Then there's Windows, to which Microsoft added pen support years before smartphones appeared (much to the chagrin of a startup offering a Windows competitor called PenPoint). On the Android phone side, Samsung's Galaxy S22 Ultra has replaced the pioneering Galaxy Note while TCL recently joined Motorola as a vendor of more affordable stylus-savvy phones, filling the hole left by the end of LG's Stylo line. On Android and Chrome OS tablets, most business-focused products from Lenovo, Samsung, and HP support pen input several of these brands support the Google-backed Universal Stylus Initiative that appears slated for support on Google's tablet market comeback play, the Pixel Tablet. Apple brought pen input across the iPad line and gave handwriting-to-text a huge boost in iPadOS 14 with its Scribble feature, but doesn't support pen input on the iPhone. While the field has included several specialized devices (reMarkable) and paper-digital hybrids (Livescribe, Rocketbook), mainstream tablet platforms that relegated keyboards to an accessory have proved fertile ground for freeform note capture.īut pen input has faced a winding path across platforms. Is last year's model good enough?Īmidst the blurred boundaries of these categories, freeform note-taking tools meld the spontaneity and flexibility of the pen and paper with digital capabilities that include selecting and moving sections of text, converting handwriting to text, and cross-device syncing. If you see inaccuracies in our content, please report the mistake via this form. If we have made an error or published misleading information, we will correct or clarify the article. Our editors thoroughly review and fact-check every article to ensure that our content meets the highest standards. Our goal is to deliver the most accurate information and the most knowledgeable advice possible in order to help you make smarter buying decisions on tech gear and a wide array of products and services. ZDNET's editorial team writes on behalf of you, our reader. Indeed, we follow strict guidelines that ensure our editorial content is never influenced by advertisers. Neither ZDNET nor the author are compensated for these independent reviews. This helps support our work, but does not affect what we cover or how, and it does not affect the price you pay. When you click through from our site to a retailer and buy a product or service, we may earn affiliate commissions. And we pore over customer reviews to find out what matters to real people who already own and use the products and services we’re assessing. We gather data from the best available sources, including vendor and retailer listings as well as other relevant and independent reviews sites. ZDNET's recommendations are based on many hours of testing, research, and comparison shopping.

Goodnotes 4 review