Your unfinished memo stays on the device.
Whatever you're typing is saved automatically when you pause. A call comes in, you close the app, it crashes — reopen it and you pick up from the last save. Drafts are encrypted on your device with AES-GCM and cleared the moment you send. You never have to think about "saving."
Draft auto-save keeps your in-progress memo on the device automatically. There is no save button — it saves automatically when you pause typing, and after an app quit or crash you resume from the last save. Drafts are stored on your iPhone, encrypted with AES-GCM, and discarded the instant you send.
Sound familiar?
The most frustrating thing about a memo app is losing what you were writing. You tapped a notification mid-sentence, the battery died, iOS killed the app in the background — that "wait, what was I writing?" moment is over.
How it works — three safety nets
- Auto-saves when you pause
About 0.4 seconds after you stop typing, your draft is saved automatically. The interval accounts for IME composition (e.g., Japanese input), and there is nothing to tap to save. - A final save right before the app closes
When the app moves to the background — going home, switching apps — it saves once more. So if the OS later terminates the app in the background, the content up to that point is kept. - Restores on launch, only when empty
The next time you open the app, your draft is restored automatically if the input is empty. If you've already started typing, it won't overwrite you. And the moment you send, the draft is discarded, so you start fresh next time.
Privacy & security
Drafts live on your iPhone — the app never sends them to the cloud or our servers. They're encrypted with AES-GCM, the key is held in Apple Keychain, and file protection means the data is readable only after the device is first unlocked. An iPhone backup (such as iCloud Backup) may include the draft, still encrypted, but the key does not move to another device through a backup, so the draft cannot be read on another device. This follows the same privacy-first design as the offline Outbox queue and send history.
Try it yourself
- On the memo screen, type a few characters (don't send yet).
- Close the app with the home gesture, or switch to another app.
- Open Simple Memo again — your unfinished text is still there.
- Tap Send, and the draft is cleared; next time you start from a blank screen.
FAQ
Where is the save button for drafts?
There isn't one — saving is automatic. Your draft is saved automatically when you pause typing, so there's nothing to tap. Close the app and your in-progress text is still there next time.
If the app crashes, do I lose my unfinished memo?
Your text is saved on-device about 0.4 seconds after you stop typing, and once more when the app goes to the background. After a crash or OS termination, you resume from the last save on the next launch (the last few characters typed just before a crash may not be kept).
Where are drafts stored? Are they sent to the cloud?
Drafts are stored on your iPhone, encrypted with AES-GCM. The app never sends them to the cloud or our servers (an iPhone backup may include them, still encrypted, but the key does not move to another device through a backup, so they cannot be read on another device). The encryption key is managed in Apple Keychain.
When does it restore, and could it overwrite what I typed?
Restore happens on app launch, and only when the input field is empty — so if you've already started writing, it won't overwrite you.
Does the draft stay after I send?
No. Sending a memo discards the draft immediately, so you start from a blank screen next time.
Does auto-save slow the app down?
It is designed not to. Saving runs on a separate background path; launching, typing and sending do not write the file themselves (the write happens about 0.4 seconds after you stop typing).
