BOOX Tablet Tab Ultra C ePaper PC 10.3 E Ink Tablet Digital Paper 4G 128G with Rear Camera TF Card Slot

Product Information

Handwritten annotations can be saved for viewing on your Boox device, however, only annotations in the PDF file format will embed the handwriting so that it can be exported for viewing on other devices The Kaleido 3 screen is E Ink's most recent ePaper color screen. It offers a relatively high refresh rate, relaxing hues, and is ready for mass production with consistent quality. And with E Ink ComfortGaze™ on the Kaleido 3, a new front light technology, the Tab Mini C with adjustable front lights can offer a comfortable viewing experience day and night. Files can be transferred to and from a Boox device via a USB cable (this includes flash drives and SD card readers via an OTG cable). As there is access to the Google Play Store, there may also be options to synchronise with other clouds using third-party apps. With this in mind, the Tab Mini C has four different display modes. HD is at one end, which renders the sharpest and most vivid picture but isn’t fast enough to play video. Ultrafast is at the other end, which pushes the E Ink to its fastest possible refresh rate, but it loses detail along the way and exhibits heavy ghosting. The Balanced and Fast options sit between HD and Ultrafast, with Balanced leaning more toward HD and Fast leaning more toward Ultrafast in terms of performance.

A5-sized) Kaleido 3 screen with monochrome resolution of 1860×2480 (300dpi) and colour resolution of 930×1240 (150dpi) While the price point might seem fine given it’s a large, color E Ink screen, it is an expensive tablet. And the value diminishes further as its performance is subpar. Compared to most e-ink devices, which tend to only be good for a spot of reading and note-taking, the Onyx Boox Tab Ultra exists on a completely different level. This is due to the fact that, unlike its competitors, the Tab Ultra runs on Android 11, meaning that you have full access to the Google Play Store and the apps therein. The Tab Ultra C is a good-looking, solid-feeling tablet. It measures 8.8 by 7.3 by 0.26 inches (HWD) and weighs 16.9 ounces, about 3 ounces more than the ReMarkable 2 (14.2 ounces) and Kobo Elipsa 2E (13.8 ounces). It's not significantly heavier, but the Onyx does seem denser than the other two. While the corners are rounded, the top and side edges of the ereader are at sharp right angles, giving it a no-nonsense appearance. It’s a similar experience my colleague had when he tested the Tab Ultra, so Onyx hasn’t done anything different here except to use a different screen. In both cases, this disappointing performance for basic tasks is surprising as the devices have powerful processors in the form of an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 662… well, it’s powerful for ereaders. It’s possible that an over-the-air firmware update might sort a lot of this out – although the two that I did get pushed through to my device didn’t help.In addition, notebooks only (not documents) can be synchronised with Microsoft OneNote, Evernote, and Youdao Cloud Note. Using the on-screen keyboard is a laggy experience. I’ve used other 10.3-inch ereaders that have faster response times than the Tab Ultra C, and this includes other Onyx tablets. Switch to the keyboard and, while I was expecting a lag there, it’s not as significant. Still, text doesn’t appear in real time and can be a little disconcerting when you’re typing at speed. As much as I hate making this comparison, a 10.9-inch iPad would be a better (and potentially cheaper) investment if it’s a color screen you’re after. Throw in an Apple Pencil and you wouldn’t be spending too much more either. If a color screen isn’t important and you want a really capable note-taking ereader, then I’d recommend the Kobo Elipsa 2E in a heartbeat and you’ll save a lot of money too. Notebooks can also be manually exported directly to third-party apps (e.g. GMail, Google Keep etc.) that are installed on the tablet via Android’s ‘share’ functionality.

The Tab Ultra C features 36 bulbs that light up the screen from the front, preventing light from entering your eyes directly and reducing eye strain. In addition, we improved the front-lighting module to ensure that the screen is illuminated more evenly. And the Tab Ultra C's front lights use Direct Current (DC) technology to reduce flashes when the screen brightness is changed, making it easier on the eyes. The Tab Mini C employs a 50% thinner touch layer to bring content closer to the screen, allowing users to sense less gap under the glass screen on top and have a clearer vision and more responsive touching experience. During this time, I used the Tab Ultra C as my primary ereader, to make notes – particularly for this review – using both the on-screen keyboard and the case, and creating hand-written todo lists and other notes. Instead of the Remarkable app which takes you straight to your most recent notes (which is why I’d want to dive into the app to begin with), you’re presented with several options without any clear explanation as to what they are. It all starts to make sense after spending a prolonged amount of time diving into the app, but I don’t understand why it has to be so obtuse from the get-go. Battery Boox products are supplied with a 1-year warranty that covers any hardware defects (not caused by the customer)

A Solid Metal Build

I recently reviewed the Remarkable 2 which is an excellent digital notebook that beautifully recreates the feeling of pen and paper, and now Onyx is looking to move the ceiling for what’s possible on an e-ink device. You can technically watch videos on the Tab Ultra C, but I wouldn’t recommend it. Even set to its fastest mode, the E Ink screen can’t keep up with 30fps video, looks unnatural, is prone to ghosting (when a screen shows a faded afterimage of what was previously on it), and shows muted colors. It’s impressive that the Boox even tries, but it simply isn’t as good as an LCD or OLED screen for moving images. The tablet’s Android platform permits direct access to the Google Play Store for third-party apps. As with many devices that run a specialized version of Android, however, whether or not a given app will work well on the Tab Ultra C differs on an app-by-app basis. However, general performance is just not up to scratch, something I did not expect from an Onyx device – pretty much every other one from ereader maker I’ve tested has impressed.

I’ve had the Onyx Boox Tab Ultra C for a while and, during my testing, I’ve had a firmware update rolled out. I began my testing from scratch after this update, in case there were new features or improvements to performance. All told, I spent two months with the device before I started writing my review and used the Kindle Scribe and Onyx's own Note Air2 Plus at the same time to make comparisons.The digital eraser of Pen2 Pro has a spring design that gives you a slight bouncing sensation when using it, similar to using an eraser on a sheet of paper. The Tab Mini C uses an unspecified 8-core, 2GHz processor, similar to the Tab Ultra C. It has 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage, which is plenty of space if you want to read standard books, though color content typically consumes more storage. For a tablet, 64GB is a little low. The Tab Mini C also has Bluetooth 5.0 for listening to audiobooks or music (the single speaker is not great) and 802.11a/b/g/ac Wi-Fi.

This doesn’t mean the Tab Mini C’s color is useless or not worth the premium over a similar monochrome ebook reader. It’s still colorful and sharp enough to comfortably read color content like comic books. Photos don’t look quite as good as shaded art due to the loss of detail, but even this is a step up from reading comics on a monochrome E Ink screen. Browsing the web and general app performance are both a bit stilted. Even with the stylus, the Tab Mini C’s touch screen is less responsive than LCD or OLED, and loading web links can occasionally take a few seconds. Scrolling is relatively smooth compared with browsing on other ebook readers, and while ghosting is visible it isn’t overwhelming. With access to the Google Play Store, other e-reading software can be installed, such as Kindle and Kobo, however these apps do not support annotationThe speakers sound tinny and harsh. It's important to note that the tablet doesn't have physical volume buttons, either, so you'll have to perform any volume adjustments in the settings menu on the screen. It's generally best to leave the audio turned off or to use Bluetooth headphones if you want to listen to music. Boox is a Chinese company whose support team are not native English speakers, so some patience may be required. Anyone wanting to take advantage of cutting-edge features and technology (such as a colour screen, Super Refresh, keyboard support and the OCR camera) and intends to use it for more than simply reading and note-taking. HARDWARE Work Profile is a new feature that comes with the Tab Ultra C's V3.3.2 BOOX firmware. It is also offered in some of our models.