quickly accessible by the people who need to see them.

It has an inbox which I have yet to bake into my workflows, but I could see it replacing the role Notes app currently plays (basically mainly as an inbox for ideas until I get around to processing them).

A pleasure to use, and has been very effective for me.

by JL 0001

I am the type of person who is always looking for a new productivity app and am constantly trying them all. I also happen to use an iPad as my main device. All other apps tend to think of the iPad as a second thought, but this app has put the iPad experience as their first thought, and the results are glorious. The Mac and iPhone apps are great too. I have also tried Notion in the past, but quickly got turned off with how complicated and ugly everything usually turned out. this app is easy to use, beautiful, and is constantly being updated.

For the devs: I would love a tags feature of sorts, the ability to have tables for basic data entry, and maybe more or redesigned options for the “pages” (I find them too big and oddly shaped).

by Kkphoto

Very few apps check all the right buttons. While this app is still evolving, it has an amazing feature set and everything just seems so intuitive! I love creating docs with this and I've just scratched the surface of what it can be used for. I have so many ideas after starting to use it, and I think a good app should INSPIRE your creativity, like this does! Everytime I think, "I wish it could do this", I just try it and it usually works. They just implemented collapsible lists, which is awesome. I'd like to see a small improvement in this and have a shortcut to COLLAPSE ALL, or EXPAND ALL on a page at once.

I'm currently using this app to create instructional documents for my team and then post them like wikis where they are easily accesible online.

This is really a rare app that is fun to use, functional, and well designed.

by TheStevess

I've been using this app for a few years or so now and unlike any other platform within the tech world they are CONTINUALLY rolling out powerful, refined, high caliber feature additions. I'm a total nerd, I download and analyze more apps per week than I care to even count -- out of the 800 apps on my iPhone 13 Pro Max, and i can say that this app is the most refreshing, enjoaybale platform I've come across. I appreciate the granular attention to detail, every pixel is placed perfectly.. something that very few product teams can accomplish and maintain. The handoff from designer to developer often ends in 1-10% of the key details somehow 'fall through the cracks' haha -- Keep it up! This is the best note taking app on the internet at the moment.. I'm so glad I gave it a real chance (not just a 30 second run through). Fanstic platform!

by Munisix

Hold on to your hats folks, this might chage the way you write down things forever. I originally wanted to say "take notes" but that's not really all it can do. this app can already do so many things right out of the box and with the development of extensions, I can only imagine how much more robust it’s going to become. From plotting and writing novels to clipping cooking recipes from random websites, I'm afraid that this is going to become the all in one app for me where all my writing goes.. and I mean that quite literally. this app is quickly becoming the basket where all my eggs are going and I worry that someday the devs are gonna lose the plot and do something typical like bloat the crap out of the service and or charge thrice what it costs now. Please devs, please. Please don't go evil. There’s so little good that last long in this word and I really like Craft.

by Jrw854

Craft has quickly become just part of my daily workflow. Especially with the calendar/daily note plan concept, it looks like I'm not going to have a real need for NotePlan 3 (which is a fantastic app!). Craft has allowed me to consolidate my work from Bear, Drafts, Apple Notes, and NotePlan 3 into a single application. I even use if for my business with the ability to publish notes as webpages - this was the first hook for me! Few things that I would love to see 1/ Custom URL's for those published links 2/ tags 3/ make the touch target (iOS) a tad bigger when trying to expand a list of subfolders. Right now 90% of the time, I end up just opening the folder rather than dropping down the list. I know you guys are busy working on more features but you have amassed quite the following in a short period of time and I'm all in! Keep up the good work!

by WV LWYR

Currently seeing how far I can stretch Craft to manage all things knowledge. So far, it checks all the boxes so far as essential things to me (links, backlinking). The best thing I like about Craft is how it lets you develop endless pages within pages, such that you can create a lot of content while keeping the content discoverable from an organizational perspective. As Federico Vittici said, Craft doesn't punish you for making more notes. Three things I would like to have in Craft at the moment are (1) E2E encryption, (2) Textexpander support in ios apps, and (3) tags. Lots of people have stated they want table support, and I think that is likely coming. Not so sure about the E2E encryption coming any time in the near future. Also very much like the family sharing and use of "spaces" for collaboration. I downloaded this app on my wife's phone and created a family space where we can create notes and collaborate on them.

by AdSkills Founder Justin Brooke

Wouldn't say it's a killer to any specific app, however, it's good almost great at doing what a lot of other apps do spectacularly. Meaning, if you sort of like Roam but it's not Notion and you sort of like OneNote but it's not Obsidian etc... this app is for you! It sits in the middle of this noisy noisy productivity app space and just does what they are all trying to specialize in well. Not BETTER, but well, giving you an app that is highly functional, fast, cheap, easy, and just works. Only thing it's missing is the ability to create tables. I still have to go out of this app if I need to use a sum function or create a pivot table. Once they clone Notion's database function, THEN this will be the killer app that I almost never leave. right now, I'm using it for college notes, writing articles, church notes, meal logs, blood pressure logs, master to do lists. I'm using it multiple times per day. If this is how good it is so early, I can't wait to see whats in store for us in the next 3, 6, 12 months. Highly recommend.

by Quark Gluon Plasma

this app is essentially a markdown editor, but with some hiding of markdown syntax. I find the block structure a bit of a nuisance, and certainly not as flexible as normal text-based markdown editors. For example, if I have equations, I want to interleave them seamlessly in surrounding text, not create new blocks all the time. I suspect that for most people any attempt to use links and backlinks to structure documents and information will lead to a mess. In any case, the lack of share sheet importing makes this app a very poor tool for that purpose. The subscription cost is ridiculously high for what you get as well. Although it is a nice-looking app, I see no compelling case for using it.

by TGuyM

I love the design, but the lack of keyboard shortcut for inserting a formula block is definitely killing me. I would also really prefer to have the option to do in-line TeX. I've also read that there is no "database" support yet. If these features were added, I would cancel my Notion subscription quite quickly to give this an honest shot.

I haven't had the chance to try too many more features, but Craft if fast, and it syncs quickly. Excited to see this developed further.

by Jcsdarnell

I really don't have many/any complaints. Craft is stable, works well across all my devices, it uses the  design aesthetic... I only wish that I could increase/decrease the default scale/zoom of the page's content. I'm 35yo with 20/20 vision, and I find the default size of text paragraph text a little difficult to read on my iMac's 27" display. If this app would PLEASE give me the ability to increase the scale, it would then be a "perfect" app.

by GeorgeOJ

Craft is absolutely stellar: polished, clever, ingeniously designed, with small differences and tweaks that make it a real pleasure to use on all devices (I used it on an iMac, phone, and ipad). My trial is ending tomorrow, and I’m seriously thinking about subscribing...

The only significant downside I see is the lack of option to choose the sync: I’d like to have a choice of syncing my docs using iCloud sync, and not company-managed [rented] servers. I understand that some of the features (like fast sync and sharing/collaboration) cannot work, or are difficult to manage on iCloud, but some software (Fantastical, for example) offer the choice of using the fully encrypted iCloud sync (and giving up some features, such as color-coded calendars), or using the developer’s sync, with all the high-end, innovative features.

That’s the only negative I see in what is otherwise a spectacular version 1.

by Brianjwalton

As a fiction writer, I’ve had a hard time finding a single app that its my needs for planning my work. They tend to either focus too much on simplicity and aesthetics of doument creation (like Bear) or on productivity and feature bloat (like Notion). Now, I’ve loved and used both apps, but have always wanted something that could effortlessly sit in between both poles of that spectrum. Enter this app. It’s both aesthetic and simple in its document creation tools with just enough productivity features (such as wiki links and back links) to make it really useful for planning large projects. I’ve only been using it for about two weeks and I already love it.

by BAR112

Love this app! I've decided it is worth the yearly subscription; as there are so many uses for this fabulous new app. I'll be using it extensively for writing, creative ideas, lists, organizing, and more. Really appreciate the emphasis on visuals, as well. There is a slight learning curve; however, not to worry, as there are tons of extremely useful helps and examples in-app, online, and via e-mail. So excited about this app! I see it replacing and consolidating many of my other note-taking, writing, and board-style apps.

by Rrbaker

i am also someone who is migrating from Notion for many of the features I expected for years. I love where they're taking the product and excited to see where it goes. This finally feels like a product on desktop and phone that can replace my simple notes app and bulkier apps (Notion, Evernote) for longer term research.

There's some features that seem missing and some workflows that seem a bit wonky but it's a new product and frequent updates. They also have a discord channel and I love that there is feedback from the growing community on what features they want next and responsive devs in the same room ready to listen.

by Eric.Madril

Craft looks great and works great. I love the offline mode which really helps in my line of work where I go on ships for months at a time. The interface is the best I have used and I am a avid notion user as well. The offline mode is what really sells to me. I do wish for some spreadsheet type integration kind of like notion but I know it may take awhile. JUST PLEASE KEEP OFFLINE A THING!!! PLEASE. Thank you to the this app team for making a great product please keep it up and I hope to see more updates in the future.

Eric

by Donperreault

It seems like every few months i find a new note taking app that impresses me. Well, this takes the cake, it is AMAZING! The formatting and share features are superb, notes within notes brilliantly executed.

Developer is constantly updating and adding new feautues to the application. It has never crashed on me and is fast.

i then spend hours moving all my data from my old note taking app to the new and each time i think it is worth it.

by BobInCork

If you’re familiar with such apps as Notion and Noto, you’ll know about the emerging design strategy of treating each piece of writing or other input in an app as a separate block that can be addressed separately and cleanly in composition and revision. this app, in my experience, is the most thorough and elegant implementation of the blocks strategy to date. The more I use it, the more I like it, and I was so confident at the outset that I would like it that I signed up for a year of it almost immediately.

by DG 123456789

I moved over to this app from Bear, and I feel liberated. It is so much easier to organize, work in, and view than Bear. Importing Bear files was super easy with textbundle docs. While it does not have tags, I find the back links system work much better and between that and folders, it is easier to find what I need. Also, search is much more powerful in this app. There are a few missing features that require workarounds, mostly around bringing content into Craft , but the team is working on that. For a new app, I’m amazed at how much they have nailed right from the start. It actually feels like a more refined app than most that are years older, while also having a lot of the same functionality.

by KartikK

For a 1.0 launch, the polish in Craft is something we haven’t seen in a long long time. As a reviewer mentioned, it’s apps like these and Things that focus on simplicity, design and just striking the right balance of pleasure and functionality which is very rare these days!

Instant love! Hoping future improvements (not many!) from the developer and hope this rises to the top of apps that stays for a long long time

by Networxing

I have tried and subscribed to numerous programs for my IT studyies like this app in the past, and none have even come close to supporting and releasing a product so rapidly as have the folks at this app. Once the ability to handle tables is added. It will be the program that I feel is the closest to perfection for my study programs. It is well worth the subscription.

by Bo Stansell

Things 3 has been my favorite app for years because it’s clean, robust, and is so fluid it’s almost a joy to use. That is exactly how I feel when I use Craft. Fantastic start and I cannot wait to see what’s in store for this app. The way Craft handles media is unreal. Pictures show up perfectly and are neatly organized. The only complaints I have are that it’s a little hard to navigate at first and media imported from other apps (Castro and some files) creates broken links in this app. But those are mild issues in an otherwise wonderful experience. I immediately subscribed because I want to support the development of this. Great work!