Conference badges are usually flimsy cardboard, a lanyard, maybe a QR code, and they end up in a drawer once the event wraps up. In the maker world, people already strap LEDs and e‑paper to their jackets for fun, but those tend to be one‑off hacks held together with tape and hope. Pimoroni’s Badgeware line asks a simpler question, what if the badge itself was a tiny, finished computer you actually wanted to keep wearing.
Badgeware is a family of wearable, programmable displays powered by Raspberry Pi’s new RP2350 chip. The trio gets names and personalities, Badger with a 2.7 inch e‑paper screen, Tufty with a 2.8 inch full colour IPS display, and Blinky with a 3.6 inch grid of 872 white LEDs. Translucent polycarbonate shells in teal, orange, and lime glow softly when the rear lighting kicks in, making them look like finished toys instead of bare dev boards.
The shared hardware is serious for something pocket sized. An RP2350 running at 200 megahertz with 16 megabytes of flash and 8 megabytes of PSRAM, Wi‑Fi and Bluetooth 5.2, USB C, and a built in 1,000 milliamp hour LiPo with onboard charging. The Qw/ST expansion port on the back lets you plug in sensors and add ons without soldering, while user and system buttons plus four zone rear lighting give each badge its own under glow.
Badger is the quiet one, four shade e‑paper that sips power and holds static content like names, pronouns, and tiny dashboards for days. Tufty is the show off, full colour IPS and smooth animation for mini games, widgets, and scrolling text. Blinky is the extrovert, a dense LED matrix that spells messages and patterns bright enough to read across a room. Together they cover calm, expressive, and loud without changing the basic wearable form factor.
All three come pre loaded with a launcher and a bunch of open source apps, from silly games like Plucky Cluck to utilities like clocks and ISS trackers. Everything runs in MicroPython with Pimoroni’s libraries, and the optional STEM kit adds a multi sensor stick and a gamepad so badges can react to temperature, light, motion, and multiplayer button mashing, turning them into wearable sensors or tiny game consoles.
Double tapping reset drops the badge into disk mode so it shows up as a USB drive, letting you edit Python files directly without juggling tools or serial consoles. The cases have lanyard holes and can free stand on a desk, so they work as both wearable name tags and tiny desk dashboards. The clear shells and rear lighting make the electronics part of the aesthetic instead of something to hide.
Badgeware turns the throwaway conference badge into a reusable platform. Instead of printing your name once and tossing it, you get a little object that evolves from ID tag to art piece to sensor display as your code and curiosity grow. For people who like their gadgets small, expressive, and open ended, Badger, Tufty, and Blinky feel like digital jewellery that actually earns its lanyard space, whether you wear it to a meetup or keep it glowing on your desk.
Most productivity tools are designed to grab your attention constantly with pop-up reminders, blinking notifications, and endless browser tabs competing for focus throughout the day. But sometimes, the best way to stay focused is to keep your most important information quietly in view, not fighting for your eyes or demanding immediate action every few minutes. Finding that balance between visibility and distraction remains surprisingly difficult in modern productivity software.
The InkyPi E-Paper Productivity Display is a DIY project that addresses this challenge directly and elegantly with minimal hardware. Built with a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W and a crisp E-Ink screen, it turns your to-dos, deadlines, and progress into a calm, always-on dashboard that helps you stay organized without the noise. The project is open-source, customizable, and refreshingly simple in its approach to keeping you on track without overwhelming you.
InkyPi’s minimalist design starts with a 7.3-inch or 7.8-inch E-Ink panel from Pimoroni or Waveshare, framed in a simple IKEA picture frame that looks more like a piece of art than a gadget on your desk. The Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W sits discreetly behind the display, keeping the whole setup slim, silent, and consuming minimal power throughout the day. The paper-like display is easy on the eyes and never glows or flickers.
The framed display can be wall-mounted above your desk for easy glances throughout the day or set on a stand for desktop reference during intensive work sessions. The E-Ink screen shows information with the clarity of printed paper, making text and graphics readable from across the room without squinting. The lack of a backlight means it works well in any ambient lighting without causing eye strain during long days.
The open-source InkyPi dashboard runs a growing library of 20 plugins, all managed through a web-based user interface that’s accessible from any device on your network. You can schedule automatic refreshes, rotate through different plugins throughout the day, and customize layouts for your specific workflow. Recent plugin additions include a to-do list, day countdown, GitHub commit graph, year progress bar, and RSS feed reader for staying informed.
Each plugin is designed to give you just enough information to stay on track without overwhelming you with excessive detail or constant updates that break concentration. The to-do list shows three customizable lists with clean formatting, the year progress bar visualizes how much of the year remains for goal planning, and the GitHub graph motivates coding consistency through visual streak tracking. Everything updates automatically on your chosen schedule without requiring manual intervention.
The E-Ink display’s slow refresh rate and lack of backlight mean it’s only updated when necessary, keeping your focus on the task at hand rather than the screen itself pulling attention. The dashboard is intentionally passive, meant for glancing rather than interacting, so you’re never tempted to click, scroll, or dive into rabbit holes when you should be working. The analog feel makes it more like checking a wall calendar or notepad.
All hardware and software files are open-source on GitHub, with active community support and ongoing plugin development from contributors worldwide who continue adding features. For anyone tired of digital noise and constant notifications interrupting deep work, the InkyPi E-Paper Productivity Display offers a reminder that sometimes less screen time is exactly what you need to accomplish more meaningful work throughout your day without burning out.
eBook readers or eReaders, for short, have come a long way since the day of the first Kindles and Nooks. While they still retain that book-centric DNA, many of them have become more capable and adopted new functionality, from writing down notes to becoming digital notebooks and organizers. In fact, many of these eReaders have become Android tablets and phones with E Ink displays instead of LCDs and OLEDs. Of the growing number of players in this arena, Onyx BOOX stands out as one of the most prolific brands as proven by the launch of its third new device in three months, almost like the mobile phone giant Nokia that flooded the market with innumerable and indistinguishable models.
Fortunately, Onyx does have just a dozen models under its name, but that’s only if you count the ones it currently sells. There are a few that have already been taken off its shelves, even just a year or two after they launched or even less (looking at you, BOOX Tab Ultra C). It’s not unusual for some of these models to have overlapping feature sets, at which point the older one gets booted out. And that seems to be the case with the newest member of the BOOX Go family, the BOOX Go 6.
The Onyx BOOX Go 6 is basically the offspring of the BOOX Go Color 7 and the BOOX Go 10.3. With a 6-inch E Ink Carta Plus 1300 screen, it’s smaller than both, as expected of a child, making it the ultimate portable reading device. Like the BOOX Go 10.3, it has a monochrome display, which offers crisper and sharper text but at the expense of displaying any hue of color other than shades of gray. But unlike that larger “digital notebook” and more like the BOOX Go Color 7, it actually has a frontlight that makes it usable in the dark.
Those familiar with BOOX’s lineup before this would probably remember the BOOX Poke 5 which, despite the name, is also a 6-inch eReader with nearly the exact same specs except for one or two details. The biggest difference is the slightly more powerful processor (octa-core versus quad-core) and running a more updated Android 12 operating system. The latter is still old, but that’s actually the latest that Onyx has to offer.
The BOOX Go 6 is also cheaper by $20 and is a bit lighter than the Poke 5. That said, the BOOX Poke 5 was only taken off the brand’s online store recently, so it’s unsurprising that there are many disgruntled customers about this unexpected turn of events. On its own, the BOOX Go 6 does offer the company’s most portable and simplest reading experience, though it remains to be seen if that will still be true in just a few months should BOOX come out with another 6-inch or smaller device that makes this one pointless.
Fine-turning display settings per app can be overwhelming
RATINGS:
AESTHETICS
ERGONOMICS
PERFORMANCE
SUSTAINABILITY / REPAIRABILITY
VALUE FOR MONEY
EDITOR'S QUOTE:
Wrapped in a highly portable and stylish design, the BOOX Go Color 7 delivers a joyful reading experience without the distracting and sometimes confusing extra features.
Onyx BOOX is one of the more prolific E-book Reader manufacturers in the market today, always pushing the envelope of what these devices can do. It has almost a dozen models under its name, not counting discontinued ones, and every new release adds a few more features on top of the pile. While it’s good to advance the state of E-readers, sometimes one can mistake the forest for the trees and lose sight of what’s important. With the new BOOX Go line, the company is stepping back and focusing on the essentials, and while the BOOX Go 10.3 is presenting itself as a replacement for paper notebooks, the BOOX Go Color 7 is promising a return to what E-readers are meant to do: make reading pleasurable anytime, anywhere. So we pull off the shrink wrap and press the power button to see where the BOOX Go Color 7 stands in this growing sea of similar E Ink devices.
The Onyx BOOX Go Color 7 is at once both minimalist and stylish, depending on which side you’re looking at. The front has your typical asymmetrical design where one side extends beyond the screen bezel, creating not only a convenient place to hold but also a home for the physical page-turn buttons. It’s extremely bare, without even the BOOX name, making the 7-inch E Ink Kaleido 3 the sole focus of your attention. The glass protecting the screen sits flush with the bezels, creating a seamless and clean appearance that speaks to the maturity of this design.
Flip the device over and you have something more interesting, both for your eyes and your fingers. Eschewing the typical matte plastic cover on these devices, BOOX uses a paper-like material that adds not just texture but also improves your grip. In a way, it tries to bring back the tactile experience of holding a paper book in your hands, a small pleasure that is lost with these devices.
The BOOX Go Color 7 is hardly the thinnest nor the lightest, even among 7-inch E-readers, but it is definitely in that group. Its compact and portable design makes it a familiar face, one that makes it clear that this is a device for reading books. It just so happens to run Android, just like a tablet.
Ergonomics
While the BOOX Go 10.3 aimed for maximum thinness and minimum weight, its smaller but more colorful sibling is admittedly a bit all over the place. Compared to BOOX’s other 7-inch devices, it’s only slightly lighter but a bit thicker than the monochrome BOOX Page, but it definitely trumps the BOOX Tab Mini C in every dimension. Suffice it to say, it’s not going to break records, but it won’t break your wrist either.
The BOOX Go Color 7 is designed with ergonomics at its core, and not just because it’s small and light. That textured back cover does more than just make the E-reader look good, it also adds to its grippiness. You definitely won’t have to worry too much about the device slipping off your hand, nor do you even have to fret about leaving greasy fingerprints on the paper-like material.
The small E-reader is also designed for one-handed use, even for turning pages. The physical buttons, or button rather, are positioned precisely where you’d rest your thumb, so you easily press down either end to move forward or backward. It doesn’t even care if you’re right-handed or left-handed, because thanks to its support for auto-rotation, the buttons know which way is up all the time. The one design gripe we have is that the page-turn button is just a single, indistinguishable bar with no gap to separate the two functions. You’ll find yourself losing a few precious seconds either trying to feel for which end is which or, more likely, looking at the button to make sure you’re hitting the right half.
Performance
Anyone familiar with the BOOX family of devices pretty much knows its DNA. Every single one at this point is practically an Android device decked with an E Ink panel, not the custom operating systems used by Kindles and Kobos. Even better, it actually has Google Play support already built-in, which means you have access to almost all Android apps available, including those that you can sideload on your own.
Of course, you’ll have to set your expectations correctly, despite all the potential that the platform has. This is not a powerful Android device, not with an aging Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 processor and just 4GB of RAM. It’s enough to run a few apps, especially those related to reading or even browsing the Web, but it won’t be as fluid an experience, especially with the E Ink display, which we’ll get to later. There’s 64GB of onboard storage that you can expand up to 1TB with a microSD card. Definitely plenty of room for books and even audio files or recordings.
The killer feature is, of course, the E Ink Kaleido 3 screen, which also separates the BOOX Go Color 7 from the almost identical BOOX Page. This former supports 4,096 colors while the latter is just different shades of black and white. On top of this, BOOX adds its own technologies to tweak the performance of the E Ink panel, like introducing different refresh modes to make you choose between quality and speed, among other things. Suffice it to say, Onyx’s expertise in this area clearly shows how clear, crisp, and colorful the screen can be. Plain black and white text renders at 300ppi and is a joy to read, while colored content is halved at 150ppi, which is typical for this display. Nonetheless, reading comics and magazines is still comfortable and meaningful, even with muted tones.
The BOOX Go Color 7 brings back a bit of sanity by having front lighting and configurable light temperature, something that the BOOX Go 10.3 removed for the sake of thinness. This means you can easily read with the device at night, in the dark, or in any low-light situation, whenever and wherever you feel the urge to knock a few pages off your reading list. Onyx, however, did exclude a few features to keep the product light not only in weight but also in cost. There is no Wacom digitizer for scribbling notes, for example. It also doesn’t feature the company’s famed BOOX Super Refresh or BSR, a technology that significantly reduces ghosting at the expense of battery life. Otherwise, the E-reader’s 2,300mAh battery wouldn’t last the days that it did.
At the end of the day, the Onyx BOOX Go Color 7 is hyper-focused on doing only one thing and one thing well: be an enjoyable E-book Reader, whether that’s a plain-text book or a colorful magazine. It doesn’t distract you with features only tangential to that activity, like taking notes, making sketches, or even watching videos. While you can install almost any Android app under the sun, the hardware limitations actually serve to dissuade you from subverting the product’s spirit and purpose. And when it comes to that, the BOOX Go Color 7 is definitely one of the best choices in the market today.
Sustainability
Onyx is a company that has grown by leaps and bounds over the past few years. The number of devices it has launched is quite significant, but that also means the amount of material waste that comes from these devices is substantial as well. Fortunately, these devices are made for long-term use, unlike phones and tablets which still have a very high turnover. That only delays the inevitable, however, so we’re still looking forward to the day that the company starts switching to more sustainable materials or recycled plastics for its products.
Although Onyx does make devices with longevity in mind, the same can’t be said for the version of Android they use. The BOOX Go duo, for example, uses a nearly three-year-old Android 12, and most of its products were using Android 11 before that. Granted, E-readers aren’t exactly known for keeping up with the latest software fads, but those don’t run Android either. What this means is that not only are BOOX devices behind in terms of potentially useful features and optimizations, they’re also lagging in security patches and bug fixes that would protect users from digital harm.
Value
The Onyx BOOX Go Color 7 is a delightful little device designed to make reading enjoyable anywhere you are. It has a solid set of capabilities that focus on this core use case and isn’t encumbered by extraneous features, though it still leaves the door wide open for other experiences. On its own, it is quite a competitive product, especially with a $249.99 tag, but it doesn’t exist in a vacuum and, in a way, even competes with BOOX’s other 7-inch readers. Fortunately, the distinction between them is quite clear, especially when it comes to their price tag.
Closest to it is the BOOX Page, to the point that it could have very well been called the BOOX Page Color. They share many things in common but are ultimately separated by color or the lack of it. If all you need is a plain E-book reader and don’t mind reading colored content in shades of gray, the BOOX Page actually offers a sharper screen and a slightly more affordable $219.99 price tag. On the opposite side stands the BOOX Tab Mini C, which is the portable productivity partner. It has all the bells and whistles, including a stylus, but also a heavier figure and a heavier cost at $399.99. If all you really want to do is read and enjoy it in color, then you can’t go wrong with the BOOX Go Color 7.
Verdict
BOOX’s new Go devices are quite bold, but not because they’re debuting something new and exciting. On the contrary, their audacity comes from going in the completely opposite direction, shedding off the baggage that they’ve accumulated over the years. It’s not like all those powerful features are bad, just that they’re not everyone’s cup of tea. And for those who truly love sneaking in a page or two during unexpected moments of freedom, the portability and clarity that the Onyx BOOX Go Color 7 brings could very well be what they need.
The BOOX Go 10.3 brings a refreshing change in pace that focuses on comfort and enjoyment for both reading and note-taking, but be sure to read the fine print to know what you'll be getting for that super slim profile.
E-book Readers or E-readers have come a long way since the earliest days of the Amazon Kindle, and much of the innovation in that space can perhaps be credited to companies like Onyx BOOX. The brand has been aggressive in pushing new technologies and designs, from E-readers that are actually Android tablets in disguise to bringing a pinch of color to this predominantly monochrome world. In fact, it might have gotten too aggressive with almost a dozen models under its belt. The competition is tough, of course, but it’s also easy to lose sight of the gold in the heat of the race. It seems that BOOX took a step back to take stock of where it is now and out of that introspection came out what is probably the thinnest E-reader or even tablet in the market. But what sacrifices did the Onyx BOOX Go 10.3 make to reach that achievement? We give it a spin to give you that answer.
The first thing you’ll notice about the BOOX Go 10.3 will naturally be its thickness or rather its lack of it. At only 4.5mm, it is undeniably the thinnest E Ink device in the market, at least in the 10-inch or larger category. It’s probably not a coincidence that Onyx launched this reading and note-taking wonder a little after the launch of the thinnest iPads ever, so drawing parallels isn’t exactly that difficult. For a device category that was once characterized by bulky chassis and cheap plastic, such a slim and sleek entry is a breath of fresh air.
The BOOX Go 10.3’s beauty goes beyond its remarkable (no pun intended) profile, however. It carries a minimalist and clean aesthetic that makes sure your focus is on the page and not on any extraneous decoration around it. The 10.3-inch screen is surrounded by an admittedly thick bezel, but its light gray tone makes it look less offensive as it almost blends with the white theme of the UI. The left side of the device has a white border, mimicking the margin of a notebook or the spine of a book, and is one of only two places you will see the BOOX branding.
Flip the device over and you will see a design that BOOX has never tried before. Instead of a matte metal or plastic surface, you get something akin to fabric or faux leather, definitely a much-welcome stylish detail. The metal-like strip that runs down the side, however, is an accent that will probably prove to be a bit controversial. It’s not that bad a design, just a little distracting both for the eyes as well as the fingers that will be touching that part.
All in all, there’s a very good reason for all the buzz surrounding the BOOX Go 10.3. Its mind-blowing thinness is definitely one, but its simple yet beautiful design also elevates its character even among its other BOOX siblings. And it’s definitely not just for show, because that slimness does have other usability implications as well.
Ergonomics
The Onyx BOOX Go 10.3 isn’t just incredibly thin, it’s also extra light as well at only 365g (0.8 lbs). OK, that’s not exactly the lightest figure, but it is when you put it side-by-side with other 10-inch E-readers, let alone 10-inch tablets. That’s already enough for bragging rights, but it also has an important consequence: it’s comfortable to hold up for long periods of time.
Unlike desktops and laptops and even some tablets, you often hold E-readers while using them, whether you’re sitting back or lying down in bed. With a typical 10-inch screen, your hand and your arm are bound to tire out quickly, but not so with such a lightweight device. It also helps that the BOOX Go 10.3’s textured back helps improve the grip so you can hold it with confidence for longer periods of time. Of course, smaller and lighter BOOX readers do exist, but you’ll miss out on some features like an expansive screen or note-taking.
It bears noting here that the stylus that comes with the device is also designed for better ergonomics. This special version of the Onyx BOOX Pen2 Plus has vertical ridges on its barrel for a better hold, but even the “vanilla” design of the stylus has a faceted design that makes it easier to grip like a traditional wooden pencil. Considering writing down notes or even sketching is the secondary purpose of this slate, any improvement in the pen’s ergonomics goes a long way in making that a more enjoyable experience.
Performance
Given the thinness of the BOOX Go 10.3, you’ll be forgiven for wondering if there’s any catch to that impressive design. You’d be right, of course, since there’s only so much you can cram inside a very cramped space. Onyx naturally had to drop a few things from its usual repertoire, but it didn’t do so willy-nilly. It made a conscientious effort to only cut off features that won’t be essential to reading and writing enjoyment, except for one rather controversial thing.
There is no front light, or what other brands would call a glowlight, which sounds like a rather critical flaw at first brush. It means you won’t be able to read in the dark without some external light, but even some low-light situations can prove to be challenging given the nature of E Ink screens. That said, the removal of built-in lighting does also have some advantages, and not just for the sake of making the tablet super-thin.
Having no front light means there is one less layer in between the E Ink panel and the protective glass, so there is barely any gap that could diffuse and blur the content being shown. In other words, text on the BOOX Go 10.3 looks extra sharp and crisp, which means they’re also easier on the eyes. The same principle holds for the lack of color support since the device uses the E Ink Carta Plus rather than the now-popular Kaleido 3, which removes yet another layer of interference. Yes, you give up seeing a limited number of colors, but in exchange, you get one of the best reading experiences in the market, at least with sufficient lighting.
This “gapless” display also has some bearing on the second thing that the BOOX Go 10.3 is great at: note-taking and even a bit of sketching. Thanks to a more direct interaction with the panel and Wacom digitizer, there is very little lag or parallax when writing on the screen. There’s still a bit, given the nature of E Ink displays, but it’s almost unnoticeable except to well-trained eyes. The texture of the screen, paired with the nib of the stylus, also produces this scratchy sound that makes it really feel like you’re writing on paper. If you’re the type who loves to write by hand, you’ll definitely love the device’s writing experience, along with some of the apps and features that support it. In fact, Onyx itself calls the BOOX Go 10.3 an “E-paper Notepad” to emphasize this use case and, in a way, temper the expectations of reading aficionados.
With how thin the device is, it’s probably more impressive how much BOOX was able to cram inside than how much it left out. It’s still a true Android device, running on an 8-core processor with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. It even has some decent-sounding speakers and a mic, though you’ll probably find few uses for those outside of recording and playing back lectures and talks. There’s a large 3,700mAh battery that’s going to last you days if not weeks, considering there will be no lights or colors to drain it quickly. Unfortunately, it does leave out the microSD card slot, so you’ll have to be smarter about the apps you install or the books you save on the device.
The BOOX Go 10.3 is clearly not your average E-reader, not just from its looks but also from the way it works. With a 300ppi pixel density, it has one of the sharpest E Ink displays in the market rivaled only by the 10-inch Amazon Kindle Scribe. The lack of front light and color is responsible for that feat, but it will also be a deal-breaker for many E-reader fans. Suffice it to say, it won’t be for everyone.
Sustainability
As mentioned earlier, Onyx has been making a rather aggressive push in the E-reader market, bringing out new products regularly. For better or worse, that also means it is also contributing to the growing volume of material waste from production as well as carbon emissions. Thankfully, it designs its devices for longevity, and some even use more sustainable materials like aluminum, but the overall situation isn’t looking too positive as far as eco-friendliness is concerned. As the company grows, we hope that it will also shift its focus on such issues to help make every device not only enjoyable but also a guilt-free purchase as well.
Value
The Onyx BOOX Go 10.3 definitely turned heads and raised eyebrows with its super slim design and, consequently, its lack of a front light. It’s definitely a unique design, even among other BOOX products, but it doesn’t exist in a vacuum either. Despite its distinctiveness, it actually aims for a rather specific market known to many E-reader fans, a market currently dominated by the Remarkable 2 and the Supernote A5 X. These 10-inch devices, while more than capable of displaying e-Books, are geared more as paper notebook replacements than plain E-readers.
That’s pretty much the same proposition that the BOOX Go 10.3 is making but with a twist. It’s still a BOOX device, which means having most of the features that define the brand, including full Google Play support. This immediately takes it beyond just being an e-Paper Notepad slash E-reader into almost anything you want it to become, at least within the limits of an E Ink display that doesn’t have any lighting whatsoever. For avid note-takers who also happen to love reading plain-text books on large screens, that $379.99 price tag might not look so bad after all.
Verdict
Even with the prevalence of computers and smartphones, there is still a strong culture that extols the benefits of writing things down by hand. But while paper notebooks and layouts have gained a cult following, there are many who consider digital solutions to still be more efficient and, in the long run, less expensive. The Onyx BOOX Go 10.3 is designed for such people, trying to recreate the experience of writing on paper but with a stylus. And just like paper, it doesn’t have a light of its own, which may make it sound less convincing as an E-reader. It’s admittedly still a niche market, but for those squarely living in it, the BOOX Go 10.3 offers a striking and slim design focused just on the essentials, no more, no less.
It seems that the Microsoft Duo dream, and that of the Courier concept before it, is pretty much dead in the water. While the idea looked tantalizing, execution left much to be desired, especially when it came to using a mobile platform such as Android. A tech giant’s failure, however, never stopped anyone from dreaming up other designs, as can be seen in some of the dual-screen Windows laptops being sold by the likes of ASUS and Lenovo. Of course, those are large and expensive devices that don’t capture the flexibility and agility of earlier concepts. Unsurprisingly, someone is trying to bring that idea to life again, this time with a combination that somewhat makes sense, if only the implementation does as well.
Designer: Bluegen
To be clear, this isn’t the first device that put a regular colored LCD screen and a monochrome E Ink display side-by-side. Ever the bold explorer, Lenovo launched the Windows-powered Yoga Book C930 half a decade ago, and the fact that it isn’t as widely known is probably proof of how popular the design was. To be fair, the idea had merit on its own, combining a colorful and vibrant screen with an eye-friendly and battery-efficient display to have the best of both worlds.
Lenovo Yoga Book C930
That’s the same proposition that the OKPad is making but on a smaller scale and a significantly lower price point. With an 8.9-inch IPS LCD screen paired with a 7.8-inch E Ink screen, it’s aiming for portability and convenience more than power and performance. It’s more like a sidekick than a main mobile device, useful for taking notes, typing out quick documents, or even giving a business presentation off-site.
There are, however, some details that make the OKPad a little less convincing. The aluminum alloy shell does have some aesthetic appeal, but the large bezels around both screens make it look more like a prototype or a blast from the past. There is also some confusion about the exact specs of the device, but it sounds like a mish-mash of modern hardware like USB-C and Wi-Fi 5 as well as an unidentified Snapdragon processor that might be from 2018 or earlier. And then there’s the fact that it’s running Android 10, a version that’s almost ancient by now, both in terms of features and, more importantly, security updates.
Admittedly, the OKPad concept is quite intriguing, and for people who love to read and take quick notes on the go, it does offer the best of both worlds of regular Android tablets and E Ink readers. There might be some concerns about apps, not to mention the uncertainty of a crowdfunded device, but at its price point, it’s almost too tempting not to take the risk. Then again, there are now E Ink readers with colored screens, more powerful hardware, and more recent Android versions, so those two worlds have already been bridged in some other way as well.
Samsung just unveiled its newest batch of wearables, which finally includes the much-awaited Galaxy Ring, so there is naturally some questions again on the significance of such devices. Smartwatches, in particular, have been around for a few years now, but not everyone is sold on the value they bring to our modern lives, especially those who are particularly fond of analog timepieces. It doesn’t have to be an either-or situation when it is possible to make designs that can cater to the different preferences of different people. This hybrid smartwatch concept, for example, doesn’t exactly go the way of classic mechanical watches but still offers enough good things from both worlds to create a design that tries to capture the essence of the moment.
Designer: Ravisankar R
Hybrid smartwatches have been around for a while now as well, though they haven’t gained as much market traction as either pure smartwatches or pure mechanical watches. In theory, this kind of design adds some of the key experiences of smartwatches, like activity tracking and even notifications, while planting its feet purely in the analog realm when it comes to the watch itself. Most of the time, the electronics are shoved off the watch straps or are invisible to the wearer. On rare occasions, a transparent display is overlaid on the watch’s glass, letting the user have a complete view of both faces.
Ksana takes a slightly different approach by making the electronic display completely visible but shrinks it down to a smaller circle that covers only the middle section of the watch. The more interesting detail here is that it uses E Ink display technology rather than the typical LCD or OLED screens on smartwatches. Not only is it more battery-efficient, it also ensures that it displays only essential information, without the distractions of animated graphics and colors.
Beneath that screen is a more typical analog watch with hands driven by mechanical movements. The seconds hand is noted to be quite special in that it glows in the dark to make the watch more usable at night, especially considering E Ink displays don’t give off lights of their own. The smooth and graceful glide of the dials contrasts with the almost frantic imagery of smartwatches, focusing more on the importance of being in the moment rather than stressing over your next appointment.
Ksana doesn’t go for the classic wristwatch aesthetic and adopts a design that’s closer to conventional smartwatches with sportier looks. That’s not to say it doesn’t go for premium materials, like lightweight yet robust aluminum for the clock body, sapphire glass for the protective cover, and recycled materials for the straps. In a way, Ksana is both exceptional and conventional at the same time, bridging times and themes into a single design that helps you focus on what’s essential here and now.
Samsung is a tech giant with its hands in many industries, but one of its biggest businesses is in making displays. These cover anything from TVs to laptops to smartphones to signage, supporting a variety of display technologies like LCD, LED, and everything in between. One kind of technology it has barely touched, however, is Electronic Paper Displays or EPDs, the same kind of eye-friendly, battery-efficient screens found on eBook readers. That is changing now, however, with Samsung dipping its toes into this market with a new Color E-Paper display that’s currently aimed at indoor signage and posters but could also be extended to new types of devices in the very new future.
E Ink signage is becoming more common these days, especially as these electronic paper displays start to show improvements in color rendering. It’s not hard to see the benefits of the technology for this particular use case, since EPDs don’t use power to retain their image and use very little power when changing what’s on display. Although it is hardly the first of its kind, even for the tech giant, Samsung’s presence in this growing market is pretty much a stamp of approval from a brand that sells large TVs and screens for the same purpose of advertising in indoor signage.
The new Samsung Color E-Paper display seems to be really pushing the boundaries of the technology. The 32-inch has a QHD resolution of 2560×1440, though its real boasting feature is the 60,000-color gamut (six per pixel) which is quite high for a color electronic paper. This is thanks to the new E Ink Spectra 6 panel, the very same that flaunted artistic designs and images on the ASUS ROG Project DALI at Computex 2024 last week. This laptop concept utilizes a smaller panel that acts as a canvas for owners to customize the design of the laptop cover as they desire.
ASUS ROG Project DALI laptop concept @ Computex 2024
While the gigantic size of the Samsung Color E-Paper limits it to applications like signs and posters, it does make one wonder if Samsung will stop there. Its collaboration with E Ink could, in fact, lead to more devices with smaller screens, particularly in the eReader market that Samsung has never ventured into before. And with its close ties with Wacom, it could even add stylus support for these devices, potentially putting the likes of the Amazon Kindle and Kobo on notice.
Samsung is a tech giant with its hands in many industries, but one of its biggest businesses is in making displays. These cover anything from TVs to laptops to smartphones to signage, supporting a variety of display technologies like LCD, LED, and everything in between. One kind of technology it has barely touched, however, is Electronic Paper Displays or EPDs, the same kind of eye-friendly, battery-efficient screens found on eBook readers. That is changing now, however, with Samsung dipping its toes into this market with a new Color E-Paper display that’s currently aimed at indoor signage and posters but could also be extended to new types of devices in the very new future.
E Ink signage is becoming more common these days, especially as these electronic paper displays start to show improvements in color rendering. It’s not hard to see the benefits of the technology for this particular use case, since EPDs don’t use power to retain their image and use very little power when changing what’s on display. Although it is hardly the first of its kind, even for the tech giant, Samsung’s presence in this growing market is pretty much a stamp of approval from a brand that sells large TVs and screens for the same purpose of advertising in indoor signage.
The new Samsung Color E-Paper display seems to be really pushing the boundaries of the technology. The 32-inch has a QHD resolution of 2560×1440, though its real boasting feature is the 60,000-color gamut (six per pixel) which is quite high for a color electronic paper. This is thanks to the new E Ink Spectra 6 panel, the very same that flaunted artistic designs and images on the ASUS ROG Project DALI at Computex 2024 last week. This laptop concept utilizes a smaller panel that acts as a canvas for owners to customize the design of the laptop cover as they desire.
ASUS ROG Project DALI laptop concept @ Computex 2024
While the gigantic size of the Samsung Color E-Paper limits it to applications like signs and posters, it does make one wonder if Samsung will stop there. Its collaboration with E Ink could, in fact, lead to more devices with smaller screens, particularly in the eReader market that Samsung has never ventured into before. And with its close ties with Wacom, it could even add stylus support for these devices, potentially putting the likes of the Amazon Kindle and Kobo on notice.
As much as laptop makers wax philosophical about the power of their hardware and the beauty of their screens, what most people will probably admire the most about their products will be the laptop covers. Like with smartphones, this is the most visible part of a laptop and, therefore, also the most expressive. You can almost tell a lot about the laptop owner from the design and stickers they have on their laptops or, conversely, from the lack of any embellishment. Unfortunately, there hasn’t been any easy way to cater to the varied tastes of laptop owners, at least until now. At Computex 2024, ASUS is showing off one of its latest concept designs that lets owners change the design of their laptop covers with a press of a key, and it won’t cost either power or money to keep changing it on a whim.
Designer: ASUS
You could, in theory, put a second LCD screen on the back of your laptop for a dazzling display of images or even captivating videos, but that would put a drain on your laptop’s battery, especially if you need to keep that cover display visible even when the laptop is closed and shut down. As with any problem involving power-hungry LCDs and OLEDs, the solution is using ePaper Display or EPD, like E Ink’s popular panels for eBook Readers. And wouldn’t you know it, E Ink has the perfect technology for that, and ASUS is slapping it on its Project DALI laptop concept to make laptops more personal without having to stick anything to it.
Although it’s primarily being used for signage installations, the E Ink Spectra 6 brings a touch of color to the eye-friendly and battery-conservative E Ink screen. It’s not going to match the vibrant colors of even the crudest LCD, but it has one very important advantage. Once you change the image displayed on it, it will no longer consume any power and can display that image for a long, long time. In other words, it’s perfect for a semi-permanent display that doesn’t change much, something like what the back of your laptop could have.
Project DALI puts this technology to offer an unprecedented level of personalization to laptop owners, something you can’t even imagine doing with stickers or skins. With ASUS’s special software, you can either select from a few preset designs or make your own, allowing you to express your tastes, interests, and personality the way you want it. Best of all, you can change it any time you want, and it will only cost you a bit of time and effort, not money from buying new stickers or energy from cleaning off those pesky adhesive residues.
ASUS Project DALI is hardly the first to put an E Ink display on the back of a laptop, as Lenovo also demonstrated a similar idea back in January at CES 2024. DALI, however, uses a newer Spectra 6 technology with higher color DPI, though the number of supported hues is, of course, still limited. Unfortunately, there is still no word on whether Project DALI will become an official ASUS product, but it’s bound to win plenty of fans once it does.
