Quick LinksPodNotes Excalidraw Kanban Calendar Typewriter Scroll Commander Whisper
These are the must-have plugins you should download for the mobile version of Obsidian. Besides tweaking the interface and making Obsidian run more efficiently, they'll give you a richer set of note-taking tools.
1 PodNotes
The PodNotes plugin is fantastic if you want to do research by listening to a podcast, or if you generally prefer to learn through listening. As its name suggests, the plugin makes it easy to take notes while you listen to a podcast.
PodNotes lets you listen to your favorite show entirely inside the Obsidian mobile app. You can use the mini Podcast Player in the sidebar to play audio like you normally would in an app like Spotify.
Using the plugin, you can pull information into a note about the title of the show and episode you're listening to. You can also grab timestamps from the episode as you listen. Timestamps can link to the audio as well, so when you're looking back on your notes, simply click on the link to listen to the audio snippet again.
2 Excalidraw Close
Excalidraw is fantastic software for sketching, drawing, or using as a digital whiteboard. This plugin integrates Excalidraw into Obsidian, which is great if you're after a graphic note-taking tool or just want to doodle for fun.
On a typical phone, your screen space will be limited, so Excalidraw can be awkward to use. However, you might still find it useful for certain jobs like marking up an image, for example.
The real power is in the hands of iPad or Android tablet users, or if you have a larger phone with a stylus. With more screen real estate comes a bigger canvas to scribble notes, create illustrations, and sketch flow charts or diagrams. You can store these in your Obsidian vault and access them like any other notes.
3 Kanban
Kanban -- meaning signboard or billboard in Japanese -- is a visual way of managing your workflow. There's a bit more to it if you're new to the Kanban method but, essentially, the idea is to break a process down into its core stages and move a task from one stage to the next until it's complete.
Given that you're meant to line up cards in a visual way from left to right on the screen, I didn't think that it would adapt well to the mobile version of Obsidian. But the plugin's design makes it surprisingly easy to use on a phone.
For example, you can collapse each card into a narrow rectangle tile to see a clear overview of the entire workflow. You can also customize the width of each card in the settings menu so it fits the exact dimensions of your screen. Moving a task between lists is also intuitive: just press and hold the task to highlight it, then move it where you want.
4 Calendar Close
For anyone who takes daily notes, the Calendar plugin is essential. Once installed, it lets you view a calendar in the sidebar and create new notes by clicking on a given date.
The best part about using Obsidian on your phone is the ability to take notes anywhere. It's much easier to take daily notes when you can pull out your phone and jot down ideas wherever you are. If I'm having a morning coffee, waiting for the bus, or in bed at night, I can immediately record the ideas that pop into my head.
Make sure to set up syncing on your Obsidian account so you can access your notes from whichever device you use. You can pay for a syncing account with Obsidian or use Google Drive to sync Obsidian notes across your devices for free.
5 Typewriter Scroll
This plugin centers the current line of text in the middle of the screen like an old typewriter. It's simple, but a small tweak like this can do a lot to make your words flow easier and keep your attention in one place.
With the Typewriter plugin, my advice is to go to the settings and adjust the Center offset setting. This controls where the plugin focuses text on the screen. By default, it's in the center of your phone, which isn't always the ideal viewing spot. I like the text to focus in around the top third of my screen to give a bit of space for my keyboard, which takes up a fair amount of the bottom half.
While great for writing, I find it's best to switch this plugin off when you're editing or revising a note more freely. You can use the quick action in the command palette to switch the plugin on and off.
6 Commander Close
If you're a regular Obsidian user, you'll probably know about this popular plugin already. But if you're new to Obsidian on mobile, you should check it out on your phone too. The main reason you'll want Commander is to customize the look of your mobile toolbar.
The toolbar is where you access all the tools you need for smooth note-taking, including inserting images, links, code, headings, and lists. And that's not forgetting third-party plugins that can add additional functions.
Using the Commander plugin, you can adjust the size of the toolbar buttons, and split the toolbar into two or more rows, ensuring that it fits your screen size. You can also use Obsidian's built-in toolbar settings to remove buttons you never use, replacing them with ones that benefit your workflow the most. These two things combined will make a huge difference to note-taking on your phone.
7 Whisper
Whisper is the name of an impressive speech-to-text AI model by OpenAI, and what this plugin does is bring the AI model directly into Obsidian, so you can take notes using your voice. It also lets you upload an audio file and transcribe it straight into a note.
The only catch is that you'll need credit on your OpenAI account to use it. If you do a lot of transcribing or are simply sick of typing, it's worth experimenting with. You can try it out using the free tier of ChatGPT, which is powered by WhisperAI.
