There are plenty of digital note taking devices on the market such as the Sony Digital Paper, Remarkable and the Onyx Boox Note. E Ink has just created some new technology that might revolutionize the way we draw on an e-paper screen.
E Ink is calling this new tech JustWrite and it delivers a natural writing experience without the use of a TFT backplane. Exhibiting almost no latency in pen writing, this technology closely resembles writing on paper, natural surfaces or marker boards. The film can be produced via roll to roll manufacturing typical of E Ink’s electronic paper, and requires only a writing stylus and simple electronics to enable functionality. The simplicity of this technology enables any surface, small to large, to be digital writing enabled. The technology is compatible with an optional digitizer, but it could also be used with just a stylus.
The JustWrite film features one of E Ink’s proprietary electronic inks and offers similar benefits as E Ink’s other product lines: a paper-like experience with a good contrast and reflective display without a backlight. The JustWrite film is an all plastic display, making it extremely durable and lightweight, with the ability to be affixed and removed easily, enabling writing surfaces in a variety of locations.
One of the most compelling aspects about JustWrite is the latency, it is close to 0ms. This is better than the Apple Pencil which is 20ms and better than any other stylus on the market. It remains to be seen when JustWrite will be available. I can see products like the Boogie Board employing it and ditto with Sony. It just might create an all new product category from post-it-notes to digital whiteboards.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
