There are a copious amount of ebook readers and e-notebooks that are going to be released throughout 2024. Good e-Reader is bringing back our roundup of every single device that is coming out or has come out. This post will be updated regularly, so bookmark it if you need new hardware.
Rumours
- Amazon plans on releasing at least one new e-reader this year
- Kobo plans on releasing at least two new products. I believe they might release the Sage 2 and Libra 2e.
- Barnes and Noble will be releasing the Nook Tablet 9 by Lenovo in May
- Remarkable will likely release the Remarkable 3 sometime this year. They are on a three-year cycle for new hardware, and 2024 is the 3rd year.
- Supernote plans on releasing their first 13.3-inch e-notebook in the next few months.
- Pocketbook plans on releasing nnew e-reader called the Eo.
- Onyx Boox will, of course, release a bevy of new devices later this year
Barnes and Noble
Nook Tablet 7 by Lenovo – Barnes and Noble announced their first new tablet in several years. The Nook Tablet 9 by Lenovo is available as a pre-order for $149.99 from the Good e-Reader Store and is due to come out in May. The device will have DOLBY Atmos speakers for listening to audiobooks and features TÜV Rheinland certified eye protection to protect against blue light, offers Grayscale, Chromatic & and Immersive Reading modes, and is fingerprint resistant. The Barnes and Noble Nook Tablet 9 features a 9-inch IPS LCD with a 1340 x 800 and 173 PPI resolution. It has a 5:3 aspect ratio and brightness of around 400 nits. Being an LCD tablet, it has brightness controls which can be changed with slider bars.
Bigme
Pocketnote 2 Color – The Bigme Pocketnote Color 2 is an excellent dedicated e-book reader. The E INK Kaleido 3-color e-paper display makes comics, magazines, and apps shine. It has limited note-taking functionality, mainly due to it not having a WACOM screen. Instead, the stylus that comes with the unit is capacitive. The drawing experience differs from dedicated e-notebooks from Bigme, but it is acceptable. One of the big selling points is the inclusion of Google Android 11, which has full access to all of the Google Play Services and the Google Play Store. The price is excellent, considering all of the value you are getting. It costs $299 and is available with a free case and stylus from the Good e-Reader Store.
Kyobo
Kyobo Sam 7.8 – Sam 7.8 2nd – that’s the name of an e-reader, just in case you might be wondering what on earth that is. What is even more intriguing is the model no. It is an R-R-Llx-EB401 e-reader, making it the longest model number we have ever had for any e-reader. The Sam 7.8 e-reader looks nice in the white shade that it comes in. It has a solid feel with an element of style thrown in. There are the side bezels which are quite thin while you also have a slightly thicker forehead and an even thicker chin. The chin is also where the Home button is located. At the bottom in the center lies the USB-C port flanked on either side by a pair of speakers. This is an e-reader and e-note. It retails for $379.99 from the Good e-Reader Store.
Xiaomi
Xiaomi 7 e-reader – The Kindle Oasis has one of the most unique designs in the e-reader business, and Xiaomi managed to copy it and surpass it. It has the same build quality, including the asymmetrical design and page-turn buttons. Still, it has a larger battery, and users can install their apps and alternative app stores. The unit is built meticulously with high-quality materials and nice bevelled edges, and it is a very classy-looking e-reader. However, unlike most Xiaomi devices, the English operating system is inconsistent. Only 60% of the unit is currently in English, right out of the box, without using launchers. It retails for $399.99 from the Good e-Reader Store.
iReader
iReader Ocean 3 Turbo – The iReader Ocean 3 Turbo looks exactly the same as the Ocean 3, which again has the same exact looks as the iReader Color 7. All of them share the same external build but differ internally. That way, there is the familiar Oasis-like external build where you have one portion slightly thicker than the rest. The thicker end is where most of the internal electronics and other stuff are packed, including the battery.
The design might look odd and asymmetrical, but the thicker portion is an excellent place to hold the device. A disadvantage of such a design is that it is precarious when placed on a flat surface. But then, you seldom read off an e-reader placed on a table. Also, with a lightweight build (170 grams), you won’t have any qualms holding the device while reading, even for long hours. This is an e-reader and e-note. It retails for $339.99 from the Good e-reader Store.
iReader Color 7 – The iReader Color 7 features an E INK Carta 1200 e-paper display panel with a resolution of 1680×1264 with 300 PPI with black and white text. The Kaleido 3 colour e-paper panel is 150 PPI and will be able to display 4096 different colour combinations. This is the first colour ebook reader that is 7 inches in size, which makes it stand out in the crowd. The colour scheme is piano black on the front and back platting. Two physical page-turn buttons are similar in design to the Kindle Oasis.
Underneath the hood are a quad-core 2.0 GHz processor, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. There is no SD card to enhance the storage further. Bluetooth 5.0 is available for Bluetooth headphones or earbuds to listen to audiobooks, podcasts or music. It has a g-sensor to change the rotation of the device automatically. WIFI can connect to the internet. A USB-C port is available for transferring data and charging. Dual Microphones will let you do audio dictation. A 1800 mAh battery and dimensions power it are 154.2x136x7.8mm, and weighs 182g. This e-reader reads in multiple formats, which is ideal for sideloading. It supports TXT, EPUB, MOBI, AZW3, PDF and many Chinese formats. It retails for $329.99 from the Good e-Reader Store.
Pocketbook
Pocketbook InkPad X Pro – Pocketbook is a brand developing and releasing commercial e-readers to the public for over a decade. The company has always used Linux as an operating system, which made things super stable and provided long battery life. They have just released the Pocketbook InkPad X Pro, which is notable for several reasons. It is their first attempt at digital paper, an e-notebook where users can freehand draw, take notes and edit PDF files. It is also the first Pocketbook product to employ Android and provide full access to the Play Store. Pocketbook told me that their e-reader line will continue to use Linux, whereas future e-notes will employ Android. This product is available from the Good e-Reader Store for $419.99 and comes with a free stylus and leather case.
Readmoo
Mooink – Mooink will release the first 13.3 digital paper using the latest generation E INK Kaleido 3 colour e-paper technology. This product is optimized to read A4 documents, the native format for PDF files. Customers can read these docs in full and vibrant colour, in addition to freehand drawing, reading books and listening to audiobooks. This product is in English and is available as a pre-order for $1099.99 from the Good e-Reader Store; it will begin shipping on May 1st, 2024.
The Mooink Pro 2C is a 13.3-inch colour e-note, using E INK Kaleido 3. The resolution of the black and white display is 1650 × 2200 with 206 PPI. The resolution of the colour e-paper experience is 825×1100 with 103 PPI, and it can easily display over 4096 different colours. The screen is capacitive, so you can use your fingers to touch UI elements and turn the pages of books or PDF files. There is also full EMR support for the accompanying stylus. This unit has no front-lit display, so ensure you are in a well-lit environment. Underneath the hood are a quad-core 1.8 GHz processor, 2GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. Users can charge their devices and transfer data via the USB-C cable. It has Bluetooth 5.0, and Mooink says that users can connect to a Bluetooth keyboard, Bluetooth headset, and Bluetooth page-turners. You will get around 21 days of battery life, thanks to the 2000 mAh battery.
Mudita
Mudita has two new devices planned to be released sometime in the next few months. The first is the Mudita Kompakt, a full touchscreen E INK phone that has way more features than the Pure had. It will be Android OS-based and the size of a small e-book reader. It will connect to the Internet; there will even be a camera and more significant support for applications, but not the most addictive ones, such as Facebook or Twitter. Mudita believes in a more minimalist approach when it comes to their phones. Mudita plans on launching a dedicated website for the phone in the coming weeks.
The other device they have planned is the Pure Two phone. Nothing is known about this yet, but in a recent Forbes article in Poland, Michał Kiciński – co-founder of CD Projekt said that the original Pure phone only sold 3,000 units and has been out of stock for most of its lifespan. He cited that the Pure would have sold better if it had a more excellent cellular range, a high-quality sound from the loudspeaker, or a more advanced calendar – these are the things that could not be delivered in the final product. These things should be solved in the Pure 2, which, by design, will be for minimalists. There won’t be any apps or even a browser, but it will borrow heavily from the mindfulness of their alarm clocks, where they have original sounds to wake you up, without the traditional BEEP BEEP BEEP.
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.
