First time I hear about the Boox Palma, a phone-sized E-reader with Android and the Play Store, does anyone have it?

Just a reminder that Boox does not release the kernel source code and is thus violating GPL2

31

Hmmm I just bought another of their tablets

1

Seems an interesting way to be able to carry an e-reader in your pocket.

I have a Kobo, but it's a bit too large to bring all the time with me.

6

I don't know how relevant this is to you but I was looking at getting a Boox since it would easily let me read my Kindle and Kobo books on a single device without any hassle. However, it achieves this by running their apps so the books are segregated. There's no one library with all your books. Your Kindle books are only on the Kindle app, your Kobo books are only on the Kobo app, your library books are only on the Libby app.

It sounded really tedious to have to flip between a bunch of different apps to track all my books so I decided to just stick with Kobo.

3
- Might I direct you to piracy@lemmy.dbzer0.com? Boox devices have a fantastic generic reader app which can handle just about any file type and is very customizable. If you are willing to navigate certain sites, you can get many books for free, and the Boox reader app is an absolute champ when it comes to opening them and tweaking the experience to your liking. It's more effort, without a doubt. But it's worth it for me personally.
  
  5
- Hmm, it sounds like you need to use something like Calibre to export all your books to a single standard format.
  
  4
- I just pirate everything I want to read.
  
  I bought children of time and the subsequent books on paperback and immediately downloaded epubs
  
  1
- This is why I refuse to buy e-books with DRM. Amazon should have no say in how, where, or when I read my books.
  
  ebooks.com has a searchable DRM-free section, so that's my go-to: https://www.ebooks.com/en-us/drm-free
  
  For anything not available without DRM, I will pirate it without a second thought.
  
  1
Not sure hore good this is, but some years ago I bought my wife an Android ebook reader. It was so slow and cumbersome that I got her a Kindle and swore to myself never to touch an Android reader.

3
- They have become considerably better in recent years, but I understand the hesitation. Once bitten, twice shy, and all that. I will say that my experience with Boox devices has been pretty good, though. As long as you don't expect it to behave like a full-fledged Android tablet. But above all, don't trust strangers on the internet.
  
  4
Bro just use your phone. If it's android, use AIReader. Free, incredibly configurable, can read every type of book file. Dark mode, adjustable brightness for reading before bed. It gets so dark that I can't even read the minimum setting in a pitch black room. Best e-reader app I've ever found and I've been using it for probably 10 years now.

2
- Personally the attraction here with the boox is the e-ink screen. I also use my phone for reading pretty much everything but e-ink would be easier to look at for longer sessions.
  
  20

Okay, so I'll preface this by saying I am absolutely fascinated by e-ink technology, and I believe there is a lane for it. I am typing this on a Bigme Hibreak, a smartphone with an E-ink screen, and I have owned two Boox devices thus far. If you manage your expectations and you have the patience to tinker and dial it in, some of these devices can be perfect. The Boox Palma looks like a very practical device, although I haven't used it myself. It seems to be very lightweight, and I can say from experience that the Boox software is pretty user-friendly (although not necessarily beginner-friendly; some settings tweaks are needed to optimize the experience). The Boox software is generally pretty stable, and the generic reader app is one of the best I've ever used. As another user pointed out, their software is not open source, so you may want to take that into account, but I haven't encountered an E-reader company that does publish open source software (or hardware, for that matter). For what it's worth, I had a Boox Nova Pro and replaced it with a Boox Nova Air C, and I have very few complaints. Just don't order through GoodEreader. They are a bunch of assholes.

5

What's the benefit of a phone-sized e-reader? I always have my phone with me, and I do most of my reading on that.

I would like a larger e-reader, so I didn't have to flip pages so often, but not enough to pay for it.

4

Probably the benefits of reading on eink which is less straining on the eyes but in a smaller form factor

9

For the price I would want it to be a complete smartphone, with SIM and GPS and everything, just with an e-ink display for battery saving and readability in sunlight.

3

Look at the Bigme Hibreak. It might be up your alley.

6
The SIM would be nice indeed

2

I have one, it's been a great device but the battery drains faster than I'd like when WiFi is enabled. I mostly use it for reading in bed and its been perfect for that.

2

Interesting, how many hours does a full charge last?

2
- I only turn WiFi on when I specifically need it so its usually multiple days between charges. If its just running an e-reader app it lasts a very long time.
  
  3

I have a different Boox product, the low-end Poke Lite (I think version 4?).

Pros:

E-paper display is easy on the eyes
Customizable backlight temperature and brightness
Runs arbitrary Android apps
Battery for days
Can install open-source reading apps like Librera
Still receiving software updates after a few years

Cons:

Only runs Android 11
Installing Google Play requires jumping through some weird hoops, because it's not Google certified. I recommend using F-Droid instead, or using a throwaway google account to avoid this security liability.
Built-in apps kind of suck in general
Home screen strongly pushes their own ecosystem, shoving regular Android apps into a different section
Most apps look like ass on a B&W display
Most apps look like ass on a 4:3 display (not applicable to the Palma)
The various display refresh modes are unintuitive

The newer models, from what I understand, use faster-refreshing display tech, and some even support color.

1

I have the Palma. I use it mostly just to read, and I prefer it to when I had a kindle purely for portability.

1