But Amazon is somewhat late to the celebration. In the years because it final developed a big-screen Kindle, firms like reMarkable and Onyx have dabbled in digital notebooks — and a few of them have gotten so good that Amazon’s work can typically really feel somewhat missing by comparability.
I’ve spent the previous couple of weeks testing the Kindle Scribe and attempting it out in opposition to a few of its most attention-grabbing competitors. Here’s what you must know.
(Amazon founder Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post, however on the Help Desk, we evaluations all services with the identical vital eye.)
At $339 (or extra, for those who decide for a nicer pen and add a case), the Scribe is Amazon’s largest, costliest Kindle in years. In testing it alongside rival gadgets just like the $299 reMarkable 2 and the $599 Onyx Boox Tab Ultra, it didn’t take lengthy to find that the Scribe isn’t equally good for reading and writing.
The Scribe has maybe essentially the most polished software program of the three, and due to barely there weight and nice display screen lighting, it’s the one which I’d most wish to energy by way of a novel on. But for those who’re enthusiastic about performing some critical writing on a tool like this, chances are you’ll wish to contemplate one thing just like the reMarkable as an alternative.
I’m not saying taking notes or crossing objects off a to-do checklist was in any respect disagreeable. Writing on the Scribe with the included stylus display screen felt clean and satisfying, and it comes with a handful of pocket book templates for individuals who want to leap between wide-ruled, grid and even sheet music “paper.”
What actually will get me is that the Scribe’s writing options really feel somewhat fundamental in contrast with a few of its rivals.
There’s no approach to, for instance, choose a bunch of textual content you’ve written and transfer it round. If you realized you’ve put some notes within the fallacious spot, oh, nicely — you’ll simply should erase and rewrite it. (iPads, the reMarkable and Onyx’s digital notebooks can deal with this simply superb.) Also lacking is any sort of handwriting recognition, which implies there’s no approach to search for particular belongings you’ve written or convert your writing into textual content to make it extra legible.
Occasional writers won’t discover these options are absent. Ditto for people who primarily need a Scribe for books — that is undoubtedly nonetheless a reading-first machine. In an e-mail, an Amazon spokesperson mentioned the Scribe was “inspired” by the individuals who have been highlighting and leaving notes of their Kindle books for years. Fine, however when you think about the final time Amazon debuted a brand new big-screen Kindle reader was extra than a decade in the past, I’m somewhat stunned it didn’t flesh out its writing instruments somewhat extra.
People who wish to see extra. The Scribe has a ten.2-inch show, the biggest Amazon has ever squeezed right into a Kindle. That means now you can view extra of a ebook at a look, or — in case your eyes aren’t what they was — actually crank up the font measurement.
People who hate charging devices. Gadgets with e-paper shows have a repute for lengthy battery life, and to this point, the Scribe isn’t any exception. Unless you’re reading 24/7, count on it to final just a few weeks on a single cost.
People who write notes in ebook margins. As a digital pocket book, the Scribe is fundamental at finest. But scribbling observations in books you’re reading — plus exporting and reviewing them later — works nicely sufficient.
People who work with complicated paperwork. You can import and write on prime of Word paperwork and PDFs, however Amazon says you’ll be able to’t mark up information that embrace giant tables. And for those who work with a lot of lengthy PDF papers, you might even see the Scribe hesitate once you attempt to swipe into a brand new web page. (It doesn’t at all times occur, however it will probably actually gradual you down for those who’re wanting for one thing particular.)
Folks who hold information within the cloud. The Scribe can’t hook up with companies like Dropbox or Google Drive, which implies attending to work on the paperwork you might have saved there takes some work. And if you wish to get belongings you’ve written off the Scribe, you might have two choices: e-mail them to your self, or view (however not save) them within the Kindle app in your cellphone or pill.
Those who wish to learn within the tub. Many of Amazon’s different latest Kindles can survive the occasional spill or splash. Not so for the corporate’s costliest Kindle — chances are you’ll wish to suppose twice earlier than packing it for a seashore day.
What the advertising doesn’t point out
Other gadgets could make reading somewhat simpler. iPads and Android tablets can run Amazon’s Kindle app, which incorporates one useful characteristic that the Scribe lacks: a two-column view once you maintain your gadget horizontally. It feels ever-so-slightly extra like reading an precise ebook, and its absence right here might be an actual bummer for some.
You can simply drag and drop information onto the Scribe. Using Amazon’s Send to Kindle web site to ship information to the Scribe is straightforward sufficient, and it hasn’t taken extra than a few minutes to reach. But for those who’re someplace you’ll be able to’t get on-line — or for those who don’t need Amazon as a center man — you’ll be able to switch information with the included USB cable.
You can fill it with books you didn’t purchase from Amazon. Okay, superb, the Scribe’s product web page does technically point out this. But it’s price repeating that you could transfer digital books within the EPUB format you didn’t purchase from Amazon onto the Scribe. So far, the books I’ve examined this with look the way in which they’re purported to, however your mileage might range.
What are the options?
If the Scribe is an e-book reader first, digital pocket book second, the reMarkable 2 is the precise reverse. You can’t purchase books on one, although loading it up with information to learn is trivial. And the dearth of any built-in lighting means reading in mattress might require turning on a lamp.
What actually shines, although, is the way it approaches writing and group. The options I discussed the Scribe missing — like shifting round snippets of writing and handwriting-to-text conversion — work splendidly right here. The reMarkable additionally contains extra choices to customise your pen strokes, plus assist for cloud companies like Google Drive and Dropbox for simpler entry to your information.
The catch: The reMarkable doesn’t include a free stylus — that’ll value you no less than an additional $79. The full package deal prices extra than the Scribe, however individuals desperate to be productive might get extra out of reMarkable’s options.
Meanwhile, the $599 Onyx Boox Tab Ultra is essentially the most bold digital pocket book I’ve ever seen. It has a processor quick sufficient to play HD video, a digital camera for scanning paperwork, and runs on a customized model of Android. That means you’ll be able to set up Amazon’s Kindle app — or the Kobo Store, or Libby — and browse books from nearly wherever.
The catch: The software program is, fairly frankly, a multitude. You don’t have to poke round for lengthy earlier than working into complicated menu choices, and app crashes aren’t unusual.