Zerowriter Fold distraction-free writing device has an E Ink display, mechanical keyboard and clamshell design (crowdfunding)

After launching a crowdfunding campaign in 2024, the creator of the Zerowriter Ink began shipping the portable writing device with an E Ink display and mechanical keyboard earlier this year.

One drawback to that model though, was that the screen wasn’t tilted forward, making it hard to see what you’re typing without moving your neck. Now the developer has launched a Kickstarter campaign for a new model called the Zerowriter Fold. The key difference? This new model has a clamshell design that makes the Zerowriter Fold look like a laptop. But there are also a few other improvements in the new model.

For one thing, the E Ink display is now a 6 inch screen with an adjustable front light. There’s also “faster processing” and “stronger USB support.”

But the most noticeable difference is the hinge that lets you tilt the screen forward while typing, or fold it down over the keyboard when you’re not using the Zerowriter Fold.

Folks who already have a Zerowriter Ink may be able to add a display hinge in the future though – Zerowriter plans to introduce a conversion kit “in a few months” that will sell for around $30. It won’t give you a larger screen or faster processor, but it could be a relatively inexpensive way to turn a flat device into a clamshell-style gadget.

The Zerowriter Fold, meanwhile, is going for about $260 during crowdfunding, with an estimated ship date of March, 2027.

It measures 12″ x 5″ x 1.25″ and weighs less than two pounds, making it pretty compact compared to a typical laptop computer. And since it has low-power hardware and a simple operating system designed for writing and not much else, it also offers much longer battery life – it’s said to get around 50-100 hours of writing time on a charge.

While that’s a wide range, it’s because the device uses minimal power when you’re not typing. So actual battery life will vary depending on how much and how quickly you type while the device is powered on. There’s also a screen light that can be turned on for higher visibility in dark or dimly lit spaces, or disabled for longer battery life.

The Zerowriter Fold 60% sized mechanical keyboard with 61 Kailh Choc Pro Red switches. Those switches are hot swappable, so you can replace them if you prefer a different style.

Positioned as a portable writing gadget, the Zerowriter Fold runs a custom operating system called Zerowriter Core that has two writing modes: a Drafting mode for getting your thoughts down quickly and a Word Processing mode for reviewing and editing documents, with support for cut and paste, delete, and other features.

There’s also support for custom fonts and adjustable font sizes, line spacing, and status bar configuration. Users can add bookmarks within documents, making it easy to jump to certain points. And there’s support for Markdown, a live word count tracker, and some other basic functions.

Documents are saved to an SD card as either as .txt or .md files, and you can transfer them to a computer via that card or a USB connection. The Kickstarter page also mentions “optional support for cloud push, like Google Drive” is under development, but since I’m pretty sure the Zerowriter Fold doesn’t have WiFi, I’m guessing that this would come via some sort of desktop app.

Source code for the Zerowriter Core operating system should be published to the Zerowriter GitHub page in the coming weeks.

The Zerowriter Fold is hardly the only device in this category. The design is clearly inspired by the Pomera DM250, but there are also dozens of other DIY & crowdfunded writerDecks and niche distraction-free writing machines available. But this is one of the more versatile and reasonably affordable models.

via Zerowriter