The Onyx Boox Go 6 is a part of the Go series released in 2024. The first product was the Boox Go 10.3 which was the first Onyx-branded device with a large screen and 300 PPI for resolution. This ensures that the overall quality of content will be tremendous. Everything will be readable whether you read an ebook, magazine, newspaper or academic PDF. Overall performance is excellent due to the hardware. Google Android 12 and full access to the Google Play Store right out of the box. The following product was the Boox Go 7 Color, which had a Kaleido 3 e-paper display. The big selling points are the physical page-turn buttons, Android 12, Google Play and a thin design, making it portable.
The new Boox Go 6 is a small, portable e-book reader aimed primarily at affordability. It uses the brand-new E INK Carta 1300 e-paper display that increases overall performance and page-turn speed. The 300 PPI display ensures that your books look good and have no fuzzy anti-aliasing. Google Android 11 is the operating system with full Google Play Store access. It is available for $149.99 and comes with a free case.
Hardware
The Onyx Boox Go 6 features a 6-inch HD Carta 1300. This is a dedicated e-reader with no note-taking functionality and only a black-and-white display. The resolution is 1448×1072 with 300 PPI. The screen is flush with the bezel and protected by a layer of glass. It has both warm and excellent lighting. The colour scheme of the e-reader is piano black on the front and back.
Underneath the hood is a 2.0 GHz Octa-core processor, 2GB of RAM, and 32GB of internal storage. If this is not enough, there is also an SD card slot. Thanks to Wi-Fi (2.4GHz + 5GHz), you can surf the web and install apps, and it has Bluetooth 5.0 for listening to audiobooks, music, and podcasts. Talk to your friends on Discord or WhatsApp with the built-in microphone. A USB-C port transfers and charges data, and a 1,500mAh Li-ion Polymer battery powers the GO 6. The dimensions are 148*108*6.8mm (5.8″ x 4.3″ x 0.27″) and weighs 146g (5.15oz).
The Go 6 runs Android 11 and has access to the Play Store. This provides users with all the leading reading apps or anything else they want to install. The Amazon Kindle app is optimized for Boox, so you will not encounter page-turn animations. If you would like to sideload your content into the stock reading app, it supports PDF, CAJ, DJVU, CBR, CBZ, EPUB, EPUB3, AZW3, MOBI, TXT, DOC, DOCX, FB2, CHM, RTF, HTML, ZIP, PRC, PPT, PPTX.
I wish the Go 6 had physical page-turn buttons, like the Go 7; instead, the Go 6 has a pure touchscreen display. The price is reasonable and on par with the Clara BW or the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite 11th generation. The advantage of Boox is that there is no walled garden, and since it has Google Play, this is a significant advantage over Kindle and Kobo, which sell books directly. Many people go with Boox because of its flexibility and freedom.
Software
The Go 6 uses Google Android 11, which I find weird because the Go 7 Color and Go 10.3 both use Android 12.
However, instead of using a vanilla version of Android Android, Onyx instead utilizes Boox OS. This is a heavily skinned version that the company has developed, which has a series of bright and bubbly icons and a user interface which makes it easy to click on when using the touchscreen display. One of the ways Onyx differentiates itself from the Amazon Kindle, Rakuten Kobo or the Barnes and Noble Nook is the inclusion of Google Play. Onyx is one of the few brands worldwide to have Play on most of their ebook readers and e-notebooks. Many people will only buy an e-reader with Play since it opens up a world of customization.
The Main UI is at the bottom of the screen. It includes shortcuts to your Library, Bookstore, Apps Storage and Settings. Your library only comprises books you have sideloaded on the stock Neoreader book reader. If you primarily use apps, such as Kindle or Kobo, the books in those apps will not appear in your main library. The bookstore is Onyx branded and only comprises royalty-free content, which is the type of stuff you would find on Project Gutenberg. Apps are where the pre-installed apps are, such as Boox Cloud, Google Drive and many others. Any apps you download from Google Play will also be here. Storage will show a file directory of all your data; inserting an SD card will display its contents. Settings are where you will see all your WIFI/Bluetooth and many other options, such as the number of page turns before a full page refresh is done. You will also conduct firmware updates here. Onyx tends to push out updates a few times a year.
One of the best options is the Control Centre, which you can access from an icon or by tapping on the display’s top middle. This is where you can pair Bluetooth headphones or earbuds to listen to audiobooks, music, podcasts or other audio content. You can access your WIFI network with a login and password. There are also things like AI assistant, Boox cloud storage, Kids Mode, Split Screen, E INK Centre, Screen Shot and a full page refresh. AI Assistant is like a ChatGPT-style chatbot, where you can ask questions and get answers.
Kids Mode is interesting; Onyx is the only brand that does this, aside from Amazon. To use Kids mode, you must register or log in to your Onyx Account, and then you can tweak some settings. You can only have them access things you want, such as the reading app or on an app-by-app basis. Kids’ profiles can be named after your child. When they log in, they won’t see any books an adult might be reading, or you can load in kid-friendly titles. If you are an Amazon user, you can grant them access to your Kindle app. There is also a time option that parents can establish, such as how long you want them to use the Go 10 every day, and a countdown timer will appear at the top.
Part of the control centre is an option called E INK Centre, which is beneficial. This is where you can control global settings to get the most out of your Go 6. Depending on your preference, you can make all icons and text darker or lighter. Want to increase the performance of your device? This is where you can set the different speed modes.
- HD Mode is designed for deep reading. Like reading printed books, you can enjoy incredibly sharp text with the least ghosting.
- Under Balanced Mode, BOOX coordinated demands for clear display and intermittent interaction. Quick screen response is assured when you are skimming books or images.
- Fast Mode aims at a smooth experience of browsing websites or activities that involve lots of scrolling. Subtle ghosting may occur, but responsiveness is enhanced.
- Ultrafast mode provides the most rapid response to dynamic content. Though some details may be lost, it lets you watch videos and seamlessly use different apps.
The primary software experience is robust. Everything you click on is done so lightning quick. There is little to no lag when opening apps, reading books or using apps. The speed modes allow browsing the web, reading complex PDF files, or coding to perform well.
Reading
The Go 6 is a pretty good e-book reader, but not one you will read magazines or newspapers on. You primarily want to use this device to read ebooks, manga, and webtoons. Flipping Pages is ultra-fast thanks to the Carta 1300 screen and even faster if you engage in any speed modes from the E INK Control Centre. The image quality is very pronounced due to the 300 PPI screen.
The e-reading experience starts with the stock app Neoreader, where you can side-load all your content with many options for font sizes, font type, alignment, line spacing and margins. It supports PRC, RTF, Doc, Text, DJVU, PDF, Mobi, FB2, EPUB, CBR and CBZ. CBZ and CBR support is excellent for sideloading Manga files since this is the most popular online format. However, Amazon delivers manga in AZW3 and Kobo/Google via EPUB. You don’t need to worry about forms if you install apps such as VIZ or manga apps. It is also important to note that Google Play Books is also installed by default, so you are not stuck using Neoreader by default.
The Go 6 shines when you access Google Play and download your favourite apps. This gives you tremendous flexibility and freedom to use whatever reading or news apps you usually use on your smartphone or tablet. I know many people always install Libby to read eBooks or listen to audiobooks borrowed from the public library. The Kindle reading app is the most popular since it was initially developed for smartphones and tablets. The page turn animation always looks nice and pretty, but it struggles on E INK devices due to the refresh issue. This is why Onyx made enhancements to the app on a system level to eliminate animated page turns, so it is seamless and robust when you turn a page. Over the years, they have optimized many other apps but tend to focus on the writing experience on their extensive line of e-notes. The company has also made enhancements to several productivity apps.
Onyx Boox has a bookstore on this device. However, it primarily sells royalty-free books, the same content you would find just browsing the internet or accessing sites like Project Gutenberg. This bookstore is designed to get people reading immediately, but no bestsellers or books are paid for. You must download dedicated apps to pay for books or use Google Play Books.
When it comes right down to it, the Go 6 should be looked at as a dedicated e-reader. This isn’t the device you will use to watch movies, listen to music, or play games. This is a good ebook reader for reading digital content. Like an Amazon Kindle or Kobo, you get more flexibility and freedom via Google Play to download some good reading apps.
Wrap Up
Truthfully speaking, this is one of the times Onyx has hit a massive foul ball into the stands behind them. They missed the mark on this unit 10 times over; I’ll explain. Their new GO line is a side variant line of devices they have marketed with various screen sizes in 2024. They have to go 10.3, the Go 7 Color, and the Go 6……
None have any consistent theme or cohesion to any degree of the word. The Go 10.3 eliminates most features, from no glowing light to nearly being a one-trick pony. The Go 7 Color features a spec powerhouse giant with a colour screen and every Bell and whistle under the books for a higher price tag than its predecessor. And now, the Go 6 features… Well, a Poke 3 (and for reference, they’re at the Poke 5 now.)
What is this device all about? It has a Carta 1,300 screen, which no longer beats anybody to the punch as four manufacturers use it. There’s no colour, but it has 300 PPI. It has Bluetooth but no speakers. It also has an SD card slot, which is necessary because, out of the box, 32% of your storage is dedicated to the operating system. The bezels are huge, looking like something out of 2016, and the screen is so far away from your face that there’s a 1 mm drop shadow around the entire perimeter
This unit doesn’t even have specs on its side either, as it’s only rocking 2 GB of RAM, which several other manufacturers have outclassed.
Hyread gaze mini = 3GB
Hisense Hireader = 4GB
The unit is prone to fairly heavy staining and only accomplishes half the battle regarding multimedia, as there’s no audio on board. Honest to god, this is one of the rare opportunities where Onyx comes to the party with an unnecessary rehash of something old, outdated, and overdone, and this exists as one of the most uncharacteristic Onyx products we’ve ever seen
Onyx Boox Go 6
$179.99
Pros
- 300 PPI Display
- E INK Carta 1300
- Android 11 + Google Play
- Affordable
- SD card
Cons
- Paltry RAM
- No Page-turns
- No Speakers
- Feels Outdated
- Made of cheap plastic
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
