ReMarkable 2: First Impressions

So far I like it.

1. the OCR experience is OK. It is reasonably accurate for my cursive handwriting, but you can only export by email coming from a remarkable.com address. The iPad’s scribble support is better from that perspective. OCR was not an interesting use case for me though.

2. The weight and thickness are huge pluses. It’s easy to carry around; much easier than an iPad and even most paper notebooks. The magnetic attachment for the marker (stylus) is quite secure.

3. The writing/drawing experience is very good. The e-ink is responsive and the amount of friction between the marker and the surface is just right.

4. The writing/drawing tools are quite good. I don’t think there is anything superfluous. I like that it remembers the last tool you used for each notebook. I’ve set up a pencil for a sketchbook and a fineliner for various project notebooks. I could see using the calligraphy pen for fancy notes to be forwarded. I got the more expensive of the two markers that has the “eraser”. I find I use that quite a bit more than the eraser tools.

5. The document management takes a little getting used to. Moving pages between notebooks was not intuitive, but makes sense once you RTFM.

6. I love the battery life on this thing.

7. It’s probably too expensive, but they seem to be selling well, so maybe not?

Conclusions (so far):

This is an indulgence on my part. No question.

This has gotten rid of my sketch anxiety. I’ve always liked doodle/sketch with pencil, but I erase a lot. This makes erasing painless.

There is no way this is going to replace my two paper journals. It’s really for ephemera, doodling, and project thoughts that will end up somewhere else. It will replace my several project notebooks that served the same purpose.