Anyone remember the Noteslate? Well, it seems to be back.

Dazrin · 10-02-2015, 11:17 AM

Back at the beginning of 2011 there was an inexpensive, black and white e-ink drawing/writing tablet that was marketed and got lots of interest. It turned out to be a concept in development with no actual hardware to back it up with (boo!) Well apparently they are still working on it and have actual hardware now.

Sounds like 3 devices by sometime next year. The first, the Shiro, is a 6.8" e-ink Pearl display, then a larger 9.7" version and finally a 13.3" "Hero" version. The 6.8" version is up for presale now even. Of course the price for the 6.8" version is twice what they promised for the original, but it is still an interesting device.

It also looks like it will be usable as an e-reader as well as a note taking/doodling device now. If the reader portion lives up to the promise it might be the step needed to get me to use e-books for non-fiction and reference material.

Anyway, here's their site if you are interested, http://www.noteslate.com/, and no, I don't have any relationship with them beyond being excited to see how it ends up. I REALLY wanted one of these a few years ago and it could still be a great device.

leebase · 10-02-2015, 12:38 PM

Wow - their promotional video makes the product look terrible. Looks like chicken scratch with a terrible dose of latency. I kept expecting to see this scribbling turned into nice formatted text. But no. Just the ability to write your own chicken scratch on an eink screen.

You know what else you can do? Write your own chicken scratch on a piece of paper, and take a photo of it to organize it with Evernote or any of a number of apps with your smartphone.

This product, as shown, isn't going anywhere.

SCION · 10-02-2015, 12:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by leebase

Wow - their promotional video makes the product look terrible. Looks like chicken scratch with a terrible dose of latency. I kept expecting to see this scribbling turned into nice formatted text. But no. Just the ability to write your own chicken scratch on an eink screen.

You know what else you can do? Write your own chicken scratch on a piece of paper, and take a photo of it to organize it with Evernote or any of a number of apps with your smartphone.

This product, as shown, isn't going anywhere.

Hilarious! I said the same thing when it caught my attention a couple of weeks ago. I was like, am I missing the key selling point?

ZodWallop · 10-02-2015, 04:53 PM

Why would you want this over a tablet?

crossi · 10-02-2015, 05:26 PM

Because I haven't used a tablet yet that I liked. I just hate the tablet interface. I've tried Fires and iPads. Hate them both. Because the long battery life. Because I don't need a tablet to make a grocery or to do list, but I do make constant short lists on scraps of paper.

Dazrin · 10-02-2015, 05:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

Why would you want this over a tablet?

My use case would be mostly for notes and hand calculations at work. I hate carrying around a laptop to take notes with (I don't retain as much and I need to do freehand sketches a lot) and this would allow me to do all that plus have immediate PDF copies or even OCR'd copies of my notes available to send out. Longer battery life, light weight, and "paper-like" screen are all pluses over a tablet as well - at least when this was first proposed. I will need to evaluate more closely when they release specs/price for the 9.7 and 13.3 inch models.

It would also be nice to let my kids use as a drawing tablet in the car, it was supposed to be cheap enough and supposed to have a nice stylus to use with it. Tablet styluses aren't great in my experience (possible exception: MS Surface Pro which is ok). I am not sure that at $200 (more for the 9.7" and 13.3" sizes I am sure) it is cheap enough for this option anymore, at $100 it would have been ok.

With the new and improved version, I might also use it as an ereader, but that remains to be seen. I would probably like the 9.7 inch size for notes (minimum), but that is a little large for me to use as an ereader.

scoff · 10-02-2015, 05:43 PM

I want a large reader for comfortably reading and annotating PDFs.

Seems like that use-case isn't being prioritized.

ottdmk · 10-02-2015, 08:46 PM

I will say that my daughter loves the sketch pad function on my Kobo.

RZetlin · 10-03-2015, 09:51 AM

Noteslate is the same size as the Kobo H2O. How is this different from Kobo's Sketchpad app? I would have considered the Noteslate if the eReader was larger like 8-inches. For now I will stick with my Kobo.

Dulin's Books · 10-03-2015, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by crossi

Because I haven't used a tablet yet that I liked. I just hate the tablet interface. I've tried Fires and iPads. Hate them both. Because the long battery life. Because I don't need a tablet to make a grocery or to do list, but I do make constant short lists on scraps of paper.

you want a boogie board http://www.myboogieboard.com/

Dulin's Books · 10-03-2015, 10:47 AM

there is nothing in their video showing hand written notes that hasnt been able to be done with an Onyx ereader for years. I would almost bet you that Onyx is the one actually building it for them based on their android ereader models and the emr pen tech they already use.

i would caution anyone about buying an eink device from anyone who would call it "backlit" several times on their website

crossi · 10-03-2015, 11:25 AM

Got a boogie board. Didn't work for me. It would fit my needs if you could toogle between write and erase modes. Write with a stylus and erase with your thumb. The boogie board also doesn't let you keep and store multiple lists. Ie current to do list, current grocery list.

ZodWallop · 10-05-2015, 10:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by crossi

Because I haven't used a tablet yet that I liked. I just hate the tablet interface. I've tried Fires and iPads. Hate them both.

Hating those does not mean you will love the Noteslate.

Quote:

Originally Posted by crossi

Because I don't need a tablet to make a grocery or to do list, but I do make constant short lists on scraps of paper.

Have you tried Google Keep? Stupid name, but pretty handy for grocery and to-do lists. And no need for a tablet. You can use the phone that you already likely have on hand anyway.

Hey, I hope these Noteslates sell like hotcakes. But honestly, they look like they will be lucky if they find a niche that supports them.

10-02-2015, 11:17 AM	#1
Dazrin Wizard Posts: 2,726 Karma: 75825105 Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: PDXish Device: Kindle Voyage, various Android devices	Anyone remember the Noteslate? Well, it seems to be back. Back at the beginning of 2011 there was an inexpensive, black and white e-ink drawing/writing tablet that was marketed and got lots of interest. It turned out to be a concept in development with no actual hardware to back it up with (boo!) Well apparently they are still working on it and have actual hardware now. Sounds like 3 devices by sometime next year. The first, the Shiro, is a 6.8" e-ink Pearl display, then a larger 9.7" version and finally a 13.3" "Hero" version. The 6.8" version is up for presale now even. Of course the price for the 6.8" version is twice what they promised for the original, but it is still an interesting device. It also looks like it will be usable as an e-reader as well as a note taking/doodling device now. If the reader portion lives up to the promise it might be the step needed to get me to use e-books for non-fiction and reference material. Anyway, here's their site if you are interested, http://www.noteslate.com/, and no, I don't have any relationship with them beyond being excited to see how it ends up. I REALLY wanted one of these a few years ago and it could still be a great device.

10-03-2015, 09:51 AM	#9
RZetlin Addict Posts: 383 Karma: 3461302 Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Canada Device: Kobo Aura One, Kobo Glo, Kobo Aura HD (RIP)	Noteslate is the same size as the Kobo H2O. How is this different from Kobo's Sketchpad app? I would have considered the Noteslate if the eReader was larger like 8-inches. For now I will stick with my Kobo. Last edited by RZetlin; 10-03-2015 at 10:00 AM.

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10-02-2015, 12:38 PM	#2
leebase Karma Kameleon Posts: 2,960 Karma: 26738313 Join Date: Aug 2009 Device: iPad Mini, iPhone X, Kindle Fire Tab HD 8, Walmart Onn	Wow - their promotional video makes the product look terrible. Looks like chicken scratch with a terrible dose of latency. I kept expecting to see this scribbling turned into nice formatted text. But no. Just the ability to write your own chicken scratch on an eink screen. You know what else you can do? Write your own chicken scratch on a piece of paper, and take a photo of it to organize it with Evernote or any of a number of apps with your smartphone. This product, as shown, isn't going anywhere.

10-02-2015, 04:53 PM	#4
ZodWallop Gentleman and scholar Posts: 11,471 Karma: 111164374 Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Space City, Texas Device: Clara BW; Nook ST w/Glowlight, Paperwhite 3	Why would you want this over a tablet?

10-02-2015, 05:26 PM	#5
crossi Guru Posts: 997 Karma: 12000001 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Seattle Wahington U.S. Device: kindle	Because I haven't used a tablet yet that I liked. I just hate the tablet interface. I've tried Fires and iPads. Hate them both. Because the long battery life. Because I don't need a tablet to make a grocery or to do list, but I do make constant short lists on scraps of paper.

10-02-2015, 05:43 PM	#7
scoff Enthusiast Posts: 26 Karma: 20 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: DC Device: Kindle Keyboard	I want a large reader for comfortably reading and annotating PDFs. Seems like that use-case isn't being prioritized.

10-02-2015, 08:46 PM	#8
ottdmk Wizard Posts: 1,220 Karma: 3804496 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Device: Kobo Libra 2, Lenovo Tab M10 FHD Plus, Lenovo Tab M9	I will say that my daughter loves the sketch pad function on my Kobo.

10-03-2015, 10:47 AM	#11
Dulin's Books Wizard Posts: 2,806 Karma: 13500000 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Portland, OR Device: Boox PB360 etc etc etc	there is nothing in their video showing hand written notes that hasnt been able to be done with an Onyx ereader for years. I would almost bet you that Onyx is the one actually building it for them based on their android ereader models and the emr pen tech they already use. i would caution anyone about buying an eink device from anyone who would call it "backlit" several times on their website

10-03-2015, 11:25 AM	#12
crossi Guru Posts: 997 Karma: 12000001 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Seattle Wahington U.S. Device: kindle	Got a boogie board. Didn't work for me. It would fit my needs if you could toogle between write and erase modes. Write with a stylus and erase with your thumb. The boogie board also doesn't let you keep and store multiple lists. Ie current to do list, current grocery list.

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