Boox Go 7 BW Review – 7″ E Ink Android eReader (Video)

Review Date: June 2025 – Review unit purchased from Amazon

Overview

Onyx released the Boox Go 7 BW (which stands for black and white) in May of 2025, along with a second gen version of the Boox Go Color 7 with a color E Ink display. Both are exactly the same except for the screens, and they only changed a couple of minor details on the Gen II, such as the placement of the page buttons.

The main change with the new Go 7 Series is Onyx added stylus support, but unlike most of Onyx’s eNotes that use Wacom styluses for notetaking, the Go 7 Series only supports USI 2.0 styluses, an alternative that isn’t as well-regarded. Onyx sells their own compatible version called the InkSense stylus. I didn’t buy a stylus so I won’t be reviewing that aspect of this device.

There are two versions of the Boox Go 7 BW, a black one and a white one. The black version has a glass front layer and the white version has a PMMA (plastic) front layer. The color model is only available in black.

The Boox Go 7 sells for $249 on Amazon and the Boox Go Color 7 sells for $269.

Boox Go 7 Quick Review

Pros

• Open Android OS offers lots of customization and a wide range of features.
• The build quality feels nice and solid, and it has more or a premium feel than similar 7″ ereaders.
• Added stylus support is nice for those that need it, and it comes with Onyx’s full-fledged notetaking app from their larger eNotes.

Cons

• The frontlight has a weird greenish tone on the cool end of the light spectrum.
• There are approximately 1 million different settings to adjust, and some things about the UI aren’t very intuitive, so there’s a pretty steep learning curve.
• A stylus isn’t included, and reports suggest USI 2.0 styluses aren’t as precise as Wacom styli, and the tip is harder and clankier.

Verdict

After reviewing the Boox Go 7 Color last summer, I thought I’d try out Onyx’s new BW model this year since there suddenly seems to be a lack of nice ereaders with black and white E Ink screens.

This time I decided not to install any Android apps and just use the pre-installed apps. Even when just using Onyx’s apps the Boox Go 7 offers a lot more features than you’d expect, way more than typical ereaders.

Not only does it have page buttons, a memory card slot, an external speaker and microphone, a rotation sensor, and stylus support (all things the Kindle Paperwhite lacks), the software is highly customizable, the user interface is easy to navigate once you figure out how everything works, and there are settings for just about everything (which can be confusing at first).

The only problem with Onyx’s built-in NeoReader app is the fact that it doesn’t support ebooks with DRM so you have to manage your purchased ebooks using a computer before you can load them onto the Boox. Plus there is no onboard store (just a facade with a few public domain titles). And it doesn’t support library ebooks without using an app.

Other than that, it has just about every feature and setting you’d ever need in an ereader. There’s also a fairly competent web browser installed that’s approximately 27x times better the crappy browser on Kindles and Kobos. You can customize screensaver images, there are different ways to transfer files wirelessly, there’s a notebook app that works with Bluetooth keyboards if you don’t have a stylus, and plenty of other stuff that could fill 10 more paragraphs.

Overall, it’s pretty amazing how many features Onyx is able to pack into a single device. There are some concessions to make, like with any ereader. It’s not a simple “turn on and start reading” type of device. You have to learn how to set things up, you have to learn how all the different optimize and refresh settings work, and you never know how well Android apps are going to work with E Ink so it’s always a bit of a gamble.

The hardware is nicer than most. My main complaint is the fact the frontlight has a greenish tone that I’m not fond of, but frontlights are notorious for being inconsistent so it’s hard to know what to make of that. Are they all that way? Probably not, possibly so. I always thought the frontlight color looked kind of weird on the Go 7 Color too, but it has more of a pinkish hue instead of green. You never know what you’re going to get with frontlights…

All in all the Boox Go 7 BW is a nice device, especially for those looking for an ereader with a high level of customization and a boatload of features. It’s not going to be the best option for everyone, but it’s quite possibly the best option with the asymmetrical page-buttons-on-one-side form factor now that the Kindle Oasis and Kobo Libra 2 are gone.

Boox Go 7 BW Video Review

Related Articles
Boox Go Color 7 Review
Boox Go Color Kindle App Test

Boox Go 7 BW Specs

• 7-inch E Ink Carta 1300 display.
• Resolution: 1680 x 1264 (300 ppi).
• Capacitive touchscreen.
• Stylus USI 2.0 support.
• Frontlight with warm and cool temperature control.
• OS: Android 13 with Google Play.
• CPU: 2.4GHz octa-core.
• 4GB RAM.
• 64GB storage space.
• MicroSD card slot.
• WiFi (2.4GHz + 5GHz).
• Bluetooth 5.1.
• USB-C port with OTG support.
• Battery: 2,300mAh Li-ion Polymer.
• Rotation sensor.
• Built-in speaker and mic.
• Text-to-Speech support.
• Supported document formats: PDF, CAJ, DJVU, CBR, CBZ, EPUB, EPUB3, AZW3, MOBI, TXT, DOC, DOCX, FB2, CHM, RTF, HTML, ZIP, PRC, PPT, PPTX.
• Dimensions: 156 x 137 x 6.4 mm.
• Weight: 195 grams.
• Price: $249 USD via Amazon.