New android device

[Owl_]

I was considering to buy an android ereader. The features:

- high performance (mainly for pdfs and apps installed)
- pop-up dictionary for ebooks
- possibly 6" screen with landscape mode

The two brands I thought, are onyx and boyue. In particular
onyx boox poke pro
and likebook mars

Doubts:

About the poke pro, the performance looks better than the premium model onyx monte cristo 4
Is it possible?

About the likebook mars, the reviews tell it is slow with the ebooks. Any opinion o witness?

This brands (or others) can give the same stability and performances of a kindle or kobo ereaders? And how long they last? (I don't want throw it in the rubbish the following day)


Any answer, brand or model suggested are welcome

[pazos]

AFAICT both boyue and onyx make their business based on stealing software from others and announce their products as Android devices even when no device from them are really android as they don't pass the Android CTS.

The best alternatives for e-ink android devices are those that don't claim they're android, like Sony, Nook or Tolino. They comply with software license and make a software that is, IMHO, way better than Onyx/Boyue.

Suggestions?: do not buy any Android device that announces itself as android ereader. They're bad. If you do please buy locally since you'll have better warranty.

Good companies for most of us?: Kindle, Kobo, Pocketbook, Nook, Sony... probably others.

I'm still waiting for a good android device that allows me to install my own apks and comes without bloated apps, google services and malware.

[WeirdBeard]

I just got a Likebook Mars and really like it. It does not seem slow to me at all. It receives frequent updates from the manufacturer over wifi - a good sign in my opinion. I was able to get the Android Play Store to work just fine. The screen is very sharp and clear - much better than my Kindle Paperwhite. And I like the larger screen. It plays music and audiobooks just fine through the earphone jack (no built-in speakers). I use the built-in book reader, CoolReader, and Kindle and they all work just fine. I've had it for about 3 weeks and I am still experimenting with it. I would like to find a better PDF reader for example.

I have finished reading 3 books on it so far, which is the main thing. But be cautioned: this is an ebook reader with a few tablet features, not a full-blown tablet. It is great for reading ebooks. That is its thing.

As Flossy Carter would say, on a scale of one to ten, this is a major major go.

I hope that helps a little, and hope you have fun with whatever you get! -Eric

[Owl_]

ok thanks

[rowe]

I love my Poke Pro (more than my Oasis/Voyage, I also tried a PocketBook Touch HD 3 recently but got a refund as it was faulty).

The Onyx devices are well built physically, but I needed to do a fair amount of tweaking to customise the software to my preferences (so I barely use the default user facing software).

I use Nova as my launcher, MoonReader+ for books, Tachiyomi for manga, and Google Drive for managing files. MoonReader and Tachiyomi are much better for my needs than the non-Android e-ink alternatives I've tried.

My son has the larger Nova Pro. This is a great device too, but text on the glass screen isn't as crisp as the Poke Pro (it is good for drawing on with the stylus though).

[downeaster59]

The Monte Cristo was designed for the Russian market and is based on an older Onyx device (probably the C67), so its specs will not be as good as the newer Poke Pro.

I have the Likebook Mars and the Onyx Nova (non-Pro). Both are very good devices, both have 7.8 inch displays. The Nova's performance and smoothness is a bit better, though. The Onyx's NeoReader app handles pdfs very well. With any pdf, though, the larger the display, the better.

My past experience is that Onyx devices and firmware have been more stable than Boyue devices/firmware - but my Mars has been solid so far.

As I understand it, the reason why Onyx/Boyue devices don't qualify for Android CTS is because Google explicitly excluded any e-Ink devices from full qualification. (Who stole from whom?) Besides, the solution that Onyx/Boyue have come up with is no different from having the end user root their device and install a custom Android ROM. (Is that stealing?) Moreover, if I buy an app on Play Store on my Nova, Google gets the money, just as they would on any other Android device.

[pazos]

Originally Posted by downeaster59

The Monte Cristo was designed for the Russian market and is based on an older Onyx device (probably the C67), so its specs will not be as good as the newer Poke Pro.

I have the Likebook Mars and the Onyx Nova (non-Pro). Both are very good devices, both have 7.8 inch displays. The Nova's performance and smoothness is a bit better, though. The Onyx's NeoReader app handles pdfs very well. With any pdf, though, the larger the display, the better.

My past experience is that Onyx devices and firmware have been more stable than Boyue devices/firmware - but my Mars has been solid so far.

As I understand it, the reason why Onyx/Boyue devices don't qualify for Android CTS is because Google explicitly excluded any e-Ink devices from full qualification. (Who stole from whom?) Besides, the solution that Onyx/Boyue have come up with is no different from having the end user root their device and install a custom Android ROM. (Is that stealing?) Moreover, if I buy an app on Play Store on my Nova, Google gets the money, just as they would on any other Android device.

Yup, I must admit that stealing and spoofing are two different things.

Onyx/Boyue and a LOT of chinese vendors spoof fingerprints from registered products/devices. This is the only option to get play store/play services on the device, like, as you said, e-ink devices don't qualify for CTS as they are uncapable of passing some multimedia tests.

When I say they're stealing I meant: They work is based on the work of others but they don't comply with licenses. I mean: kernel, FBReaderJ and MuPDF licenses (GPLv2, GPLv2 and AGPLv3). Yes this is stealing or IP thief.

It is simple: want a Android based e-ink device for the entire world? Build based on AOSP, bundle F-Droid, build software based on MIT/BSD licenses or develop your own from scratch.

Want a Play Store enabled device?: buy one of the spoofed readers. Enjoy the lack of support that they have.

I, personally, don't care about what users do with their readers, but users buying these kind of devices are affected by the consequences of their actions: they will never receive a good warranty service and nobody will release a better reader because stealing and spoofing is waaay cheaper. In the end we are killing innovation on the android side of the e-ink, which is fine IMHO, because all the real innovation happens on linux (see Kindle, Kobo, Pocketbook, Remarkable, Supernote...)