A seller on Amazon has brought the Onyx N96 back from the dead and it’s unusually cheap for an ebook reader with a large screen.
The Onyx N96 originally sold for $339 when it was first released, but it’s currently available for $158.39 with free shipping on Amazon.
Onyx released several different versions of the Boox N96 back in 2017.
The one in the listing is the version with a dual touchscreen (capacitive finger touch and electromagnetic stylus touch). It does not have a frontlight (that’s the N69ML).
This particular model uses Onyx’s older hardware and software, which is much slower than newer models like the Onyx Note2.
However, for the price, the N96 is still a solid choice if you just need a basic ebook reader and note-taking device. The built-in software is quite good for PDFs and the device has a memory card slot, unlike the newer models.
I would not recommend the N96 for using Android apps with such an old version of Android (4.0) and the outdated specs. The 1GHz processor and 1GB of RAM are too low to run anything but the most basic apps.
It’s an older device that probably isn’t going to get anymore software updates but you rarely see a 9.7-inch E Ink ereader selling for anywhere close to this cheap, especially one with a stylus and good PDF software.
Bryan E says
Thanks! In for one.
To reiterate, this is older tech. Don’t expect anything but an ereader and you will be fine.
Some of the negative reviews say “can’t load newer apps”, etc. Those are (IMHO) false negatives of expectation.
Bryan E says
Well, that was disappointing. Advert was for N96; however, what got was N96ML – no capactive touch. Will likely return it.
Nathan says
I was wondering if the listing was accurate. When Onyx insists on making 5 different versions of the same model name and number then it’s inevitably going to lead to a lot of confusion. I don’t know why they can’t just stick with anything for longer than 6 months. The Note2 has been out for 3 months now so they’re probably already working on a replacement. They’ll double the storage space and add some obscure feature most people don’t care about and then call it the Note2 Pro.
Sportbike Mike says
Kindle DXs still go for this on eBay. I know because I sold one. These are better.
Housam says
I have exactly the same model , unfortunately i was a bit disappointed with device its my first and only ereader , its so slow in running sideloaded apps like the kindle app simply unusable , its good in runing pdfs with nice features , the reading app from onyx in the device is good , note tacking app very basic .
I am waiting for my likebook Ares to arrive , iam almost sure it will be faster , more usable , more powerful ( octa core 1.5 Ghz) , better note taking app with much more features and better in running 3rd oarty apps like kindle as it runs android 6 and will receive android 8 soon .
Great job Nathen you discribe it fairly accurate , really honest review !