Supernote takes a page out of Framework’s playbook with new DIY tools

Among electronics manufacturers, everyone likes to pay lip service to repairability and sustainability, but few companies actually put their money where their mouth is. All-cardboard packaging is en vogue with most OEMs at the moment, and many e-reader companies are using recycled plastic cases on their devices, but no company has fully embraced the DIY scene quite like Supernote has.

The Supernote DIY bounty

Supernote has been walking the walk when it comes to repairability since at least late 2023, when the Nomad came out, which had a removable back cover and an easily replaceable battery. With the launch of the Nomad’s older sibling, the Manta, last December, Supernote upped the sustainability stakes with interchangeable and replaceable motherboards. Now, Supernote is back at it, releasing a slew of DIY tools into users’ hands.

For the repair-focused users out there, Supernote has put its replacement hardware front and center on its new DIY page. We already knew that it was making replacement batteries, motherboards, and back covers available, and seeing Supernote’s proprietary FeelWrite film is also very welcome. This is the screen layer that gives Supernotes their distinctive writing feel, currently on generation 2. Its availability leaves open the possibility of applying the film to the devices of other OEMs.

In addition to hardware replacement and upgrades, Supernote has released a number of guides and resources, the most interesting of which to me are the 3D STEP files for the Nomad back covers. This means you won’t have to buy a replacement back cover, you can design and print your own. I would have liked to have seen a Manta back cover as well, but hopefully that’s coming in the future.

If you’re a fan of crafting, you’re really going to love what Supernote has for you. To start, it has the specifications of its pen refills and a guide on how to safely mod them to put them in a custom body. Finally, it has a DIY folio kit and guide for the Nomad to make your own folio cover as fanciful or as rugged as you like. The DIY kit comes with two fiberglass plates and all the magnets you need to make your folio cover as functional as Supernote’s, and the guide comes with all the dimensions you’ll need to get started crafting it.

More of this please

We like to make a big deal when a hardware maker makes any concessions to repairability and sustainability, but few other OEMs have taken it to this level. This move is doubly welcome because compared to the likes of Kindle and Kobo, there is a dearth of third-party accessories for Supernote’s devices. And there’s still more to come. Tantalizingly, there is a placeholder link to a guide called “Pogo Pin DIY Guide,” hinting that Supernote may be opening the door for third-party keyboards and other hardware accessories. Hopefully we’ll know more soon.