Pensieve

Factsheet

Developer:
Window Seat Labs
Based in Portland, Oregon

Founding Date:
April 12, 2021

Website:
pensieve.io

Press Contact:
press@pensieve.io

Links:
Pensieve on the App Store
Redeem an Offer Code
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube
Instagram
Substack

Overview

Pensieve is a note-taking app that makes it super simple to capture ideas and put them in your email inbox. Instead of taking a note and forgetting about it, with Pensieve you can capture an idea and actually remember to act on it. Pensieve is the notes app you’ll actually use.

Details

The power of Pensieve is in its simplicity. When you first download Pensieve, you put in the destination email address and the app saves it, so you don’t have to enter it again. Then you jot a note or add a picture or a voice memo. Hit send, and off it goes to your email. The first line automatically becomes your email’s subject line, so you don’t even have to type one in.

Of course, there are a lot of ways to make a note on your phone. You probably use Apple Notes for a million different things, and you have many other apps capable of capturing thoughts. But here’s the problem: you have to remember you had that thought and then go looking for it.

The issue with those other note apps is once you jot the thought down, you might never think about it again. With Pensieve, that thought goes straight to your email and, because you check your email often and messages from Pensieve can be flagged as “important” or labeled via a filter, you definitely won’t miss it.

The key with Pensieve is to capture the thought in the moment, then put Pensieve away. After your note is in your inbox, you can do all of the organizing and following up later. The app doesn't want to distract you, interrupt you, or keep your attention. There are no ads, no notifications, and no attempts at hacking your attention.

Justifiably, Pensieve is popular with ADHD-brain folks, writers, creative types, and people with a lot going on who juggle multiple roles in their lives. The coffee shop manager with an online vintage side business. The software engineer with multiple consulting clients. The pastor. The AI developer. The graduate student. The lawyer. The office manager. All of these folks use Pensieve to capture their thoughts in the moment with minimal interruption, all throughout their day, and remember them later.

People use Pensieve at work, at home, when commuting, while shopping, and on vacation. One of the most popular uses of Pensieve is taking notes before bed so you won’t lie awake stressing about whether or not you’ll remember them tomorrow.

Pensieve is so fast and simple to use, it keeps you from believing the little voice that says “I’ll remember that later.” You won’t. So use Pensieve.

The app is free to use, subject to some limits. People who love Pensieve upgrade to the All Access subscription, which allows them to send unlimited emails for $3/month or $25/year (a 30% discount).

If you’re prone to jotting notes on your phone and then forgetting about them, you will find Pensieve to be the perfect solution.

History of Pensieve

Pensieve was created by Josh Beeler and began as a hobby project in 2013, back when Josh was a digital nomad. Josh built an app that he needed for himself and put it on the App Store so others could benefit. In the years since then he's been working on Pensieve as a side project, making it better with each release.

Like many people, Josh was laid off in 2020 when the COVID pandemic broke out. It was then that he decided to see if he could build a business and support himself by working full-time on the thing that he loved making: Pensieve. So he started a company, Window Seat Labs, and got to work.

About Josh Beeler

Josh is an independent software developer. Throughout his career he’s built video games, VR and mobile apps, and productivity tools. Some of the products he worked on include The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom (Xbox 360), The Unfinished Swan (PS3), Mindshow VR, and MovieBot.

When he’s not working on Pensieve, he likes to figure skate, canoe, and read. Josh is also an experienced brewer. He’s won awards as a homebrewer, worked in the craft beer industry in Oregon, and brewed collaboration beers in South America and Canada. Josh has lived all over the world, and he currently resides in Portland, Oregon.

About Window Seat Labs

Window Seat Labs is a small business and a humane tech company focused on building personal productivity and organization tools that encourage the responsible use of technology and mobile devices. We create software for digital nomads, working professionals, students, travelers, adventurers, and folks who live in motion.

Our first app — Pensieve for iOS — is the notes app you’ll actually use. Pensieve makes it fast and easy to email yourself. It’s perfect for sending important / random / distracting thoughts to your inbox so you can stay in the moment and act on them later.