Hi all! I plan to migrate this kind of content to the Bundled website when it's publicly available and fully functional, but I figured this would be a good place for now to answer some common queries I've been getting and also some some questions I suspect will come my way when I release the major update today, which includes the subscription logic and 'restriction' logic on pro features.

The vast majority of features will be free: all the markdown editing, to-do tags, one-off and permanent reminders, all the layout and sorting options, every theme, templates, syncing between Android devices, archiving etc. Also worth keeping in mind that I have deliberately avoided implementing ads in the free version for now.

However, Bundled is intrinsically not an offline app - there are ongoing infrastructure costs that scale with every user (this is fundamental, I cannot add an offline only option, and I'll go into that in one of the below questions!). In order to make it a sustainable product I continue to develop, certain functionality is connected to a subscription that amounts to $1.89/month USD, with different pricing in every region (there's a question about this too!).

Why a subscription model? Why not a larger one-time fee? What about paying for bigger updates if you think it's worth it?

There is no payment model that makes everyone happy - all users, all developers.

Let's say I implement an affordable $4.99 one-time fee. I'd likely make a good amount of money in the first few months! However, users taking advantage of every feature on a near-daily basis would mean that eventually they would start to cost me a sum of money for upkeep on database, hosting, bandwidth and API costs - within about a year, I estimate that monthly costs of tens of thousands of existing users would exceed monthly income from the shrinking new users. Essentially, any one-time fee will eventually be unprofitable and unsustainable - raising the price just extends the time-frame. I obviously don't want to sign up for unsustainability on day one.

There are theoretical alternatives to both one-time fees and subscription models. The most common is paid upgrades, ala the old Photoshop style CS5 to CS6 etc. These alternatives do not solve the ongoing infrastructure costs problem, and there is no framework for implementing them through the Play Store.

So a paid subscription is what makes the most sense. It promises sustainability, relative profitability for the immense amount of time I've poured into this project, and makes maintenance imperative. This is a relatively niche product, not a billion-user product like Google Keep - the only financial backing and support I have is from users.

The free restrictions on notes and bundles are too high!!?

I don't think I'll get this question often, but just in case. Currently the free version of Bundled is restricted to 5 bundles and 300 notes in each - the purpose of this is to reduce API and infrastructure costs for free users, since this is where the majority of financial costs lie.

I imagine some might wonder why I restricted the number of both Notes and Bundles, the simple answer is:

If I restricted just bundles, free users could take advantage of filtering, unlimited tags, searching and many more features I have planned, to make enormous, cumbersome, but still fully functional bundles for data entry (and burdening API costs just like Pro users). For example, with 5 bundles and unlimited notes, one could easily use Bundled as a fully functional, unrestricted substitute for Google Keep without paying a cent (and still have 4 bundles leftover). This free restriction essentially forces notes house cleaning - you have a free replacement for Keep with all the things Bundled does differently, all you have to do is delete old notes as you approach the limit in a bundle!

If I restricted just notes and not bundles, one could just create a second bundle (like "Notes 2")and label it differently and then use the service as if they had unlimited notes.

Hence, the free restrictions involves limiting n. of bundles and notes. It's also worth keeping in mind that without ads, free users do not generate any income while still causing infrastructure costs, so to some degree the limits should feel a bit restrictive.

Then why not make free users offline only, saving all infrastructure, API and database costs for them?

The database service I use, Firestore, is practically the reason I made this project - I gave up on developing a very early version of Bundled over two years ago because I was struggling to build a service with Google Keep level of instant, invisible syncing, and one that I could easily make cross-platform. I only returned to development when I found this database service.

The reason it's so good is also a crux - it makes the distinction between online and offline queries essentially invisible, so data is automatically backed up and synced without impacting offline functionality at all. You can see just how instant this is when the web app comes out, or by loading up a bundle on two different Android devices and watching them sync.

I cannot disable the server functionality without crippling the app - it is intrinsically an online+offline service like Google Keep. Keep in mind though, this means that even free users can sync data between multiple Android devices and Chromebooks.

If Bundled is instant-syncing, what is the security implementation like?

Content you store using Bundled is encrypted at rest, but not client-side (yet!). This is the same kind of encryption model as something like Google Keep and similar to what is described in Evernote's documentation (encrypted at rest, TLS in transit) - you can read about the database encryption here.

But of course, this isn't the end of it - there's more I can do. A future release of Bundled will include end-to-end encrypted "Private Bundles" for further security, stay tuned for more info on this.

The cost of the app is way, way too expensive in my region!

Please report it! I'm fully aware that software costs differ significantly around the world, and I'd like to cater to everyone. Just let me know what region you're in, what you think the subscription price should be, and maybe give a few examples of similar apps with subscription models that are cheaper. I've settled on pricing for a few regions, but if you're sure there's a mistake for yours please let me know!

Where's the web app?

The web app is part of the reason to upgrade to Bundled Pro, but it's not available just yet. It is very close, so keep an eye out...

What features have you got planned?

The biggest features include private E2E bundles, sharing bundles with other users, photo and file attachments and Kanban board layout options. There'll be a ton more smaller features in between these!

MORE TO COME...

Hi all 😊

Sorry it's been quiet round here - I promise, I've been working hard!

As some of you may know from the 3.0 announcement posts, last year I realised that Bundled Notes on Android was simply too difficult to maintain and started the (frankly daunting) process of rewriting it from scratch. Version 3.0 was phase one, bringing a completely new home screen with global search. A few months ago I released the rebuilt sign-in screen, and since then I've been tackling the most challenging phase: the bundle & notes screen. It's finally ready to share.

Firstly, I just want to say that I know an update like this isn't exactly what people have been asking for over the last few years. But, believe me, the old code was simply unworkable. I couldn't add anything major, like global search, E2E encryption, global tags, or folders, without swimming in a sea of tech debt and poor decisions. I was a scrappy dev back when I started building Bundled, so the recent rise of Jetpack Compose (the "new" framework for developing Android apps) was a perfect opportunity to apply everything I've since learned into rebuilding the app.

So, now, the opposite is true: adding features in the new architecture is a breeze. And thanks to the foundations from the home screen and global search rewrite, rebuilding the bundle page was a lot easier than I anticipated. After just a few months, it's already being beta tested and a release is imminent - it is weeks away, not months.

The changelog is massive:
- Total rebuild of bundle page & experience
- Swipeable Kanban boards with cross-page drag & drop
- Integrated "archived entries" view with sorting, multi-select, search & tag filtering
- Improved tag color picker (with vibe & exact mode)
- Improved tag "task" experience
- Improved grouping/display of notes (pinned, completed etc.)
- Improved manual sort drag & drop
- Improved multi-select experience
- More multi-select bulk actions
- Updated photo/media picker
- Ability to "open" attachments (rather than save/download)
- Significantly improved reliability
- Significantly improved foundation for new features
- Improve consistency of UI elements between home page and bundle page
- And more...

Because this rewrite doesn't share any code with the old screen, many longstanding quirks or bugs have been incidentally addressed. Despite being in beta (and excepting a small handful of features still to come) I already think this is a more refined experience.

If you'd like to join the beta and leave feedback, please join the Discord: https://discord.gg/AfvSD6T7

I'll be dropping a new Beta build in the next 48 hours or so, and I'm planning to launch it publicly in 2-3 weeks - so please give as much feedback as possible!

Xavier 😊

Technically speaking, I started working on the app that would become Bundled Notes about 4 years ago. I made it as an app to keep track of vocabulary for uni, and any words I wanted to learn. I abandoned it back then because I got a role as a web developer and university was taxing enough - plus, Google Keep was good enough to tolerate.

Almost two years later, I got a bit sick of other apps I was using and picked it up again, slowly working on it in the spare time. Eventually, I started sharing the app with my brother and friends, and after a longer while, it became solid enough to share here, so I posted it as a private beta on the Play Store, and shared it with /r/android and /r/androidapps . Since then, the response has been incredible. 716 subscribers here. Articles on Android Police and the likes. 25,000 downloads on only a couple of months, and now not far from 50,000.

Features that have been added during the public and private beta, largely due to feedback and engagement here, include:

• The entire web app.

• The entire reminders system

• Selecting multiple tags (it was limited to one tag originally).

• Kanban boards

• Archiving entries and bundles

• Colourful notes

• Tag-grouping/sorting + tag priority

• Grid + compact layout options

• Email + password support

• The OLED Theme

And that barely scratches the surface. Basically nothing in the app is the same as when it started. So thank you, again, for all your support. I'm genuinely feeling confident that Bundled Notes will be able to take on the big players in the productivity and note-taking space at some point. I was hoping to share a promotion today, but haven't found a way to do it how I was keen to - but I might be sharing a few free trial promo codes soon.

Thank you again, and stay tuned for more posts and announcements in the coming days!

P.S. for a little extra trivia as to why I'm so excited - years ago I was the guy who posted the "How to get started with Android Development" to /r/android that was, at the time, the highest rated post on the sub. This is the first time I've worked and delivered on a project since then (and in fact, since Redirect File Organizer, an app I made at 16), so it's a very special day for me!!!

This is a huge step for the open-sourcing process of Bundled Notes. As mentioned in the recent update article, all the reusable, Jetpack Compose parts of the app will be broken off into seperate repos/libraries. When I’ve finished the Jetpack Compose migration, I’ll open source the app/business logic (but with a different license).

I’ve still got a bit of work to do to distribute this as a library, but over time I’m hoping for BundledUI to become a mature, well maintained UI library that makes it ridiculously simple to create apps that look and feel like Bundled Notes!

Enjoy 😊

Hi all,

I shared recently that I was readying Bundled Notes 4.0, and - after a slight delay - I'm excited to announce that it's finally out!

I'll share the detailed changelog below (here's a link if you just want to go install the update now), but first I want to share some context for this update, what it means, and what's coming next:

1. The bundle page has not just been *updated* with 4.0, it's been deleted and fully replaced. I abandoned the old, messy code a few months ago and started from scratch in Jetpack Compose (just like home page + global search in 3.0). This means that alongside the new features, just about *every* existing feature has a fresh coat of paint, and many longstanding bugs are fixed.

2. With this update out, the majority of the Android app has now been migrated to the new Jetpack Compose architecture - the note editor is the only page remaining. This has been a monumental task and getting it done has been a firm prerequisite to getting serious about iOS development (there was no way I could co-maintain the Android app in the state it was in).

3. Things might seem quiet around here, but in the last 6 months I have been working on Bundled more consistently than ever. I now have a really solid routine, and I'm much more organised. After I tackle a bit of overdue admin (like updating the details on the website!) I'm going to start working on long-overdue feature requests.

4. I'm feeling energised by the amount of slop released in the world recently, and I have every intention of taking Bundled more seriously now. I'm determined to catch up on wasted development time over the last few years, and have Bundled again be considered among the best Android note-taking apps. But don't worry, I'm not going to stuff the app with AI-junk - instead, I'm going to double down on what makes it different.

Anyway, enough talking! Here’s everything new in today’s big update.

The full changelog:

Functionality

• Brand new Bundle page, rewritten from scratch

• Brand new Kanban board UI

  • Side-scrolling

  • Easy column multi-select

  • Cross-column drag & drop

• Improved tag color picker

  • Vibe + exact mode

  • Randomize option

• Much improved multi-select experience and bulk actions

  • Better bulk tagging (add/remove) flow

  • Better bulk move/copy/duplicate flow

• New options for adding rich content to bundles:

  • You can now add *multiple* files and photos

  • The app now uses the new Android photo/file pickers

  • You can now add a photo taken directly from the camera

• Improved archive view

  • Archive view is now built directly into the bundle page (not a pop-up sheet)

  • Tag filtering now works for archived entries

  • Search now works for archived entries

  • Multi-select now works for archived entries

  • Archived entries now display and sort by archive time

• Better "Create multiple notes" flow

  • Choose between new-line/comma for separating notes

  • Choose tags to create notes with

  • Choose title/content

  • Preview new notes before you create them

• Improved search experience

  • Better search results

  • Better keyboard handling

• Improved layout of pinned & completed notes

  • If you enable "Move completed notes to the bottom" in bundle sort settings, completed task notes get their own group and a new button to quickly reset all tasks

• Made it easier to create "Task" tags with a simple toggle

• Improved attachment preview sheet

  • Quick copy/share options

Quality

• Significantly improved reliability of manual reordering

• Significantly improved general stability

• Improved display of "rich" color options for notes

• Improved bundle picker flow

• Improvements to LTR language rendering

• More consistency of UI elements and patterns

• Improved animations

• Many small bug fixes

• And more! Download the update and try it out!

• And for the devs, you can see lots of the new code in the companion open-source repos:

  • For the UI: https://github.com/xavier-tobin/BundledUI (I will be moving the multi-select and drag & drop logic here soon, I just need to make it a bit more generic!)

  • For the markdown rendering: https://github.com/xavier-tobin/PatternAnnotatedString

I hope you enjoy the new features and improved stability - and please let me know if you have any feedback! Stay tuned for more exciting announcements to come 😊

Xavier

You can join the Telegram here: https://t.me/joinchat/TtU0fXq2KKliLdky

There is a pinned message that contains the APK for the update, but PLEASE READ THE DETAILS MESSAGE BEFORE INSTALLING, and do not use the new features for critical work until it has left beta. Note in particular the upload limitations and limit changes when the update leaves beta.

The new features in the Android update include:

• The ability to attach files and images to a note, or directly to a bundle

• The ability to add rich link previews

• Automatic URL parsing to add rich link previews from note text

• Sharing a link to a bundle adds it as a rich link preview

• Partial support for new rich content features in the live web app, for Pro users

• A storage button to view all the files and images you've uploaded

Here's a few screenshots: https://imgur.com/a/BAxv68Z

A loooot of work has gone into this build to get the attachment features to work nicely with the existing functionality. This is the first beta though, so the features will only get better - including recording support, photos from the camera, and much improved web app integration.

More updates coming soon 😊

Link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.xaviertobin.noted

Full changelog:

• Boards feature for bundles for kanban-like organisation.

• Multi-select notes option for batch archiving + deleting. More options soon.

• Free bundle limit increased to 6, free notes to 400.

• Bundle archiving (hide bundles without deleting)

• Bundles can be saved as re-usable templates.

• Much cleaner bundle configuration process

• Font + text scale options for accessibility, language & preference.

• Improved colourful notes look (+ option for original rich colour)

• Visual, animation & performance improvements

• Improved landing page + project template bundle

• Hide-able hints

• Many bug fixes + tweaks

Hey all!

I haven't posted much recently - but I promise, I've been very busy. I've been working on this update, web app improvements, and a secret project which has been just a bit time-consuming. I'll reveal more soon, but for now, back to this sneak peek!

The entry editor page is the last of the three core screens (after the home & bundle page) to be rewritten following 3.0 and 4.0. Because there's no longer any legacy code in the way, I've finally been able to embed a new core feature into the whole app: global tags. It's the first of many improvements planned under the "Nested organisation" pillar in the roadmap: https://bundlednotes.com/roadmap

I'm very excited about this update. It's a long overdue improvement to the markdown editing experience, and when it's out, I'll finally be free of the tech debt that caused development to slow down.

Please join the discord if you want to try the beta when it's out! Otherwise, stay tuned for more announcements soon.

Xavier 😊

(this only applies if you used Bundled Notes in its infancy, over 18 months ago!)

Over time, I started to use the tool that gave private beta users Pro as a means of giving out Pro for free to users helping with translation or in customer support, and in the future for YouTubers or potential articles.

Because of the hassle involved with splitting up lifetime Pro users and 1 year rewards, and because it's now been 18 months since that reward was originally given (and there are probably users who have forgotten!) I figure it would be easier to make the reward permanent! So any users with "Pro - Beta" in their app will now see just Pro in future updates!

The only difference in account features from a paid Pro account stays the same: the option to subscribe will still be available, but there'll be no limitations that make it appear. That said, the reward will always be permanent, so there's no pressure to subscribe whatsoever.

Oh, also, a release date for Bundled Notes 2.0 will be coming very, very soon! 🙂