Onyx Boox consistently introduces incremental upgrades in their e-reader lineup, each iteration offering slight enhancements. Enter the Onyx Boox Poke 5, an e-reader correcting the storage limitations of its predecessor, the Poke 4 Light.
While aesthetically pleasing, it seems to lack standout design features and shares the familiar 6-inch form factor of its predecessors. Let’s dive deeper into what this seemingly unassuming e-reader has to offer.
Boox Poke 5 Specification
Aspect of Consideration
- Design
- Display
- Reading
- Hardware & Software
- User Interface
- Pricing
Design
The Poke 5 brings some changes in dimensions, being slightly shorter yet wider than its predecessor. The Onyx Boox Poke 5 maintains the classic design seen in previous iterations. Its familiar format comprises a flash screen, absent buttons, and a clean, sleek appearance.
The device’s compact size, solid build quality, and comfortable ergonomics make it highly portable and easy to handle. However, it exudes a bland and unremarkable visual appeal compared to its predecessors.
The device sports a USB-C port for communication and a microSD card slot for expanded storage. An additional button, possibly a reset function, or microphone, adds to the device’s capabilities.
An important addition is the presence of an SD card slot, elevating its storage capacity to 32GB compared to the Poke 4 Light’s 16GB.
Display
The Onyx Boox Poke 5 comes with a 6 inch display with a pixel density of 300 ppi. One standout feature of the Onyx Boox Poke 5 is its glow light. The device offers various settings that allow users to adjust the warmth of the light.
This flexibility, combined with live changes as you tweak the settings, showcases the device’s thoughtful illumination options. Users can eliminate the blue hue entirely, opt for a soothing orange, or fine-tune the warmth to suit personal preferences.
Despite the similar screen reflectivity to previous models, its screen quality is acceptable but not outstanding.
The Boox Poke 5 presents a fascinating array of screen refresh options, catering to various user preferences.
- The Ultra Fast mode promises the best quality, resolution, and minimum ghosting but operates at a slower pace.
- Balanced mode offers an equilibrium between speed and responsiveness, leveraging the dedicated GPU unit for an interactive experience.
- Fast mode prioritizes speed but can result in image degradation and increased ghosting.
Reading
Utilizing the Neo reader application, the Poke 5 offers a satisfactory reading experience. Page turns are reasonably swift, although there might be some pixelation observed. With a PPI of 300, text appears sharp and clear, even at larger font sizes, showcasing the screen’s quality. It seamlessly supports various formats like ePubs, Mobis, PDFs, and Manga.
PDF Viewing However, when it comes to PDFs, the Poke 5 faces limitations. Side-loaded PDFs might encounter formatting issues, although these can be remedied with cropping. Notably, the absence of pinch and zoom functionality for side-loaded content remains puzzling, as it is a useful feature that’s hidden in the settings.
Reader Performance and Document Loading The device’s primary function as an e-reader showed mixed results. While it adequately opened EPUB and PDF files, the initial loading time was notable, taking more time than desired. The display’s default color enhancements, while aiming to improve contrast, sometimes led to decreased sharpness, affecting the overall clarity of the content.
Furthermore, the absence of auto-rotation, a feature of particular interest to users, seemed to be lacking in this iteration. However, the device’s reading performance, particularly with a suitable refresh speed and dithering enabled, showcased a commendable display quality with minimal ghosting issues.
With Android and Play Store support you can download you favorite third party reading apps. With the build in microphone jack you can listen to audiobooks as well.
Hardware & Software
Software: While the Onyx Boox Poke 5 offers a near-full Android experience, its limitations become apparent in the absence of audio hardware. Despite having volume controls and the ability to access various media platforms like YouTube, the device lacks speakers, rendering it unable to play audiobooks or audio content stored on the device.
Though not pre-installed, Google Play access can be enabled after a few configuration steps. This grants users access to a vast library of apps, making it a versatile e-reader beyond its core function.
Running on Android version 11, the device feels somewhat dated, but Onyx promises at least three years of firmware updates.
Hardware: Internally Boox Poke 5, runs on an octa-core processor with 2GB RAM and 32 GB internal storage . With 2800 mAh battery the device provides a decent reading time.
The Poke 5 lacks a G sensor which is available in almost all devices. However Auto brightness and warm lights are available.
User Interfece
Navigating through Onyx’s user interface is smooth and intuitive. The e-ink center is a focal point, offering settings for dark color enhancement and light color filters.
Notably, the device lacks audio, emphasizing the importance of Bluetooth for external speakers or headphones. Onyx provides an app store and bookstore, though the content may be limited, prompting users to explore alternate platforms like Kindle, Barnes & Noble, or Kobo for richer content.
The device boasts a few other handy features, including built-in dictionaries for quick downloads, translation support, and a vocabulary list. Gestures like swiping up for navigation and a built-in calculator offer convenient functionalities. However, the device’s real strength lies in its access to the Google Play Store. Users have the freedom to install, manage, and optimize apps according to their preferences, transforming the e-reader into a versatile tool.
Pricing
A promising gadget with a unique blend of features that aims to replace your smartphone with an E-Ink display. Are you looking for a new device that blurs the line between a smartphone and an e-reader? If so than this niched down E Reader can be a good choice.
What is Included in the package? The package contains the Device, minimal paperwork, and a USB charging cable, and an AC power adapter.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, the Onyx Boox Poke 5 presents itself as an incremental upgrade from its predecessor. While it doesn’t drastically deviate from its predecessor, it manages to offer several improvements, especially in illumination customization and expanded storage options.
It’s a competent e-reader but might not warrant an upgrade if you recently acquired a Poke 4 Light.
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