Pine64's Linux-Powered E-Ink Tablet is Making a Return (omgubuntu.co.uk)
(Sunday October 06, 2024 @03:46PM (EditorDavid)
from the easy-readers dept.)
- Reference: 0175201645
- News link: https://linux.slashdot.org/story/24/10/06/1944233/pine64s-linux-powered-e-ink-tablet-is-making-a-return
- Source link: https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/10/pinenote-linux-powered-e-ink-tablet-returns
"Pine64 has confirmed that [1]its open-source e-ink tablet is returning ," reports [2]the blog OMG Ubuntu :
> The [10.1-inch e-ink display] PineNote was [3]announced in 2021 , building on the success of its non-SBC devices like the PinePhone (and later Pro model), the PineTab, and PineBook devices. Like most of Pine64's devices, software support is largely tackled by the community. But only a small batch of developer units were ever sold, primarily by enthusiasts within the open-source community who had the knowledge and desire to work on getting a modern Linux OS to run on the hardware, and adapt to the e-ink display.
>
> That process has taken a while, as Pine64's community bloggers explain:
>
> "The PineNote was stuck in a chicken-and-egg situation because of the very high cost of manufacturing the device (ePaper screens are sadly still expensive), and so the risk of manufacturing units that then didn't have a working Linux OS and would not sell was huge."
>
> However, the proverbial egg has finally hatched. The PineNote now has a reliable Debian-based OS, developed by Maximilian Weigand. This is described as "not only a bare-bones capable OS but a genuinely daily-usable system that 'just works'" according to the Pine64 blog. ["This is excellent as it also moves the target audience from developers to every day users. You should be able to power on the device and drop into a working Gnome experience."] It is said to use the GNOME desktop plus a handful of extensions designed to ensure the UI adapts to working well with an e-ink display. Software pre-installed includes Xournal++ for note taking, Firefox for web browsing, and Foliate for reading ebooks, among others. [And it even runs Doom...]
>
> Existing PineNote owners can [4] download the the new OS image , flash it to their device, and help test it... Touch and stylus input are major selling points of the PineNote, positioning it as a libre alternative to leading e-ink note-taking devices like the Remarkable 2, Onyx BOOX, and Amazon Scribe.
"I do not (yet) have a launch date target," [5]according to the blog post , "as behind-the-scenes the Pine Store team are still working on all things production."
But the update also links to some [6]blog posts about their free and open source smartwatch PineTime ...
[1] https://pine64.org/2024/10/02/september_2024/
[2] https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/10/pinenote-linux-powered-e-ink-tablet-returns
[3] https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2021/08/pine64-pinenote-e-ink-tablet-running-linux
[4] https://github.com/PNDeb/pinenote-debian-image
[5] https://pine64.org/2024/10/02/september_2024/#pinenote
[6] https://pine64.org/2024/10/02/september_2024/#blog-posts-about-the-pinetime
> The [10.1-inch e-ink display] PineNote was [3]announced in 2021 , building on the success of its non-SBC devices like the PinePhone (and later Pro model), the PineTab, and PineBook devices. Like most of Pine64's devices, software support is largely tackled by the community. But only a small batch of developer units were ever sold, primarily by enthusiasts within the open-source community who had the knowledge and desire to work on getting a modern Linux OS to run on the hardware, and adapt to the e-ink display.
>
> That process has taken a while, as Pine64's community bloggers explain:
>
> "The PineNote was stuck in a chicken-and-egg situation because of the very high cost of manufacturing the device (ePaper screens are sadly still expensive), and so the risk of manufacturing units that then didn't have a working Linux OS and would not sell was huge."
>
> However, the proverbial egg has finally hatched. The PineNote now has a reliable Debian-based OS, developed by Maximilian Weigand. This is described as "not only a bare-bones capable OS but a genuinely daily-usable system that 'just works'" according to the Pine64 blog. ["This is excellent as it also moves the target audience from developers to every day users. You should be able to power on the device and drop into a working Gnome experience."] It is said to use the GNOME desktop plus a handful of extensions designed to ensure the UI adapts to working well with an e-ink display. Software pre-installed includes Xournal++ for note taking, Firefox for web browsing, and Foliate for reading ebooks, among others. [And it even runs Doom...]
>
> Existing PineNote owners can [4] download the the new OS image , flash it to their device, and help test it... Touch and stylus input are major selling points of the PineNote, positioning it as a libre alternative to leading e-ink note-taking devices like the Remarkable 2, Onyx BOOX, and Amazon Scribe.
"I do not (yet) have a launch date target," [5]according to the blog post , "as behind-the-scenes the Pine Store team are still working on all things production."
But the update also links to some [6]blog posts about their free and open source smartwatch PineTime ...
[1] https://pine64.org/2024/10/02/september_2024/
[2] https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/10/pinenote-linux-powered-e-ink-tablet-returns
[3] https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2021/08/pine64-pinenote-e-ink-tablet-running-linux
[4] https://github.com/PNDeb/pinenote-debian-image
[5] https://pine64.org/2024/10/02/september_2024/#pinenote
[6] https://pine64.org/2024/10/02/september_2024/#blog-posts-about-the-pinetime
Re: (Score:1)
> Why would I want a smelly foot on my desktop?
Because the Linux developers opted to work with Gnome?
(And maybe it's not your operating system that you are smelling?)
Re: (Score:1)
yeah, maybe it's RMS and his allergy to personal hygiene.