If You Like It, Put an E-Reader on It
Xteink’s tiny X4 attaches to the back of your phone to add an ESP32-powered e-reader with a 4.3" E Ink display and 2-week battery life.
With their E Ink screens that are so easy on the eyes, e-readers are the perfect way to carry thousands of books in a lightweight package. But e-readers are yet another thing to carry around, so they often get left behind when we would like to do some reading. A phone doesn’t offer the same type of experience, but it is always within reach, so it often becomes the default device for fitting quick reading sessions into a busy day.
Fortunately, choosing between these devices may no longer be necessary. A company named Xteink has announced a product called X4 that essentially straps a full-fledged e-reader onto the back of a phone. It has a 4.3-inch, 220 PPI E Ink display and weighs just 74 grams. It is powered by an ESP32 microcontroller and can store books on microSD cards. X4 magnetically attaches to the back of a phone, but if that’s not an option, it also comes with a set of magnetic stick-on rings.
The X4 was designed to be portable above all, so it doesn’t come with a lot of frills. The screen does not support touch inputs, so the user interface consists of just a few buttons. It doesn’t work with any e-book stores either, so you’ll need to track down DRM-free media to use with the device. If those limitations aren’t a problem for you, you could get some good use out of this tiny e-reader. Under normal conditions, the onboard battery lasts up to two weeks.
Pre-orders are being taken now at a price of $69. They are expected to ship on December 24th.