3 causes I am not giving up my Kobo for this Android E Ink pill

Now that I’ve lined the issues I like about Boox’s Go Color 7 E Ink pill, it is time to dive into the stuff I’ve borderline hated concerning the e-reader.

Do not get me flawed, the Go Coloration 7 is a stable, very succesful gadget that appears and feels higher than any e-reader I’ve used, however when it comes really utilizing it as a studying gadget, I’ve realized that I do not want an E Ink pill that may do all of it. So long as my e-reader shortly accesses my chosen library of books, affords stable battery life, and feels nice, I am offered — typically single-use tech units actually are higher.

With this in thoughts, over the previous few weeks, I’ve observed that the Go Coloration 7 has a lot of notable shortcomings that I do not see talked about fairly often, together with how sophisticated the E Ink pill is, its boot time, and the truth that its helpful app optimization options do not work with the Kobo app, the platform I primarily use for studying books.

Associated

3 ways this Android E Ink tablet outshines my Kobo

In the event you’re into customizing your units, you may discover quite a bit to love about Boox’s Go Coloration 7.

With regards to an e-reader, I do not want Android

It is simply too sophisticated

Whereas I initially appreciated the truth that the Go Coloration 7 is Android-based, after forcing myself to check varied apps (largely Google Hold), I’ve discovered I desire the purpose-built design of Kobo’s Libra Color. Positive, I can not use Google Hold or Gmail on my Libra Color, however I needn’t.

Once I decide up an e-reader, I solely wish to learn and do nothing else. I’ve an iPhone 16 Pro and various iPads floating around for utilizing extra conventional apps. After all, some folks would possibly desire their E Ink e-reader to be powered by Android as a result of they wish to do extra than simply learn books or saved articles on it, however that is not me. Over the course of a number of weeks of testing the Go Coloration 7, I’ve grown bored with how janky apps could be on the E Ink pill and finally stopped utilizing them altogether. Positive, that lag created a barrier that prevented me from doomscrolling, however that additionally resulted in me reaching for my Libra Color as an alternative

Associated

4 ways I make the ROG Ally X’s awful battery life a little better

Anyway you have a look at it, the ROG Ally X’s battery is fairly unhealthy – however with the following tips, you possibly can enhance it.

It takes too lengthy to get into really studying

It could typically take a couple of minutes to truly open a guide

One in all my largest points with Boox’s Go Coloration 7 is that it could typically take as much as a minute or extra to get the E Ink pill out of sleep mode and really into studying a guide, whereas my Kobo boots out of sleep mode in only a few seconds (I’ve had an analogous expertise with Kindle units, too).

This would possibly sound like a minor grievance, however once I solely wish to learn for a couple of minutes to kill a quick time period, that minute-long boot-up course of seems like a irritating eternity. In a single scenario, I simply picked up my Libra Color as an alternative to learn whereas the Go Coloration 7 booted up and by no means bothered going again to Boox’s gadget. Severely, it actually takes a very long time to stand up and working, even from its low-power state, after which after that, I’ve to place in a passcode (you possibly can’t flip the characteristic off) and boot the Kobo or Pocket (RIP) app, which provides much more time.

Associated

This lesser-known Kobo feature helped me stop doomscrolling

Once you want a break from staring on the “unhealthy display” to get some studying achieved, Pocket is nice on the Kobo.

The Kobo app cannot be optimized

That is extra on Kobo, however it’s nonetheless irritating

Positive, this is likely to be a “me” challenge, however the truth that the Go Coloration 7 works with the Kobo Android app is each a blessing and irritating. It provides me quick access to the identical library of books I’ve used for years (that is one thing you possibly can’t simply do with Amazon’s Kindle library), however the app feels extremely restricted.

First off, you possibly can’t get rid of the huge spacing within the margins of the pages, which is irritating, given I am used to adjusting that on my Libra Color. That stated, I admire you possibly can nonetheless regulate the textual content dimension and choose from just a few totally different fonts. Nonetheless, pages look odd with textual content cramped within the center, particularly when the font is a bit bigger.

Moreover, most of the finest app-specific Boox options are incompatible with the Kobo app, together with the power to customise the Go Coloration 7’s buttons, which do not seem to perform accurately. In the event you long-press on an app icon and choose Optimize, you are given a set of choices. Subsequent, flip over to Others, and you may see Customized Aspect Buttons, together with Web page-turn, Quantity, and Scrolling. Regardless that I’ve Web page-turn chosen, the Boox Coloration 7’s aspect buttons nonetheless management the pill’s quantity, sadly.

I like Boox’s Go Coloration 7, however I’ve realized I do not want the flexibility it affords in the case of an e-reader. Different folks will discover these Android-powered options helpful, however I’ve a number of different units that fill that function for me, together with my smartphone — all I would like is an E Ink gadget that is designed only for studying.

Associated

4 reasons I don’t regret buying the budget Kindle over the Paperwhite

I bought the bottom Kindle over the Paperwhite mannequin, and I’ve no regrets.