Bought last week and just picked up today.
I was looking for a Kindle scribe but found this, come with case and pen, quality build, a bit heavy though.
Android OS, should be lots of fun 🤩
Update: installed APK via Google drive without any issues.
Lenovo Smart Paper 10.3" E-Ink Paper Tablet $349 + Delivery ($0 C&C/ in-Store) @ JB Hi-Fi
610
fallingcat on 26/03/2024 - 19:22 jbhifi.com.au (3894 clicks)
Last edited 26/03/2024 - 20:32 by 1 other user
Last edited 26/03/2024 - 20:32 by 1 other user
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Kobo Libra 2 is 7 inch
I'd only be buying it to read as well. Size isn't really a factor at this point I don't think but maybe the smaller footprint would be better. I'm watching a review about the lenovo right now and it's pretty critical. Will need to do more research. I don't think this will sell out right away.
If it's just for reading I'd get the Kobo.
@theguyrules: Yeah, I think I'm going to do that. I mean, if this device was good for reading and some other stuff was good too then I'd get this, even if it was a bit more expensive but that's not what I've been reading.
@ozbs25: Good plan. I have always been curious about e-ink tablets too but I'd want one that has good reviews.
I love my Kobo Libra 2.
@theguyrules: Id even be happy with last gen e-ink in those washed out 8bit lookin colour.
sadly not for us.
https://www.reddit.com/r/eink/comments/1apbxfq/lenovo_smart_…
https://www.reddit.com/r/studytips/comments/17cieem/is_lenov…- looks like software still lets it down, even just for reading and not using for note taking. Not Android so can't just install an app to fix it, either.
Its definitely android. You can install apps with .apks but theres no Play Store (but can be sideloaded)
Sorry, I meant android as in play/appstore-supported android so a user can't install their own apps to solve the software's shortcomings. Even ADB has been disabled so no sideloading.
You're reliant on Lenovo to improve functionality, so if they EOL it you're SOL :)
I was looking for a larger eink device for pdf consumption but the software (and dependence on Lenovo) is making this look like a bad option - a shame, since the hardware looks decent.
@bdl: But you can just transfer apks or download direct through firefox from websites like apkmirror.
Id say for reading its a bit too heavy.
The Kobo Libra 2 is a pure ebook reader. Kobo has been making e-readers since 2010 and they are roughly on par with equivalently sized and priced Amazon Kindle. They run their own ebook store which seems comprehensive. You also get the Overdrive/Libby app can be used to borrow ebooks from many public libraries. It has a 7" screen size which is either big enough or not big enough depending on your viewpoint.
The Lenovo Smart Paper is both a stylus note pad and ebook reader. It runs Android, but doesn't come with the play store. You may be able to side load apps. It natively supports ebooks.com as a books store. I've never heard of them, but they seem to have been around for quite a while and prices seem on par with Amazon and Kobo. The price makes it tempting, but I'm guessing it's been reduced because it's a bit crap.
At this stage that's all I want. I'm only looking at the Lenovo purely from a bargain POV. From what I've read and seen, the hardware itself is pretty good but the rest isn't really well thought-out. Shame really as it could have been nice. It does look like it's being cleared as it's a hard sell. Honestly haven't really read/seen any really positive reviews about the device.
Fwiw I've had a Kobo Aura for almost 6 years and it's been unreal. The battery life vs the kindle I had prior is absolutely outstanding (still).
I think the comparable Kobo is the Elipsa 2.
I am intrigued by the Onyx Boox series (Tab C or Air 3) but simply cannot justify the price. So I shall make do with my $199 SP5 for my PDF annotation needs.
I've got a Libra 2 and I use it most days. Happy to field any questions (though I can't speak for this Lenovo).
My six year old Kobo Clara is still going strong. One of my best/fav tech purchase.
The Boox Palmio looks perfect, but it’s around $500 AUD
Last I checked no easy way to upload to onedrive or google one.
How easy is it to upload your own ebooks?
Very easy
Probably will take some time to write your books first, publish it and then download an illegal copy of it before being able to load it on your $300 ebook reader.
Probably easier on Kindle. With a Kindle you just need to download the "Send To Kindle" app to your Mac or PC, then whenever you right click an ePub or other book format file and choose "send to kindle" it'll just be sent to your kindle over the internet. So easy.
It's even easier than that. You download an EPUB and email it to your Kindle address.
That's not easier than right clicking a file and choosing an option.
Can you do the same with PDFs?
Does Google 'play Books' app work with this?
I have a bunch of books on there, and would be great to be able to have the progression sync between this and my pc.Doesn't have Play Services installed - so, doubt it
@MaxiPower Update, I've managed to get Root on my Lenovo Smart Paper and install Google Play Services. Now Play Books works actually quite well on this device.
I have one so a couple of notes. It won't file transfer using Android Mac File Transfer; I tried multiple Macs. Windows and Linux works fine (even from a VM on the Macs!). Side loading is no drama, I downloaded F-Droid, Aurora and Amazon stores and install the rest of the software I use from the stores for easy updates.
All the reviews complain about the pen. I find it great, it's made of aluminium rather than the usual plastic. I don't notice writing to be better or worse than my Kindle Scribe.
Just curious, why buy this and Kindle Scribe? Do you use both?
I wanted some Android apps on eInk e.g. Magzter, The Australian. I've had the Kindle since they come out, so this was a side-grade.
What apps are good for eink?
See above plus Focus Reader, O'Reilly Books, Reddit to name a few. P.S. Does anyone know of a better RSS Reader than Focus with MiniFlux support?
Interesting way to avoid mindless picture media consumption i guess. Loved my old kindle dx with unlimited 3g
@belongsinforums: do you still have 3g? mine was not working. Last time I searched (years ago) it seems I need to run some updates which is kind of tricky and I gave up
Does anyone know of a better RSS Reader than Focus with MiniFlux support?
MiniFlux does → https://miniflux.app/docs/apps.html
Thanks for sharing your thoughts - what do you use to transfer notes/journals? I think this would be my main limiting factor.
I haven't tried as yet. I always just leave notes on device. They are mainly for meetings as a memory jog. If I want to keep notes, I type them in Joplin and sync via Dropbox.
I think if I wanted to sync hand written notes, I'd use a wireless sync program like Synching. Not sure where the notes are stored and if you can get to them though.
Okay thank you. Appreciate it
How is the writing to text functionality? For a writer for example, would it be a nice alternative to typing or would it be more trouble than it's worth with having to go in and correct where the OCR hasn't picked something up etc?
(thanks for your time)I haven't used it. But I did see demos on YouTube reviews I checked before purchase.
Would this suitable to read comic like tintin Asterix Lucky Luke? I already have surface pro
I havent found anything to tear me away from my Kobo Clara HD + KoboCloud (https://github.com/fsantini/KoboCloud)
Going to try the koboCloud though dragging files into Kobo is easy too. Thanks!
Thinking of using this to surf webpages (non videos, only texts and images) as well as read PDFs. Any lag?
These types of devices aren't great for that, even a budget tablet would give you a much better web browsing experience.
I have very deep myopia, so was recommended an eink screen to cope with daily reading.
I think a Boox device would be better for your use case, as it has a less limited implementation of Android and a colour screen. Much more expensive, though.
I just grabbed the last one at Richmond for mainly taking notes. I think for the price it is OK and mainly let down by bad software, though that's mainly because other products with similar features retail for around 700-800. The hardware is amazing, I have demoed competitors such as the Remarkable and the Lenovo Smart Paper has lower latency and feels much better to write with.
EDIT: There is a new "Inking Mode" which fixes the latency problem in third party apps. This device is amazing for the price.
Although you can sideload APKs, performance with third party apps is quite poor (not unique to this device). Reading magazines, articles and manga (via Tachiyomi) etc is OK. Other apps such as OneNote have too much lag to be usable. The Google Play store is not available (apparently due to licensing issues), so if you want an app store you need to sideload other options such as F-Droid.
The built in Note taking app is a mixed bag. Notes have to be separate "pages" and can't extend forever like in OneNote. Some reviewers have criticized the fact that you need to pay a rather expensive subscription for cloud syncing notes. I don't agree with this - other options such as Remarkable and Notability (iOS) require subscriptions to access cloud sync features to varying extents. Like most note apps, the actual notes are stored in a proprietary format, so it's not as if you can really edit them with other programs.
Exporting notes to PDF can be easily done and uploaded to Google Drive, or other options via share.PDF annotation is somewhat broken. The notes you make stay the same orientation and size if you rotate or zoom in on the PDF. This bug has been acknowledged by Lenovo and they have promised a fix, but currently it is not very usable.
For reading, I mainly upload my own .epub files. The built in reader has annotation capabilities, though this similarly suffers from notes staying the same orientation and size if you zoom (more understandable for .epub). Tech savvy users can sideload file sharing/syncing apps for more convenient transferring. Personally I think the device is a little on the big side, though this is up to personal taste.
Maybe the above issues can be resolved in the future update. If the refresh rate for third paper apps is resolved then apps such as OneNote or Xournal++ would be perfect, or if then can just fix PDF annotation. My JB HiFi have allowed for a return within 1-2 weeks if all packaging is intact - will see how I go within that time.
Thanks for your thoughts! Kinda reinforces what I'm thinking. While it does seem OK for the price, I'd rather spend a bit more and get something that's good or just get a dedicated reader that's a little smaller. I have bought a few ebook bundles and would like to start to read some of the books. If I want to read comics or something with colour or lots of graphics we have a tablet that I can use.
I don't think apps like OneNote would ever run well on this with 4 GB RAM. I think it's prudent to buy devices for what they can do today, and anything we get via updates is a bonus.
To me, it's worth the price, as I love cool tech and always wanted to give this type of device a try, but wouldn't pay more than that, as I may not end up using it. Ordered one for delivery as there are no stores near me that have stock.
Good find, OP.
Thanks! PDF annotation (with Dropbox sync) is literally the only thing I care about, so I guess this thing is a non-starter.
Just got mine from post office and was hoping I could live with software limitations and hope Lenovo would come through with a hail Mary update. Have tomorrow to ponder keeping it..
Hi, may I ask your experience with the lenovo smart paper?
I'm not seeing any stock for pickup or delivery in the Sydney area
Same for Melbourne too now.
I ordered one for delivery and it was allocated to a store which only had a display model so they were going to cancel the order. I went in and checked the display model - it's been on display for about 10 months (supposedly often turned off because so few people look at them and it didn't have a power cord nearby. The device also has a battery protection mode so if it is unused for a fair while it will turn itself off even with battery) - it'll definitely still have some wear and tear on the battery and screen, but it looked brand new, no scratches or marks, and the pen and case were still in the original box unused. They offered it for $200 - seemed great to me so I grabbed it.
My observations so far:
As most reviewers say, the hardware is fantastic, feels like a premium device. The software update took ages (20+minutes), and I had to keep waking the device to get it to do it. The case is nice and the metal pen feels great. Some people in reviews have said it's heavy - that's not been my experience. It feels very light to me compared to a normal iPad/Samsung or even a paper notebook.
The only annoying thing I found is that mine didn't include any spare pen nibs. Not sure if anyone else's box did?
My primary use case for this was for taking notes at work and uploading them to a cloud service to access (as an image or PDF) - essentially to take notes in meetings and have a digital copy that I can have easy access to. I also wanted a better way to organize the myriad of notepads I have all over the place, and to keep a more 'permanent' record for future reference and to save as 'notes' or in Teams/tasks. I was concerned this wouldn't work well (or at all) based on the reviews I'd seen. Turns out it works seamlessly with Google Drive, exported as a PDF (or image), in seconds. (The first log-in to Google drive did take ages - 10+ minutes, but after that it saves to GDrive in seconds once you share).
The stylus writing experience is much better than an iPad or Samsung Tab. I've never used one of these devices so I was surprised how close it feels to actual paper compared to my current tablet (Samsung Tab S9). The off-white background colour of the e-ink screen and the pencil-like e-ink text kind of tricks my mind into thinking it's very close to paper as well.
The eReader is not very good at all and is a huge downgrade from a traditional Kindle Paperwhite. I sideloaded the Kindle app but it's only marginally better than the stock app. Ultimately I won't be using it for reading except in a pinch.
The front light is better than I was expecting - it's almost perfectly even and does make a difference even in mild dark conditions.
In any case, I can definitely see why people would say it's limited as a 'hybrid' device, but for my use case for notes only it's brilliant, especially for the price.
Thanks for the bargain OP.
Thanks for sharing your experience. I have a similar use case but been put off by the reviews. I picked up mine yesterday and been contemplating taking it back. Your experience has definitely given me more to think about.
No worries. I wonder if people are expecting to be able to 'sync' their notes and notebooks between devices and online, so you can edit a note anywhere. With this device it's one way - write the note on the Lenovo, then sync a PDF copy to Google Drive. For me, that's all I want/need.
Before I went and looked at the demo unit I was somewhat happy it was going to be cancelled because I was also put off. But in my head, I'm content with it being a single-use device (like my Kindle is for reading) that will live at work and perform one duty - taking notes and syncing to Google Drive. For me that's worth the price of entry.
I think if you wanted to use this device for many things, you might come away disappointed overall.
Trying to do away with paper notebooks and have everything in a single place……and was hoping this would fit the bill.
Thank you for sharing your impressions. I'm waiting to have mine delivered next week, but the news about Gdrive integration is great (as I was also concerned about this based on the reviews), and so is the price you paid for the open box version.
No worries. I'm curious why no-one has really talked about it in reviews, but I guess it's also not a hugely popular device either. I commented above as well - maybe people who have used multiple other types of e-ink notepads except more - like their notes and notepads can sync amongst device (with edits, etc). In this case it's just write a note on the Lenovo, and send a read-only PDF copy to Gdrive. But for me, that's all I wanted.
I've seen many reviews where people are saying that its Google Drive integration doesn't work, so your feedback was great to hear.
While I'd love to have seamless cloud integration with access to the source document from multiple devices without a paid subscription to a proprietary cloud service, I'll live without it for the price. Comparable devices that provide this functionality with similar hardware and accessories cost 3 times the price (more like 5 times the price in your case).
I also think the ability to do a global search of handwritten notes is awesome.
Confirming there is no spare pen nib included. Unboxed mine today.
Just to add 10" is still small for an A4 pdf. If someone expects to read a lot of papers/books of that size, consider a 13" instead.
Thanks for the bargain OP. +1
How’s your experience with the Lenovo Smart Paper?
Does what I want it to do. Like others said the default Reader app only supports some formats well. For instance, .docx are constantly screwed up but .pdf are decent. Paging speed is reasonable.
Put it this way, definitely not going to return it.
@yzh1999: Thats good if you think that it functions as it should be. Also, as long as we can upload our written notes via Google drive, I think it is reasonable product for this price.
Thanks for conforming this, strange they omitted such a cheap part for Australia. I can't find spare Lenovo nibs anywhere, but you use any EMR nib I guess.
One update - I've side-loaded the app Moon+ Reader Pro for eReading. It has an e-ink mode, and it is significantly better than the stock reading app. It makes the reading experience very close to a Kindle now (like 90% as good). The only downside for some people is you have to side-load epubs, then one-time load them into Moon, and this won't be intuitive for some.
Another thing - someone mentioned above that they couldn't get Android File Transfer working on Mac - mine is working fine. When you first plug it in to a Mac Android File Transfer will pop and say it's failed, but on the Lenovo you have to select "File Transfer", then it will re-open on Mac and you can transfer files normally.
How are you finding the battery life?
I'm finding it pretty good, I used it at work all day for about 4 hours to take on and off notes - about 10 pages of notes with the front light off, then read about 30 minutes of a book at night with front light on and it's down to 88%. Lenovo says the battery will last: Reading: 8500 pages in one charge, Note taking: write 170 pages of notes in one charge. That seems pretty reasonable to me.
Received it yesterday and happy with it for this price. Installed EinkBro, KOReader, Moon+ Reader Pro. Runs well.
Also, do you guys know how to make a screen shot on it? As we can't take notes on most Apps, maybe it's better to take a screen shot and write on it like samsung mobile/tables will be great.
And is it possible to keep the last screen when turn off the tablet? As e-ink will not consum power to do it.
Hi @go2home, I would like to know where you get these apps for us to download? Thanks heaps
EinkBro
https://github.com/plateaukao/einkbroKOReader
https://koreader.rocks/Moon+ Reader Pro
https://www.moondownload.com/Thank you mate
Lichess works well on it too
I got mine today. I had it price-matched at Goodguys, and I had a voucher for $60, so I paid $287. That's not bad for the price.
The main problem is that there are no replacement smart pens (magnetic) or nibs available when they wear out. They won't be coming out anytime soon, based on the update from the lenevo support team.
The pen is using the same wacom technology like samsung mobile/tablet. I have tried the samsung ones and works well. Also in the setting - more, you can turn on the side button function if your wacom pen has it.
For anyone who picked it up, some exciting development here: https://www.ozbargain.com.au/comment/15195626/redir
@go2home
I've been on the lookout for an ebook reader but haven't read many positive things about this device. I guess some of the criticisms are based on RRP. Would this be better at this price point than the Kobo Libra 2 at around $300?