I've had what I believe is an earlier rev of this model, or at least Onyx's ebook reader based on the 13.3" Mobius display, the Onyx Max Lumi. It is indeed an excellent e-book reader and note-taking device, with strong benefits over what I call emissive (OLED) tablets.

I've written about it a few times in HN comments:

- June 2021: 3 month review: <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27521248>

- September 2021: Benefits of a large-format e-ink handheld display for reading, and why the main problem with PDFs is actually computer displays generally: <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28612615>

- October 2021: On battery life: <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28745230> TL;DR: "the battery life published by Onxy is best considered "value never to be exceeded". The weeks-long battery longevity is based on about an hour of daily use, presumably with frontlight and radios disabled and minimal page-turning." That said, yes, as an e-book reader the battery life is excellent. Web browsing, by comparison, sucks battery at about 10x the rate.

- November 2021: On display modes and trade-offs of display quality vs. speed. <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29260403>

- November 2021: On e-ink vs. emissive tablets generally: <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29303195>

- December 2021: On how an e-book reader fits into my research / reading practices: <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29609479>

- July 2022: Onyx BOOX vs. Remarkable (and why I'm glad I went with Onyx). <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32113312>

- March 2023: Review at two years and counting. <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35280532>

For more on what e-ink delivers vs. tablets generally, see "The Case Against Tablets" (and specifically the long comment with the big table):

<https://diaspora.glasswings.com/posts/880e5c403edb013918e100...>

Comment: <https://diaspora.glasswings.com/posts/880e5c403edb013918e100...>

TL;DR: conventional tablets are a compromise solution at best, and for Real Computing, you're far better off with a laptop or notebook, with a fixed keyboard and a Real Operating System. I also favour dedicated audio and image/video capture (i.e., an audio recorder and a camera). I'm aware that both are rapidly becoming niche tools, but the truth is that you can work with a 10--20 year old version of either, whilst few tablets or smartphones will last 3--5 years. And then there's the security issues.

By contrast, an e-ink tablet really is a phenomenal reading device, that transcends any other option. With entry-model devices coming in at $100--$200, they're well worth considering.

(And yes, the Tab X & Max Lumi are premium devices, you can find far less expensive options with smaller and/or older devices, see: <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36953360>, and that price list comes from <https://onyxboox.com/product/compare>.)

And finally, related topic, E-Ink Design Principles for Web and Applications:

- Persistence is free

- Paints are expensive

- Refreshes are slow

- Colours are very limited or nonexistent

- Line art displays beautifully. Raster images not so much

- Pagination navigation is strongly preferred to scroll

- Graphics are reflective rather than emissive

- Touch / Wacom may exist

- Feature detection capabilities are limited

<https://diaspora.glasswings.com/posts/638a8d10e041013afba844...>