Best tablets for note-taking 2025: My hand-picked options for writing notes

A note-taking pill combines the texture of handwriting, the comfort of cloud syncing, and the portability of a daily paper pocket book. In the event you’ve been eyeing units, Amazon Prime Day is on the horizon, making it the proper time to buy discounted tablets.

We examined tablets throughout all the most important manufacturers to seek out choices that swimsuit college students, professionals, and on a regular basis customers. A few of these fashions can substitute a laptop computer, whereas others are perfect for jotting notes on the go. We evaluated all of those tablets on efficiency, battery life, show, and writing expertise.

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What’s the finest note-taking pill you should purchase proper now?

After hands-on testing, our choose for the general finest note-taking pill is the iPad Air The pill is light-weight and suitable with the second-gen Apple Pencil. For one thing extra moveable and reasonably priced, the Boox Word Air 4 C can be price a glance.

Additionally: The most effective tablets for college students in 2025

The most effective note-taking tablets of 2025

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Why we prefer it: The light-weight pill can do all the things. Whereas this is not the newest model of the iPad Air, we selected this one because it prices much less and has most of the similar options because the M2 iPad Air, albeit a barely slower processor.

It is suitable with the Apple Pencil (second-generation), making it straightforward to take notes in school or conferences and watch seminars just about. You’ll be able to customise with 5 colours selections and a number of storage choices.

Who it is for: Even Android followers will like Apple’s iPad Air. Plus, as we stated in our assessment, the iPad Air “is as highly effective because the iPad Professional, however prices lots of of {dollars} much less.”

Assessment: Apple iPad Air (fifth-generation)

As well as, for college students or professionals who would possibly want to make use of their tablets whereas on the go usually, a mobile information plan possibility ensures you’ll be able to at all times get on-line to entry.

Who ought to look elsewhere: It is an costly note-taking pill, so if funds is a key issue for you, you would possibly need to think about different choices.

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Why we prefer it: The Boox Word Air 4 C is a colour e-ink pill that’s constructed for note-taking. The display screen has a 1240 x 930, or 150 pixels per inch (ppi), decision in colour. When utilized in black and white, it has a 2480 x 1860 decision, or 300 ppi — the identical because the Kindle Scribe. Plus, it is tremendous light-weight at slightly below a pound.

This pill has all one of the best options of the highest note-taking apps constructed proper in. There are dozens of templates to make use of, audio recording, color-coding, inserting hyperlinks and attachments to notes. Plus, built-in synthetic intelligence permits for textual content recognition, form perfection, and a strike-through erase function that makes erasing a lot simpler.

Who it is for: ZDNET author Maria Diaz went hands-on with the pill and stated it is nice for professionals and creatives.

“It isn’t a productiveness pill or one to switch a laptop computer, however it’s good for note-takers who like handwriting, journaling, studying lovers, and even designers,” Diaz stated.

Assessment: Boox Word Air 4 C

Plus, it has a number of options that make it a productiveness machine. For instance, there’s a split-screen function that permits you to swap between two totally different apps. Verified prospects just like the Booxdrop function, which lets you simply ship information to the pill out of your laptop or smartphone to the pill. It takes mere seconds, and you may annotate PDFs and different Phrase paperwork with ease.

Who ought to look elsewhere: If Android is not your jam, you most likely will not just like the Boox Word Air 4 C, because it’s noticeably slower than a standard pill just like the iPad.

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Why we prefer it: The Kindle Scribe is maybe the proper instance an e-reader pill hybrid. It has the identical capabilities you’re keen on in a Kindle like a 300 ppi glare-free display screen, weeks of battery life, and adjustable heat mild. It is also suitable with Amazon’s Premium Pen, so you’ll be able to take handwritten notes or underline necessary quotations in your e-book.

Your notes are routinely organized in a single place for each e-book so as to browse, assessment, and export them by way of electronic mail. The Kindle Scribe additionally comes with preset templates that can assist you create notebooks, journals, and lists. You can even create sticky notes in Microsoft Phrase and different suitable Phrase paperwork.

Who it is for: In the event you’re somebody who likes taking notes whereas studying. The brand new Lively Canvas on the Kindle Scribe permits you to take notes and scribble your ideas immediately onto the pages of your e-book. ZDNET editor Kyle Kucharski put the Lively Canvas function to the take a look at and appreciated the function as an avid note-taker.

Assessment: Amazon Kindle Scribe (2024)

“The cool design component right here is that the notes you draw with the pan exist on one other “layer” than the e-book textual content, permitting you to edit what you write with out messing with the textual content within the e-book,” he wrote in his assessment.

As well as, should you’re somebody with messy handwriting, the AI options can transcribe handwritten notes into textual content, making it simpler to return and browse.

Who ought to look elsewhere: In the event you’re not a lot of an annotator, you is likely to be higher off with the reMarkable Paper Professional. It prices about the identical and is a thought-about a extra premium system.

Kindle Scribe tech specs: Show: 10.2-inch 300 ppi Paperwhite show | Storage: 16GB, 32GB, or 64GB | Weight: 0.96 kilos | Dimensions: 7.7 x 9.0 x 0.22 inches | Battery life: As much as 12 weeks (at half-hour per day)

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Why we prefer it: The reMarkable Paper Professional is an enchancment from the reMarkable 2. Its aesthetic is premium and minimalist, with a bigger colour display screen and adjustable backlight.

Assessment: reMarkable Paper Professional

Kyle Kucharski went hands-on with the Paper Professional and was particularly impressed with the writing expertise.

“The pesky latency you usually discover when utilizing a stylus is absent altogether right here; there’s zero lag between the movement of your hand and the road you are drawing on the system’s display screen, leading to a practical, pleasing writing expertise,” he wrote in his assessment.

Who it is for: This system is for folks trying to critically lock into their productiveness. The Paper Professional cannot browse the online, play movies, or edit your images, however that is the purpose. As a substitute, it takes a extra disconnected method to assist full duties with productiveness instruments like templates, workflow and app connections, and a further Sort Folio to mix handwriting and typing into one system.

Who ought to look elsewhere: This note-taking pill seems extra high-end and has a price ticket to match. Plus, a further subscription is required to entry the complete suite of helpful options. In the event you’re funds is $500 or much less, we suggest testing a Boox pill as an alternative.

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reMarkable Paper Pro with Type Folio keyboard

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Why we prefer it: The Tab S10+ comes with 12GB of reminiscence and 256GB or 512GB of storage, with the choice to increase to as much as 1TB of storage utilizing microSD. Contained in the Tab S10+ is the MediaTek Dimensity 9300+ processor.

Most significantly, the S10+ comes with an S Pen that you need to use to jot down or draw in your favourite apps. New to the S10 lineup are Galaxy AI options that additional improve your note-taking like Word Help, which lets you transcribe, manage, and even summarize notes.

Who it is for: This pill is ideal should you’re on the lookout for a productiveness increase.

Who ought to look elsewhere: This pill is much more costly than the iPad Air, beginning at $1,300. In the event you’re on the lookout for one thing easy, try the Boox Word Air 4 C.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S10+ tech specs: Show: 12.3-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X 2560 x 1600 show | Processor: MediaTek Dimensity 9300+ | Storage: 256GB, 512GB (as much as 1.5TB with microSD) | Reminiscence: 12GB | Colours: Moonstone grey and platinum silver | Cameras: Rear: 13MP most important, 8MP ultrawide, Entrance: 12MP ultrawide | Weight: 1.27 kilos | Dimensions: 11.24 X 7.3 X 0.22 inches | Connectivity: 5G, LTE, W

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The most effective note-taking pill is the iPad Air based mostly on value, scores, show, options, and extra. It is also tremendous light-weight, making it the proper alternative to hold anyplace.

Word-taking Pill	Value	Show	Pen/Stylus
Apple iPad Air	$518	10.9-inch Retina show	Apple Pencil (second-generation)
Boox Word Air 4 C	$530	10.3-inch Kaleido 3 show	BOOX Pen Plus
Amazon Kindle Scribe	$348	10.2-inch 300 ppi Paperwhite show	Amazon Premium Pen
reMarkable Paper Professional	$679	11.8-inch 2160 x 1620 show	reMarkable Marker or Marker Plus
Samsung Galaxy Tab S10+	$1,000	12.3-inch, Dynamic AMOLED 2X 2960 x 1848 show	S Pen

*Lowest value on the time of writing. Please word that costs could differ based mostly on retailer and out there promotions, gross sales, or reductions.

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Selecting a pill actually comes right down to what you need to use it for and spend. Fundamental tablets are typically cheaper, whereas units with extra bells and whistles sport the next price ticket.

Select this note-taking pill…	If you’d like…
Apple iPad Air	The most effective total possibility. It is as highly effective because the iPad Professional however a lot lighter and cheaper.
Boox Word Air 4 C	A light-weight note-taking pill. It comes with dozens of templates to select from and helpful note-taking and productiveness options.
Amazon Kindle Scribe	A pill and e-reader in a single. You may make notes inside the e-book(s) you might be studying, in addition to by means of apps like Microsoft Phrase.
reMarkable Paper Professional	A high-end, premium note-taking pill that places productiveness on the forefront of its objective.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S9	A Samsung pill for note-taking. An S Pen is included within the field.

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Before you purchase a note-taking pill, you may need to think about the next:

Show: A pill’s expertise is basically based mostly on its show, so take note of tablets with HD resolutions and even paper-like shows.
Stylus compatibility: Most individuals use a stylus when taking notes on a pill, so think about tablets that both include a stylus proper out of the field or have the choice to purchase one from the maker individually. It is necessary to notice most common styluses may also work with these tablets.
Dimension: Tablets that you’ll primarily use for note-taking functions may have totally different necessities than tablets that you must substitute a laptop computer with. Smaller dimension tablets are finest for note-taking functions and are light-weight and moveable.
Value: Tablets will differ in value from $150 all the way in which as much as $1,000 or extra, relying on storage capability, show high quality, processors, and extra.

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The ZDNET workforce selected all the tablets included on this listing based mostly on their efficiency when examined in the actual world. After we take a look at tablets, we sometimes observe the identical routine for each to see which performs finest.

Show: We measure the brightness stage in several lighting situations and assess colour accuracy.
We additionally examine the show’s efficiency with what the producer promised, take a look at the display screen’s responsiveness to the touch, and assess the efficiency of any additional options, like a producer’s stylus.
Efficiency: For real-world efficiency metrics, our reviewers measure how rapidly the pill reacts to enter, assess sport efficiency and body charges, take a look at how the pill handles having a number of apps working concurrently, measure the time it takes to launch apps, and even assess the pill’s temperature throughout intensive duties.
Battery life: We take a look at totally different situations for battery life, together with measuring how lengthy the battery lasts whereas streaming, net shopping, utilizing productiveness apps, and taking part in video games.

Digicam and audio: For cameras, we consider options like decision, aperture, low-light efficiency, autofocus accuracy, dynamic vary, colour accuracy, picture high quality, sharpness, and video high quality. For audio, we take a look at the sound high quality and total listening expertise, together with audio readability at totally different volumes, stereo separation of left and proper audio channels, most quantity stage in numerous environments, and if there’s perceived distortion.

For a deeper look into our testing course of, try our complete pill testing methodology.

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Newest information on writing tablets in 2025

Amazon’s Prime Day kicks off on Oct.7. In the event you’re trying to purchase a note-taking pill, it is the proper time to buy.
Apple did not unveil any new tablets at its September occasion, however we may nonetheless see a brand new system this yr.
A research printed in April discovered {that a} digital pill can truly contribute to productiveness. The contributors who labored on digital paper tablets had 35% decrease stress ranges whereas finishing their duties than laptop customers, in addition to a 30% discount in cognitive load. Moreover, the research discovered that the contributors who used tablets skilled 25% increased visible and verbal creativity, whereas sustaining 17% higher reminiscence recall. You’ll be able to learn the complete research right here.

A lot of our prime picks will be thought-about digital notebooks over conventional tablets, and there’s a distinctive distinction. Conventional tablets just like the iPad Air and Samsung Galaxy S10+ have all of the capabilities of a pc, that means they’ll browse the online, entry software program and applications like Photoshop, can take images or movies, and are nice for media consumption by means of apps.

Additionally: The most effective sensible notebooks you should purchase

Then again, a digital pocket book like reMarkable Paper Professional or Boox Word Air 4 C nonetheless has a processor and storage like that of a pill however is extra targeted on the precise activity of note-taking. These units will really feel extra like paper due to a devoted E-ink display screen. Additionally they often have a for much longer battery life than tablets, because you’re simply utilizing them to jot down.

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Utilizing a stylus is completely as much as you, however it could possibly positively assist with performance. Some tablets include a stylus, whereas others may have them offered individually. In the event you’re taking a look at this from a price perspective, think about the truth that the stylus will usually be an added expense, however you could discover it price it for ease of use, particularly should you’re the sort that likes the sensation of writing out your notes moderately than typing them.

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The most effective note-taking apps allow you to digitize your notes and to-dos whereas holding them multi function place or syncing them to a cloud. Our favorites are Notability, Evernote, GoodNotes 5, and even Apple’s free Notes app is a worthy alternative.

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Sure, the Apple Pencil can convert your handwritten notes into textual content for higher legibility. This is how:

Within the Notes or Freeform apps, faucet to indicate the software palette.

Within the software palette, faucet the Handwriting software to the left of the pen.

Write with Apple Pencil, and Scribble routinely converts your handwriting into typed textual content.

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Really, no. A writing pill just like the Amazon Kindle Scribe or the reMarkable Paper Professional are particularly made with writing in thoughts, and a paperlike display screen and lag when flipping pages or swapping instruments make it not an excellent system for drawing or sketching.

Nonetheless, a standard pill just like the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10+ would double as an excellent drawing pill, since you’ll be able to work on apps like Photoshop or Sketchbook with ease.

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Current updates

In our September 2025 replace, we made minor editorial adjustments, verified product availability and costs, and added new data post-Apple occasion and forward of Amazon Prime Day.
In our Could 2025 replace, we added the reMarkable Paper Professional as a prime choose, added extra context on options of merchandise, and added information a couple of latest research that reveals persons are extra productive utilizing E-ink tablets in comparison with computer systems.

Different tablets we have examined

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This 10.3-inch pill has a low-latency E-Ink writing expertise that makes you are feeling such as you’re writing on paper moderately than on a display screen. It is also tremendous moveable with it being simply 4.7mm thick.

The reMarkable 2 can convert handwritten notes to typed textual content and integrates with Google Drive, Dropbox, and Microsoft OneDrive. You can even import Microsoft Workplace information and take notes immediately on PDFs.

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Apple’s smallest iPad is ideal for taking notes resulting from its portability, and it even has a spot on the appropriate aspect of the pill to cost the second-gen Apple Pencil.

The iPad Mini comes with 64GB or 256GB of storage and 4 colours to select from — Starlight, Area Grey, Pink, and Purple.

This iteration of the Mini can be suitable with Apple’s new iPadOS 26.

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The Acer Chromebook Spin is a laptop computer and pill in a single. Its pull-out stylus is ideal for taking notes on the fly.

Whereas spectacular, that is the costliest and heaviest system on our listing, at $750 and three.1 kilos, respectively. We’d suggest this for severe enterprise professionals or college students.

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