This intelligent app unexpectedly turned my note-taking default

• What’s Craft, and who’s it it for?
• How Craft has modified my note-taking
• Options and templates
• Pricing and availability

Notice-taking is a central and core a part of my life and profession as a author. As such, I spend a whole lot of time making an attempt out totally different note-taking applications. I am at all times searching for the very best one to simplify my workflow and streamline the method of getting my concepts out of my head and onto a web page. An awesome number of note-taking apps is obtainable proper now; some are totally free and open-source, whereas others require a subscription payment. Nonetheless, they every supply a variety of companies, together with cross-platform syncing. I first took discover of Craft when Apple highlighted the app at WWDC24, and since then, I have been exploring the app by the free trial interval, and have even paid for the subscription.

Craft shortly turned my most used note-taking app on each my Mac and my iPhone, changing Microsoft OneNote, which I had been utilizing every day for years. There’s rather a lot to like about Craft, from its colourful and customizable design, to its easy-to-use interface on each desktop and cellular. Whereas Craft has a whole lot of options, it is nowhere close to as overwhelming as apps like Obsidian, which has a notoriously steep studying curve.

Craft has one thing to supply everybody, and I will be exploring the the reason why it is change into my private favourite note-taking app and why I believe you need to check out Craft if you have not already.

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What do you use your Notes app for? 

The Notes app on iPhone is a harmful place — amongst all my grocery lists and birthday reminders are some fairly insane fossils and gems from ten years in the past. Nonetheless, between innocent half-finished ideas and sorry makes an attempt at poetry throughout a school semester of Romanticism sit some novel concepts from 2016 that positively should never see the sunshine of day once more. My fast friends (wherever within the vary of 20-somethings) all agree — our messaging apps aren’t almost as a lot of a minefield as our beloved Notes app. I would argue the very best function that Apple ever added was the power to lock a observe. So, whereas I may not delete these makes an attempt at becoming a member of the Suzanne Collins and Veronica Roth’s of the fiction world, they’re secure from exterior eyes and a heck of a whole lot of second-hand embarrassment. My first (of 1,412 and counting) observe was a reality from Geography class in 2014. My most up-to-date was the concept for this very Thread. What do you employ the Apple Notes app for? Do you employ a distinct app t

What’s Craft, and who’s it it for?

Designers, visible thinkers, collaborators, and extra

Craft is a note-taking app that’s at the moment accessible for Apple units, Home windows, and net browsers. When you can entry Craft by way of an online browser on an Android gadget, there isn’t any native Android app — but.

Craft is nice for anybody who likes to visualise their notes. The app presents high-quality picture importing that is easy to make use of, in addition to a totally customizable interface, permitting you to make your notes look nonetheless you need. There is a stable quantity of consideration paid by the Craft builders to esthetics, however they did not sacrifice performance for it by any means. The builders have managed to offer a elegant — and, at-times, stunning — interface to jot down notes, create every day to-do lists, and even define your subsequent massive undertaking.

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I recognize how simple it’s to make issues look good in Craft. Taking a look at a coloured observe is helpful for the mind, according to researchers, and Craft makes it simple to make your notes pop. There’s a variety of accessible backgrounds you possibly can select from, or, when you do not wish to spend the time, there’s an built-in AI-assistant that may customise your templates for you.

Should you do not wish to or do not feel the necessity to customise or beautify your notes in Craft, you do not have to. It is easy sufficient to simply create a primary observe with Craft, and go on along with your day. In my time with Craft, I noticed that it is a killer app because of its flexibility and its adaptability, which is backed by steady updates. It is a hub for not solely my skilled work, however for my day-to-day life. I can hyperlink notes collectively, maintain them organized and separated if want be, and even embed totally different file codecs into my Craft notes.

How Craft has modified my note-taking

Non-linear notes — a author’s dream

Craft / Pocket-lint

Should you’ve labored on a e-book, or know somebody who has, you may be conversant in the picture of a whole lot, if not hundreds, of notes sticking to each wall and floor of their workplace. That is what I confer with as ‘non-linear note-taking’. I used to dump all my notes into an all-encompassing Phrase doc, however Craft makes it simple to create these huge data dumps, after which later return and set up them.

Utilizing Craft, I can hyperlink disconnected notes collectively, serving to to get nearer to the ultimate picture of a long-form inventive undertaking. For instance, a observe I had a couple of character sparked an concept that I used to be capable of hyperlink to a distinct observe with an thought a couple of location, which I then was capable of hyperlink to a thematic brainstorming observe, which helped me visualize and create a stronger thought for a novel.

Utilizing craft on this method, you possibly can nest a number of notes collectively, which inspires note-taking and pondering in a non-linear sample. As a rule, even when engaged on this text, I would like to completely discover a subject earlier than I can write completely about it. The linked notes in Craft assist me obtain this sooner, and never solely that, but it surely’s not a headache to hyperlink notes collectively. This function does exist in different note-taking purposes like Microsoft’s OneNote, however I discovered it to be rather more intuitive with Craft.

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Options and templates

Templates for each kind of observe and an AI assistant

Craft presents a variety of free templates so that you can use for a variety of various doc types. These templates are unfold throughout a number of classes, starting from private to groups to conferences. I personally use the bulleted journal template to maintain observe of my every day notes, and I exploit Craft’s to-do checklist template to maintain organized. Along with templates, Craft additionally options an AI-assistant that can be utilized to create and format paperwork and templates for you.

I have not been the largest fan of consumer-facing AI. I have not discovered a lot use for the Massive Language Fashions similar to Open AI’s ChatGPT which were launched to the general public over the previous few years. I did mess around with Craft’s AI assistant, which runs on Open AI’s GPT-4o mannequin, and I discovered it to be surprisingly useful. Whereas I nonetheless would not use AI for any true researching or writing functions, I did discover it to be a superb and quick method to format a doc with one button in Craft. One other factor that I like about Craft’s AI assistant is how within the background it’s. You do not have to make use of it, and it absolutely is not in your face pressuring you to provide it a strive — it is merely there within the background.

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Pricing and availability

Craft contains a free trial, however then there is a paid model after that

Craft / Pocket-lint

Craft’s pricing is a bit sophisticated. There are 5 totally different plans, which embrace a plan that’s totally free to make use of. The free plan means that you can create ten paperwork and contains 1GB of cloud space for storing and options real-time collaboration. If you would like extra space for storing or extra superior options similar to customized branding and a customized area on your notes, you may must pay not less than $8 a month. There’s additionally a enterprise model designed for enterprise customers, which options precedence customer support and no limitations on doc creation, the AI-assistant, or customized branding options, which is priced at $250 a month.

Most customers can be high quality with paying for the starter version of Craft, but when you end up needing a customized area or need many individuals to have the ability to entry your paperwork, it may be price paying for the household plan, which is priced at $15 a month. I am utilizing Craft for my very own work and private causes, so I do not want a purpose to pay for the household plan, and I only recently upgraded to the $8 a month plan. If you have not tried Craft but, I strongly advocate getting began with the free starter plan, and when you just like the app and use it every day, then it could very nicely be price upgrading to the $8 plan for your self.

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Craft

Craft is a feature-rich note-taking app that rivals Notion in each design and options. It is simple to make use of, though there’s a steep studying curve if you wish to change into an skilled with the app. You may strive it totally free, however plans begin at $8 for limitless entry. 

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