Chinese E-Readers: Brands You Can Buy Outside China

Two makers in China sell e-readers to the rest of the world from their own stores: Onyx Boox and Bigme. Both build readers that run Android with the Google Play Store, so one device can hold the Kindle app, the Kobo app and a library app side by side. The cheapest are the Bigme B6 at about $160 and the BOOX Go 6 (Gen II) at about $200.

The other names from China’s own market are harder to get. Hanvon sells abroad as Penstar, whose store has only large writing tablets. iReader’s English site and Xiaomi’s global site list no e-reader at all. We went through each maker’s own store and pages. We have not handled these devices, so the details below are the makers’ own.

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The readers compared

Prices are from each maker’s own store in US dollars, rounded, from lowest to highest. Boox prices are for its US warehouse.

Onyx Boox

Boox is the easiest of these to buy. Its shipping page names the seller as Onyx International, a Chinese company, and lists delivery to the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Japan, the EU and more than a dozen other markets. A separate Euro shop covers the EU with a two-year warranty. The main shop gives one year.

The readers to look at are the Go models. Boox says each runs an open Android system with the Google Play Store built in and supports third-party apps. It does not name the Kindle app, but Amazon’s Kindle app and the Kobo app are both listed on Google Play.

• BOOX Go 6 (Gen II), about $200: a 6-inch, 300 ppi screen with a warm and cold front light, 32GB of storage and a microSD slot, at about 160g. It runs Android 11, the oldest version in the table. BOOX Go 6 (Gen II) on Amazon
• BOOX Go 7, about $270: a 7-inch, 300 ppi screen, page-turn buttons, Android 13, 64GB and a microSD slot. This is the one we would pick for reading books. BOOX Go 7 on Amazon
• BOOX Go Color 7 (Gen II), about $290: the same size with a colour screen. Colour halves the sharpness, to 150 ppi, for anything shown in colour. Pay the extra $20 only if you read comics or magazines. BOOX Go Color 7 (Gen II) on Amazon
• BOOX Palma 2 Pro, about $400: a colour reader the shape of a phone, with Android 15, 128GB and a SIM slot that Boox describes as data only. BOOX Palma 2 Pro on Amazon

Two new models were on the store with caveats. The Palma 3, with Android 16, showed as sold out. The Picco, about the size of a playing card, was on pre-order. The Picco is not an Android reader: Boox lists no app store for it, and books are sent to it from a phone app, a website or a cable. It reads the files you send, and Boox lists no way to add the Kindle or Kobo apps.

Boox sells each model from a US warehouse and a Hong Kong one, and the Hong Kong price is $10 to $20 lower. Its shipping page says the buyer is the importer and pays any duties and taxes on arrival, so the lower price is not always the cheaper order.

Bigme

Bigme’s store says it ships anywhere in the world, with orders sent from China and duties left to the buyer. Its readers run Android 14, a newer version than the Boox Go readers above.

• Bigme B6, about $160: a 6-inch black and white reader at 212 ppi with 32GB, a microSD slot and a warm and cool front light. Bigme’s page names Kindle, Libby and KOReader among the apps it can run. A 300 ppi version is about $180. Bigme B6 on Amazon
• Bigme B6 Color, about $180: the colour version, with 64GB at this price. A 32GB one is about $150.
• Bigme B751C S, about $250: a 7-inch colour reader with 64GB, a microSD slot and stylus support, at 220g. Bigme B751C on Amazon

Bigme undercuts Boox at 6 inches and for a 7-inch colour screen. The trade-off is in what it publishes: several of its product pages give a price and a title and leave out the weight, battery or light. Read the page for the exact model before you pay.

Hanvon, Penstar and Supernote

Hanvon, on the old version of this list for a basic 6-inch reader, is now a much bigger name at home. Its newsroom cites a market report that ranks it first for online sales of e-paper tablets in China, with reading handled by its Clear series, including a 7.1-inch Clear7 Ultra.

Hanvon says it sells abroad under the name Penstar, with online sales in North America. Penstar’s store has none of the Clear readers, only 10.3-inch writing tablets: the eNote 2 at about $440, and the eNote Pro at about $530 in black and white or $560 in colour. All run Android 14. They are notebooks you can read on, and too large to be a paperback replacement.

Supernote is the same kind of device. Its maker, Ratta, lists offices in Shanghai, Tokyo and Washington. The 7.8-inch Nomad is about $330 and the 10.7-inch Manta about $460. Supernote says its system is based on Android 11 and works with the Kindle app. There is no front light, so it needs a lamp at night. Nigeria is on the delivery list in Supernote’s store, and India is not.

Brands that stay in China

• iReader: its English site presents the iReader reading app and lists no e-reader to buy.
• Xiaomi: its global home page covers phones, wearables, cars and smart home products, and no e-reader.
• iFlytek and Meebook: iFlytek’s device site refused our visit, and we found no maker’s site for Meebook, so neither could be checked and both are left out.

If you find one of these on an import site, ask the seller about the warranty and the system language before you pay. Our guide to Chinese online shops that ship to Nigeria covers how those orders and customs work.

Kindle and Kobo, for comparison

A Kobo Clara BW is about $160 on Kobo’s US store and a Clara Colour about $180, which is less than any Boox with the Play Store. If every book you read comes from one shop, a Kobo or a Kindle is the simpler buy. The reason to choose an Android reader is to keep books from several shops and a library on one device. Readers in Nigeria have a second reason: when we opened Amazon’s US page for the basic Kindle from Nigeria, it said the device could not be shipped to our location.

Which to pick

• For reading books: the BOOX Go 7, for the 300 ppi screen, the page buttons and the easier delivery.
• For the least money: the Bigme B6, or the 300 ppi version for $20 more.
• For comics in colour: the Bigme B751C S at about $250, or the BOOX Go Color 7 (Gen II) at about $290 if you want Boox’s shipping and warranty.
• For a pocket: the BOOX Palma 2 Pro.
• For writing as much as reading: the Supernote Nomad.
• Outside Boox’s delivery list, India and Nigeria included: Bigme, whose store says it ships anywhere.

Quick answers

Which Chinese e-reader brands sell outside China?

Onyx Boox and Bigme sell readers from their own stores. Supernote and Hanvon’s Penstar sell writing tablets. iReader and Xiaomi list no e-reader on their international sites.

Can a Chinese e-reader run the Kindle app?

The Android ones can. Bigme names the Kindle app on its product pages, Supernote says its system works with it, and Boox readers have the Google Play Store, where Amazon lists the app.

Is Onyx Boox a Chinese company?

Yes. Boox’s own shipping page names the seller as Onyx International, a Chinese company.

Does Boox deliver to India or Nigeria?

Neither is on its delivery list. The page tells buyers in other countries to email the shop. Bigme says it ships worldwide.

What is the best Android e-ink reader?

For most readers we would pick the BOOX Go 7 at about $270. It has a 300 ppi screen, page buttons, Android 13 and the Play Store.

Prices move, so confirm on the maker’s store before you pay.