The Onyx Boox i63ml Newton has just launched in Russia and has a few major competitive advantages against their competition. The device is running Google Android 2.3 and users will be able to download any reading or comic book apps they want via Google Play.
The Onyx Boox Newton features a six inch display screen with a resolution of 1024 by 758 pixels. One of the most exciting elements about this new device is the inclusion of e Ink Carta technology. The Kindle Paperwhite 2 and Tolino Vision are the only others on the market that currently have it, making the Newton cutting edge. The crux of Carta is faster page turns and the elimination of full page refreshing whenever you turn a page.
The Newton allows users to read in the dark with their front-lit display. I actually like the fact they bill it as “moonlight,” which gives them the ability to market it more effectively.
Underneath the hood is a single core 1GHZ processor, 512 MB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage. Â This should store over 10,000 books, but if you feel like you are installing a ton of apps from Google Play, you can buy an SD Card.
Open e-Readers is becoming a major trend in 2014 with the core operating system switching from Linux to Android. Â Sony and Barnes and Noble have always used Android in their e-readers but it has been a very locked down version of it, having no ability to load in your own apps. The Onyx Newton has Google Play built into it, which likely does not have official certification from Google, but hey, Onyx is a Chinese company after all.
Android 2.3 is quite limiting to be able to install all of the latest generation e-reading and comic book apps, since most depend on Android 4.0 to run effectively. Still, there are a ton of apps out there that will allow users to be able to craft their own e-reader experience, much like a stock vanilla Android tablet.
This e-reader is exclusively available in Russia for 6990 RUB, which is the standard for a top of the line e-reader. Onyx normally makes really good products, so this likely will be one of the best ones released all year in that market.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.