reMarkable Firmware Version 3.15

This page takes a deep dive into the firmware that is pre-installed on reMarkable e-in tablets to help potential customers decide if reMarkable products have the software functionality that they need.

New with this release

• Shader brush tool
• Two additional colors for highlighter brush (orange and blue)
• ‘Select below’ in notes stylus gesture
• Increases to passcode length (4, 6, or 8 numbers – previously only 4)

Operating system

• reMarkable tablets run a bespoke version of Linux called Codex.
• The operating system is locked down and does not support the installation of third-party software.
• SIDENOTE: It is possible to ‘hack’ the reMarkable operating system and sideload apps (via SSH over USB), however, this is unsupported and could screw up your tablet and/or void your warranty. In addition, it requires some technical knowledge/experience with the Linux command line. I wouldn’t recommend trying this unless you are confident about what you are doing.

Navigation

• The home screen is simply a list of your files (notebooks, PDFs, ad e-books) – it is very minimalist and streamlined
• In the top-right is battery icon, and tapping on it displays icons for:
  • Remaining battery
  • Wifi connection
  • Screen share
  • Aeroplane mode toggle
• In the top-left is a hamburger icon, with options for filtering which files are shown (see Filesystem below), Integrations with third-party clouds, the trash can, User Guides, and Settings
• Around the bottom-center is a small floating toolbar, with buttons to search for files (search by filename only, not handwriting) and to create a new notebook
• At the top-centre is the reMarkable logo. Tapping it takes you back to the main homescreen

Filesystem

• As stated above, the homescreen shows all the files on the reMarkable tablet
• The files can be configured as a list or grid
• The files can be sorted by last modified, last opened, alphabetically, filesize, and page count
• Files can be organised in hierarchical folders – there is an icon at the top of the list to create a new folder
• Long-pressing on a file selects it and offers several options along the top bar:
  • Export (to cloud drive)
  • Tag (custom tags are used to mark a file as belonging to a particular category – e.g. you might use the tag ‘Maths‘ to flag all your books and notebooks related to your maths studying)
  • Favourite (Put a star next to file to flag it a file as a favourite)
  • Duplicate
  • Rename
  • Send (send a file via email)
  • Move
  • Delete
• Multiple files can be selected for bulk export, tagging, favouriting, duplicating, moving, and deleting
• Tapping the hamburger icon in the top-left provides options for:
  • Filter by – Filtering files by type (e.g. notebooks, PDFs, or e-book)
  • Favorites – Filtering files by favourites
  • Tags – Filtering files by tags
  • Integrations – Accessing third party drives (to browse and import files)
  • Trash – Deleted files
  • Guides – Read user guides on the tablet itself
  • Settings – (see below for more info)

File transfers

• Note that reMarkable tablets only natively support PDF and ePUB file formats
• Files can be transferred to the reMarkable via:
  • Third-party clouds (Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive are supported) – you browse the drive from the tablet and then select the file to import it to the tablet
  • The reMarkable desktop/mobile apps – browse and select files to import from your other devices
  • Read on reMarkable Chrome Extension (Only available for the Chrome web browser) – Whilst browsing the web, tap a button to convert the page to PDF or simplified text and send a copy to your reMarkable cloud/tablet. There is also an add-on for Microsoft Office, which allows you to convert Word and Powerpoint files to PDF for viewing on the reMarkable tablet.
  • My reMarkable – Log on to your reMarkable cloud from any web browser and select and upload/import files
  • USB Web Interface – Connect the tablet to another device via USB and transfer files using a web interface/web server (regular USB mounting is not supported, the HTTP web interface has to be used)
• Files that have been imported are copied to the reMarkable Cloud and current versions will be available across all reMarkable devices, and via the Desktop/Mobile apps
• Files can be transferred from the reMarkable via:
  • Third-party clouds (Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive are supported) – select the file and tap the Export button to upload it to your cloud drive
  • The reMarkable desktop/mobile apps – browse and select files to share/download from other devices
  • USB Web Interface – Connect the tablet to another device via USB and transfer files using a web interface/web server (regular USB mounting is not supported, the web interface has to be used)
  • Email – Select the file and tap the Send button. Add recipients and an optional message, and choose the file format (PDF, PNG, SVG, or Text in email)

Companion app

• reMarkable offers perhaps the most feature-rich companion apps of all e-ink tablet brands
• The companion app is available as a desktop app on Windows and MacOS, and a mobile app on Android and iOS
• They also offer a web app that can be accessed via any web browser (but does not support as many features as the desktop/mobile apps)
• Using the app, you can organise your files (e.g. create new folders, move/copy/rename/delete files)
• You can also send/download files in PDF format
• Finally, you can also create new notebooks and edit existing notebooks using the app
• However, creation/editing has some caveats – only text can be edited (not stylus input, such as hand-writing or sketches), and you have to be Connect subscriber (see below)

Connect subscription

• reMarkable’s Connect subscription is a monthly charge of around $3 that provides certain additional benefits
• reMarkable are the only e-ink tablet brand that hide features behind a paywall
• When a new reMarkable tablet is purchased, a 12-month Connect subscription is provided for free (although they do take your payment details so that they can automatically charge you when this expires)
• As noted above, only Connect subscribers can create/edit notebooks using the app
• In addition, without a Connect subscription, your files stop syncing with the reMarkable cloud after not being accessed for 50 days
• Once a file is no longer being synced, any updates are only stored on the tablet itself (not via the apps). Even if you access a file again after 50 days, it remains ‘unsyncable‘ unless you renew the Connect subscription.
• Connect subscribers also get an extended 3-year warranty (the normal warranty is 2 years)
• So, although it is possible to use the reMarkable without the Connect subscription, it is needed to get the most from the platform.
• It is worth considering the fact that reMarkable could decide to increase the price of Connect at some point in the future, so even if an ongoing charge of around $35-a-year is acceptable to you at the moment, it could be raised to a figure you might not find acceptable later, and there will be little you can do about it if you wish to keep the same functionality
• reMarkable’s original Connect subscription (back in 2021) cost $8 per month and hid even more features behind the paywall (a brief overview of this can be found here). Thankfully they decided to change it to make it less restrictive (but it is still more restrictive than other brands)

Settings

• The Settings menu is categorised as follows:
  • General – Account, Language & Keyboard, Firmware version, Help, Flight Mode Toggle, Restart, and Turn Off
  • Wi-Fi – Toggle wifi, and set up wifi connections
  • Battery – Auto-sleep and auto power-off (can only be configured for 20 minutes and 12 hours of inactivity, respectively)
  • Storage – Disk space, USB Web Interface Toggle, Check synchronisation is working
  • Security – Passcode, personal info on sleep screen, Light Sleep (shows current file on sleep screen)
  • Accessibility – Left/right-handed, standard or large font size

Native note-taking software

• reMarkable has a streamlined but functional note-taking app
• The canvas can either be used as a single page to a screen (and flip between the pages by swiping left and right), or as infinite scroll (swipe up and down to make the page ‘longer‘)
• The screen has a tendency to flash/refresh every now and then (particularly when using the new shader tool) which can be off-putting.

Toolbar & navigation

• There is a cross in the top-right corner to close the notebook
• On the left-hand side is the toolbar – it has the following buttons:
  • Minimise – minimises the toolbar and hides the cross in the top-right to provide a larger canvas
  • Brushes – configure up to two brushes for quick access
  • Text – Insert text (using either the on-screen keyboard, or reMarkable’s own type-folio), set wide or narrow text columns
  • Eraser – select either area or selection eraser, or erase the whole page
  • Lasso-select
  • Undo
  • Redo
  • Page Overview
  • Tags
  • Layers
  • Share (either present with screenshare, send by email, or convert to text)
  • Notebook settings – Add page, set to landscape, search (text only, not handwriting)

Templates & layers

• reMarkable tablets come pre-installed with around 50 templates, including blank, lined, grid, task list, daily calendar etc.
• There are templates for both portrait and landscape modes
• The template can be changed for each page of the notebook
• reMarkable do not support custom templates or importing PDF templates
• Layers can be thought of as several sheets of transparent paper stacked on top of one another
• Essentially, the template occupies the lower layer and you write on the layer above it
• One of the layers is reserved by reMarkable for text-based input
• Layers can be created, moved up and down, merged, hidden and deleted

Pens, brushes, and eraser

• reMarkable offer the following brushes/pens:
  • Ballpoint (3 thicknesses, 5 colours, pressure sensitivity)
  • Fineliner (3 thicknesses, 5 colours)
  • Pencil (3 thicknesses, pressure sensitivity, tilt sensitivity)
  • Mechanical Pencil (3 thicknesses, pressure sensitivity)
  • Highlighter (6 colours and can ‘snap-to-text’)
  • Marker (3 thicknesses, 5 colours, pressure sensitivity, tilt sensitivity)
  • Paintbrush (3 thicknesses, 3 colours, pressure sensitivity, tilt sensitivity)
  • Calligraphy Pen (3 thicknesses, 3 colours)
  • Shader (3 thicknesses, gray only, pressure sensitivity, supports layering – build up the darkness of the gray by repeated shading with the stylus)
• There is also a button on the toolbar to insert text – text is inputted on a separate layer (of the same page) to handwriting
• The text option is used when typing using reMarkable’s Type Folio (integrated keyboard/folio)
• The eraser can be configured as either an area eraser, with three thicknesses (only the area you touch with the stylus is erased), or a selection eraser (everything within an outline/selection you draw is erased)
• There is also an option to erase everything on the page
• There are also buttons to undo and redo actions

Lasso selection

• The lasso-selection tool is used to select a piece of handwriting, pen strokes, or text
• The selection can then be moved, resized, rotated, flipped, or converted to text
• Selections can also be cut/copied and then pasted onto the same page, a different page, or a different notebook
• With version 3.15, reMarkable added a stylus gesture to select all handwriting below a certain point. By drawing a horizontal line across the screen and holding the tip of the marker on the screen for a second, a dialog box pops up with an option to ‘Select Below’. Tapping this option, selects all handwriting below the line you drew.

Handwriting recognition

• reMarkable tablets can convert handwriting to text using OCR
• A selection can be converted to text using the lasso-selection tool
• A whole page can be converted to text by tapping the share button on the toolbar, followed by the Convert to text option
• Multiple pages can be converted to text by selecting them in the Page Overview and tapping the Convert button
• Converted text is inserted into the notebook as a new page
• To send the converted to text to other devices, the new page must be exported as text and then sent via email
• reMarkable does not support handwriting search – you can only search the text in a notebook

Tags

• Notebook pages can be tagged with custom keywords to make them easier to find in the future
• Tags can also be applied to whole notebooks, files and folders

Page Overview

• From the Page Overview screen, you can view all the pages in your notebook
• Up to 12 pages (with thumbnails and associated tags) can be displayed per page – if the notebook is larger than 12 pages, swiping left will show the next 12
• Pages can be viewed as a grid or a list
• Icons at the top can be used to send the notebook via email (see above) or tag the whole notebook
• Long-pressing on pages selects them for individual or bulk page tagging/sending (there is also a ‘select all’ option)
• Selected pages can also be moved, deleted, duplicated, or converted to text

Export

• As with most e-ink brands, notebooks are stored in a proprietary file format
• To open them on other devices (without using the Companion App), they need to be exported
• Notebooks can be exported and sent via email in PDF, PNG, or SVG format
• Notebooks/pages that use text can be exported as text within the body of the email
• You can choose which pages of a notebook are exported

Native reading & annotation software

• reMarkable only natively supports PDF and ePub file formats (and it is doubtful whether ePubs are natively supported or actually automatically converted to PDF within the app)
• The native reading app has the same design as the note-taking, with the toolbar on the left-hand side
• ePubs and PDFs can be written on using the stylus
• The highlighter brush can be used to highlight passages of text
• Both ePubs and PDFs can be exported (as PDF, PNG, or SVG formats – NOT ePub), retaining any handwriting and highlights
• However, it seems there is no way to export just your highlights as text
• Additional blank pages for notes can be added to PDFs and ePubs
• For ePubs, the font can be configured to one of 6 preset sizes, or 5 preset font types. There are also options for left or centre justification, page margin widths, and line spacing.
• However, adjusting the font in ePubs often screws up the alignment of any highlights/annotations you’ve made.
• There are also performance issues when an ePub reloads after making configuration changes – it appears that rather than just reflowing the document like most e-reading software, it is converting it to a new PDF with different font settings. This can result in performance issues.
• For PDFs, you can choose to fit the page to the width of the screen, the height of the screen, or a custom view
• Pinch-to-zoom zooms in and out for both PDF and ePub files (rather than changing the font size as happens with ePubs in most e-reading software)
• PDFs can be viewed in landscape mode (half a page to a screen)
• Text search is available for both ePubs and PDFs, however, with PDFs, whether text search works depends on how it was created
• On the whole, the native e-reading software is very basic with fewer configuration options than other brands, and some performance issues (particularly with ePubs)

Other native software

• reMarkable tablets do not have much to offer in terms of other software native – it is designed primarily for note-taking and reading/annotating documents
• You can share the screen of a reMarkable, but only with a Windows or MacOS device that is running the reMarkable desktop app and logged in with your credentials

Third-party software

• reMarkable tablets do not support installation of third-party software
• It is possible to ‘hack’ the system to provide additional functionality, but this can potentially damage the tablet

Overall Verdict

The best thing about the reMarkable firmware is the user interface, which is clean, slick and intuitive.

It has a decent note-taking app (although lacks a lot of features of products from other brands). Along with some great features for text-based input (particularly typing when you use the reMarkable’s keyboard folio) and one of the best companion apps on the market, it makes a great note-taking machine or e-ink typewriter.

The e-reading app is okay and allows you to annotate PDFs very easily, but it is very basic, and does have some difficulties with loading ePubs.

But aside from these core functions, it has little else to offer – there’s no support for third-party apps and no other native apps.

However, this is part of reMarkable’s vision for their ecosystem. They’re not out to create a fully functional tablet with an e-ink screen – they want to create a minimalist and pleasurable writing and typing experience.

Because reMarkable products are in a similar price range to other devices that can do much more (particularly when you add in the costs of the Connect subscription), you have to really buy-in to the reMarkable experience (which admittedly is very nice, but for me, not quite worth the premium).

Firmware Overview