Meebook, a once-prominent name in the e-reader industry, found itself in a bit of a rut after taking a hiatus in 2020. Sales plummeted, market share diminished, and innovation seemed stagnant. However, amidst this struggle, a ray of hope has emerged in the form of the Meebook M7—a device that signifies a shift in the brand’s traditional approach.
The Meebook M7 is an anomaly among Meebook devices thus far, and that’s a welcome change. It boasts high-quality construction, a pleasing weight, and an aesthetically pleasing design that’s a departure from the norm.
Let’s delve into the unboxing of the Meebook M7 and examine its contents and initial impressions. Compared to previous models, this one emanates higher quality right from the table read and specs discussion seen in the video.
Meebook M7 Specification
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Meeboox M7 Review
- Design
- Display
- Reading
- Hardware & Software
- Pricing
Design
The sleek and clean design of the M7 stands out, available in black and grayish tones typical of Meebook’s models. Weighing approximately 235g, it strikes a balance between substantial enough for a comfortable hold and lightweight for easy portability, resembling the feeling of holding a thin book.
Layout: The device hosts its power switch on the right-hand side, serving as both the on/off button and the Sleep & Wake Up function. Additionally, two buttons adjacent to it facilitate navigating through book pages and application menus.
Notably, the M7 includes an expansion slot for a MicroSD card, supporting up to 1TB of storage, alongside a charging port at the bottom.
Build Quality: In terms of build, the Meebook M7 stands out with its distinguished look. The 7-inch screen accompanied by sleek bezels provides an appealing visual, complemented by the presence of mappable buttons that offer customization options. Its well-crafted back cover, in a captivating gunmetal black finish, exudes sophistication.
It features tight construction, improved material quality, and well-crafted detailing, such as contrasting gunmetal against black. The absence of physical buttons on the front is a strategic design choice, allowing for a cleaner, unobstructed screen.
The unit itself exhibits a substantial weight, a departure from the lighter and less robust feel of previous MeeBook devices. This shift to a heavier build hints at an enhancement in build quality.
Display
The Meebook has a 6.8 inch Carta 1200 display with a pixel density of 300 PPI. The device also comes with 24 level Adjustable Colour Temperature brightness lets you free read indoors and outdoors, day and night
Notably, the M7 incorporates industry-standard display modes, along with an impressive grayscale range of 256, allowing users to fine-tune contrast and brightness for optimal reading.
An intriguing feature of the M7 lies in its wallpaper settings, offering customizable options for Standby and Shutdown wallpapers. Users can select various calendar displays and images, adding a personalized touch to the device.
Moreover, the ‘Display Style’ setting allows for a choice between Standard and Minimalist display preferences, catering to individual user preferences for a clean and organized reading interface.
Reading
Supporting PDF and ePub file formats, the M7 offers extensive customization options for e-book reading. The ePub format grants users control over font, size, alignment, and even features like ‘Double Page,’ simulating the experience of reading a physical book. The device also offers an automatic page-turning feature, ideal for hands-free reading.
Screen Modes: The M7 caters to varied reading environments with five screen modes—‘Off,’ ‘Day Mode,’ ‘Night Mode,’ ‘Bed Mode,’ and ‘Customize Mode.’ These modes adjust brightness and color temperature, ensuring optimal readability in diverse lighting conditions, further enhanced by its 32GB internal storage and expandable MicroSD card support.
Application Experience: While Webtoon and Joylada may exhibit slightly slower motion due to the device’s nature, the e-reader excels with the Meebook application—a dedicated platform designed specifically for e-reading. Meebook ability to support different languages, adjust page colors, and even read manga, albeit slightly slower, makes it an optimal choice for an e-reader like the Meebook M7.
Page Turn Button: One standout feature of the Meebook M7 is its thoughtful button customization, enabling users to assign various functions like page turns, light control, and refresh to the device’s buttons. However, this level of customization comes with a slight drawback—some inherent page-turning features, like chapter jumps, are lost due to the mappable button configuration.
The stock reading experience on the Meebook M7 is quite customizable, offering a plethora of options to tailor the text to individual preferences. Additionally, the device’s integration with Google Play Books expands reading horizons by providing access to a diverse collection of e-books and manga.
Web Browsing: The device’s browsing capabilities, while functional, show a slight sluggishness in performance, particularly in full HD Regal mode. However, the device does support manga reading reasonably well, although its responsiveness to animations could be improved. The inclusion of Google Play and its varied offerings in e-books and audio books enriches the reading experience.
Hardware & Software
Hardware: The Meebook M7 has a Quad Core 1.8GHz High Performance and Low Power SOC. It has 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of internal storage which can be extend up to 1 TB with micro SD Card.
When it comes to connectivity the device is equipped with both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.0 capabilities, the M7 supports 2.4G and 5G Wi-Fi networks. It has USB-C for data transmission and supports OTG. A 2900mAh lithium battery for extended use with up to 30 days of standby time.
The device also has a single speaker to listen to audio books.
Software: The device runs on on the Android 11 operating system. Its Android compatibility opens doors to Google Play Store, enabling the download of additional applications like Webtoon, Kindle, and other e reading apps, enriching the user experience beyond e-book reading.
Pricing
The Meebook M7 is a promising gadget with a unique blend of features that targets small sized E Readers in budget, which run on Android.
What is Included in the package? Upon unboxing, the contents reveal a charging cable (USB-A to Type-C), a user manual guide available in English and Chinese, and the star of the show—the Meebook M7 e-reader itself.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Meebook M7 stands as an appealing choice for readers seeking a portable and feature-rich e-reading experience. Its compact design, extensive customization options, and compatibility with various reading applications make it an ideal companion for travel or daily use.
Despite its few drawbacks—such as a lack of ecosystem diversity beyond Chinese books and performance inconsistencies—the Mebook M7 signifies a significant step forward for Mebook. Its sleek design, customizable features, and integration with Google Play Books suggest a potential turnaround for the brand.
While not without its flaws, the Mebook M7 embodies a departure from Mebook’s prior struggles. It stands as a compelling contender in the e-reader market, signaling hope for the brand’s resurgence.
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Not mentioned here, And I only discovered it for sure from unboxing my M7 after bringing it inside on a very cold morning, that the body is made of metal…. Retaining that cold like only metal can. Very high quality build for the price… Especially if like myself, you buy it on sale at AliExpress… The case is really useful too, not just for popular device up on a surface, But for having lots of handholds that provide comfort for prolonged reading sessions. Took me a while to set it up how I wanted it is… Very customizable. Highly recommended. Amazing value for dollar.