They were considered as digital slates for kids who could not be trusted with ‘real’ (and expensive) tablets, but Xiaomi’s decision to launch the Redmi Writing Pad in India last year seems to have revived interest in the most basic of all tablets. These are those LCD notepads that are designed only for writing and drawing, with the content disappearing every time you hit a button. They have no Internet connectivity, no support for multimedia or graphics (except the images you draw on them) and often do not even have much in the name of colour.
What they do have are incredibly inexpensive price tags and an always-on ability, making them a great option for those quick notes and sketches that some of us need to make at short notice. For instance, we ended up parking the Redmi Writing Pad on our desks, because it is just so easy to make a quick note on, whether it is a telephone number or an OTP or a contact.
A huge surface to write and draw on
If you find the Redmi Writing Pad’s 8.5 inch display a little too small for your requirements, then you can get the Portronics Ruffpad 15M. This is a massive 15 inch LCD that comes bundled with a stylus and a few other neat touches, all at a price in the vicinity of Rs 1,000. Its official price is Rs 1399, but it is available at different outlets for well under that amount, and often even under Rs 1000. We think it is pretty good value for that money if you are just looking at a big surface for sketching and writing.
For that display is the biggest asset of the Ruffpad 15M. It is one of the biggest we have seen on a tablet, and is actually large enough to occupy most of a small table. The body of the Ruffpad 15M is basically plastic but the tablet is very slim and very light. It weighs about 320 grams, and seems a whole lot lighter simply because that weight is distributed over such a large space. Our tablet was in a light blue shade with a single button beneath that display to erase content, and a sliding button on the back to stop content from being erased. On the right of the pad is a place for the accompanying stylus to be slotted. It is a light but comfortable to use stylus as well with a reasonably sharp tip.
Simple enough to use, with smooth, colourful writing
Using the Ruffpad 15M is simple enough. You draw or write on that large display, which is always on (there is no switch on or off button). And the sheer size of the display means that this is a tablet that is best used in landscape mode. That size also makes the Ruffpad 15M much better for elaborate sketches and diagrams as compared to the smaller Redmi Writing Pad. Mind you, its size also makes it difficult to write while on the move so we would suggest sitting down and using it. It is light and slim enough to slip into a bag easily and is built solidly enough, although we would recommend using it with some care, given its relative lack of weight.
The stylus works smoothly and the surface is easy to write and draw on. A neat touch is the fact that when you write or sketch, the content appears in different colours and not just in green that one gets to see on most of these tablets. On the Ruffpad, we saw content in green, blue, yellow, orange, with sometimes colours blending into each other. It is definitely very eye-catching, though on the flip side, you have no control over the colours – they appear almost at random, which is a pity. The option to choose colors would have been awesome!
Not perfect, but at that price, nothing is!
The Ruffpad 15M comes with the limitations that normally accompany these super budget tablets. There’s no scrolling, so you are restricted to the display size and cannot scroll down or up to add a line or two. What you write on the display will remain there until you choose to remove it by hitting the round button below the display. You do not have the option of erasing a portion of what’s on the screen. You cannot remove a bit of a drawing or delete a word – it is all or nothing. If you want the content to not be erased, just slide the button on the back of the tablet to ‘lock’ mode and the content on the display will be locked and even hitting the erase button will have no effect on it.
Portronics has an app (for iOS and Android) that lets you save the content on the display by taking a picture of it, and saving it in a file structure, but honestly, one can do that even without the app – you can just take a snap of what you have written or drawn. And palm rejection is a little hit and miss, with small smudges of colour appearing sometimes where your hand rests on the tablet while writing.
There is no need to charge the device – it runs on a coin battery!
A super affordable slate for the simple sketchy, scribbly ones
It does add some colour to the very basic scribble and sketch experience that the Redmi Writing Pad delivers, but the Portronics Ruffpad 15M’s biggest asset is its size. While that does restrict its ability to be used while walking or standing, it certainly makes it more versatile and actually a viable drawing surface. You could give it to kids to doodle, or even use it for brainstorming or making elaborate work flows.
The Redmi Writing Pad was more of a notepad, this one is more like a canvas or a slat. And for about Rs 1,000, it is an incredibly good deal, when you consider that this is a simple pick up and scribble tool with no fuss about switching it on or selecting a file or mode – the writing and drawing experience is surprisingly smooth. You could hand it to your kids to save on drawing paper if you wish or use it yourself. It costs very little, is actually useful and comes with a 12-month warranty as well. And if you want it without the colour, go with the Portronics Ruffpad 15, which is available for a slightly lower price!
