Back in May, I wrote about a curious little trend that was beginning to emerge: the rise of tiny E-Ink readers.
XTEINK had launched the X4, a pocket-sized e-reader that looked more like an enthusiast’s gadget than the beginning of a new product category (it had also not long since launched the X3). It was clever, certainly, but I wasn’t quite sure where it would ever be more than a niche within a niche.
A couple of months later, I’m beginning to wonder if I underestimated it.
XTEINK recently announced the X4 Pro, while BOOX has teased us with the announcement of the upcoming Picco tiny e-reader. Two companies arriving at remarkably similar ideas in a very short space of time usually means something interesting is happening.
The X4 Pro fixes almost everything
I liked the X4 a great deal, but I had two fairly obvious wishes for the next version: a touchscreen and a front light.
The X4 Pro now has both.
It keeps the same pocket-sized design, physical page-turn buttons and magnetic mounting system, but adds an adjustable warm and cool front light alongside touchscreen support.
Then there’s the price. At just $99 (in the UK it is presently on offer for only £76 - though admittedly you can charge what you like when you have none in stock!). The X4 Pro isn’t a replacement for your Kindle or Kobo, it’s a companion device. Rather than replacing your main e-reader, it’s the device you throw into a pocket before leaving the house. The one that turns ten minutes waiting for a train into ten minutes of reading instead of scrolling Instagram.
That’s quite an appealing proposition.
Openness matters
One of XTEINK’s biggest strengths isn’t just the hardware. It’s the software philosophy.
The company continues to support alternative firmware, and the community-developed CrossPoint operating system is expected to support the X4 Pro once developers have hardware to work with. CrossPoint adds improved EPUB support, custom fonts, wireless transfers, dictionaries and reading progress synchronisation for DRM-free libraries.
If you’re someone who prefers owning your books rather than renting access to them, that’s a compelling argument.
My own situation, however, is rather different.
The Kindle problem
I’ve become thoroughly embedded in Amazon’s ecosystem.
I read on my Kindle Colorsoft around the house, occasionally switch to the Kindle app on my phone, and may well read on the Kindle Scribe Colour later. Wherever I read within the Kindle ecosystem on whatever device, it simply remembers where I stopped.
I’ve grown rather fond of that.
I don’t have to transfer files, think about page numbers or remember which device I was using yesterday. The book just kind of follows me around like a faithful puppy. That continuity is a huge part of the reading experience.
Which brings us neatly to the Boox Picco.
The device that could change everything
On paper, the Picco looks extremely promising.
It will feature a 3.97-inch monochrome E-Ink display, a front light and expandable storage, all at what BOOX describes as an ‘accessible’ price. The actual figure hasn’t been announced yet.
Most BOOX devices run Android and allow access to apps such as Kindle, Kobo and other reading platforms. But Boox hasn’t yet confirmed whether the Picco will run Android, include Google Play or support the Kindle app at all. There are reports suggesting it may instead use a simpler tiled operating system.
At the moment, Kindle compatibility is something I’m hoping for rather. If it does support the Kindle app everything changes. Suddenly I can read on my Kindle at home, slip the Picco into my pocket when I leave, and continue exactly where I left off. No longer mindlessly scrolling through news on X but actually managing to get some serious reading done in those few moments I have to spare.
‘Why not just use your phone?’
That’s a fair question.
Technically, the Kindle app already solves the synchronisation problem. But my phone also contains email, messages, YouTube, Instagram, X and about fifty other things competing for my attention.
Even when I unlock it intending to read, I’m holding the device most likely to persuade me to do something entirely different. A tiny e-reader fits into your pocket like a phone without behaving like one.
That’s the real attraction.
Yes, the E-Ink display helps. But just as important is carrying a device with a single, clearly defined purpose. When every gadget seems determined to become more capable, there’s something oddly refreshing about one that deliberately does less.
A small device with a big idea
BOOX has played around with this concept of a smaller e-reader before through devices like the Palma, which blurs the line between smartphone and e-reader.
The Picco appears to take that philosophy even further by stripping things back into something even smaller and, potentially, even more focused.
Of course, price will matter enormously. ‘Accessible’ means different things depending on who’s writing the press release. If BOOX prices the Picco sensibly and allows access to the reading ecosystems people already use, I think it could become genuinely compelling.
If it ends up significantly more expensive or locks users into its own software, it risks remaining a product for enthusiasts.
Could amazon eventually join in?
Despite their growing popularity, tiny e-readers remain a niche. Most people will continue reading on their phones, their Kindle, or an actual paper book.
But niche doesn’t necessarily mean unimportant. Hardware is improving rapidly, more manufacturers are entering the market, and that usually attracts attention.
Eventually, Amazon may decide it wants a piece of this category too. After all, Amazon already has the hardest parts done: the Kindle Store, Whispersync, mature software, millions of existing users and one of the strongest reading ecosystems in the world.
It wouldn’t need to invent anything new. It would simply need to shrink what it already has. A pocket-sized Kindle doesn’t sound particularly difficult to build. Whether enough people would buy one is another question entirely.
The three things that matter
I suspect whichever company finally pushes tiny e-readers beyond enthusiast circles will get three things right.
A low enough price that it feels like a companion device rather than a replacement.
Access to a reading ecosystem people already use.
And enough focus that it’s genuinely less distracting than carrying a phone.
The X4 Pro already makes a convincing case for affordability, openness and thoughtful hardware.
The Picco might add the ecosystem continuity I’ve been looking for. We’ll have to wait for the full specifications before knowing whether it actually does.
I’ve already ordered the X4 Pro, and BOOX has told me they’ll be sending over a Picco review unit once they’re available.
I’m genuinely looking forward to seeing whether these tiny readers are simply clever curiosities… or the beginning of something much bigger.
What do you think?
Are pocket-sized e-readers becoming a meaningful new category, or are they destined to remain charming little gadgets for enthusiasts? And would support for your existing Kindle, Kobo or other reading library be essential before you’d consider carrying one?
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