BOOX Note Air2 Plus with Magnet ePaper Paper Tablets E Ink
BOOX Note Air2 Plus with Magnet ePaper Paper Tablets E Ink Tablets 4G 64G
Screen: Parameters:10.3″ HD Carta glass screen with flat cover-lens
Resolution: 1404×1872 Carta (227 dpi)
Touch: BOOX Pen Plus stylus touch with magnets (4096 levels pressure sensitivity) + capacitive touch
CPU: Advanced octa-core processor
RAM: 4GB LPDDR4X
ROM: 64GB UFS2.1
Connectivity: Wi-Fi (2.4GHz + 5GHz) + BT 5.0
Front Light with CTM (Warm and Cold)
OS: Android 11.0
Documents Formats: PDF(reflowable), PPT,EPUB, TXT, DJVU, HTML, RTF, FB2, DOC, MOBI, CHM…
Image Formats: PNG, JPG, TIFF, BMP
Audio Formats: WAV, MP3
APP Store: BOOX Store
Support DRM(3 party apps)
Buttons: power button
Expansion Interface: USB Type-C (support OTG)
Speaker: yes
Mic: yes
Earphone Jack: USB-C earphone jack
Battery: Polymer Li-on ( 3700mAh )
Battery Life: Up to 5 weeks (standby mode)
Dimensions: 229.4×195.4×5.8 mm
Weight: ≤445g
| Dimensions: | 22.9 x 19.5 x 0.6 cm; 445 Grams |
| Model: | Note Air2 Plus |
| Batteries Included: | 1 Lithium Polymer batteries required. (included) |
| Manufacture: | BOOX |
| Dimensions: | 22.9 x 19.5 x 0.6 cm; 445 Grams |
| Origin: | China |
A couple of critical feedback points –
1. High quality accessories aren’t easy to find…
Stylus
I really liked the standard Boox pen it comes with which provides a very realistic writing experience. However, the rubber lid it comes with seems a bit cheap and the magnet is far too weak to be reliably stored on the device. I recommend any fans of LAMY AL-star pens to buy the EMR version which is an excellent stylus for this Boox. As an aside the LAMY AL-Star EMR only comes in black, but the casing and lid can be interchanged with any LAMY AL-Star ball point pen, so upped my colour game on that front too.
Cases
Limited choice of cases led me to purchasing a leather option from Etsy, which has been brilliant, but I’ve not found a decent hard case for it yet.
Screen protector
I opted for the (admittedly pricey) doodroo paper feel screen protector which has been excellent.
2. AI Handwriting
This device can reliably recognise my terrible left handed scribble and translate it into text ready to cut and paste into email / documents, which is the primary reason I wanted this particular model – I’d tried competitor Samsung / iPad and neither could translate my particular brand of hieroglyphics… top marks to Boox.
3. Battery Life
Battery life is superb – I’ve had this for 6 months now and use most days to read / write for an hour or so. Over this period of time I’ve needed to charge it maybe 4 times in total.
4. Left Handed mode
It’s possible to flip the whole device 180 degrees so that you can hold the green casing with your right hand and write with your left. However, the people at Onyx haven’t quite figured out how to make the security pin page flip, so I have to log in right handed and turn the device around… it’s not much of a hassle, but it does detract when trying to show someone how good this device is when the first thing they see is a niggle.
5. Kindle
Not sure if its a Boox or Amazon issue, but Kindle purchases are not able to be made on the device. Instead you need to log in on your phone / laptop and make the purchase which then shows up on the Boox immediately afterwards. It’s a faff and a bit ridiculous – the Onyx Bookstore is very limited in terms of available titles, so not really a viable alternative.
Overall, I love this device – it’s so easy to write with and read on – so many settings and things to play around with. I’ve even figured out how to screen share my diagrams on my MacBook during Zoom calls. Highly recommended.
This is an amazing device but the operating system is somewhat opaque and challenging. I THINK that I’ve got most things working OK … but I’m not sure (there’s a scintilla of doubt). Every little step forward seems like a small victory. It’s certainly not a works-out-of-the-box gadget and there’s quite a lot of setting up to do. It doesn’t help that the manual isn’t very clear either. Nevertheless, I think that I will stick with it and it will be worth it in the end. There is so much functionality built into this device and I’m sure that a lot of it will come in useful.
Just getting into the features I will probably only use half the features but so far it’s just what I wanted easy to use and has a long battery usage before it runs out. I
Like the built in templates
Very nice, well built and easy to use tablet. Great features
I got the Onyx Boox Air plus 2 for my masters. I still love hand written notes as I can write faster than I can type, but I hate the paper waste and I am terrible at loosing things. This tablet is great, it feels like paper and the hand writing on it is practically perfect. I can store my digital notes in the relevant folders or send them to my laptop to use in OneNote. I’ve had it a couple of weeks now and still haven’t had to charge it. the battery life is fantastic. it fits nicely inside my laptop bag and is great for pulling out to make some quick notes on.
A few points. It takes a little getting used to and a small amount of googling to find the particular feature you want but I have found all that I need. Its a little slower to start up than a regular tablet or phone (like 10seconds) but that doesn’t bother me.
The BOOX Note Air2 Plus is definitely worth considering.
The tablet’s magnet design allows for easy attachment of the stylus, making it convenient to use when you’re on the go. The stylus itself is highly responsive and accurate, making note-taking and drawing a breeze.
One of the standout features is its size. At just 10.3 inches, it’s the perfect size for taking notes or reading books. The tablet is also incredibly thin and lightweight, making it easy to carry around with you wherever you go.
I’ve been using this for all the notes I need to take for work and it has fit into my workflow really well.
If you’re looking for an eink tablet for note taking and reading books, this is an excellent choice.
This is fast becoming my favourite note-taking device. It runs on Android and so you are able to download the Kindle app, Evernote and all your Office apps too, as well as OneNote. It saves paper too…..my desk drawers were getting full of used note pads which I never look at again and this device means that when I no longer need the notes I’ve taken, then I can simply delete them, rather than shredding or recycling loads of paper!
The screen is nice to use for both reading (very Kindle-esque) and writing on with the provided pen.
Shame you have to buy an extra case for it, but it is worth doing to protect it and keep the pen from falling off.
Overall though, a good investme
Ever since I started my studies, I have always dreamt of a company creating something like this. It is a niche product, but it is impressive how they have been perfecting the product.
I love the functionality, notetaking functionality, the feel when writing, speech to text works well even when I tested technical language and I’m not a native speaker. I love that I can use split screen to annotate scientific pdfs and take notes at the same time. Its only been two days so I haven’t explored all functions, but I’m very happy with the device already. I’m taking one star off for lack of accessories on the market as I loved the Remarkable2 leather folio.
The apps work well on both phone and PC and there is a very useful web option too. Wifi and Bluetooth connection is pain free and instant. It would be good if it came with a case and the pen had an erase function. I have replaced the pen with a Samsung one and this work perfectly. There is minimal lag while writing, but you do have to clear the ram cache on a regular basis if using OneNote.
The native note software is very good and the AI converter can even read my handwriting accurately.
In all it is a great peice of kit and a big improvement on the ReMarkabe in terms of connectivity.
This is my ‘go to’ device for trapping ideas, thoughts, research and literature reviews. Its handwriting to text is very good, as is its voice to text function. The battery life is excellent and, when I tied it into my OneDrive/ Microsoft Office setup, it’s great for updating documents and spreadsheets (watch use of colour though). As I tend to power off the device when I don’t need it there is a delay on startup waking from sleep is pretty instantaneous though!
I’m extremely happy with my purchase!
I understand the reviews referencing the price & it is a considered purchase – but for what it is, it really is not that expensive. I use it more than any device except my mobile phone – more than any tablets, laptops & desktops!
Primarily I use this as a notebook. I use the internal page templates / guides and custom PDF templates I have created (extremely easy process to upload your own templates). Handwritten notes can include tags & link to a calendar view – so I can review notes with ease – this device has significantly improved work efficientcy.
The second things I use it for is reading. Installed the Android Kindle app and reading ebooks works perfectly. Also have the Times newspaper app to read the news & it is perfect – almost feels like reading a proper newspaper!
Battery life is beyond phenomenal – because I use it so much, I keep it topped up in terms of battery, but if I forget to charge it, I can easily use for 3 days without any need to charge it or worry that it might suddenly die on me.
Finally, the beauty of using an e-ink screen is, they are very easy on the eye. Boox provides multiple light modes (warm & cold light) & both can be independently moved to provide any custom light you desire. Saves my eyes from strain especially at night.
Only downside really is getting to grips with everything this device can do – even now, I only use it for a fraction of the things it can do – but everyday is like a learning experience & I am become further blown away with how capable these devices are.
Amazing device – great quality / value + awesome battery life!
Its a top of the line product in its category, excellent in every aspect, overpriced obviously but if you are a professional or a voracious reader and not a casual one like me. If you’re sure that you will use it or you have 500 lying around with no apparent use then go for it else its just waste. Stylus is just a gimmick atleast for me.
Installed the Android Kindle app and reading ebooks works perfectly. Also have the Economist app to read the news and the web browser works great for websites like lwn.net.
The magnet holding the pen is pretty weak so it doesn’t always stay attached but bought a simple sleeve from Emmerson Gray which is a good travel cover and has a pen holder included.
Battery easily lasts a week even being on most of the time and much longer with WiFi off. Setting sleep after 8 hours and shut down a after a day means that it is always ready, but it only takes about 30 seconds to boot anyway.
Overall a great purchase and being Android should be future proofed for other apps and functionality, unlike alternatives I explored.
Pros: Nice clear screen, accurate drawing, long battery life.
I made a couple of sketches, and thanks to the ‘undo’, ‘erase’, ‘layer’ and other tools, I can sketch as well, if not better on the Boox Air2 Plus than I can on real paper. The ability to undo mistakes is really quite powerful.
Handwriting is accurate. When I write, it comes out clean, and very much like MY handwriting. I can also write as small as I would on paper, which is never true when I write on other tablets like an IPAD.
The battery life is good. I was testing it all day on the notes app, and it was difficult to tell how many % would drain per hour of use. It seemed like only 2-3% per hour. Even if 5%, you will not run out of juice within a full days of usage.
But the pros kind of end there.
Cons:
It’s still not a pen and paper. It’s really good. Definitely the best example of an electronic writing tablet I’ve ever experienced, but despite what people say about it feeling like pen and paper, it does not. And it just feels… a little off to me.
There is really little else you would use this device for. The performance is sluggish. A lot of that is to do with the screen’s refresh rate, but also it takes time to boot up, it takes time to load apps, to change pages, to load notes etc. You spend a lot of time waiting. It’s only a few seconds here and there, but those seconds add up. So other than reading, drawing and taking notes, you would not use this device if you have your phone or other tablet handy. Which makes it quite an expensive note taking device.
It’s really hard to justify 500 GBP for something with such limited uses. That’s a lot of pens and papers I could buy.
It’s a bit of a shame. If it was just a little more responsive, and had a little more utility, I’d probably keep it.
I use this to read on but also hand write – open a document in my google docs account, scribble away with the stylus on the screen and the hand writing recognition does a pretty good job of turning it into text. Saves me hours on a laptop or desktop screen – saves my eyes from strain.
That’s the beauty of e-ink screens – very easy on the eye. Down side – slower than a computer with a conventional screen. But you adjust to that.
Only downside really is that the manual (on board) isn’t particularly helpful in telling you all the things you can do with this, or how to do them. YouTube videos from other users are invaluable in getting this set up how you want it. Even now, I only use it for a fraction of the things it CAN do with more technically minded users.
But it does what I bought it for, very very well. But if you’re a technical klutz and don’t know anyone who can set it up for you – look elsewhere.
The experience on the native note taking / pen writing apps is fantastic, out of the box. Minimal latency and reasonably small distance between the tip of the pen and the actual “writing surface” (behind the plastic screen protector and the glass screen)
The provided pen is basic but the nib is okay. The pen itself is a bit “plastic-y” (aka cheap) and the rubber cap / hood is easy to lose … but this does the job as a “starter kit” (I would perhaps have expected more for the price). I personally use the Samsung Tab S6 and Lamy EMR pens, both with eraser buttons (which I was lucky to purchase at bargain prices, second-hand but near new). The nibs are compatible (including the Onyx one), so I can try different combinations.
The nibs I use haven’t scratched the factory-fitted screen protector yet (I hope they will never!), but I noticed minor scratches thankfully on the side strip (not over the screen itself) probably because of keys / jewelry (no sure). I am since being more careful how I protect the device when not in use.
Android + Google Play Store enables plenty of use cases. The “eink bro” web browser is amazing, an absolute must for browsing content-oriented websites without Javascript, cookies, and more importantly: without scrolling! (instant page up/down).
Minor wishlist item: I would have liked a fingerprint reader so I could quickly turn the device on for instant note taking etc. I tried using pin code security but in practice this breaks the flow of using the device on and off while doing other things (e.g. rapidly jot down ideas whilst they are fresh in my mind). So I decided to use a “throw away” Google account with no sensitive information in order to setup the Google Play Store, and I just press the power button or lift the magnetic cover (works with the magnetic pen too!) to immediately open the device. Friction-less paper-like experience 🙂
The screen is pretty clear and there’s a backlight, unlike the Remarkable. The Remarkable is a bit bigger though. Boox’s Android interface is quite simple and not exactly intuitive. I found both the Kindle app and the Libby library app didn’t look right out of the box. But if you use the optimisation option you can go back to the original dpi of the apps, tweak things and then they’re OK. The pen that comes with the tablet is pretty pathetic – no eraser and a bit slippery. The Staedtler digital pen I use with my Remarkable is a bit better – any Wacom pen will do. The official case is quite pricey too at 45 but a good fit.
This isn’t an alternative to a standard Android tablet. It’s all about e-ink and the feel of writing on paper with the pen. The notes app that comes with it is easy to use and can export to Onenote and Evernote if you have them installed. It’s all a bit clunky and the manual isn’t great. But if you want to use a pen to mark up pdfs, epubs and Word this does the job pretty well really. You just have to be prepared to spend some time learning how it works.