I so hope they're not ruining their next device with anti-customisation and aggressive subscription or partner service marketing.
With a frontlight layer, there's a greater gap between the pen and the e-ink layer, and it makes more of a difference than you'd think in terms of pen feel. (Even the Remarkable 2 isn't that great here because the non-frontlit protective layer feels thicker than it needs to be; Fujitsu did a super job with the Quaderno Gen 2; the pen feels like it's actually in contact with the e-ink surface.) There's also a subtle loss of contrast with the additional frontlight layer.
As much as a clip-on reading light feels hokey, I think it's a better compromise for when you need to read in the dark.
My 2013 Kobo Aura HD (still in perfect condition!) is a standard item in my bag, and still sees daily use as a bedtime reader. Having Calibre automatically sync reading positions between devices would allow me to leave it at home. Problem solved :)
The remarkable does have a superior screen writing feel by far. That was much more important to me in the end.
I won’t lie, I miss the Boox ability to customise the UI and install tons of things.
But I find the simple on/off notes and reading with remarkable just works for me.
Main thing people like about the Remarkable is writing feel which mainly comes down to the surface and the pen nib. You can literally use the RM pen and nibs on the Boox Air and a matte screen protector. MyDeepGuide on YouTube has recommendations on how to get a better feel on the Boox Note Air.
For my use, I have had zero issues with the Boox pen or screen latency. Boox is superior on multiple fronts when it comes to overall usefulness, as it's running Android, so I can use exactly the file explorer I want (Solid Explorer). The PDF formatting options, such as increasing ink darkness and contrast levels make things like color magazines a lot easier to see and read.
The frontlit screen is such an obvious feature that I'm shocked that RM2 still does not have it. Boox does.