There are many note-taking applications out there, but those that stand out are One Note, Ever Note and Google Keep. The key difference between One Note, Evernote and Google Keep can be taken as the platforms they support; One Note supports Windows, iOS, Web, and Windows Phone while Evernote supports Windows, Android, iOS, Blackberry, Mac OS X and Web and Google Keep supports Android. Let us take a closer look at the above applications and see what they have to offer and how they compare with each other.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. One Note – Features and Application
3. Evernote – Features and Application
4. Google Keep – Features and Application
5. Side by Side Comparison – One Note vs Evernote vs Google Keep in Tabular Form
6. Summary
One Note – Features and Application
Microsoft OneNote is a program that is mainly used for information gathering and collaboration of multi-users. It is useful in taking quick notes before forgetting it. You can even save notes and share meeting notes. It can be used to gather notes from users in their own handwriting as well. It can also collect information like screen clippings, drawings, and audio commentaries.
Figure 01: One Note Screenshot
The saved information can be easily shared with others over a network or the internet. One note is available as a part of Windows 10 and Microsoft Office. It can also operate as a standalone application for Windows Phone, MacOS, Windows, Windows RT, Android, and iOS. One Drive or office online is able to support a web-based version of One Note. This enables users to edit notes via a web browser.
Evernote – Features and Application
Evernote is able to operate cross-platform. It is a freemium application designed to take and achieve notes. It was developed by a private company Evernote Corporation which has its headquarters in Redwood City. The app can be used to make a note that can be formatted with text. The note can also be a full web page, web excerpt, a voice memo, a photograph, or a handwritten ink note. The note has the ability to support file attachments as well. The notes can also be added to a stack. Notes can be sorted into a notebook annotated, tagged, with comments, edited, searched and exported into a notebook.
Figure 02: Evernote Screenshot
Evernote is able to support many popular operating systems, including iOS, macOS, Microsoft, Android, Chrome OS, Windows Phone, Web OS, Blackberry 10. Evernote supports backup services and online synchronization as well.
Evernote is available as a free restricted version and a paid version. The online service can be used for free with a certain monthly usage limit. Additional monthly use is for Plus subscriber users and unlimited monthly use is reserved for premium customers.
Google Keep – Features and Application
Google Keep is a service developed by Google for note taking. Google Keep is supported on the web. It can also work as a mobile app for Android and iOS. Google Keep comes with a variety of tools. This includes texts, images, lists, and audio. Users can take advantage of the reminders feature that is integrated with Google Now. Text in images can be separated from the image using optical character recognition. Voice recording can also be transcribed. The interface is designed for single column view and multi-column view. Notes can be labeled and color coded for clear organization. The note can be pinned with later updates.
Figure 03: Google Keep Screenshot
Notes can be also collaborated with other keep users in real time. Google keep has been praised for its speed, quality of voice notes, widget, and synchronization that can be used on Android devices. It has also been criticized for lack of formatting options, the inability to undo changes, and an interface that only offers two views which do not support long notes. Keep has also been praised for native integration, universal device access, and integration with Google services and the ability of Google Keep to convert images into text.
What is the Difference Between One Note, Evernote and Google Keep?
One Note vs Evernote vs Google Keep |
|
| Supported Platforms | |
| One Note | Windows, iOS, Web, Windows Phone |
| Evernote | Web, Windows, Android, iOS, Blackberry, Mac OS X |
| Google Keep | Android Web |
| Integration | |
| One Note | Microsoft Office 365, Office 2013, Third party addons |
| Evernote | Web Clipper, Skitch, Hello, Thirty party apps in trunk, Penultimate |
| Google Keep | Google Drive |
| Fee | |
| One Note | Mobile app and web use are free. Paid standalone software or can be bought from Office 365 or 2013 |
| Evernote | Free for usage pf 60MB/Month, $5 per month premium for 1GB, and $10 for business |
| Google Keep | Free |
| Admin Management | |
| One Note | Share notebooks, Control access with the use of Active directory, manage business data, Share point or SkyDrive Pro |
| Evernote | Share notebooks and Manage business libraries |
| Google Keep | No |
| Organization Method | |
| One Note | Tags, color coding, and Notebooks |
| Evernote | Tags, stacks, and notebooks |
| Google Keep | Color coding |
| Data Capturing | |
| One Note | Text, images, audio notes, web pages, files, video clips |
| Evernote | Web pages, audio notes, images, text, photos, OCR to capture handwriting |
| Google Keep | Audio notes, photos, text, images, web pages |
| Collaboration | |
| One Note | Let other users edit your notes |
| Evernote | Paid accounts will let other edit your notes |
| Google Keep | No |
Summary – One Note vs Evernote vs Google Keep
If you want to start using a note taking app or want to defect from the one that you are using, you will need to know about the features that you will need most to get the job done. One app may come with OCR support while the other will come ideally for content sharing with other team members. As with the above comparison, each note taking app comes with its own benefits. Therefore, it is important to know the difference between One Note Evernote and Google Keep.
If we compare all three, Evernote seems to be the most capable and diverse service provider. Although Google Keep is nice and simple, it is limited in capability. One note is also exceptional. Although it is a Microsoft tool and supports a variety of platforms, third party support is strengthened with Evernote.
Image Courtesy:
1. “OneNote–screenshot 3” by Jason Jones (CC BY 2.0) via Flickr
2. “Evernote iPhone UI” by Michael Coté (CC BY 2.0) via Flickr
3. “DIA127: Figure 6.6b” by Rosenfeld Media (CC BY 2.0) via Flickr