Onyx has a new line of 6-inch ebook readers that are going to start getting released this month in select markets. The new ereaders are part the Kepler series.
An online retailer based in Thailand called Hytexts that sells Onyx devices has uploaded a YouTube video showing the new Onyx Boox Kepler Pro in action.
The Boox Kepler Pro is Onyx’s first 6-inch ereader with a 300 ppi flush glass screen, similar to the Kindle Voyage and Kindle Oasis.
The Kepler Pro features a more durable metal casing than previous models as well.
One unique feature is the fact that it has page turn buttons along the edges of the device instead of on the front.
As far as hardware, the Kepler Pro has 16GB of storage space and a microSD card slot, it’s powered by a 1GHz CPU with 1GB of RAM, it has a 3000mAH lithium polymer battery, WiFi, Bluetooth, a two-point capacitive touchscreen, and a frontlight.
Like other Onyx ereaders, the Kepler Pro runs Android 4.0 (too bad Onyx hasn’t updated the software with the new line) and it can install various Android reading apps, although many don’t work that well with E Ink. The video below shows how some of the reading apps work on the new ereader.
This is a really good video review, I didnt knew this Boox ebook…do they sell worldwide?
Thanks, best.
The last thing we need is another 6 inch reader despite the fact that Amazon desperately needs competition for the customers sake. What about a 265 dpi 6.8 inch reader as an H2O competitor?
The Onyx Boox T68 fits that bill but it’s been out for a couple of years now and has failed to gain much interest.
Onyx Boox hadn’t produced a new 6″ chassis for several years (they just kept sticking newer screen tech into their aging C67) chassis) — so the Kepler Pro is good news for me.
6.8″ is too big to fit in most of my jacket/vest pockets, so is a non-starter for me. That being said, Onyx Boox does FAR more in the way of larger-than-6″ eReaders than any other manufacturer (6.8″ T68, 8″ i86, a whole constellation of 9+” models and the 13″ Max).
I truly think there is a way to manufacture a 6.8″ screen the size of the current Paperwhite considering the huge bezels the current PW has. This would still make it portable.
Rate of chassis shrinkage, for a given screen size has been very slow (and I would suspect be getting slower, with sales plateauing, and thus R&D budgets tightening). If somebody manages to put a 6.8″ screen into a chassis as small as the Kepler Pro, I’d certainly consider buying it — but I don’t expect this to happen within the next five years.