My Experience with Noteshelf – Notes, Annotations
I’ve been using Noteshelf on my OnePlus 11 for about four months now, and honestly, it’s been a mixed bag. I originally downloaded it because I got tired of Samsung Notes lagging like crazy whenever I tried to scribble on a dense PDF textbook during my train ride home. I needed something that felt snappy and didn’t make me want to throw my phone out the window. For the first few weeks, Noteshelf actually felt pretty great. I was marking up contracts and class handouts without the app freezing up, which was a huge relief. But then, around last Tuesday, I tried to open a PDF my professor sent over, and the app just sat there on a white screen for a solid thirty seconds. That sucked. It doesn’t happen all the time, but often enough that I get nervous before opening a big file. The writing feel is decent for a phone screen, not as smooth as a tablet, but I’ve gotten used to it. I mainly use the ballpoint pen tool, and it does the job for quick notes and sketches.
Features Worth Noting
The thing that keeps me coming back is how easy it is to organize stuff. I have like ten different notebooks for work, personal lists, and random doodles, and the folder system actually makes sense. I can find my notes from three weeks ago in seconds. The paper type options are nice too — I use the dotted grid for my work notes and the plain white for brainstorming. I also really like that I can record audio while I’m typing or writing. Last week, I recorded a quick voice memo during a meeting and attached it to a note, and that worked perfectly fine. The handwriting recognition is okay. It turns my chicken scratch into text about 70% of the time, which is better than I expected from a phone app. The dark mode is a lifesaver when I’m taking notes in bed and don’t want to blind myself.
What Needs Work
Okay, here’s where I get annoyed. The sync feature with Google Drive is clunky. I have my notes set to backup to my Google account, but half the time, it just doesn’t sync unless I open the app and manually tap the button. That’s super frustrating when I switch to my laptop and my newest notes aren’t there. Also, the app crashed on me twice last week while I was trying to export a notebook as a PDF. Lost about ten minutes of work both times, which made me want to scream. The zoom window for writing is tiny on a phone screen, and I wish I could adjust it better. And the customer support? I emailed them about the sync issue and got a generic reply three days later telling me to restart my device. Didn’t fix anything. That left a bad taste in my mouth.
Pricing
It costs $7.99 upfront, which I thought was fair for a paid app. No subscription nonsense, which I really appreciate because I’m tired of every app trying to bleed me dry with monthly fees. But there are in-app purchases for extra stuff like more pen styles and fonts, and that feels kinda cheap. I already paid eight bucks, you know? I didn’t buy any of them, and I don’t feel like I’m missing out, but it’s annoying to see “unlock premium” buttons floating around. For what it does out of the box, I think the price is okay, but not a steal.
Developer Notes
I’ve been watching the update history on the Play Store, and the developers do push updates every month or two. That gives me some hope. But the support experience was really underwhelming. They answered my ticket with a copy-paste response that didn’t even address my specific problem. I get that they probably get a lot of emails, but it felt like they didn’t read mine at all. I just want them to fix the sync bugs and make the app more stable on Android. It seems like they care more about the iPad version, which makes sense since that’s where the user base is, but come on, Android users exist too.
Security & Privacy
For a note-taking app, privacy matters to me because I store work documents and personal info in here. Noteshelf doesn’t force me to create an account to use it, which is a huge plus. You can just use it offline with no internet connection. It does ask for storage permission to save files, which is normal, and the cloud backup is optional. I read through their privacy policy briefly, and it says they don’t sell your data or look at your notes, which I believe. But the app does send some analytics data unless you opt out in the settings, so I turned that off right away. I wish they had an option to lock individual notebooks with a PIN or fingerprint, especially for my work notes. Right now, you can only lock the whole app with your phone’s lock screen. That’s something I really hope they add later.
How does Noteshelf handle large PDF files on a phone like the OnePlus 11?
Noteshelf generally feels snappy with smaller files, but some users report a 30-second white screen delay when opening large PDFs. This doesn't happen every time, but it's frequent enough to cause concern before opening big documents.
Can I record audio and attach it to a note in Noteshelf?
Yes, Noteshelf lets you record audio while typing or writing, and you can attach the recording directly to a note. This feature works well for capturing meeting memos or lecture highlights without leaving the app.
Why aren't my Noteshelf notes syncing to Google Drive automatically?
The Google Drive sync feature often requires you to open the app and manually tap the sync button to update your backups. If your notes aren't appearing on your laptop, try initiating the sync manually within the app rather than relying on automatic backups.
What should I do if Noteshelf crashes while exporting a notebook as a PDF?
If Noteshelf crashes during PDF export, try exporting smaller sections of your notebook at a time rather than the entire file. Also, ensure your app is updated to the latest version, as crashes during export have been reported and may be addressed in newer releases.
How does Noteshelf compare to Samsung Notes for note-taking on Android phones?
Noteshelf is generally snappier than Samsung Notes when scribbling on dense PDFs, making it a better choice for quick annotations on a phone. However, Samsung Notes offers tighter integration with Samsung devices, while Noteshelf provides a more reliable folder organization system and audio recording features.
