Boox Notice Air4 C assessment: Solely delicate upg...

I am nonetheless a sucker for taking handwritten notes in a variety of conditions. For some purpose, 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 offered an exquisite handwriting expertise with a flexible Android OS that was intuitive to me as a long-time Android phone consumer. So when Boox introduced the Notice Air4 C, I used to be excited. In any case, 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, delicate. It represents extra of a modest iteration than a considerably new product. That stated, it is nonetheless a superb machine for a lot of causes and may be very pleasant to make use of.

Your adjustments have been saved

Observe Adopted

Observe with Notifications Observe Unfollow

Editor’s Selection

Boox Notice Air4 C

The Boox Notice 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 coloration show makes it simple to see content material and provides loads of customization choices. 

Professionals

• Implausible writing expertise
• Sharp, clear show
• Android OS offers a variety 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 really reviewed.

Value, availability, and specs

The Onyx Boox Notice Air4 C is offered from Amazon, Walmart, Boox’s web site, and the Onyx web site for $499.99. It is solely obtainable in a single coloration and dimension and comes with the Boox Pen Plus. If you’d like a canopy or the Boox Pen Professional 2, you will must buy these individually.

Bodily, the Notice Air4 C seems to be nearly similar to the Notice Air3 C. Boox modified its brand placement on the entrance of the machine (it is now extra delicate and within the backside left as an alternative), however in any other case, it is subsequent to unimaginable 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 Coloration Display, adjustable entrance mild, microSD card slot, fingerprint lock, 3700mAh battery, and 64GB of reminiscence.

What I favored concerning the Onyx Boox Notice Air4 C

A tablet-like expertise on an e-reader

The Notice Air4 C shares an extended listing of similarities with its predecessor. That is not a foul factor for the reason that Notice Air3 C is a superb machine. At the beginning, just like the Notice Air3 C, the Notice Air4 C offers a improbable writing expertise. It feels remarkably like writing on paper, due to the delicate texture of the glass. The stylus, which is similar because the earlier mannequin, is as snug to carry as a pen or pencil, and it glides easily throughout the floor of the machine.

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

Past coloration, 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 a newspaper than a high-resolution pill, however it’s well-detailed for an E-Ink show. It provides the next decision for black and white content material (300 ppi) versus coloration content material (150 ppi), so primary textual content seems to be fairly a bit higher than coloration graphics, however coloration supplies are certainly not dangerous for an E-Ink machine.

The matte end on the show makes it simple to see in any mild, even vibrant daylight. In contrast to other tablets with fancier shows, there are hardly any reflections or glare. You possibly can go for no entrance mild or flip the entrance mild to very vibrant for straightforward use in any lighting state of affairs. That entrance mild can also be coloration temperature adjustable, all the way in which to orange, saving your eyes (and circadian rhythm) at evening.

Whereas there are a variety of similarities with the earlier mannequin, there are a couple of appreciated updates. First, Boox upgraded the Notice Air4 C to Android 13. Android 15 is probably the most present Android OS, and whereas I do not anticipate the most recent model in an E-Ink pill, the Android 12 OS (which got here out in 2021) within the Notice 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 provides an up to date UI that features like a well-recognized pill expertise. Now, widgets offer you faster entry to books, notes, or latest apps. Sadly, the obtainable widgets are restricted to Boox apps particularly, however hopefully, these will finally increase 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 identified, the Onyx Boox Notice 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 Notice Air3 C, you first needed to navigate to the Apps folder (or change the default startup web page to that). Now, identical to if you flip in your telephone or pill, you’ve got a house display screen the place the apps are entrance and middle (or no less than a web page away). Total, it makes for a extra acquainted and intuitive expertise.

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

Now, although, you may primarily write on something due to the Free Mark possibility and expanded handwriting instruments in apps like Google Docs. It does not work together completely with each app, however it’s good to see the handwriting characteristic expanded since that is likely one of the essential causes for getting this pill. It is value mentioning that Boox additionally prolonged this characteristic to the Notice Air3 C, so it is not unique to the Notice Air4 C.

What I did not like concerning the Onyx Boox Notice Air4 C

Solely a delicate improve from the earlier mannequin

Whereas there’s rather a lot to love concerning the Boox Notice Air4 C, it does not characterize a lot of an improve from the earlier mannequin. On paper, there’s 2GB extra RAM on the Notice Air4 C in comparison with the 3C, and Boox promised a 50% efficiency enhance within the new mannequin. However in precise each day use, it is almost unimaginable 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 am unable to discover an actual distinction.

I loved utilizing the Notice Air3 C, so it is not essentially horrible that there is not a large efficiency leap. Nevertheless, it will have been good to see extra of a rise in a brand new mannequin, no less than to the purpose the place it is noticeable. In any case, a lot of the adjustments appear to be in software program, which might have merely been a software program replace as an alternative of a wholly new machine.

Do you have to purchase the Onyx Boox Notice Air4 C?

The Boox Notice Air4 C is a extremely succesful and versatile E-Ink pill that gives 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 packages like YouTube, Photoshop, and many others. Nevertheless, it’s a nice possibility if you would like a extra primary machine with a long-lasting battery for taking notes.

What about these with the Boox Notice Air3 C? Due to the very delicate and modest upgrades, it is not value upgrading. Moreover 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 following iteration, which we hope introduces extra substantial adjustments.

Your adjustments have been saved

Observe Adopted

Observe with Notifications Observe Unfollow

Editor’s Selection

Boox Notice Air4 C

The Boox Notice Air4 C represents a gentle improve from the earlier mannequin. It now runs on Android 13, providing a well-recognized tablet-like UI, however it retains the identical improbable writing expertise.