Onyx Boox has announced the Leaf, a seven inch dedicated ebook reader. It is thinner and lighter than most other E INK devices on the market, which make it ideal for long reading sessions. The major selling points are Google Android 10 and full compatibility with Google Play, to download millions of free and paid apps. It is powered by a fast Snapdragon processor and has enough RAM and internal storage. This device does not have any note taking functionality, which makes it nice and affordable.
The Leaf features a 7 inch E INK Carta HD display with a resolution of 1680×1404 with 300 PPI. The screen is completely flush with the bezel with a flat cover lens. There is a front-lit display with a series of white and amber LED lights, which can be combined to provide a warm candlelight effect. The distribution of lights is nice and even. It has a similar two tone design, that is similar to the Note Air. Instead of having a blue strip on the side, it is dark grey, which adds some nice contrast.
Underneath the hood is a Snapdragon 636 quad-core processor, 2GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage. It has a speaker, where you can listen to audiobooks, podcasts or music. There is Bluetooth 5.0, so it is possible to pair wireless headphones or an external speaker to listen too. The USB-C port is used for transferring digital content from your PC or MAC to your Leaf, it is also used for charging the 2000 mAh battery. There is also a g-sensor to automatically switch between landscape and portrait mode. The microphone will allow users to voice communicate with apps, such as Facetime, Discord, Whatsapp or Line.
One of the main reasons to buy the Leaf, is because it is running Google Android 10, so it is a very modern version. This OS, basically supports any app you want to install from the Google Play Store. If you are heavily invested in the Amazon ecosystem, the Kindle app has been optimized, basically eliminating the animated page turns, making it easier to use on an E INK Screen.
The Leaf is available now from the Good e-Reader Store for $249.99 and there is an optional magnetic case, with sleep cover functionality and manual page turn buttons. It has been discounted by 50% until the end of November.
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.
