Really proud of Lenovo to continue its investment in e-ink! I had a Lenovo Yoga C930 which included an eink panel as one of the screens, but of course, it was a niche device and its note taking capabilities were probably one of the most limited I've ever encountered. Given their experience I'm glad they have invested a lot of time making sure the software is up to par. Lenovo also just announced a dual screen OLED laptop which honestly is the computer of my dreams. Good for Lenovo continuing to invest in more niche devices and branching out into more non-traditional form factors!
Yes, the new ThinkPad (Book) generation with OLED + eink and a twist hinge. I am also curious with those e-ink capabilities and note taking feeling on that! But even this Smart Paper its best in its class (is like a lion king , his own master in his own world, but with nobody aside).
Congrats on that little sign of recognition to you on the part of Lenovo. You're good Voja, and the word is out!! You're showing enough enthusiasm as to make me crave it! No more Scribe.
Same question than you regarding OneNote. I read that this tablet did not have app store so can’t install OneNote. Look forward to seeing the next video
Great first impressions. Let's see, a Remarkable-like device, without the silly subscription? Sounds like a winner to me. Looking forward to your in-depth review. I got a Boox Note Air 2, and I'm still learning how to use it. Lenovo seems much more intuitive.
They rolled back what the subscription does for you. Without a subscription, your stuff can get cloud saved only for files used within 50 days. With the subscription there's no time limit. (And of course you can always sync to your pc regardless) And that's basically it. Handwriting to text conversion can be used by anyone and everything else.
Remarkably similar with Remarkable or not, if Yoga Paper lets users handily install third party reader apps like kindle or else, that will be a game changer! :)
Kindle, Kobo, Overdrive, cloudlibrary, etc. app access is ESSENTIAL for the e-reader market in the west, and would widen the market for this device. Please, Lenovo- set us free!
reMarkable 2 with the ability to run Android apps sounds good to me! I do not actually want very many Android apps, but it must be able to run the Kobo and Kindle apps and the client apps for the cloud storage I want to use, not just the one Google is paying them (presumably) to promote. Hopefully they (or Google) have not screwed this up with gratuitous restrictions!
Except that the Paper can't run apps except for what Lenovo say so / preinstalls. At least one interview company reps have said it will not have access to the app store or have a way to install it.
@@HoodGrownGenius I really do not get this argument! If you really want to focus, it is hard to beat old fashioned paper books, printed and notebooks! As soon as you embrace ebooks you risk being distracted by the multiplicity of different books at your fingertips. My observation is that if you have different devices for different functions you are likely to have them all on the go at once (a social media feed running on your phone while you (pretend to) read your ebook). Personally I find it easier to focus on a single screen switching between multiple applications with just one 'in focus' at any point in time.
"...strong inspiration from the reMarkable..." is a kinder phrase than I would have chosen. "Complete rip-off" is more the drection I would have gone in describing the Smart Paper's UI. I suppose imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but would it have killed Lenovo to come up with a *slightly* novel presentation?
Or maybe I didn't want to jump to conclusions, as I don't know if maybe they did a licencing deal of some sort, or are simply running this as a placeholder UI, as the device is still months away from release ;)
You cant copyright an idea, unfortunately. If you wanted to make a youtube clone, for example, you are free to do so as lomg as you dont actually use their code, or their trademarked logo etc. RU-vid cannot copyright the design and layout of their site.
Great first impression. Personally this device definetly is inside my scope of interest. If it would come out when i was deciding on the device it would definetly be in my top 3 right now, without any big objective reviews. Screen and shades of gray seems good, many brushes are another plus. I expect only good things from this and to be a significant rival to remarkable, supernote and boox note air
Great first review, looking forward to the in-depth one. I'm interested to see what apps it can support - kindle, news readers, etc, and how it syncs with cloud back-up (having Google Drive right there makes me hopeful that this should be fairly smooth).
Must be some kind of licensing deal surely? Lenovo aren’t the type of company to steal another company’s software layout, right down to the exact same icons in places!
Being able to save things straight to Google is a game changer and had I been able to do that with my RM2 I would never have let it go. But there are potential deal breakers here like custom templates. But Oh those pens and pencils brushes ..oh my I don't recall seeing any ghosting in this display... at all With a fast in-app response
Great review. Personally the lack of access to the Google Play Store seems like a non-starter unless it gets rooted imo, but interested to see what they provide in general as the space widens further. Glad to know someone was smart enough to go thru Voya as he is the tastemaker in this field by far.
Great introduction to the Lenovo. Very much looking forward to your final review. Regarding the feel of the pen when writing, are pen nibs universal and therefore interchangeable? I'm wondering if it is possible to use a Scribe pen nib in the Lenovo's pen, therefore taking care of the hardness you spoke of without resorting to replacing the entire pen?
The UI looks almost exactly like the rM with ddvk hack, like Lenovo did what rM should have incorporated into their SW with choice of writing intrustments and thickness, etc. Looking forward to your in depth review, especially interested in file management capabilities. Thanks for you hard work.
Hi from Spain! When do you expect to publish a deep review of this Lenovo Smart Paper? End february? I am planning to buy a Supernote A5x but I'm waiting to see that deep review, just in case 🤔
Still a long way to go until it's released, so the software is in super early stage, but even so, some stuff works better than Remarkable did years after it's first release. So that's a promising sign :)
Man I'd really love to hear more on the status of this one. The Kindle Scribe was pretty disappointing and I'd like to see more big companies throw their hats in the ring.
Voja, thank you; a great first impression. I am already looking eagerly for the indepth review of the Lenovo Smart Paper. My first voyage into the e-Ink market was a Remarkable 2 and loved it. Since then, I have also tried the Boox NA2+ and SN A5X. So, I like the similarity of the Smart Paper to RM2 (love the variety of pen options). It was obvious when you did the unboxing that this device would be comparable to RM2. So, my questions will be whether Smart Paper can do anything like SN does with linking. And, the positive aspect of Smart Paper operating on Android seems to be a plus. What is the operating system of Remarkable 2? For some people the Boox platform's ability to expand on the Android system works while for others of us the simplicity of Smart Paper's approach is fine. I use my e-Ink units for writing, notes, some reading, and a little organizing, so the Lenovo is very appealing.
So it looks like a Kindle Scribe and software like the Remarkable 2. I have both so I’ll pass on this. I use the remarkable without the subscription anyways so it doesn’t make a difference to me. Are you able to get info on what the data privacy is and where the servers are located? That’s turned me off of the Supernote and Boox devices.
I was thinking about not getting the Supernote because I had suspicions about data privacy. Your comment confirmed some suspicion. Where did you find this information at and is this what lead you to the remarkable 2? That’s kind of where I’m at in my decision making process. Appreciate your insight Kimper!
@@Larbear29 yes I had suspicions as well. Diving deeper Supernote says they have “locations” in Shanghai, Tokyo and USA but when you check on Reddit there have been some users that found it would ping a server in China when there was an update. My concern is that that technically there are data privacy laws that could make a private company there provide that government with access to info (I’m not saying this is the case with Supernote or Boox but I did keep that in mind when choosing my device). From some posts online, it appears that Remarkable uses Google cloud. Now you can use all these devices offline and manually transfer your notes to the computer so there is no cloud back up but that is an extra step. Either way, it’s best to determine features and factors that are important to you and choose the device that best fits.
I see at CES that Lenovo has a laptop with an e-ink screen, I think it might be a good device for me and my work for filling out Google docs and my reports whilst I am working, Will wait and see when it's released
Nice device. Probably slightly cheaper than the competition... Has some limitations (new platform)... Some kind of Android 11... Maybe "Remarkable killer"... But definitely not the "Boox killer"... Thank you Voja! I am waiting for the Lenovo Smart Paper full review... And TabX review also :-)
Hi Voja, can we expect soon any comparison of remarkable 3 to the Lenovo Smart paper? I know that they are very similar, but I’m curious about the super tiny details that you can tell us about 😊
Thank you Voja for the the video. I am waiting for the full review! Plz could you focus on the battery autonomy, the built-in dictionary (does it work with online or offline definitions?) and taking notes and highlights on PDFs
This is so similar to the RM2, especially the software. I have had my RM2 since its inception and I love it, however I do believe after using the iPad Mini 6 since it came out, I believe the sweet spot for portability would be an eInk tablet with an 8 inch screen, similar to an A5 notebook.
Thanks for sharing - can't wait to watch the full review video!.Based on the first impressions shown here, yes, it ressembles the rM2's menu layout, but if a layout works, why reinvent the wheel? Both PC and Mac, for example, offer options for round or digital clocks, similar tree menus. The cool pluses here are the voice recording, how the pen is integrated into the folder. Looking forward to see how it works as could be a potential upgrade from my rM2.
I like it for the sketching alone, being an artist first and foremost + the £350 all in pen + folio and free delivery seems better than the competition for what i want.... Basic notes and epubs would be my only other use, so I don't care the UX is a bit off... I also dont care about all of the android/playstore aspects (boox) as there are only a few apps that really work as they should with the low refresh rate tech such as Koreader, Einkbro and moonreader in e-ink mode...
is yoga paper and smart paper the same? they share the same number SP101FU, my smart paper broke down like a boot loop, can you flash stock rom for yoga paper to smart paper? since you cannot see any flashing files for smart paper, but if you look for yoga paper there is alot flashing guides, stock roms etc., I dunno why there isnt any for smart paper, thanks
Congratulations, you are one the best reviewers.. I have Tab Lenovo : XiaoXing Pad pro 2021, it is really a super tab and now finally they have made the Lenovo paper, Many many thanks for your review.
Definitely, students will get A using this device. It has no distractions like other devices having RU-vid, Facebook, twitter, instagram, movies, et. etc. When students lift notes from this this device during study hour they will not drift to aforementioned distractions. I think teachers should allow only this kind of device inside classrooms.
It seems very interesting even the refresh is not like many others ! My favorite actually, thanks for sharing 😊 your Channel is helping me a lot in this choise !
hehe I mix lower case and uppercase randomly with the actual caps being larger. You do this random mix of cursive and non cursive.. interesting the way people write words nowadays. Most of us aren't even writing words anymore.
What designates a good review? It is when I just formulate a question in my mind to post in the comments sections as a request, only to be answered in the next 30 seconds by Voja. Appreciate your work, Voja. Great stuff. Keep it coming!
The device is not going to be released for another several months, so we don't know if this is placeholder UI, or maybe licenced use from Remarkable or something else. There isn't enough information at this point to draw a conclusion of any sort.
I love your excitement when you first opened it. I was cracking up when you said, "It's so pretty!" You sound like me as I've done the same. 😆🤣 Great review!
When are you planning on doing a full review? Will it be closer to the release date so you can assess all the functionality? Speaking of which, any idea when it'll release?
Yeah, it will be closer to the release, once they roll out the release candidate of the OS, but as of yet I don't have any confirmation when that will be.
Thanks again! I can't wait to see your comprehensive review on the Lenovo and possibly get my hand on one. I have been watching your videos for more than a year waiting to pull the trigger on smart paper device and maybe this will be my first device.
Or they used a placeholder UI design or maybe even licensed it from the Remarkable. At this point we don't know, but I have asked them, so we'll see if they offer any kind of clarification regarding that question.
Great review, Voya! I am going to go out on a limb here. The almost insanely similar (exact copy) of the reMarkable interface tells me that, very likely, reMarkable is about to sell to Lenovo. No way Lenovo could get away with this almost exact copy of a reMarkable without fear of a lawsuit. Just a prediction. :)
Thanks! Ok, but of that is the case, why would Lenovo then be doing R&D and basically ramping up for production of their own unit? It's far more likely that the similarities between the UIs are because: 1. Lenovo licensed the UI from Remarkable. 2. Lenovo is using this as a placeholder UI, since the tablet is months away from being released. 3. Lenovo was unaware that their UI designer faked doing their job by ripping off an existing UI design. At this point, we don't know and all 3 are equally viable options, but without additional information,all we can do is speculate, nothing more.
Sério, finalmente um produto que me chamou atenção, parece que as folhas de papel iram perder espaço, o problema é quando virá para o Brasil, quero exportar 🙄.
Any idea when the Smart Paper will actually be released? Cant find any useful info. Also, haven't seen anything on the Remarkable too either. Any ideas on either?
I have asked them, but I haven't heard back with any details yet, so I don't know either. As for a new Remarkable device, I haven't heard anything regarding that. What are you referring to?
@@MyDeepGuide I just figured it was about time for Remarkable to refresh their product. I’m really curious about the similarities with the Lenovo interface and Remarkable. Seems to me there are some scenarios I’m wondering about: 1) Remarkable did not copyright it, so it was free for the taking (not likely) 2) Lenovo is licensing it from Remarkable 3) Lenovo is copying it without permission and os at risk of a legal challenge 4) Or Lenovo might be buying Remarkable??? Just my thoughts from the limited views I’ve had is the interface. Just looks really really similar. Curious how it shakes out.
Great review, great first impression. I love how much inspiration Lenovo took from the reMarkable interface!! I actually love using my reMarkable 2, but there are many things I absolutely hate about the device (lack of storage, lack of backlight, lack of Android OS, lack of a place to put the pen, subpar ebook reading experience...) and Lenovo has (apparently/hopefully?) fixed many of those things, while giving me the reMarkable user interface that I love. I think I may be ditching both my rM2 and my Boox NA2+ for this.
@@prasadkhake not at all, not in any way. It dramatically extends the utility to be able to use at night: in bed, on a plane, train, etc. It's the reason I grab my Boox 90% more often than my reMarkable. I'll never purchase another note-taking device/e-reader without a backlight option.
@@JustSturgis I understand the pros of it re utility in dark, but i thought e-paper's USP was it's no glare property which is easy on the eye as well as high battery life, both of which would be nullified if you have a backlight. (Trying to understand this space more, I am the cofounder of paperd ink which is an open-source e-paper dev board).
@@prasadkhake I don't see where either of those pros would be "nullified", only a third pro would be added. A backlight is a user enabled option. It has no effect whatsoever on daytime readability as it isn't active in daytime/lit spaces. It also doesn't adversely effect readability in general so I'm confused by that point. As far as battery, I've found using the backlight has a negligible effect on battery life. I'd gladly give up a few minutes of battery life for the ability to use my device in any environment. I find it curious that you would use "defeat the purpose" or "nullified" to describe a feature that augments the USPs of e-ink displays.
When I need to make a note I need to make it instantly: grab pen, grab paper, quickly make the note. But in this video it took the "Smart Paper" 28 seconds to power-up, which is too long! However, I suppose one could leave the "Smart Paper" on, perhaps in "sleep mode", at all times, for instant use. But in that case how long would the battery last before it needs to be charged up again?
Yes, for your review: please show about handwritten note organization (not printed) - as in TOC and keynotes or tags and are there limits to how many, and are there search functions that work with handwriting? Does it have an infite canvas mode (up/dn and sideways)?
Thanks for the review, is it possible to create a file (text file or PDF) with your own notes? if so, when you are reading a pdf, is it possible to select text from the pdf document and copy and paste it to your own document? Thanks
Thanks for a great video!!! I’d love for your full review to compare it to Supernote and all the updates it’s done recently. Also, I’m really excited for the Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Twist. A laptop with an eink screen where either the eink screen or the pled screen can be used as part of the laptop. I hope that you get to review that device when it comes out!!!
The UI looks like most of the devs were already using reMarkable for a few years now and had some ideas for improvement. To be honest, backlight seems nice, dictation also not so bad, but would be curious of the nib and screen materials from wear point of view. eBook store connection (Bookstore) could and should be implemented into reMarkable, too. Altogether, this device looks nice for the price. I would definitely give it a try if I wouldn't have my rM2 already 😅
When will they be available? I don’t want a notebook where I have to take out a subscription. I just want a simple device offering a bit more than the scribe which I have and it’s still not unpacked.
I am in the market for one of these devices for work. I am left handed. Can you flip the orientation so the pen holder (the thicker bezel) is on the right side?
The locked down experience is truly a deal breaker for me personally, would love to see this get rooted so we can side-load apps. Other than that, what a perfect little device.
Is there a street date release for this? Looks like not even Lenovo has the info on their website, and the only one for sale are from that tablet website that add a 200 dollars markup for the Chinese version... I am really interested to see if this can be a Supernote and Boox replacement; especially if it can sideload apps and there is eventually something similar to the linking feature present on the supernote.
I am very curious and looking foreward to your indepth review. I was hoping Supernote showed some gain to renew their device with backlight and screensharing etcetera as their pen has the everlasting nib. What is your experience when it comes to nib-life? How long do they last when using the pen on a dailybase? Thanks for your nice-to-watch contributions!
