By After four years in development, reMarkable has launched its new Paper Pro color tablet, featuring a color display, embedded front light, and improved functionality.
While these features bring the device closer to its competitors, including Amazon’s Kindle Scribe, reMarkable still faces challenges in surpassing Amazon’s dominance in the e-reader market.
Despite innovations, key drawbacks may limit its appeal to the broader market.
Surpassing Amazon with color display
The standout feature of reMarkable’s new Paper Pro is its color display, a notable improvement over Amazon’s Kindle Scribe, which still only offers a black-and-white screen despite being on the market for over two years.
This gives reMarkable a unique selling point, as Amazon has yet to introduce a color display to its devices.
“We wanted the next step for the paper tablet to be meaningful and significant,” said Magnus Wanberg, CEO of reMarkable, emphasizing the company’s deliberate approach to product development.
Unlike competitors that release annual updates, reMarkable focuses on research and development to ensure that each new product offers a meaningful upgrade.
How does it compare to Amazon’s Kindle Scribe?
The new reMarkable Paper Pro starts at $579 and comes with a basic stylus, with additional accessories, such as a stylus with a built-in eraser, sold separately.
In comparison, Amazon’s Kindle Scribe is priced at $340, making it the more affordable option.
While reMarkable may offer a better display with its color screen, Amazon continues to hold an edge in pricing.
However, industry experts predict that it won’t be long before Amazon introduces a version with a color display, thanks to its vast R&D resources. This could quickly narrow reMarkable’s advantage.
Despite having a superior display, reMarkable faces an uphill battle in competing with Amazon’s Kindle Scribe.
One of the biggest disadvantages for reMarkable is the absence of a built-in e-book store, a feature that Amazon users enjoy.
While reMarkable tablets can read PDFs and eBooks, the lack of a seamless, integrated platform like Amazon’s Kindle Store severely limits its user experience.
For many consumers, convenience is key. Amazon’s ecosystem allows users to easily browse, purchase, and download books directly from the device, making the Kindle Scribe a one-stop solution.
In contrast, reMarkable users must manually transfer files to the device, a cumbersome process that detracts from the overall experience.
Although reMarkable offers apps to sync content from computers and smartphones, this still doesn’t match the ease of use that Amazon’s platform provides.
Without a dedicated store, reMarkable struggles to offer the same seamless experience, and this could be a major stumbling block in attracting a wider audience.
Can it beat Amazon?
While reMarkable’s new tablet boasts impressive technology, the question remains: can it maintain its lead against a tech giant like Amazon?
The company’s focus on R&D has given it a temporary advantage with the color display, but without the vast resources and ecosystem that Amazon commands, it will be difficult to sustain.
Amazon’s size and market reach gives it a significant edge, allowing it to innovate quickly and stay ahead of competitors.
Even though reMarkable has produced a technically superior device for now, it’s only a matter of time before Amazon catches up, potentially rendering reMarkable’s innovations obsolete.
A robust user base is essential to justify the investment required to create and maintain such a store.
Currently, reMarkable does not have the user numbers to compete with Amazon’s integrated Kindle Store, which allows users to buy and download books directly from their devices.
The post Why reMarkable’s new Paper Pro color tablet can’t beat Amazon’s Kindle Scribe appeared first on Invezz
