Is Google Keep Set to Dethrone Evernote as the Ultimate Note-Taking App?
In the tech world, there’s always a new contender trying to knock off the reigning champ. In terms of note-taking apps, Evernote has been the king for years. However, Google Keep has been gaining momentum, and many people are starting to wonder if it’s set to dethrone Evernote as the ultimate note-taking app.
Let’s start by comparing the two apps’ features:
- Evernote: Evernote has been around since 2008 and boasts a wide range of features. You can create notes with text, images, audio, video, and more. You can also organize your notes with tags, notebooks, and stacks. Evernote also has a powerful search function that allows you to quickly find any note you’ve created.
- Google Keep: Google Keep is a newer app, having launched in 2013. It’s a more stripped-down app, with a focus on simplicity and ease of use. You can create notes with text, images, and audio. You can also organize your notes with labels and color-coding.
So, which app is better? It really depends on your needs. If you’re someone who needs to save a lot of information and requires a powerful organization system, Evernote is probably the better choice for you. However, if you’re someone who just needs a simple app to jot down quick notes, Google Keep might be a better fit.
One area where Google Keep shines is in its integration with other Google apps. Evernote has some integrations, but they’re not as seamless as Google Keep’s. For example, if you use Google Docs, you can easily insert a note from Google Keep into your document. You can also set reminders for your notes, and these reminders will show up in your Google Calendar. This makes it much easier to keep track of everything.
Another advantage that Google Keep has is its mobile app. Evernote’s mobile app is good, but it can be a bit clunky at times. Google Keep’s app is much more streamlined and user-friendly, making it a pleasure to use.
That being said, Evernote still has some advantages over Google Keep. For example, Evernote has a web clipper that allows you to save articles, images, and other web content directly into Evernote. This is a really useful feature that Google Keep doesn’t have. Evernote also has more advanced features for power users, such as the ability to create templates and automate tasks using IFTTT.
So, is Google Keep set to dethrone Evernote as the ultimate note-taking app? It’s hard to say. Both apps have their strengths and weaknesses, and the choice ultimately comes down to personal preference. However, if you’re someone who values simplicity, ease of use, and Google integration, Google Keep is definitely worth a closer look.
Something I really like about Google is their approach to making fairly minimalist looking apps and services. They don’t usually plaster all kinds of graphics and craziness all over the apps. They make them to solve a problem and leave all of the customizing to the third-party developers.
Google Keep is a new Android note-taking app Google developed to compete against the popular Evernote and many other note apps in the Play Store. Keep goes with the same simplistic design as the other Google applications. You get what you need and nothing more. Also in typical Google fashion, they released the app lacking some features (though there is no “beta” tag this time) to really let it compete with some of the major players.
The first and foremost thing you want in a note taking app is a super easy way to create and retrieve a note. Google Keep does this well. Starting out, there are 3 different methods to quickly access the notes – the app icon and two different widgets.
The first time you access Keep, you will need to let it know which Google Account you want to associate it with.
To make your first note, you can tap the first icon on the left of the menu bar. This will open up a simple note taking screen. Simply tap the screen and you can type a note with the keyboard like normal. Other than the normal note, you can also create a list note, audio note and a image note (using the camera).
At the top right of an open note, there are a couple of icons. The first is a color palette. This allows you to change the color of the note. This is more of an organization tool than anything. Having different color notes will make it easier to distinguish what they are about. Or if you just like red better than yellow, you can change the color too.
The next icon is the camera. Pressing this will let you add a picture to the note.
Then you have the settings icon. Right now there isn’t a lot in the way of settings for this Android note-taking app compared to others in the Google Play Store. All you can do is switch accounts and turn the sync feature on and off. You can see the Google Drive address below because Keep is sort of an offshoot of your Google Drive account. We’ll talk more about this in a bit.
There are different types of notes. You can make a note, list, add audio or add an image to the note as mentioned earlier. You do not need to go through the widget to create the different style notes.
Sharing is somewhat limited though. Other note apps allow you to easily share notes with other users, but Keep does not. It is shared like other information on your Android. Click the Share symbol and it pulls up the app options.
Earlier I talked about Keep being an offshoot of Google Drive. To create or access notes, the web address you will go to is drive.google.com/keep. The interface is very simple here as well. You have 2 views, list or grid and the same basic controls as the Android app.
Final words
Right now, Google Keep is a pretty basic Android note-taking app. Depending on what your needs are in a note app, you might need to stick with your Evernote or other feature rich app for now. If you are looking for something to sync with your heavily used Google Account, this might just be what you’ve been waiting for.
Google Keep
Trevor is a freelance writer covering topics ranging from the Android OS to free web and desktop applications. When he is not writing about mobile productivity, He is coaching and playing the world’s greatest game… Soccer.
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