reMarkable 2 transforms digital work space into zen sanctuary; unlocks creative potential [REVIEW]

In this digital and connected era, where distractions are easier than slicing butter with a hot knife, focusing on things deemed essential can prove to be a challenge. How often do you find yourself distracted with those cat videos or that funny reel your friend just sent you while working on your next big thing. reMarkable, a Norwegian tech brand, takes a focused approach to putting all those distractions away with its minimalistic e-ink tablet, which marked its debut in India with the launch of reMarkable 2.

Priced at Rs 43,999 for the tablet along with the Marker Plus pen, Rs 53,799 for a bundle that consists of a Book Folio, and an additional Rs 19,499 adds a Type Folio keyboard to the bundle. If you want it all, reMarkable 2 with its pen, folio, and keyboard, will set you back Rs 73,298. Yes, it doesn’t come cheap, but is it worth the bargain? Let’s dive into the tablet and its use cases, which will give you a clearer picture of whether this is the gadget you need to add to your existing setup.

Key specs:

1. Display: 10.3-inch LCD monochrome paper display
2. RAM: 1 GB LPDDR3
3. Storage: 8 GB internal storage
4. CPU: ARM A9 Dual-core 1.2 GHz processor
5. Battery: 3000mAh
6. OS: Linux-based Codex
7. Add-ons: Wi-Fi 802.11ac, USB-C, PDF and ePUB support
8. Weight: 476g
9. Dimensions: 24.61 x 18.8 x 0.48 cm

Note: reMarkable 2 comes with a free one-year Connect subscription, which gives access to unlimited cloud storage, mobile and desktop note-taking, a tablet protection plan, and a lot of exclusive features like text conversion and more. In India, the subscription costs Rs 299 per month after the one-year free trial, or Rs 2,990 for a year.

What’s in the box?

reMarkable 2 packaging is kept as simple as the tablet. Besides the tablet, there’s a USB-A to USB-C charging cable and a quick-start guide. That’s about it. Since the tablet comes with a Marker Plus stylus, it comes in a separate box of its own, which also has a pack of 8 tips. If you bought the Type Folio keyboard, that’s one extra box. All these products have minimalistic packaging, which is in line with the company’s design ethos.

Design and display

reMarkable 2 looks like a product designed by Apple engineers. The aesthetics and minimalistic design are simply brilliant. The tablet doesn’t have a camera, speakers, or even a backlit display, which may come as a surprise to many, but what you get in return is a traditional paper-like texture without any glare for a distraction-free writing experience. This is by design, and it makes sense.

All you get on the tablet is one port and one button, which functions as a lock and power button. The port is a USB Type-C port used for charging. But then there are some crucial elements that make using the tablet easier. For instance, there’s a metal bezel on the left, which helps while holding the tablet in one hand for reading. The same bezel holds the power button and the USB Type-C port, which is aesthetically pleasing. If you look closely, there are three magnetic spots on the left edge, which are used to connect the tablet to its folios.

The Marker Plus, which is crucial for the tablet’s functionality, can be magnetically attached to the right side of the tablet, but I wish the tablet was more powerful. You cannot just attach the pen to the side of the tablet and slide it in the bag, it’s more of a convenience while you’re using the tablet. For this reason, you’ll have to be careful, as misplacing can be easy, and there’s no tracking function.

But what I absolutely love about the tablet is just how sleek and light it is. reMarkable 2 is just 4.8mm thin and weighs just 476 grams, making it the thinnest and lightest tablet in the market; even by e-ink tablet standards. This makes note-taking so much easier when you have to hold the tablet in one hand or read those e-books and PDFs while on the go.

reMarkable 2 has a 10.3-inch e-ink display, which is fantastic in its own way but has its setbacks. Night owls who prefer reading on the paper-like e-ink display in the dark will be disappointed, as there’s no LCD or backlit display. The grayscale display is ideal for reading text, be it e-books or PDFs. The display supports capacitive touch, making navigation easier, but there’s an evident lag while registering touch—something you’ll feel having used AMOLED and LCD panels. But it’s not a deal-breaker, as you’d be doing more writing and less navigating, thanks to the straightforward interface.

Gestures that help you get around reMarkable 2:

Performance & software

reMarkable 2’s minimalist approach extends beyond its design into the software and performance. Under the hood, it runs on a Linux-based OS, which primarily focuses on writing and reading without the distractions of any apps or features. It has a 1.2 GHz dual-core ARM processor and 1 GB of RAM, which powers all the functions and features of the tablet. In all fairness, this configuration may not seem much in 2024, but it is more than sufficient for what’s being performed.

reMarkable 2 is a fabulous tablet to write on, seamlessly mimicking the pen and paper feel to offer an enjoyable experience. Thanks to the simplistic UI, creating new pages using the “quick sheets” and organizing content through folders and notebooks is self explanatory. There are plenty of templates to suit your tasks, like a storyboard, checklist, and day planner, and it helps a lot.

The menu bar has all the customization options, and I could choose from various writing utensils, thickness, and color choices. With options like a ballpoint pen, fineliner, pencil, and marker, I could get an accurate representation of different writing sources. Just to be clear, you won’t see any colour on the tablet itself, but it’s useful when reviewing notes on a PC or mobile. I personally loved the organisational feature of page tagging, which comes in handy while having many notes.

While taking notes, it is natural to make mistakes. Nostalgia hits hard here. The Marker Plus pen has an eraser at the opposite end of the tip. Of course, it only mimics the eraser function, but it does it with such precision, it took me back to my sketching and school days.

The lack of backlit display ensures added precision while writing with the pen. The accuracy with which every stroke of the pen is defined is just a work of art. The tablet also supports gestures for navigation and multi-touch as well.

I recently reviewed a 21-page sale agreement and added notes where corrections were required on my reMarkable 2 and it saved me a lot of effort by having printed those documents. I also helped my friend make changes to some structural drawings in his house plan’s PDF, and boy, was he impressed. Wherever I used the reMarkable 2, it was sure to grab attention, and everyone seemed to love the idea behind it.

The settings menu has limited options, too. You’ll find your personal account info and preferences in general settings, along with software and the option to restart or turn off the tablet. Then there’s Wi-Fi, which lets you connect to available networks. The battery menu gives you two options: whether or not to show battery percentage and enabling auto sleep after 20 minutes. In the storage menu, you get disk space information along with the USB web interface and cloud connection sync. Under security, there’s a passcode and personal message to be displayed when the tab is locked. Finally, Accessibility lets you choose left- or right-handedness and font size.

The left menu bar lets you filter files, access favourites, sort by tags, and access Google Drive personal files. In any case, if you get lost, there are guides to help you just below the Trash menu, where you can access all your discarded files.

Since reMarkable 2’s core USP is distraction-free note-taking, I was able to get a lot of work done in less time. Writing reviews while comparing notes taken on the tablet was an enjoyable and satisfying task. It gave me a sense of satisfaction while working without all the distractions.

Type Folio keyboard

Since we got the Type Folio keyboard along with the reMarkable 2, it makes sense to put it to use every now and then. I must admit, I loved the paper-like writing experience on the tablet more, but that doesn’t mean the keyboard is completely out of use here. In fact, it comes in handy while writing lengthy notes or reviews, like this one.

Here are the shortcuts for your reference in case this is something new to you:

The keyboard is easy to set up. Just place your tablet inside the folio while making sure the magnetic pins on the tab connect to the ones on the keyboard. It can only be attached one way, so there’s no way you can go wrong.

Once connected, you’ll get on screen prompts so you can choose your keyboard preferences. In four taps, you’ll be good to go. I like how well the keyboard is concealed, and you just lift the tablet from the base to reveal it. The keyboard layout, spacing, and structure are reminiscent of a Mac keyboard. I could slide my fingers across the keys just as I would on my MacBook Air to type. The keys registered nice feedback, and I didn’t need any time to adjust to the layout. It was a typo-free typing experience from the get go.

Understanding the value of Connect

One big part of reMarkable 2 experience is its Connect subscription, which may be free for a year, but it has great value even if you choose to continue later. Besides the unlimited cloud storage, which is a boon considering you get only 8GB of on-device storage, the subscription offers a rather useful handwriting-to-text conversion, which enhances productivity. This worked great when I was carefully taking notes rather than scribbling my thoughts in a hurry. I’m eagerly waiting for some Indian languages to be added to the handwritten conversion since only a handful of them, like Italian, French, German, and others, are supported. I want to brush up on my Urdu while I’m at it. But there’s more to the Connect subscription.

In a relief, reMarkable offers a 3-year protection plan, which assures a free replacement as long as it is not “accidental damage or similar external factors.” It is important to note here that the device doesn’t have any IP protection, so be careful around liquids and while carrying the tablet in areas with exposure to sand and water (read beaches). The product itself is durable enough, and it so happened that one of the reMarkable 2 was accidentally dropped with its folio and landed pretty harshly on the floor during the product’s briefing event in Mumbai. It was fine, and there was no visible damage as well. It was pretty impressive!

The seamless synchronisation of notes created on the reMarkable 2 worked like AirDrop on steroids. I could access all my notes on my MacBook and iPhone, and syncing was almost real-time as long as all devices were connected to the internet.

Though there’s no app or an option to share files from the tablet directly, there’s an incredible convenience that lets you email converted notes in the form of PDFs to any email address. Since you’re email is already connected to the device during the setup, if you’re sharing any notes via email, the same address will be used. Of course, you have more sharing options on your PC and mobile, but I found this to be effectively convenient.

I could also add e-books simply by dragging and dropping content on the website or importing them using the mobile app. I wish there was page turn animation as seen in other book readers, but it got the job done nonetheless. I even added the reMarkable Chrome extension, and it made reading all the articles super convenient.

All of these features are made possible with Connect, and anyone buying the reMarkable 2 must continue the subscription for as long as they use the tablet. I feel the tablet without it would be crippled in so many ways, limiting its true potential and convenience. If you can spend as much as you’d on an iPad for this device, that subscription is a value-ad.

Battery life

reMarkable 2 is powered by a 3,000mAh battery, which isn’t huge, but considering the low power requirement of the tablet, it offers an impressive battery life. It is quite common for e-book readers to last days or even weeks; reMarkable 2 isn’t any different.

With regular use of at least 2 hours every day, the reMarkable 2 lasts over two weeks. The standby of the device is impressive as well, making sure it stays on for months. reMarkable promises a standby of 3 months on a single charge, but we haven’t left it untouched for so long. But going by the depletion pace, I wouldn’t second-guess the longevity. The tablet requires so little power, since it lacks backlight, speakers, or even a camera and apps. There was no reason to keep the tablet on when there was no need to take notes or read. Even when the tablet is locked, it shows the reMarkable icon and says it is sleeping along with personal info at all times.

Verdict

Despite its limitations in functionality, which is by design and for good reason, the reMarkable 2 proves to be an incredible extension of my work setup for distraction-free writing. Is it for everyone? Not really.

One must clearly understand that the reMarkable 2 is not a replacement for your laptop or even your smartphone. Rather, it is an extension. reMarkable 2 lets you enter a zone of undivided attention for tasks that need to be done without any distractions. There are no apps or even an app store on this tablet. This gadget is the most addictive piece of hardware I’ve used in a while, and that’s a good thing in this age of digital addiction. It takes digital note-taking to a whole new level, let’s focus—all while bringing the good-old practice of writing on a paper.

A few things could’ve improved the tablet experience, like the backlight, which limits the use of the tablet in light. When I asked Henrik Faller, vice president of communications at reMarkable, he said the reason for it was to keep the paper-like writing experience as real as it is. Adding a backlight wouldn’t have allowed reMarkable to achieve that absolute level of accuracy.

reMarkable 2 didn’t make it to my bedside table, but surely added value to the work setup and the fact that I could carry it anywhere without hassle gave me no reason to leave it behind. And it looks gorgeous, so that’s just the icing on the cake.