Despite its namesake, Apple’s Notes app is a far more powerful and robust tool than a simple notetaker.
It is bursting with organizational, productivity-enhancing features. Sure, many people use it for basic note-taking, but the app also offers several lesser-known features that could be leveraged for various user needs.
Let’s discuss 10 Apple Notes features you probably didn’t know about but will be very impressed by.
Quick Notes
When you need to jot something down, whether it is a reminder that you are sure to forget without note, a sudden creative spark, or an important fact from a work meeting, it is not fun to scramble to pull up your iPhone or iPad and try to get to your Notes app, get a fresh note, and start writing.
However, with Apple Notes’ Quick Note feature, you can swipe up from the bottom right-hand corner of the screen (on the iPad) and tap the Quick Note icon. This will open a new note for you to jot down your thoughts and automatically save them quickly.
You could get the same thing to happen with an Apple pencil by just double-tapping your iPad screen.
On your iPhone, you can add the Quick Note shortcut to the Control Center by going to Settings > Control Center > and then tapping the + icon next to Quick Note.
You can write what you need in it, move it to any convenient position on the screen, and take any of the usual actions that you would from the Notes app.
Also: 30 cool iPhone hacks that’ll make your life way easier
Document Scanning
With the Notes app, there is no need to buy expensive scanners that require you to perfectly adjust the image before scanning it into a computer.
You can easily scan documents into the Notes app by following these steps:
- Create a new note or open an existing one
- Tap the camera icon at the bottom of the screen
- Choose Scan Documents
- Set the view of the camera on the document of interest as best you can
- The app will detect the edges of your image and scan it
- If corners need to be adjusted, they can be adjusted before saving the document
- Save the Note to retain the scanned image
Drag & Drop Text and Images Into Note
One of Apple Notes’ most prominent time-saving features is the ability to drag and drop text or images into a note.
When you have an active note, you will see a pop-out arrow on the side of the screen. For text, you can highlight any text on the screen, then pop out the note by tapping the arrow on the side and holding down the highlighted text, dragging it on top of the visible note.
The text will copy and paste right into it. If your text contains links, they will be imported into the Notes automatically. Similarly, you can hold down an image and drag it over to an open note.
Also: How to use drag and drop on iPhone to streamline your workflow and become a productivity machine
Link Notes to Each Other
If you have two or more notes that contain different but related matters, you can associate them with a link, allowing you to move from one to another easily.
You can do this by writing relevant wording in one note and highlighting it. When the text is highlighted, a pop-up will appear with options for what you would like to do with it.
Simply select Add Link, then on the subsequent stacked screen, enter the title of the note you want to link to and save it. Notes will recognize the connecting note and link the two together.
Creating Tables In a Note
Some information is best organized into tables. Our brains process data more coherently when it is well organized rather than scattered or packed into blocks, which tables greatly assist with.
Follow these steps to set up tables in a new or existing note:
- Tap the table/grid icon on the toolbar that appears over the keyboard
- When a basic table appears, you can start entering values into the cells
- Use the small arrows to add or remove rows and columns on the spreadsheet to adjust it to your necessary parameters
Text Replacement
One of Apple Notes’ lesser-known features is the text replacement function. On its face, it may seem pointless, but for those who write particular terms often, it can be quite a time saver.
If you use a particular term often but don’t want to constantly type it out on the onscreen keyboard, you can set up the text replacement feature to transform a shorthand version of the text into your terms.
If you have to type “I don’t know” a lot, for instance, you can set it up to accept any time you type “idk” and convert it to “I don’t know” instead.
Here’s how you can set this up:
- Open the Settings app
- Tap the General tab
- Select Keyboard
- Choose Text Replacement
- Tap on the (+) button and add the phrase you want to appear in your text
- Then enter the shortcut for what you want to type to trigger the phrase’s appearance
Repeat this as many times as you need to.
Find Notes Using Spotlight Search
Retrieving your notes should not be a painful endeavor. You can do it by utilizing Apple’s Spotlight Search feature.
To use this, simply swipe from the top of your screen, select the search function, type the note title in the search prompt, and it will appear for selection. Simply tap it, and Notes will open immediately, taking you directly to your desired note.
Pinning Notes For Easy Access
You will need access to certain notes more than others, so a way to get to them more quickly would certainly help productivity and timeliness.
If you have certain notes you visit often, you can pin them to the top of the notes list so they are the first you see in the notes app.
Simply swipe right on a note you want to pin, then tap the pin icon. That will pin the note and move it to the top of the notes list under the section called “Pinned.”
Check Lists
Many users use the Notes app to keep their personal or professional checklists.
As a place that saves any edited text, Notes seems like the perfect place to do just that. These interactive to-do lists allow you to add new items and check them off once they are completed.
When you open an existing note or start a new one, you can tap the circle icon with the checkmark beneath it in the toolbar.
This will enter a checklist into your note, and you can begin typing your tasks. As you finish entering each item, a new checklist line prompt will be generated. You can then tap the checkmark to complete it.
Also: 10 actually useful iPhone shortcuts that will make your life way easier
Note Collaboration
In many scenarios, we want to share our notes with other Notes users. This is easy to accomplish with the Collaborate feature, which can be found by tapping the “share icon” at the top right of the note.
Once selected, you can choose how you want to share the note. Once shared, parties listed as collaborators will be able to edit the note, and each can see those edits in real time.
Wrap Up
We have only scratched the surface of the functionality depth of the Notes app.
Apple strives to deliver maximum versatility even in its basic apps, and Notes is far from basic, with its many helpful, time-saving, productivity-assisting features.
There are many other hidden gems throughout the app, so dig in and discover helpful features you never knew you needed.
