Microsoft's ink-friendly Journal app now supports pen pressure and custom colors
By Sean Endicott published
The Journal app is an ink-first app for notes, and it just got better with its latest update.

What you need to know
- The Microsoft Garage Journal app recently received an update.
- The update brings pen pressure support, custom ink color support, and more new features.
- The update also brings several bug fixes and performance improvements.
Microsoft Garage released a new called Journal last month. It's an ink-first app for jotting down notes and other content with a stylus. It supports ink gestures, touch scrolling, and making a selection with a pen, which all allow you to quickly navigate the app with your stylus. Journal now has new features following an update, including custom ink support, pen pressure support, and the ability to easily insert images.
Microsoft breaks down what's new in a recent post (opens in new tab). Here's what's new for the Journal app:
- Print and Export You can now print and export your journal pages to a printer, a PDF, or to OneNote. From the page menu or the navigation panel you can select what to include
- Custom ink colors Tap the pen or pencil to reveal the new custom color picker you can choose
- Support for pen pressure From the Settings > Pen Settings menu you can now turn on pressure sensitivity for a more real-life pen and pencil feel. Requires a supported pen
- Insert Images You'll be able to easily insert images from the toolbar under the + icon. You can still copy and paste or drag and drop images manually as well
- Bug fixes and performance It wouldn't be a release without some behind the scenes user experience work. Journals should open more reliably, and general performance should feel better, too
You can grab the update now through the Microsoft Store.
Journal, a Microsoft Garage project
Journal is an ink-first app built for taking notes. It uses AI to improve input through Ink Gestures.
Sean Endicott is the news writer for Windows Central. If it runs Windows, is made by Microsoft, or has anything to do with either, he's on it. Sean's been with Windows Central since 2017 and is also our resident app expert. If you have a news tip or an app to review, hit him up at sean.endicott@futurenet.com.
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Still work or school account sign in. Not sure the point of that since it doesn't appear to sync across devices.
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Still a beta app.
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Sure, but what's the point of an account sign in, but to sync content?
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Man, I sure hope this isn't one of those apps they drop after a couple months. This is the best implementation of digital ink/touch I've found. Now that you can save a page to OneNote (haven't tried it yet),,.gets us one step closer to a replacement for paper and pen.
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