**Jonathan Dowland: A Journey with the Remarkable Tablet**

My remarkable journey with the Remarkable tablet began on a sunny summer's day during my PhD studies. I had copied some papers to read onto an iPad, grabbed a coffee and an ice cream, and cycled down to an outdoor cafe next to the beach. What could have been a perfect moment was ruined by the bright sunlight, making it impossible for me to see anything on the screen.

Fast forward to 2021, when I decided to take the plunge and buy the Remarkable 2, which had been heavily advertised at the time. Over the next four years, this remarkable device became an essential tool in my daily life. I used it to read papers, draft my own papers and chapters, peruse technical books, and even as a daily planner.

I opted for a more affordable route by choosing a LAMY AL-star EMR instead of the Remarkable stylus, along with a fantastic fabric sleeve cover from Emmerson Gray. I also installed a hack that allowed me to use the Lamy's button to activate an eraser and added other tweaks to enhance my experience. Although I wouldn't recommend that specific hack anymore due to safety concerns, there are safer alternatives available, such as the RemarkableLamyEraser on GitHub.

**The Writing Experience: Unparalleled**

The Remarkable tablet offers an unparalleled writing experience. For me, it's almost on par with enjoying the tactile sensation of writing with a fountain pen on good paper – without the drawbacks of inky fingers and dried-up nibs. The Remarkable is an excellent alternative to traditional notebooks, providing a seamless and enjoyable writing experience.

**Cons: Lower Contrast and No Built-in Illumination**

However, there are two significant drawbacks to using the Remarkable tablet. Firstly, it has lower contrast than black on white paper, making it difficult to read in certain lighting conditions. Secondly, unlike traditional notebooks or e-readers, the Remarkable doesn't have built-in illumination, requiring good light to read comfortably.

Almost paradoxically, I found that this is almost the opposite problem from what I experienced with my iPad earlier – where bright sunlight made it hard to see anything on the screen. Unfortunately, I've tried a limited number of external clip-on lights without finding one that's frictionless to use.

**Traditional Formatting: A Misfit**

The Remarkable tablet's unique aspect ratio and two-column, wide margin formatting, commonly used for academic papers, can be a bit of a misfit. While it's possible to pinch to zoom or pre-process papers using tools like Briss, this is often laborious and not very convenient.

**A New Hope: The Remarkable Paper Pro**

Recently, I've been considering the newer model, the Remarkable Paper Pro. Its bigger size, built-in illumination, and added color features would be a nice to have. However, it's also significantly more expensive than my current device.

**A New Chapter**

I had considered selling my tablet after completing my PhD, but inspired by my former colleague Aleksey Shipilëv, who makes great use of his Remarkable tablet, I've decided to give it another chance. My plan is to make better use of its capabilities and see if it continues to provide value in my daily life. I'm excited to explore more ways to utilize the Remarkable, such as creating digital doodles, sketching out plans for 3D models, and reading tech books with ease.