Ultra-portable e-readers are nothing new, and teeny-tiny little e-ink devices are the bread-and-butter of those who love to sneak in a bit of reading wherever they can.
The Xteink X4 takes that philosophy to the next level. Not only is a tiny e-reader, but it also includes a MagSafe magnet. That means it can attach magnetically onto the back of a compatible phone, making it even easier to get a little bit of reading in at a moment’s notice.
The e-reader as a phone accessory
Small e-readers are something you either love or hate. One of the boons of a great e-reader is that they ape traditional books in look and style, and having a small e-reader that’s shaped like a phone can disrupt that idea. I am, personally, in that camp.
But make it so it attaches to the back of my phone? Well, now I’m interested.
The Xteink X4 is tiny, weighing just 74 grams, and measuring 114 x 69 x 5.9 millimeters, with a 4.3-inch display measuring just 220 pixels-per-inch. It has no touchscreen (probably a good thing if it’s on the back of your phone), so the two page turn buttons are required for use.
It’s very much a low-powered machine, running on an ESP32 microcontroller, with just 128MB of RAM. The battery is just 650mAh, which is adorably tiny, but Xteink claims it’ll last for up to 14 days, based on reading one-to-three hours a day. It also sports a USB-C port for recharging, and a 32GB microSD card for holding your e-books.
Speaking of storage, though it has WiFi and Bluetooth, you’ll have to sideload all your books and media, and you’ll need to make sure they’re DRM-free as well, as it only supports EPUB and TXT files.
It also supports image files like JPG and BMP, which can be used in alternate modes where it functions as a calendar, or can show membership cards, boarding passes, or any number of helpful images or files.
Prices start from $69, which means you should probably temper your expectations on what to expect. You can find it on Xteink’s website, and it’s available in black or white.
If you love reading, this might be worth the investment. Me? I’m just going to chuck all three Lord of the Rings e-books on it and finally complete my first re-read of those books since I was about 13 years old.
