People often ask if Onyx ever updates the Android version on their Boox ereaders and eNotes, so I thought I’d put together an article answering that question.
Onyx does regularly release software updates for their devices, even for models that are several years old. But the answer is no, Onyx does not update the Android versions on their Boox devices.
There was a time a few years ago when they did offer an Android upgrade from Android 6 to Android 9 for some of their devices, but I think they ran into some complications. The upgrade was considered “high risk”, and they stopped offering Android updates after that.
I can see why people ask the question considering Onyx tends to use older versions of Android on their devices. Their current lineup of ereaders and eNotes come with either Android 11 or Android 12. I have a phone that’s 6 years old and it runs Android 12, and the current Android version is 14, so I can understand the concern.
I don’t know why Onyx always uses older versions of Android, but one thing to take into consideration is the fact that Onyx’s devices don’t run regular Android like you’d get on a tablet or a phone. Onyx’s Android software is heavily modified to run smoother on E Ink screens. A lot of things have been removed and tweaked to optimize performance on E Ink, and they use a custom homescreen launcher that’s a lot different than regular Android.
Onyx can have two devices with two different versions of Android that look and function virtually identically from a software standpoint.
One thing to be concerned about is app compatibility with older versions of Android as a device ages. But most apps support older versions of Android for quite awhile, especially when it comes to reading apps. For example, the Kindle app still supports Android 9 from 2018 so it goes back pretty far, and you can probably find older versions of the app that still work on earlier versions of Android.
For some reason Android-powered E Ink devices, and not just Onyx’s but other brands too, don’t come with the latest version of Android; they’re always a few versions behind.
If you buy an ereader or eNote that runs Android, don’t expect it to get updated to a newer version of Android in the future. It just doesn’t happen. The only way to get newer versions of Android is to buy new hardware.
Unless you are interested in a very specific application that needs an updated Android version, I wouldn’t worry too much about the Android version of the device. You’re more likely to switch e-readers before you need a modern Android version. I started with Android 2.3 when Onyx switched from Linux to Android and I never upgraded my devices because of a need for a new version of Android, but because of the advancement of technology in e-readers. I still have some with Android 4.2 and 4.4 versions (not only on Onyx, but also on Tolino and other brands) that work perfectly fine. There is no problem in continuing to maintain those e-readers with the right version of the application. Only in very specific and extreme cases can they become obsolete. But, as I said, I think it is easier for you to change devices for other reasons.
Could the reason Boox doesn’t offer Android updates be because of the licensing issue from a few years back?
The suppliers of the components Onyx, Fiio and other devices which is Android as the OS don’t supply drivers for older hardware. It’s not always their choice and it really doesn’t matter as these are not high risk security devices. There are cashpoints, shopping tills and many other devices all running older software. It’s not worth creating new drivers software for components long since replaced by the suppliers. If you’ve ever wondered why phones don’t get the latest upon release, much is getting old drivers and tech working. Sometimes it does, often it doesn’t.