Review: Penultimate iPad app

Penultimate is a fairly simple app that lets users draw using their iPads. The app gives users a variety of colours to choose from, three different tip sizes and a range of added features.

It's a nifty app for entertaining children in the absence of pen and paper. Users can also save their drawings and share them via e-mail, and can also use this app to personalise photos. The app is also great for teachers who make their own worksheets. Primary school teachers will be especially pleased with the ability to design worksheets on the fly without wasting paper. Penultimate's features will help teachers design fun worksheets, which they can e-mail or print directly from the app.

The app features a how-to guide in the form of an interactive notebook. Users can page through the notebook for step-by-step instructions on how to use the app's features, which include an eraser, undo and redo tools, as well as the ability to cut, copy and paste. These tools appear as easily recognisable icons on the top and bottom of the screen.

Navigating within the app is pretty simple. Users tap on a notebook to open it, while tapping in the bottom-right corner turns the page, and tapping in the bottom-left corner takes the user one page back. Tapping the icon in the top-right corner brings up all the pages of the notebook, so users can navigate to a desired page by simply tapping it. Users can also rotate the screen if they want to switch from portrait to landscape mode.

The eraser lets users wipe out any slip-ups, but unfortunately, it does not have the ability to erase only one colour (some older users may have dabbled with Paint in their youth and might miss this feature, and tech-savvy youngsters will probably expect this feature, too). There is also an undo functionality that lets users wipe out their most recent drawing or writing steps, and there is an 'X' icon at the bottom of the screen that users can tap to delete an entire page.

The cut-and-paste tool is one of app's best features as it lets users duplicate images. This is helpful for those who want to draw recurring patterns. It would have been even better if users could invert images, as they would then be able to make perfectly symmetrical images - great for drawing butterflies. Unfortunately, the designers overlooked this functionality, too.

I think my favourite feature was the choice of different paper styles, which include graph, lined and plain. I am sure this will be a favourite with teachers, too. Sneaky users can also use the graph paper to help them draw great illustrations and then flip back to plain paper, and no one will be any wiser. Users can buy more paper options from an online store from within the app.

Penultimate's integration with the iPad's camera is a nice addition as it lets users add photos to their drawings. Users can also insert photos, add handwritten captions to them, and then e-mail them to friends. This functionality also allows users to make digital scrapbooks from their photos. These can also be shared via e-mail.

This is a great app for designers, who can take images of projects, annotate them, and then e-mail the page to colleagues or clients. The tool can also be used to map home improvements.

Penultimate also has Dropbox integration, making it that much easier to share work. This is also a great feature for people using the notebook for collaborative projects.

Unfortunately, the app does not have a virtual keyboard, which would have been a nice feature, allowing users to type and draw within the same app.

Penultimate is easy to use and is a great app for people who like to scribble, but don't want to waste paper. The ability to save and share notebooks or pages within the app makes it extra useful. I would recommend this app to teachers, as it lets them design worksheets while on the go.