Evernote and Pinterest just had a baby: Enter the new Springpad
Springpad has long been compared to Internet note-taking sensation Evernote, but starting today Springpad will likely be compared to another darling of the startup world, visually oriented social network Pinterest.
Context & Ripple Effects
Springpad is recasting its note-taking product around visual social discovery as Pinterest's reach grows; Pinterest had also just revamped its profile pages. Evernote, meanwhile, was extending its Android utility with dictation and widget updates.
The redesign puts Springpad between a productivity tool and a discovery network, a positioning that gives it a clearer point of comparison but also places it against two fast-moving product expectations.
First-order effects
- Springpad users get a note-taking service presented through a more visual, socially oriented experience, rather than a purely utility-focused workspace.
- Springpad must compete for attention against Evernote's expanding Android features and Pinterest's established social-discovery appeal.
Second-order effects
- Evernote and Pinterest face another product seeking to combine personal collection with visual browsing, raising the value of interface design and mobile features in their adjacent categories.
- Users evaluating tools for saving ideas or links gain a choice whose differentiation rests on blending organization with discovery, rather than on note capture alone.
Third-order effects
- If visual discovery becomes a standard layer in personal-information tools, the boundary between productivity software and social networks will narrow around collection, curation, and sharing.
The trend: Consumer software is converging on visual, socially informed interfaces as services compete to turn private collections into discovery experiences.