The Onyx Boox Go 6 ($149.99) replaces the Boox Poke 5 in Onyx’s lineup with a smaller and lighter design that’s easy to carry with you. It’s a black-and-white ereader that comes with the convenience of the Google Play Store, which gives you access to a number of third-party apps, including Amazon’s Kindle app. On the downside, it’s not as waterproof as some competing models, and its performance is sometimes underwhelming. The Amazon Kindle Paperwhite ($149.99) is similar in size, waterproof, and has better overall performance, so it remains our Editors’ Choice for younger readers.
Design: Downright Tiny
Onyx Boox Go comes in a sleek, compact design. At 5.8 by 4.3 by 0.27 inches (HWD) and 5.15 ounces, it’s compact enough to tuck into a purse or even some pants pockets. It’s lighter than any other ereader, including Boox’s own phone-sized Palma (6.3 by 3.1 by 0.3 inches, 6 ounces) and the Kindle Paperwhite (6.86 by 4.91 by 0.32 inches, 7.23 ounces). It’s nearly identical in size and weight to the Poke 5 (5.83 by 4.25 by 0.27 inches, 5.64 ounces).
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The front of the Ereader shares its basic design with the Poke 5 and could be the smaller sibling of the Paperwhite. Like the Paperwhite, the Go 6 has thin black bezels around the top and sides, with a slightly larger bezel at the bottom. It has the same 1,448-by-1,072-pixel resolution display as the Poke 5, with a density of 300 pixels per inch (ppi). The difference between the two is that the Boox Go 6 uses an E Ink HD Carta 1300 display, while the Poke 5 uses an older version of the HD Carta screen. While the Paperwhite has a 6-inch 300ppi display, the company doesn’t specify the manufacturer.
The Boox Go 6 has a USB-C port on the bottom for charging and transferring content, as well as a microSD card slot for additional storage, though the company hasn’t specified how much you can add. The power button is on the top right corner of the device and makes a satisfying clicking sound when pressed.
Like the Poke 5, the Go 6 comes with a front light that you can adjust between warm and cool tones. I also saw a lot more light on the Go 6 than on the Pok 5. I was able to get a consistent, paper-like color over the entire screen, although some of the lights at the bottom were a bit warmer than those at the top. It didn’t bother me, but I still prefer the Kindle Paperwhite’s front light, which is a bit more consistent overall.
Many ereaders, such as the Paperwhite and Kobo Libra Color ($219.99), offer full IPX8 waterproof ratingBut the Go 6 doesn’t. This is especially disappointing, given the price and the fact that this is often a standard feature for readers. This means the Go 6 is not safe near pools or tubs.
The Go 6 comes with a USB-C cable in the box, but you’ll need to supply your own power adapter. When you purchase the device from Boox, it comes packaged with a slim magnetic case.
Performance: Could be faster
The Go 6 has a 2.0GHz octa-core processor and 2GB of RAM, double the cores of the Poke 5. It has the same amount of storage at 32GB.
In testing, I found that the additional cores seemed to help the Go 6 function better than the Poke 5. While reading, I was able to flip pages and navigate between apps fairly quickly, though third-party apps took longer to load. At first, I found page-turning in the Kindle app a bit slow, though it seemed to pick up speed after reading for a while. I found the Poke 5 too slow to read third-party apps, but not the Go 6. I happily read on the Kindle app for long periods of time without feeling like it was a diminished experience. Boox’s own NeoReader app is still the fastest way to read on the Go 6, with page changes happening instantly.
Navigating the user interface is a bit slow. Apps take a fraction of a second longer than I’d like to open and adjust to the device. That said, the device is still usable and I noticed less lag over time.
The Boox Go 6 doesn’t come with a 3.5mm headphone jack, so you’ll need a pair Bluetooth headphones If you want to listen to something on your device. It comes with Bluetooth 5.0.
Like the Poke 5, the Go 6 has a 1,500mAh battery that should last a week on a single charge. The battery was charged at 70% out of the box, and after more than a week of regular use, it only dropped to 44%.
Software: A streamlined OS
The Boox Go 6 is based on a customized version of Android 11 and Boox has done a good job of making its software easier to use than the Poke 5.
At the bottom of the screen is a row app that includes your library, where it shows all your books; Shop, which has a small collection of free classics; storage, which shows how much space you have left on the device; Apps, which shows all the apps on Boox and where you go to access the Google Play Store; and Settings, which includes a bunch of system-wide settings like network, power, and firmware updates.
Accessing the Google Play Store is much easier on the Go 6 than on the Poke 5. Under the Apps category, the device has an app preloaded for it. All you need to do is tap and sign in to your Google account
You can either go to the Google Play Store and download your favorite bookstore, such as the Amazon Kindle app or the Libby the library app, or you can download free books directly from digital rights management (DRM) software. The easiest way to do this is with the BooxDrop app, which lets you connect the ereader to your computer via a secure account as long as both devices are on the same Wi-Fi network. The company offers up to 10GB of free cloud storage.
Reading a book downloaded this way will automatically bring up Boox’s own NeoReader app. Here, you can change any setting to get your preferred reading experience. You can change the font, increase line spacing, bold characters, change margins, and more.
Unfortunately, even Boox has gotten on the AI train. The company added a useless AI assistant to the Reader app. It worked as a generic chatbot, but it couldn’t even provide a summary of the book I was reading.
Swiping down from the top left of the display brings up the Control Center, where you can easily access Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, volume, front-light controls, and the e-Ink Center, which lets you change the e-Ink refresh mode. I’ve never had to change it from the default normal refresh rate, though if you flip a lot of pages at once you might want to speed things up.
Unfortunately, this eReader won’t get an upgrade to it Android 12.
Verdict: An average reader
Boox Go 6 can fit almost anywhere and is easy to carry. We love its adjustable display, and its direct access to the Google Play Store means it’s compatible with multiple reading apps and formats. This gives it a wider appeal than ereaders limited to a single store. We want it to be a little faster and waterproof. Because it offers snappier performance in a waterproof design for the same price, the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite remains our Editors’ Choice.
3.5
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$149.99 At Walmart
The Onyx Boox Go 6 is a portable ereader that’s compatible with many ebook formats through the Google Play Store, but it lacks the waterproofing and smooth performance of the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite.
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