iPad Writing freehand on a PDF with iPad?

[kristeva]

Hi all,

I hope everyone is well. I'm soon to be self employed and I need a way of writing (preferably freehand with a pen) on PDF files (offline) whilst I'm on site.

I don't know much about iPads but would this be an appropriate platform? I know you can do stuff to a PDF in Preview but are there any other free apps / software I could utilise? I'd like to avoid cloud based subscriptions if I can.

Cheers. K

 

[RaphaZ]

Hello OP! My personal experience: I've bought an iPad 9 with an Apple Pencil. I didn't like the way of writing. I do handle a lot of PDFs, but the Mac is better for my use case. I think I will never adapt to a tablet + pencil.

 

[ericwn]

iPads don’t have the preview app so I’d look at paid solutions there right away I think. When I last worked a lot with PDF, PDFExpert by Readdle was a powerful tool to consider.

 

[Slartibart]

iPads don’t have the preview app

It is integrated into Apple’s Files on iPadOS/iOS. you can easily open PDFs and yes, you can annotate ”freehand” with a pencil, works with any PDF. if a PDF comes with text-fields which are defined as fill-in forms, your scribble will be converted to type.
Btw, Apple’s Files allows also to easily change the order, add, or delete of pages in a PDF or merge PDFs per drag&drop (either you open 2 Files instances in splitview or stage manager). The functionality of iPadOS Apple Files overlaps quite a bit with macOS Preview regarding PDFs.

 

[kristeva]

Thanks guys, one of the reasons I wanted to be able to write freehand with a pen is i need clients to sign documents too. I'm not sure if Preview allows freehand writing?

 

[H_D]

Writing on PDF is quite fine on iPad, there are a couple of apps that support import, editing and exporting the annotated files. I personally use Goodnotes and a PDF for a handwritten agenda. The PencilPro per Se is not the best writing tool due to it’s smooth plastic tip gliding almost frictionless on glass, which is a far cry from a regular writing experience on paper, but you can fix that with PenTips silicon tips or with some great leather tips you can buy on Etsy.
If the signatures are legally binding, there might be some laws on digital documents in your country, which some softwares adhere to.

 

[annk]

I wonder if a ReMarkable might do what you need to be able to do. I use mine for similar purposes. For me, it's a good writing experience. When you're done, you can share the document via email. The ReMarkable is also much lighter to carry around.

I use my iPad and ReMarkable all the time for different things, so I'm not trying to convince you not to use an iPad, if that's what you prefer. I know you can get things like Paperlike to put on the iPad screen to make the writing experience different/better, I've just never tried it because the ReM works well for me.

 

[H_D]

The Remarkable2 also is really great for writing (if you’re not doing anything else). I don’t know if annotated PDF can be exported these days without a hack of the Remarkable (which was only good hacked ;-). It’s a completely different thing from the iPad (passive slow e-Ink-screen, no multitasking etc and on the other hand the singular best writing experience), but well worth considering, even if the company behind it seems to be loosing track of where it goes.

 

[kristeva]

Writing on PDF is quite fine on iPad, there are a couple of apps that support import, editing and exporting the annotated files. I personally use Goodnotes and a PDF for a handwritten agenda. The PencilPro per Se is not the best writing tool due to it’s smooth plastic tip gliding almost frictionless on glass, which is a far cry from a regular writing experience on paper, but you can fix that with PenTips silicon tips or with some great leather tips you can buy on Etsy.
If the signatures are legally binding, there might be some laws on digital documents in your country, which some softwares adhere to.

Thanks, I like the fact you can purchase Goodnotes for a one time fee.

 

[kristeva]

I wonder if a ReMarkable might do what you need to be able to do. I use mine for similar purposes. For me, it's a good writing experience. When you're done, you can share the document via email. The ReMarkable is also much lighter to carry around.

I use my iPad and ReMarkable all the time for different things, so I'm not trying to convince you not to use an iPad, if that's what you prefer. I know you can get things like Paperlike to put on the iPad screen to make the writing experience different/better, I've just never tried it because the ReM works well for me.

Thanks, I was thinking of an iPad mini which might reduce the weight a bit

 

[Slartibart]

if you use Files there is support for signature(s) signing - I would assume that many of the third part apps also support this. Similar on macOS in Preview

 

[Just_Kevin]

Freehand note taking on pdf was a significant reason for me purchasing an iPad. I tried numerous different apps, ultimately settling on GoodNotes. The files I deal with can be in excess of 2000 pages and utilize bookmarks and hyperlinks, some apps I tested failed dealing with one or more of those aspects.

I’m not saying GoodNotes is perfect, but it works for my use case.

 

[Geoff777]

Another thumbs up for Goodnotes here. I've been using the iPad to write on PDFs for many years. It's a Godsend for my job. Best thing is I can convert my handwritten scribble into text and it's about 95% accurate.

 

[ericwn]

It is integrated into Apple’s Files on iPadOS/iOS. you can easily open PDFs and yes, you can annotate ”freehand” with a pencil, works with any PDF. if a PDF comes with text-fields which are defined as fill-in forms, your scribble will be converted to type.
Btw, Apple’s Files allows also to easily change the order, add, or delete of pages in a PDF or merge PDFs per drag&drop (either you open 2 Files instances in splitview or stage manager). The functionality of iPadOS Apple Files overlaps quite a bit with macOS Preview regarding PDFs.

Nice, thanks for the info!

 

[dmr727]

Thanks, I was thinking of an iPad mini which might reduce the weight a bit

Obviously play with one in a store, but I think you'll find the Mini screen to be a bit small for what you're trying to do. I love my Mini because I like to read novels with one hand, but as a tablet I'm constantly wishing I had more screen real estate.

An 11 Pro is a surprisingly light device and the screen is incredible - that's the direction I'd go.

 

[LibbyLA]

This isn’t about the app, it’s about the writing experience. I’ve used PenTips and they help. I like the feel of the silicone covers but they make the tip bulky. I’ve used the replacement tips but they are pricey. I bought some knockoffs from one of the cheap Chinese knockoff sites and those are decent.

I use Ambison matte glass screen protectors on my iPads and that helps with the slick glass feel. It’s not as textured as the plastic screen protectors but there’s no rainbow effect, it doesn’t wear like the PET ones, and it reduces glare and fingerprints/smudges.

When I was teaching, I stored my students assignment PDFs on Microsoft OneDrive for editing. It is in the cloud but I was usually on WiFi and my iPads are cellular so access was never a problem. I liked that I could access the files from all my iPads and computers. I was able to highlight (in different colors) and annotate (in different colors). I didn’t need to add or delete pages or combine PDFs and the files weren’t many pages so I didn’t need the features of Goodnotes or Notability (I have both).