ONYX BOOX is known as a manufacturer of a wide range of unique readers for various users. For travel and reading on the go, the most popular display size has long been the 6″ diagonal. Consider an e-reader with a full arsenal of travel options, characterized by omnivorousness, compact size, impressive Moon Light backlighting and a hinting title.
Characteristics
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Display type: E-Ink;
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Generation of E-Ink Carta display;
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Touch display type: capacitive;
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Number of shades of gray: 16;
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Diagonal: 6″;
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Number of pixels per inch: 212;
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Wireless: Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi standard: 802.11n;
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RAM: 512 MB;
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Battery: 3000 mAh;
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Battery life: 15,000 pages;
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Book and document formats: CHM, DJVU, DOC, EPub, FB2, HTML, PDF, PalmDOC, RTF, TXT, PRC, MOBI;
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Multimedia formats: BMP, GIF, JPEG, PNG, ZIP;
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Processor frequency: 1000 MHz;
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Dimensions and weight: length — 170 mm, thickness — 9 mm, width — 117 mm, weight — 182 g.
Packaging and equipment
For safer use, a case was also ordered. It comes in a white box with the company’s branding written on it, and a list of supported devices is written on the back.
Let’s take a closer look at the case itself. A cover from polymeric material. Material with a structured surface that feels great in the hand. The cover is stitched with a thread along the perimeter, BOOX is written in the lower right corner. The corners are protected with plastic corners. The inner surface is soft velvet, which is guaranteed not to scratch the screen and the back of the device.
The book is packaged in a sturdy white cardboard box. A sailboat graphic, brand and model name are printed on the front in a glittery print. On the reverse side, they depicted a photograph of the appearance of the device, put the advantages of the model and technical parameters in text. Also posted information on the manufacturer. On the side is a sticker with nutrition information and the serial number of the reader.
In the approach to packaging, the manufacturer approached very responsibly. The box closes with a magnetic flap. A satin ribbon is used for easy removal of the book from the dense packaging.
The standard package of the book includes:
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The device itself;
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Manual;
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Warranty card;
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USB cable — TypeC.
The cable is quite good, by the way. There are no quality claims. It has tracks not only for charging, but also for data transfer.
Appearance
The device is made in a black matte plastic case. Almost the entire plane of the front side is occupied by a display that stores a splash screen with promotional materials and book benefits.
On the reverse side there is a smooth surface of matte plastic with an inscription of the model name, nutritional parameters and information about the manufacturer.
Let’s take a closer look at the controls. Of course, the touchscreen, but the management of the book is also duplicated by mechanical buttons. The menu button is located in the center of the front side below the display, immediately below the BOOX inscription. Also, for turning pages while reading, there are buttons — petals on both sides of the device. This is done to make it convenient to use with both right and left hands.
Let’s consider the device from the bottom end, here is a microSD slot for an additional memory card. Then comes TypeC to charge the battery and communicate with the PC. The top end is decorated with a microphone hole and a lock/unlock button.
Exploitation
We turn on the book, the animation of the loading splash screen comes out, then a beautiful illustration of the compass in the form of a wind rose. The home screen of the operating system is a library of works and books embedded in the device. Initially, the book already contains works by Russian authors. The center button performs the back function. The second tab is the file manager, where you can view the device’s memory in the usual video explorer. In the settings tab, we can change the device’s language, date and time, the device’s power settings, including sleep mode, power off and on, and wake settings. Then you can configure the settings for connecting to a Wi-Fi network, change user settings for changing covers and using the library. There are options for installed applications, system update data and support. The application tab contains the AIReaderXPro book viewer software, an e-mail client, for transferring files to the page from a computer. Next, you can view Downloads, Browser, Screensavers, Calculator, Music, PC-to-Device File Transfer Software, Dictionary, and clock settings.
I would especially like to note the chic Moon Light backlight, it makes it possible to adjust the glow from warm to cold shades and adjust the most comfortable brightness level. The backlight settings menu is called up by clicking on the image of the light bulb in the curtain.
By clicking on two squares, we switch to the mode of simultaneously running applications. Clicking on the gallery icon moves to the Wi-Fi and Bluettoth activation curtain and current notifications. Everything here resembles a standard android, but each step, of course, is a little slower, because you need to wait for the screen to update. By the way, the screen is updated additionally by pressing the looped arrow button.
Reading this book is a pleasure. You can scroll through the pages by pressing the touch screen, or you can flip through by pressing the petals. The petals play a little, sometimes causing a false positive. In not reading mode, but simply in the menu, the petals perform the function of adjusting the volume.
You can connect a wireless headset and enjoy listening to music, audiobooks and podcasts, since the application is preinstalled.
In the reading mode, with a standard two-finger movement, we decrease and increase the font size, this is accompanied by an animation with the current size. In reading mode, simply by clicking on the text, we exit the menu of additional functionality. There is a day / night setting, full screen mode, text selection mode for its subsequent translation in an online translator or saving for notes. You can add selected text to favorites and listen to it through the headset. The voice reader can also be adjusted by speed and volume. Additionally, from the text menu, you can select the mode of auto-scrolling, converting all text to speech, searching for text, exiting to content and moving to the desired page. Touching any input field brings up the on-screen keyboard. In general, the book gives the maximum possible functionality for reading and marking text.
You can upload books to the device either using the supplied cable, or using the File Transfer Software from a PC, or you can even download it from the browser. Pleased with the absolute omnivorousness of the reader, you can not worry about the need for conversions or looking for the right format. We just throw the text into the reader and in most cases she will be able to view the book. And the complete cover perfectly complements the book and gives new sensations from operation. It increases the strength of the grip of the product and protects against unexpected falls and mechanical damage.
The battery of the device is enough for about 15,000 pages, which gives confidence in the duration of battery life, plus there is always the opportunity to charge the device from a unified TypeC.
Conclusion
ONYX BOOX Vasco Da Gama turned out to be the perfect companion for those who like to read on the road or at home. It pleases with its compact size and chic functionality. Also, the list of its advantages is complemented by the budget cost and absolute omnivorousness in terms of e-book formats. There are many modern functions, dictionaries, a translator, notes, flexible backlight settings and the ability to voice text and listen through a Bluetooth headset. Of the minuses, I will note only slightly flimsy buttons — petals, although they fulfill their role. You can save on buying a book, for example, on Ya.market