Tag Package

Most fireplaces in older apartments have been decommissioned because of how much of a health hazard they are. However, it’s no secret that fire is one of the most effective ways to generate heat, whether it’s for cooking food or for keeping you warm. While the chances of you having a working fireplace in your home are near zero, the folks at NextNova have designed the next best thing – a terracotta heater that uses a unique airflow pattern to create a tower of fire that heats your home while also optionally distributing a fragrance of your choice.

Designer: NextNova

The Tornado combines the charm of a fireplace with the safety of, say, a scented candle. The terracotta-based heater relies on airflow, along with the thermal properties of baked clay to generate radiating heat for both the indoors as well as the outdoors. On the inside, it burns bioethanol using ceramic wool as a substrate, generating heat without any smoke, ash, harmful chemicals, or bad odors. This means you can use the Tornado inside your home without worrying about triggering the fire alarm!

The Tornado comes from the same folks that designed the Egloo, which we dubbed “the world’s most affordable thermostat” back in 2017. Significantly larger than the Egloo, it stands at 17 inches tall, with an internal chamber that creates a large fire vortex that generates much more heat than you would get from the Egloo. In fact, the makers claim it outputs 7000 BTU (British Thermal Units) of heat, allowing it to do the job of a miniature campfire in your room, heating things up without burning any electricity!

The Tornado gets its name from the uniquely tall flame it creates. Strategically placed openings in the sides of the vertical chamber channel air in to amplify the fire, creating a wind vortex that lifts the flame up to 5x higher than usual. This not only increases the Tornado’s heat production, it also makes for a rather alluring display on the front, allowing you to admire the rising flame in all its glory.

Metal components help absorb excess heat, preventing the terracotta shell from cracking.

Once the flame is roaring, it heats the terracotta shell, which then emanates warmth to heat your home. The Tornado’s designed to be used both indoors as well as outdoors, mimicking the effect of a fireplace without the hazards of smoke or a potential disaster. The flame is contained within the Tornado’s secure and stable design. Just remember not to touch it, because it gets pretty hot!

Aside from heating, the Tornado can be used to diffuse aromas too. Just add a few drops of an essential oil of your choice to the ceramic wool, and the heat causes aromatic compounds to enter the air, working the way a scented candle does!

The strategic openings also serve an important purpose in allowing you to light or extinguish your Tornado. The lighting process first starts by lifting up the top hood to reveal the heat-resistant ceramic tray inside, with ceramic wool substrate. Pour your bio-ethanol in before placing the hood back. The openings on the side then let you place a long-neck lighter in to light the fire, or a flame snuffer to extinguish the fire instantaneously.

The Tornado currently finished crowdfunding on Kickstarter, raising an impressive $88,485 from nearly 500 backers. The backers will now get to choose what color they want their Tornado in, ranging from the classic beige and orange, to even colors like white, blue, red, and black!

The holidays usually mean colder days, at least for those living in the northern part of the world, which also means rising costs in order to keep oneself warm and toasty. Fireplaces might sound and look romantic, but they’re not efficient, sustainable, or even safe. The same goes for gasoline-powered heaters, which also add an element of risk to people’s health. In this day and age, smart appliances play an important role in living a life of comfort without the downsides and expenses of traditional products, so it’s not really surprising that GoveeLife has launched a number of new smart space heaters for that very purpose. While Govee is probably best known for its smart lighting solutions, it established GoveeLife this year to focus on smart home appliances like heaters, humidifiers, smart kitchen appliances, and sensors, aiming to enhance convenience, optimize efficiency, and improve overall quality of life. In particular, the compact GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite piqued our interest, so we took it to the test to see if it’s really such a hot product or just hot air.

Designer: GoveeLife

Click Here to Buy Now: $29.99 $49.99 (40% off). Hurry, deal ends Dec 2nd.

Aesthetics

Air coolers, purifiers, and humidifiers have started to dress up and look more at home in our living spaces, taking on designs that blend well with the rest of the furniture or stand out in a pleasing way. Most space heaters, in comparison, look utilitarian and uninspired, making you think of them more like movable ovens or furnaces than a distinct class of their own. In that sense, the GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite sets itself apart with a design that is discreet and stylish, making it a fine addition to your room, no matter the motif you have going.

For starters, the smart space heater takes on a cylindrical shape with very minimal markings all around. The most distinctive part of the product is the silver grille in front where hot air blows out. It’s a perfect match for the black colorway, which is the review unit that we got, though the white version isn’t bad either, even if the grille does stand out more. The top holds the capacitive touch buttons and LED status indicators, though you might not look at those that much if you’ll be controlling the heater mostly through the Govee Home app.

The GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite, which is the smallest of its siblings, is only 9.1 inches tall and 5.9 inches in diameter. This compact size makes it ideal for any space, even in cramped corners or shelves. It’s also lightweight at only 3.63lbs, which means you can easily take it anywhere around the house. For bigger rooms and spaces, GoveeLife also offers the Smart Heater Pro and Smart Heater Pro Max. The only consideration you need to have is that the appliance has to be plugged in directly to a wall outlet, now through some power cord. That might be limiting for some, but the included 5ft power cable does address that issue to some extent.

Ergonomics

As mentioned above, the GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite is truly light on weight, so there will be no problem where you want to set it up. It doesn’t require a permanent installation either, so you can just lift it up and put it somewhere else if you’re not happy with the heat distribution. The integrated carrying handle on the back makes that easy, a clear sign that the heater isn’t meant to stay put in a single place forever. Of course, you’ll have to consider the airflow in the room and place the heater where it will have the best effect.

Setting up the appliance is just as easy as well, and all you need to do is connect the Smart Space Heater Lite to your phone via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. The Govee Home mobile app has all the functions you need to control the heater, some of which won’t be available via the physical controls. Those controls come in the form of very flat, capacitive buttons on the top of the device. This kind of control definitely looks elegant and minimalist, but it lacks the tactile haptic feedback that our fingers and brains need to register that we’ve pushed a button. That might throw a few people off, but not enough to make it a huge issue, especially if you’ll be using the mobile app or voice control most of the time anyway.

Performance

For such a small thing, the Smart Space Heater Lite packs quite a punch when it comes to heating. It uses a 1500W PTC (Positive Temperature Coefficient) ceramic heating element that only takes 2 seconds to rapidly heat an area. It works best for closed spaces under 200 square feet, so large living rooms might be a bit more difficult to heat up. The heater blasts hot air from the front, but its swivel feature allows that heat to spread across a wider range. You can even tilt the heater up so that it can reach higher areas.

Like air coolers, the GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite has four modes, five if you count “Auto.” These modes, which include fan, low, mid, and high, can easily be set with a single button that cycles through the modes or directly via the app. The more interesting mode, however, is “Auto,” which utilizes the heater’s built-in thermostat. To use it, you set the desired temperature in the app and the Smart Space Heater Lite will heat the room up to that temperature and then automatically switch off once it reaches that point. While you can switch to Auto mode using the heater’s buttons, you can only set the temperature through the app.

Since we’re dealing with heating elements and hot surfaces, it’s no surprise that GoveeLife loaded the heater with a lot of safety features, including a timer. For starters, the product itself is V-0 flame retardant to reduce the risks of fire and burning. There’s a control lock feature in the app that disables the on-device buttons, preventing anyone, especially children, from accidentally operating the heater. One of the best features, however, is the tip-over notification, which immediately alerts you through the app if the heater is knocked over by a person or a pet.

Of course, the Smart Space Heater Lite is “smart” for a reason, and it can integrate well with existing smart home platforms, including Apple Home, Google Home, and Amazon Alexa. That means convenient voice control, regardless of which platform you’re using. Not only that, but you can also add the heater to programmed scenes so that you can make sure your home is warm and toasty by the time you get home from work.

Sustainability

Unlike mobile devices and some gadgets, you’d expect appliances to be designed for the long haul. The choice of materials and their designs are made based on durability and longevity, though no device is immortal. Sooner or later, they get damaged or even broken beyond repair, which means a trip either to a service center or to a landfill. When this happens, the use of sustainable materials and the application of repairable designs play important roles in helping minimize their damage to the environment.

The GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite isn’t exactly an outlier in that regard, made from the typical mixture of plastics and metal. Self-repair is also out of the question, and you might find yourself striking out in finding a nearby service center, depending on where you live. Maybe the day will come when GoveeLife will be making easy-to-repair products that use recycled materials, and we’ll be keeping a close eye on this rapidly growing brand for that day.

Value

Space heaters are a bit less common than coolers and humidifiers, but they’re numbers are definitely rising. That’s especially true for smart heaters that are trying to ride on the smart home train. With so many to choose from, including from GoveeLife’s own catalogue, it’s only natural to ask what makes this Smart Space Heater Lite desirable enough to be worth your hard-earned cash.

In a nutshell, the GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite checks all the right boxes without going overboard with unnecessary features. The thermostat-driven Auto mode is a great money and power saver, and the rapid heating technology makes sure you get the desired warmth sooner rather than later. Its lightweight and attractive design makes it easy to place the appliance anywhere in the house, while excellent safety features ensure your kids and furry friends are out of harm’s way. Best of all, the $49.99 price tag isn’t too much to ask especially for something you’ll be using for a very long time.

Verdict

There has been a lot of focus on air coolers, purifiers, and humidifiers in the past year or so, but unpredictable weather and freak blizzards remind us that the other extreme is just as bad. Not many people give much thought to their heaters, at least until the electricity bill arrives. That’s when they need a smarter and more cost-efficient way to stay farm.

The GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite definitely fits the bill in that regard. It might not be sufficient for very large areas, but it’s more than enough for the majority of households and rooms. Smart and safety features take away most of the worry involved with appliances that generate heat, and integration with major smart home platforms means that you can be even more energy-efficient by only using the heater when it’s actually needed. More importantly, the Smart Space Heater Lite looks quite elegant in any setting, making it a potential centerpiece for your smart home decor.

Click Here to Buy Now: $29.99 $49.99 (40% off). Hurry, deal ends Dec 2nd.

The holidays usually mean colder days, at least for those living in the northern part of the world, which also means rising costs in order to keep oneself warm and toasty. Fireplaces might sound and look romantic, but they’re not efficient, sustainable, or even safe. The same goes for gasoline-powered heaters, which also add an element of risk to people’s health. In this day and age, smart appliances play an important role in living a life of comfort without the downsides and expenses of traditional products, so it’s not really surprising that GoveeLife has launched a number of new smart space heaters for that very purpose. While Govee is probably best known for its smart lighting solutions, it established GoveeLife this year to focus on smart home appliances like heaters, humidifiers, smart kitchen appliances, and sensors, aiming to enhance convenience, optimize efficiency, and improve overall quality of life. In particular, the compact GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite piqued our interest, so we took it to the test to see if it’s really such a hot product or just hot air.

Designer: GoveeLife

Click Here to Buy Now: $29.99 $49.99 (40% off). Hurry, deal ends Dec 2nd.

Aesthetics

Air coolers, purifiers, and humidifiers have started to dress up and look more at home in our living spaces, taking on designs that blend well with the rest of the furniture or stand out in a pleasing way. Most space heaters, in comparison, look utilitarian and uninspired, making you think of them more like movable ovens or furnaces than a distinct class of their own. In that sense, the GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite sets itself apart with a design that is discreet and stylish, making it a fine addition to your room, no matter the motif you have going.

For starters, the smart space heater takes on a cylindrical shape with very minimal markings all around. The most distinctive part of the product is the silver grille in front where hot air blows out. It’s a perfect match for the black colorway, which is the review unit that we got, though the white version isn’t bad either, even if the grille does stand out more. The top holds the capacitive touch buttons and LED status indicators, though you might not look at those that much if you’ll be controlling the heater mostly through the Govee Home app.

The GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite, which is the smallest of its siblings, is only 9.1 inches tall and 5.9 inches in diameter. This compact size makes it ideal for any space, even in cramped corners or shelves. It’s also lightweight at only 3.63lbs, which means you can easily take it anywhere around the house. For bigger rooms and spaces, GoveeLife also offers the Smart Heater Pro and Smart Heater Pro Max. The only consideration you need to have is that the appliance has to be plugged in directly to a wall outlet, now through some power cord. That might be limiting for some, but the included 5ft power cable does address that issue to some extent.

Ergonomics

As mentioned above, the GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite is truly light on weight, so there will be no problem where you want to set it up. It doesn’t require a permanent installation either, so you can just lift it up and put it somewhere else if you’re not happy with the heat distribution. The integrated carrying handle on the back makes that easy, a clear sign that the heater isn’t meant to stay put in a single place forever. Of course, you’ll have to consider the airflow in the room and place the heater where it will have the best effect.

Setting up the appliance is just as easy as well, and all you need to do is connect the Smart Space Heater Lite to your phone via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. The Govee Home mobile app has all the functions you need to control the heater, some of which won’t be available via the physical controls. Those controls come in the form of very flat, capacitive buttons on the top of the device. This kind of control definitely looks elegant and minimalist, but it lacks the tactile haptic feedback that our fingers and brains need to register that we’ve pushed a button. That might throw a few people off, but not enough to make it a huge issue, especially if you’ll be using the mobile app or voice control most of the time anyway.

Performance

For such a small thing, the Smart Space Heater Lite packs quite a punch when it comes to heating. It uses a 1500W PTC (Positive Temperature Coefficient) ceramic heating element that only takes 2 seconds to rapidly heat an area. It works best for closed spaces under 200 square feet, so large living rooms might be a bit more difficult to heat up. The heater blasts hot air from the front, but its swivel feature allows that heat to spread across a wider range. You can even tilt the heater up so that it can reach higher areas.

Like air coolers, the GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite has four modes, five if you count “Auto.” These modes, which include fan, low, mid, and high, can easily be set with a single button that cycles through the modes or directly via the app. The more interesting mode, however, is “Auto,” which utilizes the heater’s built-in thermostat. To use it, you set the desired temperature in the app and the Smart Space Heater Lite will heat the room up to that temperature and then automatically switch off once it reaches that point. While you can switch to Auto mode using the heater’s buttons, you can only set the temperature through the app.

Since we’re dealing with heating elements and hot surfaces, it’s no surprise that GoveeLife loaded the heater with a lot of safety features, including a timer. For starters, the product itself is V-0 flame retardant to reduce the risks of fire and burning. There’s a control lock feature in the app that disables the on-device buttons, preventing anyone, especially children, from accidentally operating the heater. One of the best features, however, is the tip-over notification, which immediately alerts you through the app if the heater is knocked over by a person or a pet.

Of course, the Smart Space Heater Lite is “smart” for a reason, and it can integrate well with existing smart home platforms, including Apple Home, Google Home, and Amazon Alexa. That means convenient voice control, regardless of which platform you’re using. Not only that, but you can also add the heater to programmed scenes so that you can make sure your home is warm and toasty by the time you get home from work.

Sustainability

Unlike mobile devices and some gadgets, you’d expect appliances to be designed for the long haul. The choice of materials and their designs are made based on durability and longevity, though no device is immortal. Sooner or later, they get damaged or even broken beyond repair, which means a trip either to a service center or to a landfill. When this happens, the use of sustainable materials and the application of repairable designs play important roles in helping minimize their damage to the environment.

The GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite isn’t exactly an outlier in that regard, made from the typical mixture of plastics and metal. Self-repair is also out of the question, and you might find yourself striking out in finding a nearby service center, depending on where you live. Maybe the day will come when GoveeLife will be making easy-to-repair products that use recycled materials, and we’ll be keeping a close eye on this rapidly growing brand for that day.

Value

Space heaters are a bit less common than coolers and humidifiers, but they’re numbers are definitely rising. That’s especially true for smart heaters that are trying to ride on the smart home train. With so many to choose from, including from GoveeLife’s own catalogue, it’s only natural to ask what makes this Smart Space Heater Lite desirable enough to be worth your hard-earned cash.

In a nutshell, the GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite checks all the right boxes without going overboard with unnecessary features. The thermostat-driven Auto mode is a great money and power saver, and the rapid heating technology makes sure you get the desired warmth sooner rather than later. Its lightweight and attractive design makes it easy to place the appliance anywhere in the house, while excellent safety features ensure your kids and furry friends are out of harm’s way. Best of all, the $49.99 price tag isn’t too much to ask especially for something you’ll be using for a very long time.

Verdict

There has been a lot of focus on air coolers, purifiers, and humidifiers in the past year or so, but unpredictable weather and freak blizzards remind us that the other extreme is just as bad. Not many people give much thought to their heaters, at least until the electricity bill arrives. That’s when they need a smarter and more cost-efficient way to stay farm.

The GoveeLife Smart Space Heater Lite definitely fits the bill in that regard. It might not be sufficient for very large areas, but it’s more than enough for the majority of households and rooms. Smart and safety features take away most of the worry involved with appliances that generate heat, and integration with major smart home platforms means that you can be even more energy-efficient by only using the heater when it’s actually needed. More importantly, the Smart Space Heater Lite looks quite elegant in any setting, making it a potential centerpiece for your smart home decor.

Click Here to Buy Now: $29.99 $49.99 (40% off). Hurry, deal ends Dec 2nd.

If you thought that eBook readers have gone the way of the dodo because of smartphones and tablets, you probably haven’t been paying attention to the tech market in the past two or so years. As people become more weary of the harmful effects of screens on their eyes and bodies, especially at night, the desire for E Ink devices has started to grow stronger. And just in time, these devices have started growing out of their humble roots, blurring the lines between extremely simple eReaders and powerful tablets. Leading this new wave of innovation is Onyx BOOX, which has been pushing the boundaries of what these devices are capable of in terms of power and size. Its latest BOOX Tab Mini C tries to distill all these new features down to a more manageable size, so we take a deep dive to see whether it successfully pulls off this hat trick or if it cuts too many corners along the way.

Designer: BOOX

Aesthetics

It’s hard not to compare the BOOX Tab Mini C with its older, larger sibling, the BOOX Tab Ultra C. Just by the name alone, you can already tell they’re related and you might easily write off the Tab Mini C as the smaller version and nothing more. There’s some truth to that, of course, but you’d be doing yourself a disservice if you stop there because you could be missing out on a device with a lot of potential. The two E Ink readers do have notable differences and, fortunately, most of them work in the Tab Mini C’s favor. Most, but not all.

The biggest difference is, of course, the size, with the BOOX Tab Mini C’s 7.8-inch display coming in a more familiar size for eBook readers. Of course, that’s just the display size, because the actual size of the device is a lot larger. That’s thanks to the substantial bezels around the E Ink screen, which sadly makes the device look more like an unappealing blast from the past. The AG glass cover does lie flat across the front, making it look a little modern, but it’s nothing compared to the sleeker look of the BOOX Tab Ultra C or, closer to its size, the new BOOX Page.

The back of the device is also very different from some of the more current selection of BOOX devices, sporting a somewhat old-school design where the edges are inclined and curved rather than completely flat. This makes the device look and feel thicker, though it also has the benefit of giving your hand a bit more comfort, as we’ll see later. Unfortunately, this along with the wide bezels make the BOOX Tab Mini C look a bit unflattering and uninteresting, if not for the E INK display that, by default, shows its colors even when the device is locked or powered off.

Ergonomics

Size does matter, especially when it comes to portable devices like phones and tablets. It defines what you can and can’t do with the product, at least on a comfortable level, and it dictates how portable and convenient it really is. That’s definitely the case with the BOOX Tab Mini C, which addresses one of the biggest pain points of the BOOX Tab Ultra C, no pun intended.

Weighing only 310g, the BOOX Tab Mini C makes the device easier to hold for longer periods of time, especially with just one hand. It’s a little over the size of an iPad mini, but significantly lighter than its Ultra sibling. The curved edges of the tablet’s back help with that comfort, too, letting it settle into your hand with fewer sharp edges to cut into your skin. In short, this is the ultimate color E Ink reader in terms of comfort and portability, ensuring that you’ll want to have it in your hand all the time.

When it comes to comfort, its selling point is, of course, that 7.8-inch Kaleido 3 E ink display. It doesn’t strain the eyes as a regular LCD or OLED screen would because it doesn’t shine light in the direction of your eyes. It doesn’t even have backlighting but instead employs front lights that let you pick not only the brightness but also the temperature warmth, mixing it up to your comfort depending on what you’re reading. And since it supports 4,096 colors rather than shades of gray only, this eye-friendly benefit applies not only to ebooks but to every piece of digital content as well, from comics to PDFs to webpages and, if you’re really up to it, social media. It’s the ultimate reader’s dream, now in a more convenient package.

Performance

What sets Onyx BOOX’s devices apart from the older generation of eBook readers is the fact that they’re really Android devices, both in terms of hardware and software. Nowhere is that more evident than in the BOOX Tab series, including this newest arrival. You could even call them Android tablets with E Ink displays and you wouldn’t be off the mark.

In terms of specs, the BOOX Tab Mini C would be the equivalent of a mid-range Android tablet, powered by an unnamed octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. Interestingly, these are the very same specs as the larger Tab Ultra C, save for half the internal storage capacity. It even has the same dedicated graphics processor that is responsible for the display’s unbelievably fast performance. You do have options of whether to prioritize speed over quality, but the Tab Mini C is able to deliver satisfactory results on every level.

The small eBook reader slash Android tablet houses a large 5,000 mAh battery, which, truth be told, isn’t that significantly lower than the 6,300 mAh on the Ultra model. Battery life is what you’d expect from an E Ink device, lasting for days or weeks rather than hours. The one caveat is that it’s actually shorter than your average eBook reader, depending on how many non-reading apps you use. It’s a powerful device that can run almost any Android app, but that comes at the cost of battery life, especially if you leave some of those running in the background.

Rounding up the specs is Bluetooth 5.0, which you will mostly use for hooking up wireless earbuds, USB-C for charging, and Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n/ac for Internet connectivity. There’s also a gyro sensor that’s useful for automatically rotating the user interface depending on the device’s orientation. Unlike its larger sibling, there is no rear camera for document scanning. The BOOX Tab Mini C ships with a stylus, though the BOOX Pen Plus is the kind that doesn’t have an eraser on the opposite end of the tip.

The Tab Mini C runs Android 11 with Onyx BOOX’s special skin running on top. It’s not exactly the latest Android release, but that’s not surprising for the brand either. Although Onyx does support devices for about five years with regular updates, they rarely upgrade the Android version during their lifetime. The Onyx BOOX OS, as it is sometimes called, has changed a lot since the early days, and this most recent incarnation brings it closer to being a more familiar Android interface without completely removing the eReader experience. It even comes with Google Play Store already pre-installed, so you’re just a few simple steps away from installing your favorite Android apps. The device comes with Onyx’s own Neoreader, which is quite impressive for its wide support of file formats and a plethora of features. You aren’t limited to that, however, and you can install any kind of eBook app or library you want, including Amazon Kindle, Kobo, Comixology, and more.

The device’s crowning glory is really that color E Ink display, now available in a more convenient size. With a pixel density of 300 ppi for black and white and 150 ppi for color, text always comes out crisp, regardless of their color. Those colors are also vibrant, at least as far as 4,096 colors go, and they’re well-saturated and not washed out. The 7.8-inch size is perfect not just for reading books but also for comics, manga, magazines, and PDFs, hitting the sweet spot between small and large screen sizes. That said, it isn’t an ideal size for A5, much less A4, documents, which is where larger devices like the BOOX Tab Ultra C shines. It’s not that big of a sacrifice, though, especially if you’re getting convenience and comfort in return.

The BOOX Tab Mini C is more than just a reader, though, especially with that stylus it ships with. The BOOX Notes app and Neoreader’s built-in annotation capabilities transform it from a consumption device to a learning tool and more. Writing on the screen is smooth and fluid, and the matte glass surface adds a bit of toothiness and resistance that makes it almost feel like writing on paper. It only supports the most basic colors, of course, but true colors are viewable on regular screens once you export the note as a PDF or image. One important caveat, however, is that the pen’s smooth performance really only applies to BOOX’s first-party apps and a few choice ones like OneNote, Evernote, and the WPS Office Suite. There is a considerable lag when using other apps, which is something that avid note-takers might want to consider.

Sustainability

Although Onyx has been playing the eReader game for a long time, it hasn’t yet jumped on a trend that is gripping big device manufacturers. Given the ubiquity and relative affordability of these kinds of devices, it almost behooves Onyx to also have a strong sustainability commitment in place. Unfortunately, we have yet to see that happen, though it’s also reassuring that it is at least doing some minor steps in that direction, intentionally or otherwise.

Using aluminum-magnesium alloy for its casing, for example, helps reduce the amount of plastic each device uses, and keeping the packaging to a minimum also helps a bit. Onyx doesn’t ship with a charger either, so that’s another point in its favor. Long-term software support helps keep the device running smoothly and securely for years, though eReaders, even Android-based ones, aren’t as high-maintenance as their full tablet counterparts anyway. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have much going for it when it comes to repairing and servicing its products, forcing owners to send in their devices to a few authorized service providers spread in a few countries. We’re still keeping our fingers crossed that Onyx BOOX will step up soon and be a role model in this industry.

Value

The Onyx BOOX Tab Mini C is definitely a smaller version of the Tab Ultra C with very few differences, and you might ask why you would favor it over the “fuller” version at all. That said, the question works the other way around as well, where you might ask why you’d even want a larger and heavier tablet if you can have one that is lighter, more comfortable, and more convenient to carry around. It all boils down to what you’d use an E Ink device for.

The BOOX Tab Ultra C is clearly marketed more as a productivity device, one whose reading capabilities are put at the service of learning and working. It’s best for A5 or even some A4 documents, which is what most academic or scientific papers come in, not to mention magazines and periodicals. The larger screen size is also conducive for having two documents or apps side-by-side, and it supports a decent-sized keyboard for typing out notes, emails, and the like.

While it’s possible to do all those on the BOOX Tab Mini C as well, it isn’t as conducive for these use cases with its smaller display. Split screen, for example, will feel very cramped, and since there’s no official keyboard folio case, you’ll have to arrange for a separate Bluetooth keyboard for your typing needs. The hardware is very much capable of doing almost everything, but the smaller and lighter device feels best for reading and writing on the go rather than working on a desk.

As far as price goes, the Tab Mini C isn’t exactly inexpensive, though that $449.99 price tag, fortunately, includes a magnetic folio case. Compared to other E Ink devices, it’s quite pricey, but it is also in a class of its own. There are very few color E Ink readers that come in this compact size, and the closest competitors are either using older E Ink Kaleido technology or are even more expensive. At the moment, there is pretty much no contest when it comes to a pocket-book size color eReader, making the BOOX Tab Mini C one of a kind.

Verdict

There is thankfully a resurgence in consuming text content that goes beyond scrolling through social media, whether it’s reading ebooks or tons of articles on the Web. This trend, however, has also made people more aware of how common screens wreak havoc on our eyes and our health, especially at night. ePaper Displays are becoming more popular because of this, to the point that there are even computer monitors that use it on the side or in their entirety. For readers of all kinds, however, a portable E Ink device is a better choice and investment.

Of these, the Onyx BOOX Tab Mini C probably represents the culmination of all the innovations available in this segment to date. Its 7.8-inch E Ink Kaleido 3 display brings a splash of color in a more ergonomic and comfortable size, while tablet-like hardware and a Google-enabled Android platform bring all the power and functionality you need on a portable device. Yes, it’s a bit on the pricey side and its design isn’t exactly inspiring, but these thankfully tend to get out of the way once you start immersing yourself in a world of text and colors that bring joy to your life without straining your eyes.