

Evernote Raises $20M from Japanese Media Giant Nikkei - freshkurt
http://techcrunch.com/2014/11/09/evernote-nikkei/

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fwn
I use and pay Evernote. I love the idea.

But lately I think they stopped innovating their software and focused on
office supplies and messenger bags. There are many things they could've
improved by now.

I hope their easy money won't mislead them even more.

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jdonnici
Like you, I pay for Evernote's premium service, love the idea, and - until
recently - thought their execution was great.

Now, I think they're too distracted by the "accessories" market and ill-
fitting social features that don't fit what the service was sold to be... a
digital shoebox.

I don't need WSJ or Nikkei articles to appear in my Evernote searches. Sure, I
can turn this "Context" feature off but it's on by default and doesn't do
anything I don't get with CMD+T in my browser. Resources were spent on it.

I feel the same way about the Chat feature. Who are these people who want to
chat with friends/colleagues from inside of Evernote? Again, more resources
spent on that.

In the meantime... Premium features are broken on iOS (passcode security
_turns itself off_ ), the Windows version doesn't work with HiDPI displays,
and the editing/formatting of notes doesn't sync correctly across
Windows->Mac->iOS.

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virmundi
I wonder about the long term viability of services like Evernote. I use them,
but I would never pay for the service. If I got an email from them stating
they'd be going out of business, I probably would move my notes out, maybe?

For those who've paid for the service, why?

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nashequilibrium
The next place you move it too will be developers giving away the service for
free thinking they can be profitable down the road but what they don't know is
that they have millions of you as their customer. They will shutdown and then
you move on to the next free service. The issue with evernote is that they
applied the get big quick model fir customer acquisition and they scooped up a
lot of tuna instead if samon. Compare this to slack which applied a more
targeted approach to customer acquisition with a more focused product.

Evernote needs to weed out customers like you as quickly as possible but it
will require a more streamlined product.

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virmundi
I agree that they need to get rid of the freeloaders like me. My issue with
Evernote is that I don't think I'd get 5 bucks a month of value from it. I
would get 1 dollar a month value. I'd even be willing to pay 12 bucks up front
for the year. I wonder if they could move to a model like that. They'd give
away the server for a 1 month trial, afterwards have a 12 dollar, non-
refundable yearly rent fee.

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nashequilibrium
The reason why you and Evernote have a perceived mismatch on value is because
Evernote does not fully solve your need, but it does for some people. This is
their problem, they have so many products which are so so and rely on the user
to select and create their experience.

Most people won't take the time to explore all the different products and how
to fit them together. This is why Evernote says its best when described by a
friend but others might say that the best products are an opinionated system
directed at a specific type of user and demographic. You could have an
Evernote for designers or developers or accountants or bloggers or researchers
or wallstreet analysts but these would have to look totally different to get
the love from its users. Bottom line Evernote is too general for most.

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pearknob
Wait, Evernote raised $70M at a $1B valuation in 2012. This funding round
seems low. Am I missing something?

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ksherlock
It's not a funding round, it's a content partnership with a small investment
thrown in.

[https://evernote.com/corp/news/pr/2014-11-09/](https://evernote.com/corp/news/pr/2014-11-09/)

~~~
petercooper
Interesting, Nikkei did a similar thing with Monocle recently as well -
[http://www.mediaweek.co.uk/article/1310240/monocle-
valued-11...](http://www.mediaweek.co.uk/article/1310240/monocle-
valued-115m-tyler-brule-sells-minority-stake-japanese-media-company) (Monocle
is probably not hugely known around here but are quite a well regarded media
company in certain circles.)

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macspoofing
They really needed $20M?

//

On a side note, I hate how most windows desktop software (including Evernote)
just don't bother adapting to High-Res displays.

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jtth
They wouldn't even hand out a Yosemite beta before the release date. They had
one, but they wouldn't give it out.

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egypturnash
I keep feeling like Evernote is falling around like crazy to try and
diversify. I like and pay for the app but god I don't want EN-branded
socks/backpacks/thermoses. Or have it try to shove random articles off the
internet into my face when I'm sitting there thinking about My Projects.

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dominotw
I moved away from evernote to free onenote.

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cromag
Recently I discovered Nimbus Note, an Evernote/OneNote hybrid. Great for
capturing ideas and moments with audio, video or notes. Been using it
constantly:
[http://nimbus.everhelper.me/note.php](http://nimbus.everhelper.me/note.php)

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geekamongus
Does it have advantages over Evernote?

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cromag
A more straight-forward interface. It's a subjective thing, but I find Nimbus
Notes easier to use.

