There’s no true alternative to Evernote …
I’m pretty sure that the Evernote replacement you are looking for is … Evernote.
I, too, have tried the divided route of iA Writer for text notes, Dropbox (or iCloud Drive) for document storage, Spotlight for document search, something else for reminders, etc. The choice — in some fashion — is between using disparate tools depending on the file type you want to work with or using the one product that isn’t quite as good but that can unify file types into a single “note.”
Right now I have chosen to live in Evernote. It’s a system that works well, though thoughts linger that it’s just a shell over what the operating system itself provides and that I shouldn’t be so invested in one software product. I’m comforted by how easy it is to export notes to HTML files.
UPDATE (3/30/2016): Andrew Henley has written a helpful piece on how to use Mac OS X in much the same way that people use Evernote. The drawback I see (and have experienced) is that the iCloud Drive app on iOS cannot do anywhere near what Finder / Spotlight can do on a Mac, whereas Evernote’s iOS app can do much of what Evernote’s Mac app can do.
There’s no true alternative to Evernote … was originally published in Compendium Miscellanea on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
