You can now mark up your Google Docs with handwritten notes on Android devices

Google Docs is getting an annotation feature that will let you mark up your documents just like you could with pen and paper. With today’s update, announced at MWC 2024, Google Docs users on Android devices can use a finger or stylus to write notes, highlight text, and circle words to their heart’s desire. Google says the feature will work on Android tablets and smartphones, so there’s real potential to give devices like foldables even more of a performance boost. It should also provide a smoother way to sign digital documents.

Android users will have access to multiple pen and highlighter colors with the new annotation tool for Google Docs, which is good news for anyone who likes to color-code their notes. If the popularity of digital notebooks like reMarkable tablets or Amazon’s Kindle Scribe has taught us anything, it’s that no matter how fast typing is, many people still prefer to write by hand when it’s an option. The only thing this update seems to be missing is the ability to convert handwriting to text, which would allow for more extensive typing tasks. Apple is a few steps ahead in this regard, offering the feature to Apple Pencil users in several of its own iPad productivity apps, such as Pages and Numbers.

Catch up on all the news from MWC 2024 right here!