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Let me just say that the Remarkable also runs linux. Not only that, but I've been blown away by the ongoing results from the team at Remarkable. I only have t

Let me just say that the Remarkable also runs linux. Not only that, but I've been blown away by the ongoing results from the team at Remarkable. I only have the Remarkable 1 but they continue to ship updates for it, and these updates are often really substantive with sometimes profound new features. Their cloud service is free, no aggravating subscription stuff and even though they have the remarkable 2 now, they continue to kill it with the updates to improve my experience with the remarkable 1. They, as of right now, have my undying loyalty and appear to be a truly customer focused company. I'd love to buy their entire team a couple beers. Don't get me wrong, I love pine64 too, but they're way more oriented to us hacker types than ordinary people and I don't want to have to hack together a functioning device with everything I own, though I think they're doong good work none-the-less.

eloeffler 5y ago
And they give root access to the device along with GPL compliance statements, allowing for a flourishing developer community that creates tons of useful programs that can run on the embedded device. See for example https://github.com/reHackable/awesome-reMarkable https://github.com/reHackable/awesome-reMarkable for a list. There is also an opkg-based package manager and repo with many packages: https://toltec-dev.org/ https://toltec-dev.org/
- Buttons840 5y ago
  I'm scared by that link warning about how easy it is to brick your device. Should I be?
  - p_l 5y ago
    Remarkable 1 is recoverable without many tricks. Remarkable 2 requires a bit of parts and possibly soldering (but not required, just might make things easier if you don't have pogo pins with handles available). Both are fully recoverable unless you do something really impressive.
    - lovelyviking 5y ago
      >Both are fully recoverable unless you do something really impressive. really impressive like what?
      - p_l 5y ago
        Physically breaking the hardware through software, for example. I believe there's some fun possible in most embedded designs like the one used in RM1/RM2. Like manipulating power management circuitry, or maybe forcing overheat with disabled throttling, and the like.
    - codezero 5y ago
      I rooted my 2 and not my 1 without knowing the risk! Turned out fine but I wasn’t too adventurous.
  - eloeffler 5y ago
    Especially: Write down your root password and DO NOT factory reset the device if you want to go back to the original state. If you follow these steps and you know a bit about linux you'll be fine. Factory reset on the rM2 will mess with the community framebuffer service and reset your root password, effectively locking you out unless you go the fiddly way over the external port. The rM1 is very resilient as you can directly access the internal storage without special tools.
    - Buttons840 5y ago
      So they provide a factory reset feature, and what that feature does is brick your device? (Or nearly so.) Why do you say connecting over the external port is "finicky"?
      - kayodelycaon 5y ago
        The factory reset feature clears personal data off the device and resets the root password. So... it's not a factory reset.
      - eloeffler 5y ago
        I thought this means something else :D I wanted to say "fiddly", correcting it...
- cies 5y ago
  If this e-ink device is usable as a secondary display for my laptop, I'm in. I'd love to get work done in sunny locations, like gardens. But these LCD screens make me squint. e-ink would be THE solution to this, but the e-ink displays are too expensive, to well supported and not very big.
  - eloeffler 5y ago
    There is a community VNC client for it. If you're on Windows you'll need a HDMI dummy plug to simulate a second screen with the proper dimensions. But yes, it works as an external screen. Check out VNSee for this https://github.com/matteodelabre/vnsee https://github.com/matteodelabre/vnsee Maybe the rM1 might be the best choice for this. I'm not sure...
    - sharikone 5y ago
      In the rM1 you just write to a framebuffer device in /dev/fb0 to write on the screen. It's so easy you could probably write an application that does that, compile it for ARM, load it via scp and run it. All in 15 minutes even if you know nothing about the Remarkable itself. The rM2 is a lot trickier. A full reverse engineering of the drawing routines is still unfinished, as far as I know. So you either manipulate the memory of their closed source application or reuse big binary chunks of it. There are of course abstraction layers built over that by the community but as of today I believe it's much less refreshing than the rM1. The rM1 used the chip electrophoretic display controller directly , while the rM2 has a software controller which is closed source. Hence much of the complications
zaphar 5y ago
My Remarkable 2 is the best note taking, writing, sketching device I've ever owned. I appreciate the competition in the space and hope it drives more innovation but I don't want to hack on my Remarkable tablet. I just want to write and sketch on it for the moment.
- marcus_holmes 5y ago
  Totally agree. But I've got to the point where I'd like to start hacking on mine. I have a folder full of startup ideas. I really want a Lean Canvas page template to go with that (and be able to mix page types in a single notebook would be cool, but I'm not sure that's possible yet). I want to create a "meeting notes" type of notebook, that automatically adds today's date, and lives in a "meeting notes" folder organised by date. I'd love to be able to sketch in white on a black background. I keep meaning to get around to learning how to do this stuff... but life has been getting in the way. Doesn't mean I don't want to ;)
  - kayodelycaon 5y ago
    Not sure if this is stock or provided by https://github.com/ddvk/remarkable-hacks https://github.com/ddvk/remarkable-hacks but I can change the template per page.
    - zaphar 5y ago
      That is stock. It's in the page menu and I don't have any hacks installed.
      - marcus_holmes 5y ago
        cool :) thanks :)
salamandersauce 5y ago
Kobo and Kindle both run Linux too. Kobo still updates every single model they've released except for the first two non-touch models and the 5" mini stretching back a decade. And Amazon is pretty good with updates too. Kobo is pretty similarly hackable to the Remarkables but they are not nearly as open and free as the Pine stuff. I take a look at what remarkable has updated, and they just still haven't gotten ePub support anywhere close to where it should be. I belive it technically converts ePubs to PDF and displays that?? With large books taking minutes to change font sizes. That to me has completely turned me off their devices. Writing may be better but reading is IMO equally important for devices like these.
- someperson 5y ago
  > Kobo still updates every single model they've released except for the first two non-touch models and the 5" mini stretching back a decade. Wow you're right (at least until this year?): https://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/Kobo_Firmware_Releases https://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/Kobo_Firmware_Releases The Mk3 is the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kobo_Touch https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kobo_Touch released 10 years ago.
- bkallus 5y ago
  I have an original Kobo WiFi (no touch) and the internal storage is a microSD card. You can literally just take it apart, remove the SD and stick new programs on it, start an SSH server, etc. I also have the non-WiFi version, and it has eMMC soldered on, so it's more of a pain. There's an exposed UART on the board though, so getting a shell is pretty easy there too.
- dreamer7 5y ago
  I'm not sure I agree about Amazon being good with updates. They removed the ability to change orientation for no good reason!
Youden 5y ago
I like the idea of Remarkable but the thing that bothers me a lot is that it doesn't have a backlight. I'd really like to use it to read at night and no backlight kinda kills that. Do you not use it at night or do you use some other solution for nighttime lighting (like bright ceiling lights)?
- mbreese 5y ago
  What about a normal book light that you’d use with a traditional book? I find that even the Kindle light can be uncomfortable when in complete darkness, so I try to always keep a little bit of ambient light, which is usually enough to read by.
  - AlanYx 5y ago
    I use a book light with my Remarkable. It works well, but I'd still prefer an integrated frontlight, as long as it didn't affect the writing experience.
    - mbreese 5y ago
      Ah yes... that's probably why we won't see one then. The frontlight adds some space between the surface and the panel. That would probably be distracting for writing.
- horsawlarway 5y ago
  I have both the Kindle Oasis and a Remarkable 2. If the use case is just reading at night, a Kindle with a backlight is probably a better bet. That said - I like the Remarkable a lot more, and tend to carry it with me more. The kindle has essentially just become my "vacation" reading device since I stopped taking the train for work. It definitely doesn't need bright lights to read (well, depending on your eyesight). If I want to read/write before bed, I'll keep my side table light on at 25%, and it works fine. If my wife is still watching a show, the tv alone is bright enough I can generally read/write fine.
- marcus_holmes 5y ago
marvindanig 5y ago
How is the web browser experience on the ReMarkable? It kinda sucks on the Kindle and forces me to consider an iPad to make up for open access.
- pxhb 5y ago
  No web browser on the remarkable (at least stock). Stock it is literally just a note taking device, which I personally find appealing.
  - jethro_tell 5y ago
    I also like the large sized reader. It's not something I need anyone but when you find a technical manual or text book as a pdf only the remarkable is a pretty good reader. I do like the Kobo for most of my reading but it's nice not for the oddly shaped big stuff.
- ploek 5y ago
  There is no web browser on the ReMarkable. On purpose. Their mentality is that the device should be a distraction-free note-taking, idea-sketching tool. source: https://remarkable.com/blog/inside-remarkable-2-chapter-2-the-user-experience/ https://remarkable.com/blog/inside-remarkable-2-chapter-2-th...
- horsawlarway 5y ago
  I would say if you want a web browser, it's probably not the right device for your use case. I have a Remarkable 2, and I really enjoy it, but it's more like an upgraded replacement for the legal pad/notebook I would carry around at work. It does notes and sketches really well. But there's no browser by default on the device. I appreciate it, since it keeps me focused on what I'm doing without distractions (like HN :D ).
- e12e 5y ago
  There's no web browser, but in theory there's a "send to remarkable" plug-in for other browsers (basically print to pdf;sync to remarkable). It's not really usable, for various reasons imnho.
AshamedCaptain 5y ago
Do note that Remarkable is not as rosy as it looks like. Due to the fact that most of the builtin software is proprietary, actually modifying it to run anything other than the stock features requires binary monkey patching the main executable. It's as fragile as it sounds. If they were to add a simple plugin system, that would take them 0 effort with Qml, it would be significantly better.
- eloeffler 5y ago
  Actually, it's better than you describe it, I think. Most components are FOSS. The default GUI and the framebuffer driver are proprietary closed source. However, the framebuffer driver has been extracted from the GUI service by github user ddvk and faciliates the development of independent interfaces (look for "launchers") that can launch further independent programs, e.g. harmony https://rmkit.dev/apps/harmony https://rmkit.dev/apps/harmony There is also an opkg-based package manager and repo with many packages: https://toltec-dev.org/ https://toltec-dev.org/ The binary patching that you talk about is only one mod that can be installed to improve the functionality of the original GUI. It is true that it would be awesome if that had plugin support, as you stated, though.
  - AshamedCaptain 5y ago
    > However, the framebuffer driver has been extracted from the GUI service Extracted? Last time I look at it, they were inserting a patch in the main (and only) binary of the proprietary GUI via LD_PRELOAD, and then all other programs which wanted to draw _anything_ to the screen would basically _directly alter the memory_ of the proprietary GUI binary in order to modify its internal framebuffer. You have to do that whether you want to integrate with the main GUI or not -- since you need this hack to draw anything to the screen. Literally every other Remarkable update so far has killed all of this. > Most components are FOSS. The usual thing: most 3rd party components which they are forced to open anyway are FOSS. Anything that may even be remotely interesting is NOT FOSS. I do not understand why people try to claim this as a positive, cause it isn't.
    - 5y ago
ocdtrekkie 5y ago
I got my wife a Remarkable 2, and for as many Pine devices I own, I think she'd make fun of me for struggling with a PineNote. I'm glad there's more open source development going on in the space though.

eloeffler 5y ago

And they give root access to the device along with GPL compliance statements, allowing for a flourishing developer community that creates tons of useful programs that can run on the embedded device. See for example https://github.com/reHackable/awesome-reMarkable https://github.com/reHackable/awesome-reMarkable for a list. There is also an opkg-based package manager and repo with many packages: https://toltec-dev.org/ https://toltec-dev.org/

Buttons840 5y ago
I'm scared by that link warning about how easy it is to brick your device. Should I be?
- p_l 5y ago
  Remarkable 1 is recoverable without many tricks. Remarkable 2 requires a bit of parts and possibly soldering (but not required, just might make things easier if you don't have pogo pins with handles available). Both are fully recoverable unless you do something really impressive.
  - lovelyviking 5y ago
    >Both are fully recoverable unless you do something really impressive. really impressive like what?
    - p_l 5y ago
      Physically breaking the hardware through software, for example. I believe there's some fun possible in most embedded designs like the one used in RM1/RM2. Like manipulating power management circuitry, or maybe forcing overheat with disabled throttling, and the like.
  - codezero 5y ago
    I rooted my 2 and not my 1 without knowing the risk! Turned out fine but I wasn’t too adventurous.
- eloeffler 5y ago
  Especially: Write down your root password and DO NOT factory reset the device if you want to go back to the original state. If you follow these steps and you know a bit about linux you'll be fine. Factory reset on the rM2 will mess with the community framebuffer service and reset your root password, effectively locking you out unless you go the fiddly way over the external port. The rM1 is very resilient as you can directly access the internal storage without special tools.
  - Buttons840 5y ago
    So they provide a factory reset feature, and what that feature does is brick your device? (Or nearly so.) Why do you say connecting over the external port is "finicky"?
    - kayodelycaon 5y ago
      The factory reset feature clears personal data off the device and resets the root password. So... it's not a factory reset.
    - eloeffler 5y ago
      I thought this means something else :D I wanted to say "fiddly", correcting it...
cies 5y ago
If this e-ink device is usable as a secondary display for my laptop, I'm in. I'd love to get work done in sunny locations, like gardens. But these LCD screens make me squint. e-ink would be THE solution to this, but the e-ink displays are too expensive, to well supported and not very big.
- eloeffler 5y ago
  There is a community VNC client for it. If you're on Windows you'll need a HDMI dummy plug to simulate a second screen with the proper dimensions. But yes, it works as an external screen. Check out VNSee for this https://github.com/matteodelabre/vnsee https://github.com/matteodelabre/vnsee Maybe the rM1 might be the best choice for this. I'm not sure...
  - sharikone 5y ago
    In the rM1 you just write to a framebuffer device in /dev/fb0 to write on the screen. It's so easy you could probably write an application that does that, compile it for ARM, load it via scp and run it. All in 15 minutes even if you know nothing about the Remarkable itself. The rM2 is a lot trickier. A full reverse engineering of the drawing routines is still unfinished, as far as I know. So you either manipulate the memory of their closed source application or reuse big binary chunks of it. There are of course abstraction layers built over that by the community but as of today I believe it's much less refreshing than the rM1. The rM1 used the chip electrophoretic display controller directly , while the rM2 has a software controller which is closed source. Hence much of the complications

zaphar 5y ago

My Remarkable 2 is the best note taking, writing, sketching device I've ever owned. I appreciate the competition in the space and hope it drives more innovation but I don't want to hack on my Remarkable tablet. I just want to write and sketch on it for the moment.

marcus_holmes 5y ago
Totally agree. But I've got to the point where I'd like to start hacking on mine. I have a folder full of startup ideas. I really want a Lean Canvas page template to go with that (and be able to mix page types in a single notebook would be cool, but I'm not sure that's possible yet). I want to create a "meeting notes" type of notebook, that automatically adds today's date, and lives in a "meeting notes" folder organised by date. I'd love to be able to sketch in white on a black background. I keep meaning to get around to learning how to do this stuff... but life has been getting in the way. Doesn't mean I don't want to ;)
- kayodelycaon 5y ago
  Not sure if this is stock or provided by https://github.com/ddvk/remarkable-hacks https://github.com/ddvk/remarkable-hacks but I can change the template per page.
  - zaphar 5y ago
    That is stock. It's in the page menu and I don't have any hacks installed.
    - marcus_holmes 5y ago
      cool :) thanks :)

salamandersauce 5y ago

Kobo and Kindle both run Linux too. Kobo still updates every single model they've released except for the first two non-touch models and the 5" mini stretching back a decade. And Amazon is pretty good with updates too. Kobo is pretty similarly hackable to the Remarkables but they are not nearly as open and free as the Pine stuff. I take a look at what remarkable has updated, and they just still haven't gotten ePub support anywhere close to where it should be. I belive it technically converts ePubs to PDF and displays that?? With large books taking minutes to change font sizes. That to me has completely turned me off their devices. Writing may be better but reading is IMO equally important for devices like these.

someperson 5y ago
> Kobo still updates every single model they've released except for the first two non-touch models and the 5" mini stretching back a decade. Wow you're right (at least until this year?): https://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/Kobo_Firmware_Releases https://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/Kobo_Firmware_Releases The Mk3 is the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kobo_Touch https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kobo_Touch released 10 years ago.
bkallus 5y ago
I have an original Kobo WiFi (no touch) and the internal storage is a microSD card. You can literally just take it apart, remove the SD and stick new programs on it, start an SSH server, etc. I also have the non-WiFi version, and it has eMMC soldered on, so it's more of a pain. There's an exposed UART on the board though, so getting a shell is pretty easy there too.
dreamer7 5y ago
I'm not sure I agree about Amazon being good with updates. They removed the ability to change orientation for no good reason!

Youden 5y ago

I like the idea of Remarkable but the thing that bothers me a lot is that it doesn't have a backlight. I'd really like to use it to read at night and no backlight kinda kills that. Do you not use it at night or do you use some other solution for nighttime lighting (like bright ceiling lights)?

mbreese 5y ago
What about a normal book light that you’d use with a traditional book? I find that even the Kindle light can be uncomfortable when in complete darkness, so I try to always keep a little bit of ambient light, which is usually enough to read by.
- AlanYx 5y ago
  I use a book light with my Remarkable. It works well, but I'd still prefer an integrated frontlight, as long as it didn't affect the writing experience.
  - mbreese 5y ago
    Ah yes... that's probably why we won't see one then. The frontlight adds some space between the surface and the panel. That would probably be distracting for writing.
horsawlarway 5y ago
I have both the Kindle Oasis and a Remarkable 2. If the use case is just reading at night, a Kindle with a backlight is probably a better bet. That said - I like the Remarkable a lot more, and tend to carry it with me more. The kindle has essentially just become my "vacation" reading device since I stopped taking the train for work. It definitely doesn't need bright lights to read (well, depending on your eyesight). If I want to read/write before bed, I'll keep my side table light on at 25%, and it works fine. If my wife is still watching a show, the tv alone is bright enough I can generally read/write fine.
marcus_holmes 5y ago

marvindanig 5y ago

How is the web browser experience on the ReMarkable? It kinda sucks on the Kindle and forces me to consider an iPad to make up for open access.

pxhb 5y ago
No web browser on the remarkable (at least stock). Stock it is literally just a note taking device, which I personally find appealing.
- jethro_tell 5y ago
  I also like the large sized reader. It's not something I need anyone but when you find a technical manual or text book as a pdf only the remarkable is a pretty good reader. I do like the Kobo for most of my reading but it's nice not for the oddly shaped big stuff.
ploek 5y ago
There is no web browser on the ReMarkable. On purpose. Their mentality is that the device should be a distraction-free note-taking, idea-sketching tool. source: https://remarkable.com/blog/inside-remarkable-2-chapter-2-the-user-experience/ https://remarkable.com/blog/inside-remarkable-2-chapter-2-th...
horsawlarway 5y ago
I would say if you want a web browser, it's probably not the right device for your use case. I have a Remarkable 2, and I really enjoy it, but it's more like an upgraded replacement for the legal pad/notebook I would carry around at work. It does notes and sketches really well. But there's no browser by default on the device. I appreciate it, since it keeps me focused on what I'm doing without distractions (like HN :D ).
e12e 5y ago
There's no web browser, but in theory there's a "send to remarkable" plug-in for other browsers (basically print to pdf;sync to remarkable). It's not really usable, for various reasons imnho.

AshamedCaptain 5y ago

Do note that Remarkable is not as rosy as it looks like. Due to the fact that most of the builtin software is proprietary, actually modifying it to run anything other than the stock features requires binary monkey patching the main executable. It's as fragile as it sounds. If they were to add a simple plugin system, that would take them 0 effort with Qml, it would be significantly better.

eloeffler 5y ago
Actually, it's better than you describe it, I think. Most components are FOSS. The default GUI and the framebuffer driver are proprietary closed source. However, the framebuffer driver has been extracted from the GUI service by github user ddvk and faciliates the development of independent interfaces (look for "launchers") that can launch further independent programs, e.g. harmony https://rmkit.dev/apps/harmony https://rmkit.dev/apps/harmony There is also an opkg-based package manager and repo with many packages: https://toltec-dev.org/ https://toltec-dev.org/ The binary patching that you talk about is only one mod that can be installed to improve the functionality of the original GUI. It is true that it would be awesome if that had plugin support, as you stated, though.
- AshamedCaptain 5y ago
  > However, the framebuffer driver has been extracted from the GUI service Extracted? Last time I look at it, they were inserting a patch in the main (and only) binary of the proprietary GUI via LD_PRELOAD, and then all other programs which wanted to draw _anything_ to the screen would basically _directly alter the memory_ of the proprietary GUI binary in order to modify its internal framebuffer. You have to do that whether you want to integrate with the main GUI or not -- since you need this hack to draw anything to the screen. Literally every other Remarkable update so far has killed all of this. > Most components are FOSS. The usual thing: most 3rd party components which they are forced to open anyway are FOSS. Anything that may even be remotely interesting is NOT FOSS. I do not understand why people try to claim this as a positive, cause it isn't.
  - 5y ago

ocdtrekkie 5y ago

I got my wife a Remarkable 2, and for as many Pine devices I own, I think she'd make fun of me for struggling with a PineNote. I'm glad there's more open source development going on in the space though.