Boox’s new E Ink tablet can do one big thing my Kindle can’t ‣ Diverse Daily

If you like E Ink screens and taking handwritten notes, you’ve never had more devices to choose from. From the polished writing experience of the reMarkable Paper Pro and Pure, to the deep well of reading material on the Amazon Kindle Colorsoft, you’ve got plenty of options worth considering. Given the sheer number of sizes and styles of E Ink tablets the company makes, though, there’s a good chance Boox makes what you’re looking for.

Boox offers giant E Ink tablets with keyboards and styluses, pocket-sized e-readers that run Android and support styluses, and iPad-sized E Ink tablets that, yes, also support styluses. With the new Boox Go 6 (Gen II), the company is finally bringing the wonders of E Ink note-taking to a size and shape that’s most similar to Amazon’s entry-level Kindle. This isn’t the first time the company has offered an E Ink device at this size, but it is offering features that Amazon and Kobo don’t currently match, and at a $200 price that isn’t that much more expensive.

The Boox Go 6 brings E Ink note-taking to a new screen size

InkSense stylus support and Android 11

A Boox Go 6 (Gen II) sitting on a table next to an InkSense Plus stylus. — Boox

The Boox Go 6 (Gen II) features a 6-inch 300ppi E Ink display in a rectangular body that looks like Amazon’s basic Kindle, but with a flush screen, and a variety of different colors. The new Boox Go 6 comes in a gray “Stone,” purple “Plum,” yellow “Custard,” or white “Shell” finish, with a ridged back that Boox claims is inspired by suitcases. While the Go 6 (Gen II) looks fairly different from Boox’s original model, the tablet is in many ways an evolution of that earlier Go 6. It still features an “octa-core processor” and the expected support for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.0, but now with 3GB of RAM and a 1500mAh battery, so the tablet can theoretically run apps better and last longer doing it.

Boox has customized Android to make it work better with E Ink displays, but there are still some quirks to how the company’s interfaces look and work.

Running Android 11 is one way the new Go 6 distinguishes itself; the other way is with support for Boox’s InkSense Plus Stylus. The stylus connects wirelessly to the Go 6 (Gen II) and works with Boox’s native notes app, its Neoreader app for reading books and other files, and, theoretically, any other note-taking app you download from the Google Play Store. Having used the InkSense Plus on Boox Palma 2 Pro, the writing experience doesn’t feel quite as luxurious and paper-like as what you’ll get on a reMarkable. Some of that has to do with the InkSense Plus itself, and some of it has to do with the finish of Boox’s screen, but it will likely take testing the Go 6 (Gen II) to know how things shake out.

A screen of different downloaded apps on a Boox Go 6 (Gen II). — Boox

Where you won’t find any of these options is on Amazon’s Kindle lineup. Outside the Kindle Scribe, which has an 11-inch screen, Amazon doesn’t offer stylus support on its e-readers. The company also doesn’t allow for any third-party apps or provide access to an app store, another major way Boox’s devices are more open-ended and flexible. Maybe that will change in the future, but at least for now, those are clear advantages the Boox Go 6 (Gen II) has over a 6-inch Kindle or 7-inch Kindle Paperwhite.

A “Goldilocks” note-taking device

Finding the right size for writing on E Ink

Someone writing on a Boox Go 6 (Gen II) with a stylus. — Boox

With yet another device that supports stylus input, Boox is inadvertently conducting an interesting study into what the best screen size for taking notes on E Ink actually is. The company’s Boox Go Color 7 (Gen II) is only slightly larger than Boox Go 6 (Gen II) and similarly lets you take handwritten notes. There’s also the Boox Go 10.3 (Gen II) if you need even more room to write. The right size comes down to taste, but a smaller screen could be a real sweet spot since it’s closer to the dimensions of an actual book or Moleskine notebook.

Having a portable note-taking device also gives you more options to turn to other than your smartphone when you need to jot an idea down on the go.

The Boox Go 6 (Gen II) seems like it could be nearly as pocketable as the phone-shaped Boox Palma 2 and Palma 2 Pro, while offering meaningful extra space to write and draw. It doesn’t have much competition, either. The Kobo Sage, an 8-inch e-reader with stylus support, hasn’t been updated or restocked in over a year. That leaves Boox as one of the most flexible and affordable E Ink tablets under 10 inches. Having a portable note-taking device also gives you more options to turn to other than your smartphone when you need to jot an idea down on the go. It’s not unlike reMarkable’s Paper Pro Move, just with a lot more flexibility in terms of reading and the other things you can do on the Go when you’re not taking notes.

The Boox Go 6 (Gen II) is available to pre-order today for $200 and will start shipping out to customers on June 17. The InkSense Plus stylus is sold separately for $46.