Note-taking meets excellence

NOTABILITY FOR WINDOWS

Notability is one of the popular note-taking applications for Apple devices. While its exclusive Apple availability makes it exciting among the Windows note-taking fraternity, its stunning features make it one of the most downloaded notetakers on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. These reasons encourage thousands of Windows users to look for Notability on their Windows computers. But is it possible? Does it work? If yes, how? We’ll answer all these questions here.

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WHAT IS NOTABILITY?

It is a note-taking application for iOS, iPadOS, and macOS that allows users to type, draw, and create handwritten notes categorized into Subjects and Dividers. Launched in April 2010 by Ginger Labs, Notability is one of the most downloaded note-taking applications. The app comes loaded with features such as AI summaries, Pencil sensitivity settings, lasso tools, and a large number of templates that allow notetakers to efficiently document and share notes with their peers.

WHY SHOULD YOU USE NOTABILITY ON PC?

Create and edit notes
Categorize with Subjects and Dividers
Set Note reminders using Safari
Summarize your notes with Notability Learn
Turn your notes summaries into engaging Quizzes
Incredible iCloud sync
Add images, videos, GIFs, stickers, and sticky notes
Import audio recordings or record live audios while making notes
Transcribe audios
Lock Subjects to secure your notes data

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NOTABILITY SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

To install and use Notability on your Windows laptops, your system should fulfill the following hardware and OS requirements.

Component	Requirement
Operating system	Windows Vista, 7, 8, 10, 11 – 64 Bit Recommended- Windows 10/11
Processor	Intel Core i3 3.90 GHZ or better AMD Ryzen 3 or better
RAM	8 GB for installation
Free disk space	80 GB for macOS, at least 2.5 GB for the app and its files
Audio devices	Any standard device can work.
Graphics	Intel HD Graphics 5000 or later NVIDIA GeForce GTX 700 or later AMD Radeon R5 or later

HOW TO INSTALL NOTABILITY ON WINDOWS?

To install Notability, you need to first set up a virtual macOS inside a VM such as VirtualBox. Here’s a step-by-step guide for VirtualBox and macOS setup on PC.

Phase 1: macOS Setup

Step 1: Download the macOS ISO file from here.

Step 2: Download VirtualBox on your PC

Go to the VirtualBox downloads page and click to download the Windows hosts link.

Step 3: Launch the VirtualBox Installer and follow the instructions.

Step 4: Download the VirtualBox Extension Pack.

After the installation is complete, go to the VirtualBox downloads page and download VirtualBox Extension Pack.

Step 5: Now install the Extension Pack.

Step 6: Disable Windows Hyper-V.

Windows Hyper-V is Microsoft’s Virtualization software for Windows 10 and 11. When it’s active on a Windows PC, it is highly likely to cause conflict with any third-party virtualization tools- which is why we must disable it. To disable Hyper-V:

Search “Windows Security” and open it.
Click on “Device security.”
Select “Core isolation details.”
Switch off the “Memory integrity” toggle.

Go to the search menu and search “CMD”
Right-click on the “Command Prompt” icon and click on “Run as administrator”
Type this code in Command Prompt and hit enter:

Bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype off
Restart your computer and Hyper-V will be disabled.

Step 7: Setup macOS

Launch VirtualBox
Click “New”
Enter the name you want to give this macOS installation, find and select your ISO image file, select Version as Mac OS X (64-bit), and click “Next.”
Go to the Hardware drop-down and allocate RAM and CPU processors for your virtual Mac machine. (At least 8GB RAM and 4 CPU cores, or your VM macOS may be very slow).
Click on the Hard Disk drop-down and allocate memory for your VM installation. (at least 80 GB for macOS).
Click “Finish.”

Step 8: Update Audio, Display, and Wifi settings

Click on the “Settings” icon
Click on the “System” tab
Make sure that EFI is enabled and the chipset is set to ICH9 (see the screenshot)
Now, go to Display settings and set Video Memory to 128 MB (also enable 3D Acceleration)
Also, go to:

Network > Adapter 2 > Enable Network Adapter > select your adapter from the “Attached to” menu.

Step 9: Patch the VM

Based on your processor (Intel or AMD), copy these patch codes to your Notepad app.
In the Notepad document, find “VM Name” and replace it with the name you’ve given to your OS (in step 7). (Use “CTRL+H” to find and replace).
Quit VirtualBox completely and run Command Prompt as an administrator.
Enter the Patch code in Command Prompt

Step 10: Install macOS inside the Virtual Machine

Open VirtualBox
Click the “Start” button
A new window will launch and a script will start running
After this script finishes, we will move ahead

Step 11: Format the Virtual Drive

After the previous steps are complete, macOS will start booting
In the boot menu, you will be asked to select your language, after which, a new page will open. Here, we have to click on “Disk Utility.”
Select VBOX HARDDISK Media and click the erase button in the top right.
Now, we have to rename the drive and Erase it
After this, close Disk Utility and click to Install macOS
Now, follow the instructions, select your renamed Disk, and click Continue
After the process is complete, macOS will start loading in the VM

This process can take anywhere between 50 to 60 minutes. As the process goes on, do not close the Window.

After the installation, you can login to iCloud using your existing Apple ID or create a new one.

Phase 2: Download Notability

Once you have logged in using your Apple ID, you can visit the macOS App Store and search Notability.

WHAT MAKES NOTABILITY THE BEST?

So far, we have discussed a bunch of Notability features along with an installation method that works even for Windows computers. However, these alone don’t make it an Editors’ Choice on the App Store.

Let’s look at Notability’s key features that make it stand out from other note-taking apps.

Notability Learn

Learn has to be the top unique feature that powers-up Notability for students and working professionals.

Once you have made a note with enough content in it (at least three to four pages), you can use Learn to summarize these notes using the app’s generative AI. The summary will be short, precise, and easily comprehensible. Plus, after you’ve gone through the summary, the app will ask whether you wish to take a quick Quiz based on the notes (summary) you just went across.

Change the lines and grids spacing

Everyone has different handwriting and notetaking habits. To suit everyone’s specific needs, Notability allows users to adjust line and grid spacing of their notes. To do this, follow these steps:

Open the note of your choice > Settings > Template Settings > Drag the bar to change the line and grid spacing to suit your handwriting.

Notability Gallery

The Notability community is huge and regularly publishes new note templates to encourage users to be more productive while making notes.

You can use these templates as bases for your unique study material, research work, or note-taking. One of the best things about these templates- some of them are SUPER AESTHETIC!

Sticky Notes

Sticky Notes always make life, work, and study easier. Notability comes with an in-built Sticky Notes feature that allows you to quickly take stickies and paste them on screen, so forgetting is never an option.

To use Sticky Notes in Notability, you can:

Open a new or existing Note > Click to add media > Click on the Stickers icon > Click on a Sticky Note to add it to your Notes

NOTABILITY USERS DON’T SWITCH

Notability has made note-taking and notation management so easy for me. I and my students are now able to focus on music making and practice, instead of toiling around notes-management.

Adam Brown

Music Tutor

The PC version of Notability has made my life so easy. While I used to love taking handwritten notes and sketches on Notability on my iPad, being able to sync them on my laptop has solved so many problems for me.

Mellisa Silva

Fine Arts student

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NOTABILITY ALTERNATIVES FOR WINDOWS

Windows users unable to set up a virtual machine can consider using these note-taking apps.

Notion is among the most popular and widely used latest-gen notetaking applications, which is loaded with features, flexibility, and utility. While it can come off as overwhelming or tricky to start with, it keeps getting easier, and more productive and fun once you start using it. My personal favorite feature of Notion- creating a new page/gallery/callout/text box or even a database without having to move the mouse; at all.

Notion has a “Forward Slash” tool (/) which gets triggered when a user inputs forward slash “/” on any dashboard. After entering “/,” the user can start writing the name of the block they wish to add. For example, if they wish to add a new page, the command “/page” and Enter will create a new page for them.

Google Keep is another popular notetaking app available with web and OS app versions. Users can access Keep by visiting keep.google.com and signing in using their Google account. This tool is perfect for anyone looking to simplify the notetaking process on their PC and sync those notes on their mobile devices and tablets as well. Since Google Keep works with a Google sign-in, it syncs automatically across all devices. Furthermore, users can categorize their notes using Labels, and attach Reminders to the Notes of their choice. Google Keep also has the option to Archive notes you aren’t using actively and access them later when you need them.

Goodnotes is popularly known as one of the great competitors of Notability. Its handwriting assist on iPad along with its generative AI, easy notebook management, and a competitive pricing model attract notetakers from across all fields of study and work. Priced at $9.99 for a year or $29.99 for a lifetime access, Goodnotes makes notetaking more fun, aesthetic, and efficient. Its lasso tool, pressure sensitivity and stroke stabilization settings for pens, and a large number of Notebook covers and limes and grid options make it a favorite among notetakers using both Windows and Mac computers.

One of the oldest notetaking applications, Evernote has long been popular among the research fraternity. However, that’s not all- its potential can empower all notetakers, whether studying or working. Available with four subscription options: Free, Personal, Professional, and Teams, Evernote offers something for everyone. Also, the latest updates have equipped Evernote with the Forward Slash tool, making notetaking and dashboard building easier than ever.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Is there Notability for Windows?

No. Notability does not have a Windows version. However, Windows users can set up macOS inside a Virtual Machine such as VB and download and use Notability.

Is Notability just for iPad?

Notability is available on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS, which means that iPhone, iPad, and Mac/MacBook users can use Notability on their Apple devices.

Is Goodnotes better than Notability?

Goodnotes and Notability are both great notetaking tools, with several pros and a few cons on both sides. However, speaking of usage on a Windows PC, Goodnotes is available on Windows, while Notability is exclusive to the Apple ecosystem and can be used on Windows inside a virtual machine setup. Furthermore, we have published a detailed comparison of both the tools in our blogs section.

Is Notability for Free?

Notability has a free version and three Premium versions that cost as follows: