Boox Be aware Air4 C overview: Solely refined upgrades

I am nonetheless a sucker for taking handwritten notes in a whole lot of conditions. For some cause, it helps me focus extra on what I am taking notes on than if I had been to sort notes. Due to that, I actually loved the Boox Note Air3 C. It supplied an exquisite handwriting expertise with a flexible Android OS that was intuitive to me as a long-time Android phone person. So when Boox introduced the Be aware Air4 C, I used to be excited. In spite of everything, any enhancements to a tool I already like and advocate sound engaging.

Sadly, a few of my excited anticipation was unwarranted. To spoil the shock, the upgrades are, to place it mildly, refined. It represents extra of a modest iteration than a considerably new product. That mentioned, it is nonetheless a wonderful machine for a lot of causes and may be very fulfilling to make use of.

Your modifications have been saved

Observe Adopted

Observe with Notifications Observe Unfollow

Editor’s Selection

Boox Be aware Air4 C

The Boox Be aware Air4 C is an E-Ink pill that can be utilized with a stylus to take handwritten notes. It runs on Android 13 for better flexibility and flexibility. The ten-3-inch colour show makes it simple to see content material and gives loads of customization choices. 

Execs

• Incredible writing expertise
• Sharp, clear show
• Android OS offers a whole lot of flexibility and customization
• New UI helps widgets and acquainted tablet-like expertise
• Extra alternatives to make use of handwriting

Cons

• Not many vital upgrades from the earlier mannequin

See our course of

How we test and review products at Pocket-lint

We do not do arm-chair analysis. We purchase and check our personal merchandise, and we solely publish purchaser’s guides with merchandise we have truly reviewed.

Value, availability, and specs

The Onyx Boox Be aware Air4 C is obtainable from Amazon, Walmart, Boox’s web site, and the Onyx web site for $499.99. It is solely accessible in a single colour and dimension and comes with the Boox Pen Plus. In order for you a canopy or the Boox Pen Professional 2, you will must buy these individually.

Bodily, the Be aware Air4 C seems virtually an identical to the Be aware Air3 C. Boox modified its brand placement on the entrance of the machine (it is now extra refined and within the backside left as a substitute), however in any other case, it is subsequent to not possible to inform them aside simply by trying. The brand new mannequin is one gram lighter than the Air3 C, however the thickness stays the identical. It additionally retains the identical Kaleido 3 Shade Display screen, adjustable entrance mild, microSD card slot, fingerprint lock, 3700mAh battery, and 64GB of reminiscence.

What I appreciated in regards to the Onyx Boox Be aware Air4 C

A tablet-like expertise on an e-reader

The Be aware Air4 C shares an extended record of similarities with its predecessor. That is not a nasty factor because the Be aware Air3 C is a good machine. Initially, just like the Be aware Air3 C, the Be aware Air4 C offers a improbable writing expertise. It feels remarkably like writing on paper, because of the refined texture of the glass. The stylus, which is identical because the earlier mannequin, is as comfy to carry as a pen or pencil, and it glides easily throughout the floor of the machine.

The C within the title signifies that this can be a colour E-Ink machine. Whereas you aren’t getting the colourful, saturated colours of tablets just like the Apple iPad, there may be sufficient of a variety to be useful when highlighting textual content or sketching designs. I’m an enormous fan of color-coding notes and charts, so I recognize that I can proceed that behavior on this pill. It additionally makes for a nicer expertise when utilizing apps which are wealthy with colour.

Past colour, the show is sharp and clear, making it very simple to learn textual content. Graphics will not look exceptionally detailed, because it’s extra like taking a look at a newspaper than a high-resolution pill, but it surely’s well-detailed for an E-Ink show. It gives a better decision for black and white content material (300 ppi) versus colour content material (150 ppi), so fundamental textual content seems fairly a bit higher than colour graphics, however colour supplies are on no account unhealthy for an E-Ink machine.

The matte end on the show makes it simple to see in any mild, even vibrant daylight. Not like other tablets with fancier shows, there are hardly any reflections or glare. You may go for no entrance mild or flip the entrance mild to very vibrant for simple use in any lighting scenario. That entrance mild can also be colour temperature adjustable, all the best way to orange, saving your eyes (and circadian rhythm) at evening.

Whereas there are a whole lot of similarities with the earlier mannequin, there are a couple of appreciated updates. First, Boox upgraded the Be aware Air4 C to Android 13. Android 15 is probably the most present Android OS, and whereas I do not anticipate the newest model in an E-Ink pill, the Android 12 OS (which got here out in 2021) within the Be aware Air3 C felt unnecessarily outdated. Evidently, I used to be glad to see a step-up within the OS. As a part of that change, the brand new machine gives an up to date UI that features like a well-known pill expertise. Now, widgets offer you faster entry to books, notes, or current apps. Sadly, the accessible widgets are restricted to Boox apps particularly, however hopefully, these will finally broaden so I can have my Google Calendar and Spotify widgets as nicely.

Associated

4 reasons I’d buy the Onyx Boox Note Air 3 C over a reMarkable 2

Although lesser recognized, the Onyx Boox Be aware Air 3 C has some vital benefits over the reMarkable pill.

The brand new UI additionally makes it sooner to entry your apps. On the Be aware Air3 C, you first needed to navigate to the Apps folder (or change the default startup web page to that). Now, similar to while you flip in your cellphone or pill, you may have a house display screen the place the apps are entrance and heart (or not less than a web page away). General, it makes for a extra acquainted and intuitive expertise.

That Android OS means you may entry the total Google Play Retailer, which is certainly one of my favourite issues about Boox E-Ink tablets. I can obtain no matter apps I would like or need, corresponding to Spotify, all of my Google apps, Libby, and extra. New this time round, although, is a slight repair to certainly one of my complaints in regards to the Be aware Air3 C. It was that handwriting was solely potential within the Boox apps and was not appropriate with third-party apps.

Now, although, you may primarily write on something because of the Free Mark choice and expanded handwriting instruments in apps like Google Docs. It would not work together completely with each app, however it’s good to see the handwriting characteristic expanded since that is among the principal causes for getting this pill. It is value stating that Boox additionally prolonged this characteristic to the Be aware Air3 C, so it is not unique to the Be aware Air4 C.

What I did not like in regards to the Onyx Boox Be aware Air4 C

Solely a refined improve from the earlier mannequin

Whereas there’s lots to love in regards to the Boox Be aware Air4 C, it would not symbolize a lot of an improve from the earlier mannequin. On paper, there may be 2GB extra RAM on the Be aware Air4 C in comparison with the 3C, and Boox promised a 50% efficiency increase within the new mannequin. However in precise day by day use, it is almost not possible to discern a distinction in efficiency between the 2.

On a couple of events, I began up the 3C and 4C at the very same time, they usually each loaded inside a fraction of a second of one another (the 4C was forward by a hair every time). The identical is true when opening up apps or flipping by means of guide pages. Even when paying shut consideration to look at for any distinction between the 2, I can not discover an actual distinction.

I loved utilizing the Be aware Air3 C, so it is not essentially horrible that there is not a large efficiency leap. Nonetheless, it could have been good to see extra of a rise in a brand new mannequin, not less than to the purpose the place it is noticeable. In spite of everything, many of the modifications appear to be in software program, which might have merely been a software program replace as a substitute of a completely new machine.

Do you have to purchase the Onyx Boox Be aware Air4 C?

The Boox Be aware Air4 C is a extremely succesful and versatile E-Ink pill that provides a improbable writing expertise. The E-Ink show has inherent lag and ghosting, so it is not a worthy machine for graphic or color-focused applications like YouTube, Photoshop, and many others. Nonetheless, it’s a nice choice if you’d like a extra fundamental machine with a long-lasting battery for taking notes.

What about these with the Boox Be aware Air3 C? Due to the very refined and modest upgrades, it is not value upgrading. Apart from the UI, you will not discover any actual distinction between the 2 fashions, and it will not be value spending cash on. You are higher off ready for the subsequent iteration, which we hope introduces extra substantial modifications.

Your modifications have been saved

Observe Adopted

Observe with Notifications Observe Unfollow

Editor’s Selection

Boox Be aware Air4 C

The Boox Be aware Air4 C represents a light improve from the earlier mannequin. It now runs on Android 13, providing a well-known tablet-like UI, but it surely retains the identical improbable writing expertise.