Notion’s offline mode would possibly simply make me ditch Obsidian

Notion is one in all my favourite instruments. From databases to to-do lists, monitoring eating places I wished to take a look at, and a lot extra, I’ve dabbled in it for years till I lastly made the swap to Obsidian. That’s principally due to Notion’s one deadly flaw. The second you lose web, the app successfully turns into ineffective.

I’ve realized that the arduous manner on flights, cafes with rocky Wi-Fi, even when desirous to examine a washer’s upkeep schedule in my basement laundry with no mobile sign. It’s what pushed me in direction of Obsidian, a local-first markdown-based app that has by no means failed me after I simply wanted entry to my notes. For a really very long time now, Obsidian has been my security web. However now that Notion has lastly mounted that deadly flaw by rolling out offline mode, it could be time for a rethink. Maybe it’s time to ditch Obsidian and return to Notion. Right here’s why.

For anybody who has used Notion lengthy sufficient, the shortage of offline entry was not a minor inconvenience. It was successfully a dealbreaker. The entire app was designed round its well-defined construction and cloud-first expertise. So while you misplaced entry to the web, you additionally misplaced the app’s utility. You may be staring on the prettiest dashboard on this planet, however for those who wished to examine your notes throughout a flight or in an space with no sign, it was successfully ineffective.

For me, that was the hole Obsidian stepped into so neatly. With its markdown-based information residing in your native storage, it by no means mattered if the web was on or off. I might take my laptop computer on a long-haul flight or my telephone right into a low-signal zone, and my notes had been at all times there. Clearly, I couldn’t sync information throughout with out the web, however my work to this point was proper there and able to be accessed. I can’t depend the variety of instances I’ve been mid-thought on a flight and wished so as to add one thing to my mission tracker, solely to stare at a clean Notion display. Obsidian solved that, however at the price of giving up Notion’s highly effective databases, templates and collaboration instruments. Now that Notion guarantees to work the identical manner anyplace, it feels just like the steadiness is bridging the hole within the characteristic set. As somebody who’s often on the go, I wanted that form of reliability, and Obsidian has been the place the place I hold something essential.

After all, Obsidian and Notion are very totally different in how they method note-taking. Obsidian leans into extensibility with plugins for nearly every thing, and the truth that all notes are simply easy markdown information means they’re as moveable because it will get. However the app isn’t excellent. Even the best duties can take only a bit an excessive amount of time to perform.

Notion, then again, is extra polished and collaborative. Constructing a database takes solely a few clicks. It rapidly helps you to hyperlink initiatives, create aesthetic and useful pages, share them to the web with one click on, and extra. Options like Notion Types are unimaginable for fast knowledge entry on the go. Suffice it to say, Notion has at all times felt like the higher instrument for managing larger initiatives, whereas Obsidian is extra geared in direction of private initiatives and analysis. For years I lived in each worlds, and although it was messy, it labored.

Notion’s offline mode replace upends that. With the software program’s newest launch, I can now view, edit, and create notes while not having the web. All the pieces syncs again when you reconnect, much like Obsidian. On paper, which means I not want two separate instruments. My use case is best served by Notion, and getting access to offline mode means I ought to be capable to ditch Obsidian. Effectively, as is at all times the case, the main points matter, and Notion’s offline mode comes with loads of quirks that it would be best to be careful for.

For starters, in contrast to Obsidian, Notion’s offline mode isn’t computerized. Any web page that you simply need to entry offline have to be marked for offline use on every gadget you propose to make use of. When you neglect to try this, you’re out of luck. Premium plans do ease issues by routinely downloading current and favorited pages, however it’s nonetheless removed from Obsidian’s always-available simplicity. And since most residence and fanatic customers are on the free tier, they don’t profit from auto-downloading.

Then there are the bounds. Databases are capped at 50 rows for offline entry with no method to pressure a full obtain. When you’ve got an advanced setup utilizing a number of subpages, you’ll need to manually toggle each for offline entry. Subpages don’t routinely tag alongside while you mark a mum or dad web page offline. On high of that, embedded content material, buttons, and varieties cease working with no connection. None of those points are dealbreakers individually, however collectively they make offline mode really feel extra like a workaround than a seamless characteristic. Whereas I’m glad the characteristic exists, it’s clear that Notion was constructed from the bottom up as a cloud-first instrument.

Regardless of the numerous limitations of Notion’s offline mode, it’s already making me rethink how I work. As I discussed earlier, Notion comes throughout because the slicker instrument as a result of its extra outlined schema of getting issues completed. Obsidian presents extra freedom and has by no means let me down with offline entry, however all too typically you must leap by means of hoops for easy duties. Typically you even want to put in third-party plugins for what must be primary performance. That isn’t best for the way I exploit apps.

With offline mode, Notion has lastly earned again a few of that belief. Offline mode is just not excellent, however it not collapses the second Wi-Fi drops. That’s sufficient for me to contemplate shifting again.

On the identical time, I don’t see myself deleting Obsidian any time quickly. Markdown information saved regionally are nonetheless unmatched for permanence. If one thing goes mistaken, I do know my notes are sitting on my arduous drive, untouched by anybody else. That sense of possession is difficult to beat, particularly for somebody like me who’s deeply entrenched within the self-hosted ecosystem. However the actuality is that I don’t need to stay in two worlds anymore. Splitting notes between apps provides friction I not want. If Notion can do sufficient for me each day, then Obsidian begins to really feel like a security web I don’t have to examine fairly as typically.

For now, I’ll in all probability combine Notion extra into my each day workflow whereas conserving vital entry paperwork on Obsidian. I nonetheless have to see how properly offline syncing holds up in real-world use. How properly does Notion deal with conflicts? Will Notion improve the database restrict? These are questions that solely long-term use can reply. However offline mode, even in its present kind, is sufficient for me to significantly think about ditching Obsidian. And it would simply be for you as properly.