Best new E-ink tablets: distraction-free reading and writing

Supernote Manta

(Image credit: Supernote)

published 24 January 2025

E-ink continues to improve, with the latest generation of tablets now offering colour screens, better handwriting recognition and integration with Android apps. As always with the technology, its inherent limitations are also its strength – making for low battery consumption and a no-nonsense, distraction-free environment in which to read or write.

Although feature creep is making E-ink devices more and more comparable to conventional tablets, the slow display refresh will ensure that parity is never reached and things like video and gaming will always (for the foreseeable future) be unsuited to E-ink displays. However, everything from company reports to graphic novels and even web pages look far more desirable on those e-ink tablets that no longer render them in greyscale.

With that said, the ability to hop on to Wikipedia or dictionary.com does give Android-powered tablets an edge over proprietary operating systems like reMarkable’s. We’ve rounded up five worthy alternatives in order to weigh up their pros and cons.

Boox Note Max and Boox Air4 C

Boox’s slightly confusing line-up of tablets big and small has become a little more streamlined.

Boox Note Max, from £649.99

The introduction of the new Note Max is an attempt to bridge the gap between pen tablet and Chromebook, with an optional keyboard cover and the ability to run the 13.3-inch monochrome screen at a faster rate (at the expense of battery life) to better mimic a traditional laptop. Android compatibility opens up thousands of apps

Boox Note Air 4C, from $499.99

Alternatively, Boox has got the Note Air4 C, which features Boox’s colour Kaleido 3 Screen. At 10.3 inches it’s slightly smaller than the Max, but that’s offset by the image quality. Android 13 compatibility is also standard, and the Boox range offers a fairly comprehensive suite of drawing tools straight out of the box.

Amazon Kindle Colorsoft

Amazon Kindle Colorsoft, £338.98 (with cover and charging stand)

The Colorsoft is Amazon’s first venture into colour e-readers, after 17 years of experience as a pioneer in this sector. However, this is an e-reader, not a writing tablet, and the screen is just 7 inches, making it perfect for books. The eight-week battery life is pretty handy too. Coming soon – we suspect – will be the first generation colour-screened Kindle Scribe, the current flagship of the Kindle range and a model that’s already been substantially overhauled since it was introduced in 2022.

Kobo Libra Colour

Kobo Libra Colour, £199.99

Kobo’s Libra is an obvious Kindle competitor, right down to its compact form factor, 7-inch colour screen and focus on reading. However, the Kobo comes with a stylus, which immediately transforms it into a pocketable note-taking device, with on-board journals and sketchbooks that can be synched with Dropbox or Google Drive. Onboard Bluetooth also means you can listen to audiobooks, making this much more of an all-rounder than the Colorsoft.

Fujitsu Quaderno

Fujitsu Quaderno A4 3rd Gen, $719.99

Coming soon is the third generation of Fujitsu’s Quaderno, an A4-sized (13.3-inch) colour e-reader and handwriting tablet. Unlike the reMarkable Pro’s stylus, the Quaderno uses a pen that doesn’t require charging. The company is pitching the latest Quaderno at the business user, with the emphasis squarely on PDF editing and note-taking.

Supernote Manta

Supernote Manta, from $459

With no colour screen or Android underpinnings, Supernote’s Manta is another device that’s being set up as a reMarkable rival. The chief selling points are a ceramic-tipped pen that’s promised to last way longer than the replaceable plastic nibs used by rivals, and the ability to sync up with Google apps like Gmail, Calendar and Drive, alongside Dropbox and Microsoft Word.

There are also scrolling sidebars built into the frame around the 10.7-inch monochrome display and a modular design with a replaceable battery. Supernote’s service is also subscription-free.

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Jonathan Bell has written for Wallpaper* magazine since 1999, covering everything from architecture and transport design to books, tech and graphic design. He is now the magazine’s Transport and Technology Editor. Jonathan has written and edited 15 books, including Concept Car Design, 21st Century House, and The New Modern House. He is also the host of Wallpaper’s first podcast.