TechSource: Best Evernote Alternatives for Android

Posted: 17 Oct 2013 09:13 PM PDT

Evernote is one of the best note-taking software out there. In fact, it is more than just a note-taking application. It is a full-blown personal management service that comes in handy in almost every department of life. Be it taking notes about your next novel or planning your daughter's birthday, the cloud-based organization service is used by millions of people across the globe. Such is the popularity of Evernote that despite being a young startup it has had the privilege of calling itself a platform.

Personally, I love Evernote, I use it every day for clipping pages, taking written notes, and I even take audio notes with it. There's also another feature that lets you take pictures of written notes with your smartphone's camera and organize them in the cloud. Though I don't use the camera feature, I can safely say that Evernote is a service I'd recommend to anyone whether or not he or she is in need of a personal information organizer.

As good as Evernote is, there are a few downsides to this almost-perfect service. Firstly, it doesn't work across Linux. Secondly, the web version of the software is painfully slow. Also, if you are an Android user, the app works a bit slower when compared to other plain note-taking apps. In fact, on Android, there are many Evernote-like apps that are much faster and are easier to use. So, whether you are fed up of Evernote in general or simply need to try something new, here are a few nice Android-based alternatives for the service.

Microsoft OneNote

Microsoft OneNote is an incredible service that lets you capture everything that's important to you. Be it images, text, or even Excel sheets, OneNote works extremely well with any kind of data. One of the best things about the tool is that it is very neatly organized and displays your data very well. That said, it is not a perfect alternative to the mighty Evernote. It has its own share of flaws and you can only blame Microsoft for it. Nevertheless, if you're using OneNote on the desktop, this app is perfect for you.

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Google Keep

Google Keep is the best alternative to Evernote if you are on Android. Google's recently launched service for taking notes is known for its simplicity and ease of use. It's lightweight, supports to-do lists, and even lets you set reminders for your tasks. One of the best things about Keep is that, when compared to Evernote, it is much lighter and takes a lot less time to load. Also -- and this is one of the best things about Keep -- the service integrates perfectly well with Google Reminders thus making it a perfect fit for your Android device. Despite its lightness and ease of use, Google Keep is not as feature-loaded as Evernote. If you are someone who doesn't make full use of Evernote's powerful features, by all means switch to Keep.

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ColorNote

ColorNote is known as one of the best note-taking applications for Android. It is free, it lets you organize stuff, and it is almost as powerful as Evernote in many aspects. What makes ColorNote so popular is that it lets you write your notes in any way you want. You can either make a to-do list, set sticky notes, and even set reminders with it. If you are someone who likes to have it all nicely backed up, ColorNote even offers AES-encrypted cloud-based backup. This makes it a good choice for storing sensitive information like bank passwords. The only downside to ColorNote is that, unlike Evernote, it doesn't have a web version. If you are willing to overlook that caveat, I'd say ColorNote is a perfect replacement for Evernote.

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GNotes

GNotes is a nice note-taking service for Android that lets you capture notes, add photos, create to-do lists, record voice memos and much more. You can then organize those notes in notebooks much like you do on Evernote. One of the best things about GNotes is that it syncs with Gmail. So, any note you take on your smartphone or tablet is synced to your Gmail account. If you are using Google Apps, then too this service can synchronize with your email address. Similar to what you have on Evernote, GNotes too lets you add reminders and protect your notes. The only caveat of this service is that it doesn't have a dedicated web-based version.

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Papyrus

Though not a perfect alternative to Evernote, Papyrus does deserve a worth mention on the list. In a world inundated with apps that let you type in your notes, there's a veritable dearth of tools that let you take notes old-school. Papyrus feels in that need by letting you take freehand notes either by using the Samsung S-pen or your hand. Not only can you take notes quickly with this tool, you can even organize them later so that you won't have to keep looking for them now and then. One of the best things about this application is that it lets you share your notes with Evernote as well. So, I'd recommend using this app in conjunction with Evernote. However, if you want to go truly Evernote-free, this app lets you export your notes in PDF, PNG, and JPEG format and sync them later with Dropbox.