Xteink
TL;DR Xteink has launched the X4, a tiny e-reader that magnetically attaches to your phone.
It skips premium features like a touchscreen and front light, but delivers true pocketability.
The X4 is available now for $69 from Xteink’s website.
Chinese startup Xteink is after a spot in readers’ pockets. Today, the brand introduced its newest device, the Xteink X4, a tiny and extremely affordable e-reader designed to snap onto the back of your phone. The device lacks some premium specs but offers a unique level of portability and a fantastic price tag.
The X4 weighs just 74 grams and measures 114 × 69 × 5.9mm, making it roughly the footprint of a stack of credit cards. It features a 4.3-inch E Ink display rated at 220ppi, which is softer than the 300ppi panels found on most mainstream e-readers, but the X4 is meant for quick reading breaks rather than extended binge sessions.
Besides its size, the device’s defining characteristic is its magnetic back, which allows it to attach to phones with MagSafe-style or Qi2-style alignment rings, including recent Google Pixel and iPhone models. For phones without magnets, Xteink includes adhesive magnetic rings so the device can still be paired cleanly. The result is a lightweight companion that essentially rides along with the phone already in most readers’ pockets.
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The X4’s appeal also comes largely from its $69 price tag, which places it far below the cost of even entry-level Kindles or Kobos and at roughly a quarter of the price of the portable Boox Palma 2. As you might expect, affordability comes with trade-offs. The device does not include a touchscreen, so all navigation relies on physical buttons. It also does not include a front light, which means reading in dim environments will require an external light source. Users will need to rely on DRM-free EPUB or TXT files or load content via microSD (up to 512GB) or Wi-Fi. For anyone who regularly purchases books from Amazon, Kobo, or Google Play Books, that limitation may be a deal-breaker. On the other hand, battery life is one area where the X4 holds its own, with promised endurance of up to 14 days.
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