This review is not sponsored or endorsed in any way, and all opinions are my own.
At the beginning of the year, I decided that one of my New Year’s resolutions was to convert some of my handwritten stories to digital format. I wanted to upload them to Google Docs so I could always have a backup copy, in case something happened to the original notebooks.
It’s been a slow process, but I’ve found an app that helps speed up the process, and I wanted to share my thoughts about it with you guys.
Why I Chose Pen to Print
When I started this project of trying to digitize my old writings, I downloaded a few different apps.
To test the different apps, I wrote a sample paragraph and made sure it was nice and neat. I wanted to make it easy for the app to understand.
Other apps had a really hard time understanding my cleanest handwriting. One app converted my sample paragraph into three pages of gibberish.
The only app that understood the sample paragraph was Pen to Print, so I deleted all the other apps.
Is the Premium Subscription Worth It?
Pen to Print is a free app, but you can upgrade to the premium version for $2.99 a month, or $12.99 per year.
I subscribed for $2.99 a month, and the app was easy to upgrade. Unlike other apps (*cough cough* Spotify), if you want to upgrade, you can do it right in the app. You don’t have to do it on their website or on a different device.
Premium allows you to edit the generated text, which is a godsend. No matter how good the app is, it will mess up frequently, especially if you write fantasy and make up a lot of words. For me, the ability to edit in the app is worth the monthly cost.
Also, the premium version allows you to scan multiple pages at once and export it as one document. (More on that later.) This is really helpful if you’re using this app to digitize lots of writing.
Using the Pen to Print App
When you open the app, this is the first page you’ll see.
It doesn’t matter if you have the free or paid version, there is always the ad for Pen to Print.
It’s a bit annoying that I still see an ad in the paid version, but that’s just a personal preference. I feel like if I’m paying a subscription, I shouldn’t have to see ads. However the ad never seems to change, and it’s not very intrusive.
The blue plus sign is where you can access your phone camera or photos. When you open your phone camera, you can take a picture of whatever handwriting you want to convert. It will look like this:
- You can crop the image so it won’t convert all of the text.
- Everything in the image will be converted to text, including any dates/footnotes. Sometimes, the camera picks up ink that bleeds through the other side of the page.
- I tried to position the camera so it only captured part of the page, but the camera scans the whole page. It’s easier to take a photo of the whole page and then crop the edges if you need to.
After this, the app will convert any handwriting in the picture into text.
Editing Text
On the next screen, you’ll be able to see the text compared to the handwriting, line by line. This is a good chance to edit your text, if you have the paid version.
Editing the text is worth the paid version in itself. My handwriting is not the cleanest, especially if I’m writing in ink. It’s important for me to have a text that’s not complete gibberish.
Pen to Print still has a lot of trouble with punctuation. It has the toughest time with quotation marks and question marks. Sometimes it can’t tell the difference between uppercase and lowercase letters.
You won’t get a perfect handwriting-to-text conversion, no matter which app you use. For me, it’s easiest to pay for the upgrade and edit the mistakes as I go.
Another issue I have once in a while is the app freezing when I’m in the middle of editing text. Some lines of text can be edited. Other lines freeze when you try to edit them.
Once again, just remember that this app is not perfect. If you have to edit the whole thing as you export it to a Google Doc, that’s still a lot faster than typing everything out yourself.
Scanning Multiple Pages
With the paid version of Pen to Print, you have the option to scan multiple pages and save it as one document.
Just make sure you select the pages button on the bottom right, not the (+) button in the center! The center button will open a new text and you’ll lose all your work.
When you scan multiple pages, try not to do more than four or five at a time before you save and export. I speak from personal experience here. It sucks to scan fifteen or sixteen pages in a row and the app crashes and you lose everything.
A good rule of thumb seems to be every 4-5 pages, save (using the button on the left), and export.
Exporting Your Text
When you’re finished scanning and editing your text, it’s time to export it.
In the paid version of the app, you have several options to export your work. You can export it as a Google Doc, or an email, or the Notes app on your phone.
If you’re using this app to scan and convert short pieces like poems or short stories, you can export as a Google Doc. The app will create a new Google Doc with your saved text.
However, if you’re like me and you want to scan way too many pages because you’re trying to convert novels using this little app, it’s not a good idea to export as a Google Doc.
Every time you save as a Google Doc, it creates a new document. If you’re doing this every five pages, you’ll end up with way too many Docs that are completely unorganized.
Instead, you can hit export, then select “Copy.” From there, you can paste it into a Google Doc. That way, your work is all organized in one place.
Conclusion: Is Pen to Print Worth It?
I’ve been using Pen to Print for a few months now, and it’s been a huge help to me.
The app still has some issues and glitches. It never recognizes my quotation marks, and you will spend time editing every text conversion.
The app also crashes once in a while. Since it doesn’t have an autosave feature, if the app crashes or if you close it, you’ll lose all your progress.
However, the premium subscription is helpful and worth the price. I really like the option to copy the text into a Google Doc. It’s saved me a lot of time from manually typing everything myself.
In the end, I rate this app 4 out of 5 stars.
It would be 5 stars if it had some sort of autosave feature.
Have you used this app before? If not, would you give it a try? Let me know in the comments!
I still remember doing this by hand. Typing multiple notebooks worth of novels into the computer.
Ah, nostalgia… I would get so frustrated with all that typing so I just gave up on it 😂
Hi Lauryn! I’m Lily (I just found your blog today). Anywho, this looks like a cool app. I have so many notes and documents that I’m trying to scan, so I’ll have to check this one out 🙂
Hi Lily!! Thank you so much for your comment, it made my day! Welcome to my little blog 🙂 and yes, I recommend this app! It’s genuinely been so helpful for me because I used to only write by hand, and now I want digital copies of everything!
Sure thing!
Lol, I’ll definitely look into it, then 🙂 (Thanks for the rec!)
Thanks for writing this review. I agree with what you said about the features and benefits. I lost my first multi-page scan, but will try the Copy method you suggested. Also, auto save seems like an essential product enhancement.
Thanks for the comment! Isn’t it so annoying to lose a multi page scan?! I really hope they add an auto save option soon! Best of luck with the Pen to Print app!