It’s amazing to think that the reMarkable 2 was announced in March 2020. other Recently, the reMarkable Paper Pro has been making waves. After more than four years, the company is ready to show off its latest, less intrusive writing slate. The long preparations have paid off, as the new model boasts a better chassis, faster internals, a larger display, and most importantly, a color screen. Say hello to the reMarkable Paper Pro.
For those unfamiliar, reMarkable represents a device that sits somewhere between high-tech and low-tech. It’s an e-paper slate with a stylus (or keyboard) that lets you read, write, edit your documents, and annotate PDFs. Its focus is to provide a quiet space to get some serious work done (™) without the hassle of a “proper” computer or tablet. The company has always maintained that its devices offer a way to feel like you’re working with paper, without actually working with paper.
The Paper Pro is just over an inch taller and a quarter of an inch wider than its predecessor, but it manages to pack a lot more into it. Whereas the rM2 had a 10.3-inch monochrome display, the Paper Pro stretches to 11.8 inches. Mats Solberg, reMarkable’s chief design officer, explained that the team reduced the size of the bezels and bottom to accommodate the larger display.
Whereas the previous model stuck to a strict notion of a post-iPad design language, the new Paper Pro has a simpler look and feel: the edge band is sharper but still feels good to hold, and Solberg has highlighted grooves cut into the side, which he explains evoke the image of holding a stack of paper, adding a much-needed grip to a device this thin.
There’s a dramatic change under the hood, with a new 1.8GHz quad-core Cortex A53 paired with 2GB RAM and 64GB storage. By comparison, the rM2 only had a 1.2GHz dual-core chip, 1GB RAM and 8GB storage. As soon as you power up the Paper Pro, you can see the benefits of the new silicon, with much faster response times. There’s even a nice animation during the setup process.
But the real highlight here is the display, which uses “Canvas Color,” an improved version of E Ink’s Gallery 3 technology. This means that the display holds a set of ink particles (white, cyan, magenta, and yellow) within each pixel, just like most common printers. reMarkable says the display is similar to newspaper, which is an apt analogy, as it displays muted but vivid colors.
The technology can also dither colors, mixing each ink particle to produce up to 20,000 colors, and it can even layer colors, meaning you can highlight parts of text just like you would with a highlighter on paper, the more you layer the darker the color becomes. Of course, the advantage of using a digital device is that you can highlight as much as you like without having to wet anything.
As always, the reMarkable uses its limitations to its advantage, offering a fairly muted color palette, and you don’t need to burn your retinas while trying to organize your thoughts before a big meeting. That said, I’m used to seeing a lot of well-made displays these days, and I do wish the colors were a little more vibrant.
The Paper Pro is the first reMarkable to feature a front light, which finally lets you work in dark environments. Solberg explained that building the front light without compromising the distance between the tip of the stylus and the display itself was one of the most difficult challenges. He said the team was adamant about keeping the gap between the pen and the display to less than one millimeter, and they succeeded.
The previous two slates had active displays but passive styluses. The Paper Pro also has an active stylus like the Apple Pencil. It charges while magnetically connecting to the side of the bezel, and new components improve accuracy and latency. Solberg said the reMarkable 2 had 22ms of input latency, and the company was aiming for 15ms for this model. He proudly said the team had vastly exceeded that goal, bringing the Paper Pro’s latency down to just 12ms.
Still, despite all the headline changes, the really compelling feature is the added responsiveness. The rM2 didn’t lag behind. Faster typing really conveyed the impression of sketching ideas on paper. I also appreciated the little details, like being able to add highlights and handwritten annotations to typed text, which follow the text as you edit.
To accompany the Paper Pro, the company is launching a new Type Folio that is larger in size and has backlit keys like its parent. I will admit that I was one of the few reviewers who liked the old model and felt they made the right compromises to keep the size small. The new model takes advantage of the extra space to provide more space and a palm rest. It’s essentially the same keyboard as before, and I found it pretty comfortable to use even over long periods of time.
We were also impressed with how reMarkable has worked to make the Paper Pro easier to repair and refurbish than previous models. Solberg explained that the Paper Pro is much more modular inside, making it easier to replace components. He said it’s not end-user serviceable, but noted that the only adhesive used on the chassis are two replaceable adhesive strips to secure the battery. While repairs will likely need to be done at reMarkable headquarters or a partner retailer, the fact that it’s designed with long-term repair in mind is commendable.
The reMarkable Paper Pro is available to order starting today. reMarkable website and Best BuyThe is priced at $579 with the standard marker, or $629 with the Marker Plus. If you want to add a case (which we heartily recommend), that will cost you between $89 and $179 depending on your choice of material, and if you want to add the Type Folio, you’ll have to shell out another $229. The reMarkable 2 remains as the lower-priced option (not amazingly, but it’s a very good piece of kit) and will be available to buy with the standard marker for $379.
Of course, you and your wallet must decide whether you can bear to part with that amount, especially in these tough times. With a product like this, there are deliberate choices and limitations, so a direct comparison to a similarly priced iPad will always be at a disadvantage. The key is to decide whether you are more productive with less mental and physical clutter in your computing environment, and go from there. When I have a lot of work to do and need to focus, I’ve found it to be a better way to put together a first draft than any other device.
