Huawei MatePad Paper – eInk Tablet

https://consumer.huawei.com/en/tablets/matepad-paper/

by gadders • 4 years ago

287 304 4 years ago

consumer.huawei.com

rich_sasha2• 4 years ago

Phenomenal news.

I’m hoping competition drives prices down. Remarkable 2 looks neat but so expensive. Now there’s choice.

ChuckNorris897• 4 years ago

Most of the expense on these e-ink tablets comes from the huge cost of that screen, so unless Huawei is willing to subsidize this product and monetize your private data instead, I doubt this will be significantly cheaper than the competition.

Regardless of price though, I'm not willing to out my private data on Huawei devices.

CommanderData• 4 years ago

Are there no other companies apart from e-ink?

2Gkashmiri2• 4 years ago

not to sound cynical but you are willing to draw the line with an american company, say google but not an openly chinese company like huawei. cool.

what about all the chinese people then? why would they want to use a google device over a huawei device?

shouldnt the discussion be about no company being able to harvest data in the first place, then we wouldnt be having this discussion about nationalities of the overlords

ericcholis• 4 years ago

Supernote seems to be a popular alternative.

Buxato2• 4 years ago

I didn't knew that one, thanks!

Buxato2• 4 years ago

Soon: https://www.pine64.org/pinenote/

Also I want to recommend this one: Onyx Boox Nova3 Not so wallet gardened, and with a modern Android (so you could use google maps, openstreet maps or whatever among many other things)

squarefoot• 4 years ago

Soon: https://www.pine64.org/pinenote/

Eagerly waiting for it to become stable enough, and possibly the announcement of a bigger screen version. I'm not a mole, although I wear glasses, but books with diagrams and schematics need bigger screens not to be forced to zoom back and forth. I would also like a cheaper and bigger reader-only version, that is with no hardware/software to take notes, reduced eMMC storage in favor of external uSD cards, and good network integration supporting both NFS and CIFS. It would be nice for users who either bring their books on a uSD card, or would use the reader in a lab where most documentation files are already shared via local WiFi network.

rich_sasha2• 4 years ago

I’d be keen, except I have no time to tinker. As far as I can tell, PinePhones are still very much DIY, might work etc.

aidenn0• 4 years ago

As soon as that is able to reliably show PDFs and ePUBs with decent battery life, I'll probably get one. My phone is too small for some reading content, and the remarkable tablets lack a frontlight.

pedalpete• 4 years ago

I hadn't see this. I've got a Boox Nova3, and though I like it in theory, the UX isn't great. That's the reason I'd consider the Huawei.

But also, how long until Amazon makes a kindle that lets me take notes both in the book I'm reading, but also as just a blank notebook....please please...

goosedragons7• 4 years ago

There's already been choice in the 10.3" eInk note pad segment, Kobo Elipsa, Fujitsu Quaderno, Boox Note and Note Air, Likebook P10W, Supernote A5X, etc. It's just such a niche thing combined with most of the devices being Asian focused and remarkable heavy online marketing that makes them seem like the only option.

hdjjhhvvhga2• 4 years ago

They are still relatively expensive in relation to kindles. I really hope the prices get below $200 one day.

ksec• 4 years ago

Remarkable 2 looks neat but so expensive. Now there’s choice.

R2 is $399, judging from the EUR retail price of €499 inc. VAT this will likely retail at $499 in US.

It is not cheaper than R2.

chrismorgan2• 4 years ago

The prices reMarkable advertise are deceptive to the point where I reckon they’re probably illegal under at least Australian advertising law: that price doesn’t include a marker, which is almost essential to the deliberately expressed purpose of the device; so add on another 20%. Most people will also want some kind of cover, which is another 20% for the cheapest reMarkable sells.

You’ve got to be careful about this when comparing prices of different products, because they include different things. It sounds like Huawei’s will include a stylus and cover for that price, which does make it a little cheaper than reMarkable’s equivalent bundle.

d4rkp4ttern• 4 years ago

It all comes down to the paper like writing feel + latency. Several contenders have been compared to RM2, but RM2 has consistently won out. Curious how this one does.

Loic4• 4 years ago

The A5X from Supernote is now to the point that I personally have the feeling it writes as fast as paper[0].

[0] https://old.reddit.com/r/Supernote/comments/rkw00t/a5x_chauv...

lhl2• 4 years ago

I've been using a Onyx Boox Note 3 for a couple years now (I previously had a Remarkable 1 but it didn't stick for me) - it has Android 10 (w/ Google Play support) and even an SDK for responsive writing for 3rd party apps. It's been great for taking notes, and adequate for reading books and papers (although even a single color for highlighting would be a huge improvement).

Note, that Onyx is notorious for violating the GPL (it doesn't release kernel sources), while reMarkable is not only compliant, but much more hacker friendly in general: https://github.com/reHackable/awesome-reMarkable

But there are also other companies/products Boyue Likebook, Ratta Supernote, Quirklogic Papyr, Fujitsu Quaderno that compete in the e-ink notepad space as well. I'm keeping an eye on the Bigme Carve Color personally, which basically has all the hardware specs you'd want and color (Kaleido 2) to boot: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ydo5FtSt_qQ

For those looking at color, it might be worth waiting a few months to see if 1) if the Reinkstone R1 is actually vaporware or not (it has an alternative DES that looks like it provides better looking color, but is being developed by a questionable Chinese company that's been best by delays) and if eInk's Kaleido 3 is a significant improvement.

For those interested in the relatively niche world of e-ink devices, I highly recommend MyDeepGuide as a good place to start: https://www.youtube.com/c/MyDeepGuide/videos

DenisM• 4 years ago

Which one has the best DPI?

chrisweekly2• 4 years ago

Choice is good! But while ofc YMMV, IME the ReMarkable2 is priced very reasonably; it immediately became part of my daily workflow and has had big ROI for me.

morsch• 4 years ago

RRP €499 (around $558) according to https://www.theverge.com/2022/2/28/22954498/huawei-matepad-p...

DocTomoe• 4 years ago

Hm, is that really a competitive price these days? That's more than 130 Euros more than an entry-level iPad... which has a long and good track record.

can16358p• 4 years ago

It's not the same thing. I think the target use cases are different. The e-ink and pen input combination is really trying to create a paper-like experience (which's great for reading and taking notes).

On the other hand iPad is more general-purpose powerhouse for pretty much anything, but if I'm between this and iPad for reading some books I'd prefer this. And I use/love an iPad Pro+Apple Pencil. Still would consider this for my long book/blog/paper reads.

mellosouls• 4 years ago

The Matepad seems expensive though is comparable to other large eInk readers, but the iPad certainly doesn't have a track record as a dedicated (eInk) e-reader. Two very different things here.

rjsw• 4 years ago

Similar price and specs to the PineNote.

dspillett2• 4 years ago

The iPad probably moves a lot more units though due to more general appeal. There are economies of scale that e-ink devices don't currently benefit from.

Also if you try buy an e-ink screen as a part for a project you'll see a difference in price, which will no doubt be a factor too (though the difference you or I pay for a single unit might not be entire indicative of what is paid for bulk/regular orders by manufacturers).

peoplefromibiza4• 4 years ago

iPads are not e-ink devices

which make them worse in almost every way to do the things an e-ink device is built for.

dotancohen3• 4 years ago

As a software developer, I'm doing all I can to reduce my "screen time". I have a Barnes & Noble Nook and I've noticed that reading on the E-Ink nook is not screen time in the sense that it does not negatively affect my eye comfort. After looking at two 24" LCD monitors all day, with breaks to look at a 6" LCD telephone screen, the eyes do not want any more flashlights pointed at them. But the Nook (and other E-Ink devices) is not a flashlight and does not cause eye strain so far as I can tell.

NiceWayToDoIT• 4 years ago

... and probably £499 in UK which translates to $670. Does it worth it?

ernesth• 4 years ago

So it is far more expensive than the similar bookeen notéa and kobo elipsa which cost 400€.

system22• 4 years ago

I don't believe the material cost is even $50. It is niche and not as demanded as tablets. It is such a shame these things are not mainstream because of the price.

azinman22• 4 years ago

eInk displays aren’t cheap, then add in the pencil layer, cpu, etc

TekMol• 4 years ago

Will it have a browser?

It would be great for reading HN, coding, writing if I could use it with a browser.

I do all these in the browser and I only need black and white and no fancy tools. So even if the browser is much slower than on a desktop, it would still be great.

martin_a3• 4 years ago

People usually recommend the "Boox" devices for that.

As they are running on Android you can therefore, after activating it, access the Play Store to get a browser running...

Maybe that's the way to go.

goosedragons7• 4 years ago

You don't even need to activate the Play Store. They include a browser out of the box.

tluyben22• 4 years ago

Second the Boox; unfortunately there are gpl violations which is a shame, but I got an A4 sized one before I knew that and I use Pocket to read online stuff offline and use the built in reader to read books and work on papers (the dual note/read view is lovely).

schwartzworld• 4 years ago

You can download einkbro which has optimizations for eink screens.

astkaasa• 4 years ago

try einkbro

pastrami_panda2• 4 years ago

With all the events happening right now I find it really hard to justify buying products made in China/Russia/Belarus.

This product looks great, but I'll never have a clean conscious knowing my money is by extension financing terrorists.

sofixa2• 4 years ago

Why are you lumping China with the actual invaders? There's the Taiwan mess, and China don't participate in the sanctions regime, but it's not the same thing as actively invading. ( For the record, i think that sanctioning Russia is the morally correct thing to do)

pastrami_panda2• 4 years ago

It's simply because it's way overdue. China does countless things I can't support and for me this was the stick that broke the camel's back.

dspillett2• 4 years ago

While not on top of the news cycle, the continuing un-freeing of Hong Kong, the treatment of the Uyghur population, and likely a number of other things, qualify for pastrami_pasta's “happening right now” description.

intricatedetail2• 4 years ago

They are committing genocide, run concentration camps and forced labour. They actively threat Taiwan. That's more than enough to justify avoiding them.

GiorgioG• 4 years ago

China could easily tell Russia to knock it off.

kalleboo• 4 years ago

Hong Kong

throwaway4good• 4 years ago

It seems like some people really wanted a war with China, and are very upset that they got a war with Russia instead.

philliphaydon3• 4 years ago

China is currently having about 18 border disputes. Amongst all the non land grabbing stuff they are doing.

spacehunt3• 4 years ago

China refuses to condemn Russia and is towing their "peacekeeping" "denazification" line.

WaxedChewbacca• 4 years ago

I think you have a good notion about not buying Chinese stuff, but that reason doesn't make much sense to me. I've heard people say that the US might have caused the deaths of half a million children in the aftermath of the Iraq invasion; do you buy anything from the US?

CyanBird3• 4 years ago

Nonono, you see these are the good guys, they had good intentions

They had good intentions supporting the invasion of Venezuela, or doing/supporting a coup in Brazil and Bolivia

They always have good intentions so kind

It is just odd why a place with such good intentions would not encourage Ukraine to sign the Minsk 2 agreements, but it was probably just an accident, all bad things such as these are always just accidents, yes, yes, accidents

(apologies for polluting HN like so, but the levels of apologia that we have seen on the last few days and the figureheads that have shown themselves back on the public eye is just vomit inducing)

sschueller2• 4 years ago

And even though most Americans had nothing to do with it the ones that did are still walking free and will never face the ICC. [1]

All I can hope for is that after what is happening now that Russia will face the ICC and the western countries that have committed crimes will also face justice.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Service-Members%27_Pr...

EDIT: If you are going to down vote me, please explain your position. I don't see how anyone can disagree with war crimes being prosecuted.

Jtype2• 4 years ago

"heard people say", "might have caused"

Good thing you're going with the science on this one, or you wouldn't be able to buy anything from anywhere.

SheinhardtWigCo• 4 years ago

Worse still, Huawei is actively participating in the Uyghur genocide.

Leaked documents link Huawei to China’s domestic spying in Xinjiang: https://www.theverge.com/2021/12/14/22834860/huawei-leaked-d...

Huawei patent mentions use of Uighur-spotting tech: https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-55634388

IYasha2• 4 years ago

Finally someone pointed to this, thanks! As soon as I became aware that huawei supplies concentration camps, I stopped buying their products.

subzelo• 4 years ago

I loved products from Huawei and Xiaomi, but also can't justify buying their products since the Uyghur situation.

peoplefromibiza4• 4 years ago

, but I'll never have a clean conscious knowing my money is by extension financing terrorists

We should all stop buying American products as well, especially Apples'

https://www.theinformation.com/articles/facing-hostile-chine...

I very much prefer China to any American Corporation

Tarrosion• 4 years ago

You prefer China (presumably here we mean the CCP) to any American corporation, because some American companies have done the moral wrong of sometimes folding to the CCP? Seems a bit inside out.

blondie9x• 4 years ago

It looks like a ripoff of the reMarkable 2 eInk pad. https://remarkable.com/ I’m surprised Apple or Microsoft hasn’t made an eInk display. Btw what happened to Amazon’s Kindle DX? That was literally the pioneer in the large eInk display space but it disappeared. I miss Kindle DX https://www.amazon.com/Kindle-DX-Wireless-Reader-3G-Global/

projektfu• 4 years ago

What electronics can you buy that aren’t basically Chinese devices at this point? Raspberry pi has assembly in Wales but parts are sourced normally, from China. I understand the feeling but, just like it’s hard to participate in the modern economy and oppose climate change, it’s hard to boycott China.

Really, I’m honestly looking for alternatives, not saying you’re wrong. How do we get out from this situation?

akvadrako• 4 years ago

I think Samsung mostly avoids producing products in China.

https://www.makeuseof.com/where-are-samsung-phones-made/

echelon3• 4 years ago

How do we get out from this situation?

Get together with close allies (Europe, Japan, Korea, Australia, etc.) and decide to run afoul of the WTO. Favor domestic and close partners though heavy subsidies. This will upset the global balance of trade, treaties, etc. and will cause international tensions to rise, but it'll have to be done.

Build domestic factories in a special economic zone. Staff them with lots of immigrants and provide free education, child support, low cost of living, and a guaranteed path to citizenship. Open the flood gates, because we'll need lots of people.

Companies that build these factories get thirty years of 100% tax exemptions. Companies that source from them get lower taxes too.

If China complains, cut off the food and energy exports. It's their weakness and they'll step in line.

Are there any glaring flaws in this plan?

coolso2• 4 years ago

Huawei is a Chinese corporation. That’s a little different than simply being made there (which companies are finally starting to move away from)

thih94• 4 years ago

I don’t understand; China is not taking part in the “events happening right now” (assuming you mean invasion of Ukraine); the global boycott focuses on Russia (and to a lesser extent on Belarus).

CyanBird3• 4 years ago

He/she means everything, because he/she cant otherwise verbalize what upsets him/her

All the news cycle becomes a tangled mess of "being upset at things", it doesn't really matter if these things are verifiable or not, the broader apparatus benefits either way so long as you become irrationally upset

jbverschoor• 4 years ago

You've already done that, and keep doing that by using services which rely on oil, electronics, food, etc.

1337biz• 4 years ago

I honestly enjoy this line of argument. Reminds me of the meme of a bunch of spidermen pointing guns at each other and shouting "No You" at each other. Tell me what country you are from and I tell you why your products should be banned.

sschueller2• 4 years ago

I hope you don't own any Apple products.

pinkpig• 4 years ago

Noting that, Huawei is especially special in these Chinese tech firms. I come from China and I, personnally, shall never buy any Huawei product. This is the compony really makes me disgusting. They advertise their products by tying themselves with Chinese nationalism. I.e., if you do not use Huawei as a Chinese, you betrayed your country. WTF. Their advertising strategy is even undermining the entire Chinese socirty, IMO. If you can endure this, or if you love their propagandas and support Chinese nationalism particularly, order your next Huawei phone or pad or something. Personnally I shall never. BTW, I do consider other Chinese firms. I declare that I do not have any interests with these companies, I'm only a humble consumer, believe it or not.

tejohnso• 4 years ago

Wow, what a political tangent. If your conscience is clean, it's only because of your own convenient ignorance. Financing terrorists is something that is done by all militant empires. It's a pretty basic strategic military tactic. And the more militant the empire is, the more terrorist financing they're engaged in. Overthrowing democratically elected governments is a typical outcome.

rchaud4• 4 years ago

But you'd buy an iPad right? Chinese factory owners certainly aren't making any money there /s

brk• 4 years ago

Will this product be affected by the US bans on Huawei?

e-clinton• 4 years ago

Highly likely, but remember those bans affect the government, not private citizens. You’re free to buy Huawei products.

mtmail• 4 years ago

And government contractors. We got a questionnaire asking if we use any Huawei products at our company.

intricatedetail2• 4 years ago

The last thing I want is CPC reading my notes. Unless device can be loaded with trusted OS and air gapped I wouldn't take it even if they paid me.

murat1242• 4 years ago

You mean CCP (Chinese Communist Party).

Edit: Turns out officially it is CPC. English abbreviation is CCP.

coliveira• 4 years ago

Finally a company cracks this market. This is a beautiful device, I'll get one as soon as it is available.

phantom_oracle• 4 years ago

I wanted to build my own e-ink tablet as I prefer OSS. The issue that makes e-ink tablets not worth building?

The expensive displays that cost between $150-$300 for 7-8 inch screens, excluding shipping.

jll292• 4 years ago

I would like to have an e-Ink notebook for professional reading/writing/editing (no video/games).

ARM, 8 GB RAM, 64 GB persistent storage (SSD or SD card. 10" or 11" e-ink screen, good-quality physical keyboard, light, rugged, portable). Should be OSS powered, of course (Linux preferred).

murat1242• 4 years ago

Looks great but I have trust issues. I would consider if it didn't have microphone (it has 4) and if it supported working offline.

Demcox• 4 years ago

it has 4

A freaking eInk tablet with microphones what the hell lol

edit formatting...

npteljes• 4 years ago

They have a function for it. From TFA: "Capture detail in every meeting with audio recording and notes. Make a mark on your recording while taking notes, then tap on the mark to play the exact audio clip. Review your content more clearly and efficiently."

StopDarkPattern• 4 years ago

tldr; china

sentrysapper• 4 years ago

Under specs it lists 2 speakers and 4 microphones.

gbraad• 4 years ago

The OS looks similar to Onyx Boox's. Wouldn't be amazed if it a collab.

achow• 4 years ago

I wish Amazon had released one in this size. This goes onto to show how bad monopoly of Amazon is for e-reader category.

AcerbicZero• 4 years ago

I wouldn’t buy Huawei toilet paper let alone a tablet I might write something on.

I made the awful mistake of buying one of their phones back when they partnered with Google for one of the nexus phones. Horrible device, and probably full of communism too.

Loic4• 4 years ago

As an alternative, I am extremely satisfied with the A5X from Ratta Supernote. The latency when writing is as good as the RM2.

[0] https://supernote.com/

dddw• 4 years ago

Looks nice. Is there a way to use your own sync instead of theirs?

Loic4• 4 years ago

I am using it totally offline, I just plug it with the USB cable in my laptop (running Linux) and have a full access on the content to sync as I wish and need.

I haven't used their cloud offering.

Zircom4• 4 years ago

They support Dropbox syncing and they're working on Google drive support at the moment.

dotancohen3• 4 years ago

You're satisfied with a device that is accepting pre-orders and hasn't shipped yet?

Loic4• 4 years ago

It is my daily driver, I bought and received my A5X early October 2021. I am surprised with your question.

CatAtHeart• 4 years ago

The "pre-order" label is mostly due to supply chain delays. Currently there is a ~month lead time. I ordered mine back in late January and it is arriving this week.

Zircom4• 4 years ago

It's been released for quite awhile, they were just having supply issues so they're backordered a bit. I bought one hand to avoid the wait and love mine fwiw.

TheFreim3• 4 years ago

You're satisfied with a device that is accepting pre-orders and hasn't shipped yet?

I ordered one in late January and it's arriving next week.

forgotmyoldacc• 4 years ago

Why not use a RM2 then?

rotten• 4 years ago

RM2 also has a nasty subscription service required to get all the features.

thomasfl• 4 years ago

Truly ReMarkable. (Pun intended.)

yesbut4• 4 years ago

As an American, I'd rather have a foreign actor spying on me than my own government. The foreign actor has no jurisdiction over me.

xamolxix2• 4 years ago

The foreign actor has no jurisdiction over me.

You can be subjected to blackmail and/or other hostile actions from a foreign jurisdiction.

thih94• 4 years ago

Is that more likely than blackmail and/or hostile actions from home jurisdiction?

yesbut4• 4 years ago

I don't trust even my own government. I'm not *more* worried about China messing with me. The NSA has more info on me that could potentially be used against me than Huawei. And I've never once seen a situation where the NSA digs data out of their vault to help exonerate an American on trial.

zikduruqe• 4 years ago

Foreign actor doesn't have to abide by the Fourth Amendment either. They can just show the US whatever they want without a warrant.

yesbut4• 4 years ago

The US would still be required to abide by the Fourth Amendment though.

throwoutway• 4 years ago

Wait until you want to do some tourism

boringg• 4 years ago

You haven't thought this one through my friend.

dang2• 4 years ago

We detached this subthread from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30513500.

Shadonototra• 4 years ago

Their own OS, their own hardware, their own brands, their own factories

Thanks to our dumb politicians, we produced dumb citizens, with a dumb education

parski• 4 years ago

Chindle

youhavetosayit• 4 years ago

Remarkable 2 is better, because of the features it doesn't have.

The best feature of Remarkable 2 is how quiet it is, it doesn't do anything except for Book reading and note taking.

No notifications, no messaging, no email, quiet tech.

wraptile2• 4 years ago

You can turn these all off. Lack of features is not a feature imho - no mather how hard people try to sell this.

m12k2• 4 years ago

Twitter exists because you can't write long posts. Snapchat exists because you can't view past messages. Tinder exists because you can't just talk to anyone unless they are interested in you too. Limitations and missing "features" absolutely can be an asset to a platform.

leecarraher• 4 years ago

In my opinion it's a great deal more complex than: "you can just turn off the features". To me "lack-of-a-feature" is not in itself a feature of the device or platform, rather a feature of the company who makes the device or platform. It signals that the manufacturer is fully committed to solving a specific use case. Avoiding feature creep is tough though. Companies need to make money, and the easiest way to do that is to exploit your current customers to upgrade. However, because no one upgrades a device without a reason, it may be inevitable that companies continue to follow the classic: phone -> phablet -> tablet -> basically laptop without a keyboard progression.

SantalBlush• 4 years ago

You can turn these all off.

In many cases, you can't. Turning off popups and reminders is a constant battle with my hardware. Duolingo is about to murder me if I don't resume my language practice.

vineyardmike5• 4 years ago

No you're wrong. Its absolutely a selling point. When i got my remarkable i did what i do with any other tech, start searching the menus and features and trying things out. What i immediately discovered... theres nothing to do! Until you start writing, or you have something to read, the device is useless. I got mine for XMas, and a week earlier i bought myself an ipad pro to use as a digital notebook. Unboxing it and using it day one and i was immediately struct by the quiet tech that it is. Its unlike anything else i've used in a long time.

Get an ipad and theres endless apps and accounts and notifications and a shiny bright screen begging for you to play with it. The ipad really wants to be your computer with a stylus attached, and that is great, i take it traveling instead of anything else and its really convenient. The remarkable is NOT a computer. The remarkable sits at my desk and is just ready for me, while the ipad is eternally charging, or chiming, or begging for attention and distraction. I can't have it at my desk while i work.

The remarkable is literally a digital notebook and has about as much utility as a real notebook - a lot for writing and reading and almost 0 for anything else. It is honestly the first product i've used that actually replaces paper at my desk.

black_puppydog• 4 years ago

It must be great to live a life in perfect control of your impulses. Alas, as a mere human, being able to turn off all notifications, also means I can turn them back on when I get bored with what I'm doing.

Purposefully putting myself in a situation where any dopamine rush is more than a click away is one of the best feelings I've had in years. So yeah, I'd consider that a feature.

rchaud4• 4 years ago

What 'loud' tech did you see on the linked page? Everything was about reading and writing.

fredoliveira• 4 years ago

Not gp, but the app store and matebook syncing in particular jump out to me as going beyond reading and writing. Not that I disagree with their inclusion necessarily (I'm sure they put in whatever made sense in their ecosystem), but it won't be for everyone.

mbar84• 4 years ago

I think he means it in a metaphorical sense. Anything that grabs attention is "LOUD" in this sense (just as is ALL CAPS writing).

falcolas• 4 years ago

Remarkable 2 is better, because of the features it doesn't have.

Like syncing local notes using common cloud services?

Technically, the feature's there, but it's locked behind a $100 per year "service".

Rant aside, I have an iPad mini where I turned all notifications off. Just as good as if it didn't have those features when I don't care about them - but if I need them they're right there.

karamanolev2• 4 years ago

I have a Remarkable 2. I cannot describe how much I love the writing experience on it. I don't think any other standard tablet has ever come close to that.

I also feel like you for the paid Connect account, which I work around using open source tools that you're free to run on it. You can SSH as root easily and run whatever you want. I do it frequently for screen sharing.

horsawlarway• 4 years ago

Like syncing local notes using common cloud services?

Technically this is present on the Remarkable if you're willing to fiddle with the device some. They give you root by default (and provide an ssh service if the device is connected over usb), and the community has implemented quite a few syncing options.

That said - I was also very bummed to see them introduce the paid service. I'd really like them to succeed by selling good & open hardware, not by moving towards a locked down device ties to SaaS.

ptman• 4 years ago

Indeed, Connect feels bad. There's RCU http://www.davisr.me/projects/rcu/

rglullis• 4 years ago

You can install syncthing on it. Problem solved.

fluidcruft3• 4 years ago

Has PDF annotation improved on Remarkable 2?

Otherwise it's trival to disable notifications, messaging, email etc (at least on Boox and there are quite good youtube tutorials about how to do this), so that's not a particularly strong differentiation.

"You can have any color you want as long as it's black" only works as a selling point if other cars can't be black.

jonfw• 4 years ago

"You can have any color you want as long as it's black" isn't the selling point. The selling point is- "This car was designed to be black, and looks better in black than other cars."

It's like how my screwdriver is significantly better at driving screws than my swiss army knife. Purposeful design drives a better experience

paulcole3• 4 years ago

I was skeptical because of the cost, but it's honestly been a hugely valuable investment for my work. I don't even turn wifi on and don't care about syncing.

All I want is something I enjoy using to write notes throughout the day, sketch out ideas, and organize my day.

Yes, there's a trillion other tools, software, apps, paper notebooks, whatever that I could use to do this. The point for me is that I didn't use those things. I do use the Remarkable and I love it.

caleb-allen• 4 years ago

Same. I use pretty much every feature of the remarkable 2. My favorite product in a decade

linsomniac2• 4 years ago

Does the Remarkable 2 have "templates" for pages?

A couple years ago I went from a largely "paperless" life to using a daily planner, largely for my daily work and personal TODO lists, and have found the process very valuable.

I toyed around with making a custom template for my daily notes/lists, and using the RocketBook ecosystem (maybe with just my own printed templates and using their app for scanning), but in the end just stuck with pre-printed planner books.

I'm just getting ready to order my third planner, and this topic comes up and tempts me with a technological solution to a largely solved problem, but makes me wonder what benefits it might have.

funksta2• 4 years ago

Out of curiousity, which planner do you use and which feature(s)/layouts are the most useful for you?

I've started building custom pdf planners for these eInk devices (I'm an rM2 owner myself) and am always looking for insight on how people use them. Have a little website setup for this at https://hyperpaper.me

mNovak• 4 years ago

Yeah it does, pretty certain you upload custom ones too though I've never tried it

asiachick• 4 years ago

No Kindle app = Not useful to me. Do either of these support kindle?

shagie• 4 years ago

There is no kindle app directly. You can go through a conversion process to convert from .kfx to .epub and then read those on (at least) the remarkable.

https://www.isummersoft.com/transfer-kindle-to-remarkable-ta...

zwayhowder• 4 years ago

Boox devices run Android, so you can install the Kindle app from the play store.

yumraj3• 4 years ago

No notifications, no messaging, no email, quiet tech.

Also, no spyware..

ct0• 4 years ago

thinking the same thing. how damaging to the brand that once I hear Huawei, I think of spyware.

avgcorrection• 4 years ago

Of all the larger nation states that could spy on me, I would probably be the least concerned about Indonesia. But China is not far above it.

deehouie• 4 years ago

When a product originates from China, it must be full of spyware. Let's don't even question whether that's true or even reasonable. Then imagine one day, China's scientists invented a new semiconductor, a new material to make chip, or a new technological product that's order of magnitude better than everything out there.

My question: are you going to avoid it like the plague; don't buy anything made of it, which may be in a lot of the things you touch. Btw, that's not very far-fetched, judging from the number of breakthrough research coming out of that country.

UncleOxidant• 4 years ago

Is there an Overdrive app for the Remarkable 2? I want to be able to checkout and read library books.

stonogo• 4 years ago

Overdrive was bought by Rakuten, owners of Kobo. I'd predict that you're not going to see Overdrive apps on non-Kobo ereaders, unless they have access to Google Play.

vineyardmike5• 4 years ago

Also eInk means that the display doesn't have a backlight, which means it doesn't catch your eye and steal your attention. +1 feature missing that makes it better.

microtherion• 4 years ago

Isn't what the Boox Max Lumi & Co have a "Backlight" ? https://shop.boox.com/products/maxlumi2

I found that this made a big usability improvement in low light situations over previous eInk readers I owned, and that in practice there were more low light situations (or at least situations where I'd rather not turn on a light just to read).

BadJo0Jo0• 4 years ago

Footnote 20-22 indicates it has a backlight. Which is honestly something I want just because I want to be able to read in a dark or low light room. Something which has kept me from buying a remarkable.

whoomp12342• 4 years ago

for $400????

m-p-32• 4 years ago

To be honest, I'd likely get one if I could read my work emails, check my calendar and keep myself up-to-date through my RSS feeds natively from it.

paulcole3• 4 years ago

Remarkable is perhaps not clear enough that this isn't what they expect you to do with the Remarkable.

IncRnd• 4 years ago

Yep. I always think of spyware with Huawei now. However, I watched the clip that is partway down the page, and the song in that clip made me stop and listen. It is so relaxing to hear. Here is a direct link to the song in the video. [1]

If anyone can tell me the artist's name, I'd be grateful.

[1] https://consumer-img.huawei.com/content/dam/huawei-cbg-site/...

Edit: I found it through the lyrics. Olive Musique - Everything About You

bitL2• 4 years ago

10.3" is too small for a paper replacement - writing notes on such devices is too imprecise if one e.g. annotates PDFs etc. I got the latest Onyx A4 and that's the size that can be finally used to replace paper for all types of documents.

pantulis2• 4 years ago

Is it the Boox Max Lumi 2? I'm considering getting one, any observations?

bitL2• 4 years ago

I use it only for reading PDFs, annotating them, writing notes and reading newspapers - for that it's a pretty good device. There might be some warts in a bit non-standard Android interface and also MS Office doesn't work without license (13" is too large for free versions), but overall I am happy.

pastaking• 4 years ago

Good for Huawei. Finally, an affordable alternative to Remarkable.

fluidcruft3• 4 years ago

The screenshot of Home where they're showcasing widgets otherwise looks almost exactly like Boox. Other interactions also look like the Boox software. Not to mention the device looks like an update Boox Air. Are Boox and Huawei related?

SilentM68• 4 years ago

This could be an alternative to LiveScribe Smart Pen, in a classroom setting, which records audio as you write with it and then allows for immediate audio playback by tapping the section of the written notes that one needs to listen to again.

Only difference between tablet and the pen is that the pen requires physical paper notebooks to be purchased once the old notebook is used up.

With improved battery life, it'd make a very useful assistive technology in a classroom setting.

macco• 4 years ago

I am really not an Apple fan, but this website is borderline plagiarism.

I would really love if the immense investments of Huawei would bring something genuine to light.

mardifoufs• 4 years ago

If anything imo it's much closer to the Samsung website than apple's

pphysch• 4 years ago

...It's a minimal, responsive, functional page for selling a product. Apple didn't invent this any more than they invented the PC or smartphone.

jll292• 4 years ago

Waiting for the next move, an e-ink sub-notebook.

nemacol2• 4 years ago

MEMORY ROM:64 GB *The available internal storage may be smaller as part of the internal storage is occupied by software.

Memory, ROM(??), RAM all the same thing? Am I misunderstanding or is this not the full picture?

renewiltord• 4 years ago

4 GiB RAM. Oddly it’s on the features page.

nemacol2• 4 years ago

Thank you.

ljf• 4 years ago

Doesn't it seem odd in the pictures and video the model is holding the pen/stylus as a rather unnatural angle. No shots where the models hand is touching the screen at the same time as the pen. I'd have thought that would be a feature they would want to promote (and would be shocked if this device does not have it), just seems odd.

turtlebits• 4 years ago

The hardware is a dime a dozen now, what differentiates all these products is the software. I'm pretty skeptical on hardware companies making their own software interfaces.

I tried the Boox and while having Android is compelling, the writing experience kinda sucks. I prefer the Remarkable for having fewer but more polished features.

01100011• 4 years ago

Doesn't the HW have something to do with the responsiveness? Hasn't that been a significant issue with eInk devices in the past, or is that resolved now?

In any case, the atrocities being committed in Ukraine have finally convinced me it is long past time to divest myself from Chinese slaveware. I have nothing but kindness for the people of Russia and China but will no longer voluntarily support companies in those countries with my business.

Groxx• 4 years ago

eink responsiveness itself: it's "slow", but much of it is in software. the remarkable demonstrates that pretty well - pen-to-display updates in ~20ms, which is more than fast enough. for further evidence, dasung's eink monitors are stunningly fast because of good software (and surrounding hardware that can drive it all) - they use the same panels as others AFAICT. (i.e. they're using the standard high-end e-reader panels. there are dramatically slower and more limited panels designed for signage, I think we can ignore those - many don't even have partial update support in their hardware)

The caveat there is that those fast updates are for black to white or white to black - gray to gray is slower, and accumulates error if you keep doing it (ghosting). remarkable has built their entire UI around this limitation: all UI is black/white, no grays. All tools (except the highlighters) draw black/white, no grays - all the texture is just black/white pixellation patterns. a lot of care has gone into working with the hardware's limitations at every level.... which is something android will never do.

other causes of latency often include stuff like aggressive CPU sleeping to make the batteries last weeks. if you get rid of that, and pre-render the next screen, changing screens is something like 100ms or less. in the end you have a pile of tradeoffs that generally mean worse user experience when poking the device to get better user experience somewhere else. which is true of everything.

smilespray4• 4 years ago

How you implement the software makes a huge difference for e-ink displays.

The display is quite slow, so you have to implement delta screen updates instead of full-screen refreshes.

You also have to deal with ghosting in a similar manner that doesn't require the entire screen to flash from black to white several times.

coolso2• 4 years ago

What’s with all the CCP defenders and shills mass-downvoting and flagging every critical comment in this thread? What are you trying to hide? Instead of downvoting into oblivion Reddit/China-style, why not engage in healthy debate?

The tides have turned, the US is finally standing up to China (Biden is following in Trump’s footsteps though not as much as he should) and it’s only going to continue.

GaylordTuring• 4 years ago

Would it be too much to ask for Hacker News to not promote products made in and benefiting evil regimes such as China and Russia? You wouldn’t allow The Nazipad 2000 to be showen here; what’s the difference?

jklein11• 4 years ago

Wouldn't it be better for the community to moderate this sort of thing? You can always downvote post. Or even better, you could engage in discourse on how this product is benefiting evil regimes. I'm not sure promoting censorship is the answer here.

advisedwang• 4 years ago

A huge fraction of consumer electronics are made in China, so they shouldn't be listed here? iPhone is out of scope for HN?

Not to mention questions about who gets to decide...

amiga1200• 4 years ago

Serious question, as I am interested in this device. Huawei has lately been in the news as a security threat. How can I justify using this device, to myself and my company, given the security threat Huawei supposedly represents? No trolls or shills need reply.

deepspace• 4 years ago

I have had the same question about Huawei products, and have never received any answer that would justify the risk of using one of their devices.

rg1112• 4 years ago

I will not touch anything Huawei with a ten-foot pole. Thanks.

But I also hope this will drive down prices.

Huawei MatePad Paper – eInk Tablet

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