Should I get the Likebook Mars or wait for upcoming 7.8" e-readers?

JawadLeLogeur · 10-01-2018, 08:42 AM

The Mars seems to tick all the boxes, but apparently Kobo is releasing a new model very soon, and so is Dasung (the awkwardly named "not-ereader"). There's also the Onyx Boox Nova, the inkbook Explore (which seems mediocre according to some reviews) and perhaps many other models I haven't even heard of.

Should I wait or drop the dough?

LittleHouse75 · 10-01-2018, 10:47 AM

I'm in the same boat. However, I'm waiting, as the Boyue has -- from what I hear -- poor battery life depending on the use case.

I'm waiting to see if either the Dasung or Onyx Boox Poke have better battery life and are less finicky. Maybe in the next few weeks we'll have a better idea on the release schedules for these Android 6 eink devices.

mateusz83 · 10-02-2018, 01:14 AM

PERFECT THREAD! I'm also looking for 7,8 300 dpi device. I'm also looking for some reviews about inkbook Explore, but I cannot find any. To what review do you refer to?

JawadLeLogeur · 10-02-2018, 07:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mateusz83

PERFECT THREAD! I'm also looking for 7,8 300 dpi device. I'm also looking for some reviews about inkbook Explore, but I cannot find any. To what review do you refer to?

This one. Although there's not much actual info, I've have inkbooks in the past so I can read between the lines

downeaster59 · 10-03-2018, 02:24 PM

I haven't seen much detail yet on the Nova, though it should be a serious contender. From what I understand, the Dasung is expensive - about $700. You could buy almost three of any of the others for one Dasung "not-ereader"! I haven't read anything about the Inkbook.

I have the Likebook Mars. Battery life with WiFi on is so-so. However, when I turn off WiFi and read an eBook for an hour, the battery percentage only drops 2-3% during that time. If that remains consistent, I'll be quite satisfied.

The only real issue I have with the Likebook Mars is the ghosting that happens in third party apps. The auto-refresh doesn't work with third-party apps. Boyue has promised an update this month to fox that issue.

Mine doesn't have Google Play yet, though units sold as of now apparently do. Some update should fix that as well. That's not a big deal for me. Google Play would probably hurt battery life if installed.

LittleHouse75 · 10-04-2018, 07:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JawadLeLogeur

This one. Although there's not much actual info, I've have inkbooks in the past so I can read between the lines

The problem with that Inkbook is that is runs android 4.x instead of 6.x. There are soooo many applications that require Android 5.x or greater. In particular, Termux, which is what I need to run emacs on the thing.

Nate the great · 10-04-2018, 07:17 AM

Wait. The Mars is annoyingly buggy.

downeaster59 · 10-04-2018, 02:12 PM

Apparently, as of now, the Likebook Mars being sold through Amazon (USA) has Google Play pre-installed. I had been told that earlier units would get an update to install Google Play. Now, I'm told by the seller that I need to return my device so that a manual upgrade can be done to install Google Play. Then they'll return my device. Seems odd to me.

Google Play is nice to have, but I really don't need it. I already have the apps installed on my Mars that I want. I'd like the auto-refresh glitch on third party apps fixed, though.

Now, I don't know if these newer units of the Mars will be less buggy than the first batch. I haven't encountered most of those bugs, but others have.

I still like the Mars overall, and think that it has potential (if Boyue offers some good updates). Still, I'd suggest to someone else in the market that they wait and see on the Mars before buying. People might want to wait at least until we know more about the Onyx Nova.

jviscosi · 10-04-2018, 10:10 PM

I've got the Explore -- I preordered it a while back and it came in last Friday, and I've been reading on it since. I'm liking the bigger screen. The text is nice and sharp. I have the color temperature turned slightly more to the orange side of the scale. I can't speak to the built-in reader experience because I don't use it; I use Moon+ Reader instead, which the Explore runs better than either my InkBook Obsidian or my Onyx Boox (both of which have a lot of lag when you do something like call up the dictionary, I think because of Moon+ doing some fade effect that I haven't figured out how to disable).

The Explore still has the weird Obsidian behavior of the physical page turn buttons being non-responsive in Moon+ the first time you press them after you interact directly with the screen. (The Onyx doesn't do this.)

We'll see how reliable the hardware turns out to be ...

JawadLeLogeur · 10-05-2018, 10:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jviscosi

I've got the Explore -- I preordered it a while back and it came in last Friday, and I've been reading on it since. I'm liking the bigger screen. The text is nice and sharp. I have the color temperature turned slightly more to the orange side of the scale. I can't speak to the built-in reader experience because I don't use it; I use Moon+ Reader instead, which the Explore runs better than either my InkBook Obsidian or my Onyx Boox (both of which have a lot of lag when you do something like call up the dictionary, I think because of Moon+ doing some fade effect that I haven't figured out how to disable).

The Explore still has the weird Obsidian behavior of the physical page turn buttons being non-responsive in Moon+ the first time you press them after you interact directly with the screen. (The Onyx doesn't do this.)

We'll see how reliable the hardware turns out to be ...

Great info, please keep us updated

jviscosi · 10-10-2018, 06:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JawadLeLogeur

Great info, please keep us updated

Sure thing! Here are a couple of updates after using the InkBook Explore a while longer:

1) The red charging light usually doesn't illuminate unless the screen is on at the time I plug it in. The charging light stays on after I shut off the screen. I suspect that it is in fact not charging if the light isn't on because one morning around the time I discovered this behavior, it was at 86% battery. Reminds me of Apple's recent issue with the new iPhones sometimes not charging if they were locked when plugged in.

2) A few times when I've been doing a lot of direct touch interacting with the screen (e.g. adjusting Moon+ Reader settings or book info in the library), the unit has kind of lost its mind and acted like I took a bunch of actions I didn't actually take, like going to the light settings and adjusting it. I think they call these "false touch" occurrences. Since I'm mostly using the page turn buttons to interact with the device, this hasn't been a big problem for me, but it would drive me nuts if I were a heavy user of the touch screen and it kept happening. (It never happens spontaneously if I haven't been touching the screen.)

So compared to the Obsidian, I still like the bigger, sharper display on the Explore (it's not sharper than the Onyx, just bigger) and the adjustable color temperature, but the Obsidian never did either of these weird things. They are probably fixable with firmware updates, and with the way I use the device aren't showstoppers, but I'd say proceed with caution, especially if you are the type of user who spends a lot of time interacting with the screen.

I got in touch with ArtaTech about these odd behaviors. We'll see what if anything they have to say!

JSWolf · 10-10-2018, 08:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JawadLeLogeur

The Mars seems to tick all the boxes, but apparently Kobo is releasing a new model very soon, and so is Dasung (the awkwardly named "not-ereader"). There's also the Onyx Boox Nova, the inkbook Explore (which seems mediocre according to some reviews) and perhaps many other models I haven't even heard of.

Should I wait or drop the dough?

Drop the dough on the Kobo Forma. It's an 8" 300DPI plastic backed screen. It will be awesome.

HarryT · 10-11-2018, 01:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Drop the dough on the Kobo Forma. It's an 8" 300DPI plastic backed screen. It will be awesome.

You don't know what it'll be like until it's released, Jon. It's a little premature to describe a device that nobody's yet used as "awesome". Lighting is one area that degrades with screen size due to the nature of front-lighting. Let's wait and see before being in awe of it.

JawadLeLogeur · 10-16-2018, 09:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

You don't know what it'll be like until it's released, Jon. It's a little premature to describe a device that nobody's yet used as "awesome". Lighting is one area that degrades with screen size due to the nature of front-lighting. Let's wait and see before being in awe of it.

I must confess that I share his unbridled and irrational enthusiasm!

Quote:

Originally Posted by jviscosi

Sure thing! Here are a couple of updates after using the InkBook Explore a while longer:

[...]

I got in touch with ArtaTech about these odd behaviors. We'll see what if anything they have to say!

Cheers, this is valuable information.

fduniho · 10-30-2018, 06:50 PM

It's a very good device. As an Android device, it will support multiple ereading apps, and it will let you do more than just read books. This gives you more freedom than you would get with a dedicated device.

If you don't mind being tied to a particular book store, the new Kobo Forma could be a good one to get. It will be better for reading than the Kobo app, and it is slightly bigger than the Likebook Mars.

If you're more interested in Android, you might still wait for the Oynx Boox Nova. The Likebook Mars is superior in some specs, but its software is not the best. Its built-in ereader isn't very useful unless you can read Chinese, and the Nook app doesn't work on it. But I don't think a release date is available for the Nova yet, and if you need something sooner, the Likebook Mars is not so bad. There are lots of Android ereader apps you can use in place of its default ereading app, and even if you can't use the Nook app, you'll still be able to use the Kindle app, the Kobo app, and the Google Books app for buying new books. You'll also be able to use Overdrive or Libby to check out library books.

10-01-2018, 08:42 AM	#1
JawadLeLogeur Zealot Posts: 104 Karma: 7156 Join Date: Jun 2017 Location: Western Sahara Device: Kobo Forma 4.15.12920	Should I get the Likebook Mars or wait for upcoming 7.8" e-readers? The Mars seems to tick all the boxes, but apparently Kobo is releasing a new model very soon, and so is Dasung (the awkwardly named "not-ereader"). There's also the Onyx Boox Nova, the inkbook Explore (which seems mediocre according to some reviews) and perhaps many other models I haven't even heard of. Should I wait or drop the dough?

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10-01-2018, 10:47 AM	#2
LittleHouse75 Member Posts: 18 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2018 Device: iPad	I'm in the same boat. However, I'm waiting, as the Boyue has -- from what I hear -- poor battery life depending on the use case. I'm waiting to see if either the Dasung or Onyx Boox Poke have better battery life and are less finicky. Maybe in the next few weeks we'll have a better idea on the release schedules for these Android 6 eink devices.

10-02-2018, 01:14 AM	#3
mateusz83 Junior Member Posts: 5 Karma: 10 Join Date: Aug 2018 Device: inkbook explore, Kindle PW3	PERFECT THREAD! I'm also looking for 7,8 300 dpi device. I'm also looking for some reviews about inkbook Explore, but I cannot find any. To what review do you refer to?

10-03-2018, 02:24 PM	#5
downeaster59 Wizard Posts: 1,217 Karma: 2957301 Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Rochester, NY Device: iPad mini 6, Onyx Leaf 2, Onyx Tab Mini C, Nook Glowlight 4 Plus	I haven't seen much detail yet on the Nova, though it should be a serious contender. From what I understand, the Dasung is expensive - about $700. You could buy almost three of any of the others for one Dasung "not-ereader"! I haven't read anything about the Inkbook. I have the Likebook Mars. Battery life with WiFi on is so-so. However, when I turn off WiFi and read an eBook for an hour, the battery percentage only drops 2-3% during that time. If that remains consistent, I'll be quite satisfied. The only real issue I have with the Likebook Mars is the ghosting that happens in third party apps. The auto-refresh doesn't work with third-party apps. Boyue has promised an update this month to fox that issue. Mine doesn't have Google Play yet, though units sold as of now apparently do. Some update should fix that as well. That's not a big deal for me. Google Play would probably hurt battery life if installed.

10-04-2018, 07:17 AM	#7
Nate the great Sir Penguin of Edinburgh Posts: 12,375 Karma: 23555235 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: DC Metro area Device: Shake a stick plus 1	Wait. The Mars is annoyingly buggy.

10-04-2018, 02:12 PM	#8
downeaster59 Wizard Posts: 1,217 Karma: 2957301 Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Rochester, NY Device: iPad mini 6, Onyx Leaf 2, Onyx Tab Mini C, Nook Glowlight 4 Plus	Apparently, as of now, the Likebook Mars being sold through Amazon (USA) has Google Play pre-installed. I had been told that earlier units would get an update to install Google Play. Now, I'm told by the seller that I need to return my device so that a manual upgrade can be done to install Google Play. Then they'll return my device. Seems odd to me. Google Play is nice to have, but I really don't need it. I already have the apps installed on my Mars that I want. I'd like the auto-refresh glitch on third party apps fixed, though. Now, I don't know if these newer units of the Mars will be less buggy than the first batch. I haven't encountered most of those bugs, but others have. I still like the Mars overall, and think that it has potential (if Boyue offers some good updates). Still, I'd suggest to someone else in the market that they wait and see on the Mars before buying. People might want to wait at least until we know more about the Onyx Nova.

10-04-2018, 10:10 PM	#9
jviscosi Connoisseur Posts: 62 Karma: 2563362 Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: California Device: Inkbook Focus, Nook Glowlight 4/4+, Inkbook Obsidian, Kindle Keyboard	I've got the Explore -- I preordered it a while back and it came in last Friday, and I've been reading on it since. I'm liking the bigger screen. The text is nice and sharp. I have the color temperature turned slightly more to the orange side of the scale. I can't speak to the built-in reader experience because I don't use it; I use Moon+ Reader instead, which the Explore runs better than either my InkBook Obsidian or my Onyx Boox (both of which have a lot of lag when you do something like call up the dictionary, I think because of Moon+ doing some fade effect that I haven't figured out how to disable). The Explore still has the weird Obsidian behavior of the physical page turn buttons being non-responsive in Moon+ the first time you press them after you interact directly with the screen. (The Onyx doesn't do this.) We'll see how reliable the hardware turns out to be ...

10-30-2018, 06:50 PM	#15
fduniho Addict Posts: 200 Karma: 9146378 Join Date: Sep 2018 Location: New York State, USA Device: Kindle Touch, DX, PW4, PW5, Scribe; Likebook Mars; Fire HD 8; iPad	It's a very good device. As an Android device, it will support multiple ereading apps, and it will let you do more than just read books. This gives you more freedom than you would get with a dedicated device. If you don't mind being tied to a particular book store, the new Kobo Forma could be a good one to get. It will be better for reading than the Kobo app, and it is slightly bigger than the Likebook Mars. If you're more interested in Android, you might still wait for the Oynx Boox Nova. The Likebook Mars is superior in some specs, but its software is not the best. Its built-in ereader isn't very useful unless you can read Chinese, and the Nook app doesn't work on it. But I don't think a release date is available for the Nova yet, and if you need something sooner, the Likebook Mars is not so bad. There are lots of Android ereader apps you can use in place of its default ereading app, and even if you can't use the Nook app, you'll still be able to use the Kindle app, the Kobo app, and the Google Books app for buying new books. You'll also be able to use Overdrive or Libby to check out library books.