Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

iPad Pro iPad/reMarkable/Kindle for media, notes, reading, everything?

AVBeatMan

AVBeatMan

macrumors 603
Original poster
Nov 10, 2010
5,985
3,856
I have an iPad, Kindle and reMarkable and spread my notes over all 3 (Kindle Scribe). Because of this I lose track of which notes are where. So, I am thinking of gathering all together onto one device. The obvious one being the iPad.

I find the ReMarkable the best to write on, the Kindle Scribe the best to read on. I feel that the iPad falls behind in both of these, but, is also superior in the obvious other ways.

Anyway, in a round about way, what I am trying to ask is, has anyone else been in a similar predicament and chosen one device instead of using several?
 
  • Like
Reactions: marliefrugal
The new iPad Pro (M4) with the Nano texture display option might solve some these issues for you. Its much easier on the eyes to read on compared to a standard glossy iPad screen, and is also much nicer to take notes on.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AVBeatMan
I settled on the Scribe but also have a Kindle Oasis, iPad Pro 13", and Mini 6, all of which I have also used. But the Scribe has far and above the best reading experience for me and I have around 900 books on it; I use it a lot on a daily basis. The iPad Pro is great for books with lots of color illustrations or pictures. I'll stick with several devices, using the best for task at hand.
 
  • Like
Reactions: beach bum and AVBeatMan
sparksd said:
I settled on the Scribe but also have a Kindle Oasis, iPad Pro 13", and Mini 6, all of which I have also used. But the Scribe has far and above the best reading experience for me and I have around 900 books on it; I use it a lot on a daily basis. The iPad Pro is great for books with lots of color illustrations or pictures. I'll stick with several devices, using the best for task at hand.
Click to expand...
I find the scribe a bit heavy when reading in bed. I find the mini or paperlke better for that.

It's great to have these devices and also great that with the iPad you get to have everything. I do think that the Kindles have the best reading experience, but iPad is perfectly acceptable.
 
  • Like
Reactions: beach bum and sparksd
AVBeatMan said:
I find the scribe a bit heavy when reading in bed. I find the mini or paperlke better for that.

It's great to have these devices and also great that with the iPad you get to have everything. I do think that the Kindles have the best reading experience, but iPad is perfectly acceptable.
Click to expand...

I find that the weight doesn't bother me (same with the 13" Pro).

I had been using the M1 12.9 as my Kindle reader as I like the larger screen. I got a great sale deal on the Scribe so I gave it a try and I've found that I now don't really care for the iPad as a reader. The Oasis is a nice portable option but its battery life is really poor (though better than the Mini 6). But this is all very much personal preference stuff and as you say, it's great to have these excellent choices.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AVBeatMan
AVBeatMan said:
I have an iPad, Kindle and reMarkable and spread my notes over all 3 (Kindle Scribe). Because of this I lose track of which notes are where. So, I am thinking of gathering all together onto one device. The obvious one being the iPad.

I find the ReMarkable the best to write on, the Kindle Scribe the best to read on. I feel that the iPad falls behind in both of these, but, is also superior in the obvious other ways.

Anyway, in a round about way, what I am trying to ask is, has anyone else been in a similar predicament and chosen one device instead of using several?
Click to expand...

I have an 11” M1 iPad Pro, and a Kindle Paperwhite, I always read books on the Kindle as I only read them now and again, so the fact it keeps my place and I can leave it for a week or two, then pick up where I left off is great. And the screen is just brilliant for reading. I have often thought about writing notes, I have an Apple Pencil, but barely use it. I’ve actually thought about a Remarkable as I see it as the same thing as my Kindle but for notes, however I’d rather wait for a new model. Still it is a bit daft to do that when the iPad exists. But I couldn’t use the iPad for everything.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AVBeatMan
AVBeatMan said:
I have an iPad, Kindle and reMarkable and spread my notes over all 3 (Kindle Scribe). Because of this I lose track of which notes are where. So, I am thinking of gathering all together onto one device. The obvious one being the iPad.

I find the ReMarkable the best to write on, the Kindle Scribe the best to read on. I feel that the iPad falls behind in both of these, but, is also superior in the obvious other ways.

Anyway, in a round about way, what I am trying to ask is, has anyone else been in a similar predicament and chosen one device instead of using several?
Click to expand...
I have scribe, paperwhite and iPad. I end up using iPad most of the time, even though I do very like reading & writing on scribe. Probably because I can skim pages faster on iPad, also I can read various doc formats in iPad without converting them first.
I use scribe mostly on holiday for lazy reading.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AVBeatMan
AVBeatMan said:
I have an iPad, Kindle and reMarkable and spread my notes over all 3 (Kindle Scribe). Because of this I lose track of which notes are where. So, I am thinking of gathering all together onto one device. The obvious one being the iPad.

I find the ReMarkable the best to write on, the Kindle Scribe the best to read on. I feel that the iPad falls behind in both of these, but, is also superior in the obvious other ways.

Anyway, in a round about way, what I am trying to ask is, has anyone else been in a similar predicament and chosen one device instead of using several?
Click to expand...
Yes, I've been there. I have an iPad and Scribe. When I need to take notes in a separate document from the one that I'm reading, then I use my iPad with split-screen, source document in one half, note app in the other.

But when I'm taking standalone notes, I prefer to use the Scribe.

The key for me has been to view the Scribe as the digital version of my spiral notebook and mechanical pencil. The functional limitations of the Scribe fit perfectly with that paradigm.

I have created a hyperlinked PDF version of Rocketbook pages which allows me to take notes on my Scribe and use the Rocketbook app on my phone to send those notes to Google Drive, email, etc. with automatic OCR.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Isamilis, AVBeatMan and sparksd
I'm in the same boat....iPad, ReMarkable, and Boox (instead of Kindle). OP, you mention wanting to have your notes in one place. Have you checked out Obsidian? I use that as my one repository for all notes, regardless of the device that I used to generate the note. I keep both text notes and handwritten notes (in PDF form) in Obsidian. It syncs between the iPad and Boox, so it's always up to date (unfortunately not possible with ReMarkable). It's been a game changer for me. You might want to check it out.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AVBeatMan and sracer
McBoone said:
I'm in the same boat....iPad, ReMarkable, and Boox (instead of Kindle). OP, you mention wanting to have your notes in one place. Have you checked out Obsidian? I use that as my one repository for all notes, regardless of the device that I used to generate the note. I keep both text notes and handwritten notes (in PDF form) in Obsidian. It syncs between the iPad and Boox, so it's always up to date (unfortunately not possible with ReMarkable). It's been a game changer for me. You might want to check it out.
Click to expand...
Obsidian is an excellent suggestion!

I use it on all of my devices. I recommend the community plug-in Remotely Save for a free syncing option. It performs extremely well for me, even on my 10th gen iPad. (but I don't use any plug-ins other than Remotely Save)
 
I have tried to consolidate to one device but in the end, I ended up with the best tool for the job and have separate devices. One big factor for me was I regularly read out on the lake in my boat and taking a 1TB Nano M4 iPad out is an expensive recipe for disaster.
 
  • Like
Reactions: McBoone, ericwn, PaladinGuy and 1 other person
AVBeatMan said:
I find the ReMarkable the best to write on, the Kindle Scribe the best to read on.
Click to expand...
When I reluctantly returned the Paperwhite after finding the screen too small, I was somehow unaware that the Scribe is also a Kindle, so your post put the Scribe on my radar. Thanks! A month later, I'm using one for reading library books and am very happy with it. I had used the Paperwhite in landscape and loved the wide bezel on the side, but was disappointed that the screen would not rotate 180º if I wanted the bezel on the right. The Scribe will rotate the screen, it's like a double-high Paperwhite, and after I covered the side bezel and the back with a sheet of craft foam using Scotch brand double-sided tape, it's as comfortable to hold as the Paperwhite was with its soft surface.

I had been reading with my 11" iPad Pro, but I find the edges too sharp, lacking bezels to hold onto, and the availability of my digital life on the device never made me feel like I was truly escaping into a book. So, for reading, I'm happier with a dedicated e-reader.

Thanks again for your post and this thread.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: AVBeatMan
CharlesShaw said:
When I reluctantly returned the Paperwhite after finding the screen too small, I was somehow unaware that the Scribe is also a Kindle, so your post put the Scribe on my radar. Thanks! A month later, I'm using one for reading library books and am very happy with it. I had used the Paperwhite in landscape and loved the wide bezel on the side, but was disappointed that the screen would not rotate 180º if I wanted the bezel on the right. The Scribe will rotate the screen, it's like a double-high Paperwhite, and after I covered the side bezel and the back with a sheet of craft foam using Scotch brand double-sided tape, it's as comfortable to hold as the Paperwhite was with its soft surface.

I had been reading with my 11" iPad Pro, but I find the edges too sharp, lacking bezels to hold onto, and the availability of my digital life on the device never made me feel like I was truly escaping into a book. So, for reading, I'm happier with a dedicated e-reader.

Thanks again for your post and this thread.
Click to expand...

I also have a Scribe and really like it. I also have an Oasis but had switched to the iPad for the larger screen but now I'm back to a Kindle with the Scribe. But the iPad (13" M4) is great for those Kindle books with lots of illustrations and/or photos.
 
sparksd said:
I also have a Scribe and really like it. I also have an Oasis but had switched to the iPad for the larger screen but now I'm back to a Kindle with the Scribe. But the iPad (13" M4) is great for those Kindle books with lots of illustrations and/or photos.
Click to expand...
The Scribe's rounded edges (like older iPads) and large side bezel allow for a much more comfortable grip, so even though it's about the same weight as my 11" iPP, it feels lighter somehow. And no more accidental page changes.

The past year, since migrating from a 10.5" iPP, I'd been trying to make reading on the 11" more comfortable, but ended up reading less. I saw someone using a Kindle and decided to finally give one a chance. I immediately noticed the benefits of a dedicated e-reader, but I'd grown accustomed to having e-book pages the size of hardcover books or else I'd still own the lighter, more affordable Paperwhite.
 
  • Like
Reactions: sracer
I’d look into Readwise to consolidate all of the notes in one “service” instead of consolidating devices, because frankly, that won’t work, and even it does, it would too much compromise.
 
I have an 11” iPad Pro and a Kindle Paperwhite. I had a Scribe but returned it as I felt the note functionality was very primitive compared to what I have with Notability on the iPad, and the writing experience was on par with what I have with my screen protector (a Bellemond Kent Paper, magnetic so I can take it on and off, though I never do). I read fiction on my paperwhite, and highlight and make notes on those books (by typing) there, but everything else I do on my iPad.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AVBeatMan
11" M4 oled is the go. Unless you read by beach/pool etc.
Kindles are just so dated for the $$
 
sparksd said:
Agree with that - I don't use the pen, just like the screen size. My wife also switched from an iPad & Paperwhite to a Scribe.
Click to expand...
I don't like the way the kindle OS works, I am going the other way back to books and get what I really like and can pass on, my fathers day book got on the weekend read in a day and have passed on already.
Kindles even the iPad app you just end up with so many books that are cheap or free that are no good and don't read.
New releases are similar priced in paper now anyway.
 
  • Like
Reactions: sracer
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back