Remarkable 2 Not Ready for School WiFi


The Remarkable 2 Paper Tablet has some limitations when it comes to connecting to enterprise-level wireless networks, such as those found in schools. Let’s look at its current issues.

Find MAC Address for Remarkable 2 Tablet

Currently, there is no way to display the wireless MAC address of the tablet on the screen. The MAC address is also not listed anywhere on the box the tablet ships in. Most school wireless systems require registering your device to a school account. The main reason for this has to do with applying the correct web filtering policy for the user.

However, since you can’t view the MAC address on the tablet, it would be a difficult task individually or in bulk by an IT department. There are a few ways to get your tablet’s MAC address by connecting it to other networks, such as your home Wi-Fi, then looking at the connected devices in your router settings.

Join Remarkable 2 to Hidden SSID Wireless Network

To connect to a hidden WiFi network, tap Menu > Settings > Wi-Fi on your tablet.

The WiFi settings page shows you the Networks available to connect to. Some school systems use hidden wireless networks. Those networks you need to connect to enter manually.

To add a network manually, tap Join other network.

Enter the SSID or network name you want to connect to. Keep in mind that SSIDs are case-sensitive. Next, enter the network’s password.

What if your hidden SSID doesn’t have a password?

This brings us to another issue with the Remarkable 2. It will not let you leave the password field blank. Therefore, you cannot connect to a hidden SSID that does not have a password. This means you can’t join the tablet to a school’s wireless network if they use MAC authentication and a hidden SSID with no password.

Connect Remarkable 2 to a Network Using a Web Portal

Many schools and guest networks require a user to register their device and agree to an acceptable use policy (AUP) before allowing the device to fully connect. The Remarkable 2 does not support web portals. This means it may be difficult or impossible to connect it to a school’s, store’s, restaurant’s, or hotel’s WiFi.

Conclusion

While the Remarkable 2 has some promising features as a digital notebook, it will need some more software development before it is ready to sync data over many public and school networks.

Dave Carty

K12 district technology administrator, Google domain admin, Certified Google Trainer.

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