u/RockyRoad226

In case you missed it, this is why HelixNotes exists, straight from the founder: not another Obsidian clone, just the notes app he wished existed after trying everything else.

https://helixnotes.com/why-i-built-helixnotes

HelixNotes now has a place on Product Hunt. If you've been enjoying the app, an upvote and a comment about what you use it for or why you like it would genuinely help us reach more people who'd get value out of a local-first, Markdown note-taking tool.

Thanks for being part of this from the start. It truly means a lot!

https://www.producthunt.com/products/helixnotes

HelixNotes isn't picky. Whatever device you're working on, it's ready:

🪟 Windows 🍎 macOS 🐧 Linux 🤖 Android 📱 iOS

https://helixnotes.com

HelixNotes v1.3.4 is out! This update focuses on making HelixNotes work better on mobile, with a round of fixes and refinements across the editor, syncing, and everyday polish.

- Callouts now work live in WYSIWYG mode

- Obsidian importer rewritten

- Better tables

- Faster on Android

- Cross-device sync fixed

- iOS vault support for iCloud

- Bug fixes

View the full changelog here: https://gitlab.com/ArkHost/HelixNotes/-/releases/v1.3.4

** EDIT Update on the issues in Europe: We had to re-register the compliance for EU so it's now in review, again. Sorry to everyone who is affected by this. Hopefully it's available soon! **

The wait is over, HelixNotes is officially live on iOS!

If you have trouble finding it in the app store, try adding a space between Helix & Notes. For some reason that seems to work when the no-space way only works sometimes. This should resolve itself in the next 24 hours.

Install it now and let us know what you think!

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/helixnotes/id6788490726

HelixNotes uses Svelte.

Even in a desktop app, the UI runs in a webview, and most frameworks keep that webview busy tracking changes at runtime. Svelte compiles away that overhead ahead of time, so there's less work happening under the hood and a snappier feeling app.

We're told it should be approved within 2-4 days. iOS users hang in there, it's almost here!

HelixNotes uses Tauri. No Electron.

That means a smaller install and lower memory use with a native feel instead of a bundled browser running your app. Rust and system webviews do the heavy lifting instead of shipping an entire Chromium instance just to show a note.

Lighter footprint with the exact same functionality. That's why we chose Tauri.

The HelixNotes iOS app is almost ready to submit to the App Store. This post is just to show everyone the progress being made, and proof that we're making this a huge priority!

Did you know that you can use CTRL + P (CMD + P for Mac) to open the command panel? Apparently many users didn’t know this!

We get a lot of great feature requests here, and we're grateful for how much thought people put into them. But being upfront about what we're not building right now feels just as important as sharing what's coming.

This isn't a "no forever" list. It's where things stand today, based on what keeps HelixNotes true to its identity.

Sync service

HelixNotes is built around the idea that your notes live on your device, in a folder you control. This just isn’t something we’re interested in, and we believe it would completely go against what we’re trying to do here.

User accounts

Along the same lines: no server means no need for a login. Your vault is yours with no account required.

Real-time collaboration

This is a hard problem to do well and it usually needs a backend to coordinate everyone. That's a different app than the one we're building. HelixNotes is designed around one person working in their own local vault.

Built-in AI

We use AI extensively, but baking one into the app means either sending your notes to a third-party service or shipping a heavier app with a model bundled in. Both work against the lightweight, privacy-respecting experience we want HelixNotes to have. If you want AI features, you're free to pair HelixNotes with whatever external tool fits your workflow.

Plugins

We know this one gets requested a lot, and we understand why. But a plugin system is a big commitment and really opens the door to so many things we’re trying to avoid like: bloat, incompatibilities, malicious plugins, etc.

Google Play app

Distributing through Play means agreeing to Google's terms, tracking requirements, and review process, which doesn't sit well with an app built on user ownership and openness.

Flatpak

We're not ruling this out down the line, but right now we're concentrating on native packages first. Flatpak's sandboxing also adds some complexity for an app that needs straightforward access to your notes folder, so it needs more thought before we commit to it.

Spellcheck

It sounds simple, but adding it well means either pulling in a fairly heavy dependency or building something custom. It's on our radar, just not something we can promise soon.

Everyone, this sub is about a month old and WOW you all have really shown fantastic support for this app. What started out small quickly become something so much more.

From our team to yours, we want to say a huge THANK YOU for all the support, bug reports, and even the criticisms. I think many of you would agree that the future is bright for HelixNotes!

A local first note-taking application built with Svelte, Rust, and Tauri. The goal was to create an app with UpNote's clean editor and Obsidian's local files, but open source.

• Website: https://helixnotes.com
• Code: https://codeberg.org/ArkHost/HelixNotes
• r/HelixNotes

Feedback is greatly appreciated 🙂

Obsidian users: Did you know you can import your Obsidian vault into HelixNotes? Make a backup, and give it a try. You've got nothing to lose!

HelixNotes v1.3.3 is out! This update focus on Android performance and additional customization options.

• Custom theme builder with import/export to json for sharing
• Callouts
• Collapsable note info panel
• Android app performance upgrades
• And much more!

View the full changelog here: https://codeberg.org/ArkHost/HelixNotes/releases

HelixNotes v1.3.2 introduced customizable keyboard shortcuts! Rebind, reset, esc to cancel. The choice is now yours.

https://helixnotes.com

The Apple Silicon version of HelixNotes is now available for download! Check it out and let us know what you think!

https://codeberg.org/ArkHost/HelixNotes/releases

https://helixnotes.com