I carried the smallest e-reader in my pocket for a week; I only found two dealbreakers

I'm not a recent convert to e-readers, but the idea of tiny e-readers is still novel to me.

My first experience with super-small e-readers was late last year, with the Xteink X4, a tiny e-reader that went viral for its ability to magnetically snap onto the back of a smartphone.

I loved it, and now, there's an upgrade. The Xteink X4 Pro adds a touchscreen and a frontlight to Xteink's device, and dramatically improves the software. But does removing a USB-C port threaten to ruin the experience?

Related

I tried this miniature e-reader that attaches to my phone, and it's surprisingly good

I didn't think I'd like the Xteink X4 as much as I do

Posts 12
By  Mark Jansen

Even smaller, but even more useful

But it comes with one major downfall

The key draw to a tiny e-reader is its size. The original X4 was small enough to fit on the back of a smartphone, but it had to be a large smartphone, like a Pixel 10 Pro XL or S26 Ultra, or it would jut out awkwardly.

The X4 Pro doesn't fix this particular problem, but it is ever-so slightly smaller and thinner than the previous version. It's a small difference, but it matters when it lives in the same pocket as your phone.

The smaller size isn't the only addition here. The new X4 Pro comes with more physical buttons than the previous version, including a new pair on the left-hand side.

But the star of the show is the capacitive button nestled in the frame underneath the display. It's similar to the Home button on an old-style iPhone, and it's used to go back from your current screen. It's a solid addition, and I like it a lot.

What I don't like is the charging port. Specifically, it doesn't have one.

Unlike the previous X4, the X4 Pro uses a magnetic charger that clips onto the back of the device. This charger is a little USB-C dongle, and it's this part that plugs into your cable.

It's small, easy to lose, and falls off the charging pins at the slightest movement. Plugging the X4 Pro in to charge lights up part of the rear panel, which I do like, but ultimately charging this device is going to be a pain.

Thankfully, like all e-readers, charging won't have to be done very often. I've been using it for just over a week, and I haven't needed to charge it.

The improvements boost the reading experience

The touchscreen makes a big difference

Most of us are used to a touchscreen on an e-reader, and it's here the original X4 struggled a little.

Using physical buttons to change pages is fine, but even months in, I'd sometimes forget and swipe the screen. The X4 Pro fixes that by adding a touchscreen and making it more like every other e-reader I've ever used.

Which is a relief, as the X4 Pro's button setup is strange.

On the original C4, the right-side rocker controlled the page swipes. Press down to flip the page forward, or up to go back. It was simple.

But on the X4 Pro, the right rocker goes forwards, while the left rocker goes back. It's unintuitive and rather annoying, and I can't find a way to change it. The touchscreen means I don't have to, but it's still an irritation.

Still, this is a minor problem. Overall, the X4 Pro's improvements mean reading on it is much better. The frontlight means you can read in a dark room, and the touchscreen brings it into line with similar devices.

The software is definitely improved

But there's still a long way to go

One of the biggest areas of improvement is in the software. But that doesn't mean Xteink doesn't still have work to do.

Really, e-readers don't need many software features. And the X4 Pro's software doesn't. It can sync files from your phone using the Xteink app and add wallpapers, calendars, other PDF files, and e-books.

Beyond that, it's fairly straightforward. It reads books, and it does it fairly well.

But e-readers should offer customization options, and Xteink still falls short here.

The X4 Pro comes with two fonts, small and medium, neither of which is really large enough for my tastes.

You can download more from Xteink's app, but there's no way to preview them or see their size. There is a font generator you can use to "build" a font, but it's fiddly and confusing.

My time with it has been fairly bug-free, except for one major issue which stopped the device from reading half the e-book files (over a hundred) on the microSD card.

Thankfully, this was fixed with a software update, and I haven't encountered any major problems since.

Xteink has improved the software experience a lot since the X4, but it's not yet at the level where I won't be considering flashing the Crosspoint software on there instead.

Great value for a handy e-reader

And it has plenty of potential

A review like this always boils down to one simple question: Should you buy this gadget?

If you're a keen reader, or looking for a way to read more books while staying away from your phone's distractions, then yes, you should buy the Xteink X4 Pro.

It's an e-reader you can keep in your pocket, and if you don't see the value in that, then this isn't the gadget for you.

It lets you avoid scrolling down another feed of short videos, and get in a snippet of reading instead.

The Pro takes everything I enjoyed about the first X4, and adds more. The frontlight is a game-changer, and means I don't have to rely on my phone or larger e-reader while putting children to bed. The touchscreen also makes it much easier to use than before.

It's far from the perfect device. I'm likely to flash new software onto it soon, and the charging dongle makes me sad.

It's also worth keeping in mind that while $99 is cheap for most gadgets, for e-readers it's firmly in the entry range.

Priced at $99, $10 more gets you a full-size Kindle, with better charging and far better software, and if you're choosing between the two, it's hard to argue the X4 Pro is the better choice.

However, it's not about the whole package — it's about the size of the package.

The Xteink X4 Pro is a fully fledged, handy, tiny e-reader that fits in a pocket. And if you love that idea, you'll love this.

Xteink X4 Pro

The viral tiny e-reader just got better, adding a front light and a touchscreen. The Xteink X4 Pro is the e-reader to grab if you want to keep your books in your pocket.

$99 at Xteink
Expand Collapse