PocketBook InkPad 4 REVIEW: Almost perfect

[@Kiev-in-3-days]

I am so glad i found this channel. The other one was driving me crazy with their nonsense boring stupid "reviews". Finally someone who knows what an ereader is and is intelligently working for his viewers!

[@alicedalexandrite]

This is why I love Era: the same nice things + the form factor I enjoy more

[@ChalidRaqami]

Yes, the Era is great as well. I also like the form factor more. Can't go wrong with either one imho.

[@bosiefoobar]

@@ChalidRaqamiwhich eink reader do you use privately?

[@Gamez4eveR]

No MicroSD is a dealbreaker for me, I went with InkPad 3 and absolutely love it. The InkPad 3 feels just light enough to not feel heavy, so 30 extra grams would have been a substantial increase. All material I tried so far looks gorgeous on the 3.

[@miket.1933]

Really nice review. Not just focused on the notes features like on the that other review channel which probably 90% of users won't use. I like the design and the flat screen of the Inkpad 4 more but I ordered an Inkpad 3 just today as the expendable storage is a must for me because I have a lot of manga. I was using a Tolino Epos 2 before which I prefer from a form factor but the storage was full almost immediately and the software is terrible and updates and customer support are more or less non existent. It is really nice how many features and option to customize PocketBook added over the years.

[@ChalidRaqami]

Good choice on the InkPad 3! It's still a great device. Yeah, they really stepped up the game in the past couple of years. Really a silent revolution. I mean Pocketbook software was always good, but they refined everything quite nicely. No idea what's going on with Tolino... There has been virtually no improvements in the past 4 years, which even in the ereading world is bad. At some point they promised a software overhaul, but that's also long overdue at this point.

[@gianniq82]

hi, Is the display quality comparable to the Tolino? From some reviews I read that the display is a little blurry in contrast...

[@marguerit8]

fantastically, the only downside for me is the weight. It should be 200 grams or less, so I could take it with me everywhere and read comfortably.... that's why I will pick era, also for ergonomic reasons

[@michaelcortez9954]

Really enjoy your style of review 😊 also, I'm really digging the shirt 😁

[@oceanrave3801]

I was looking to replace my Tolino (could no longer deal with its awfully slow and buggy software) and your thorough review really helped me with my decision: I recently purchased an Inkpad 4 and couldn‘t be happier. I really like the form factor, it is snappy and the screen is very nice. I also appreciate the send to Pocketbook feature, which I always missed with the Tolino. I actually like the Inkpad more than my Paperwhite 2021, it is definitely on par with Amazon‘s devices. I have no prior Pocketbook experience but now I‘m a fan :) Danke Chalid

[@gianniq82]

hi, Is the display quality comparable to the Tolino and Paperwhite? From some reviews I read that the display is a little blurry in contrast...

[@MrKooops]

Hi Chalid, do you know of any ebook reader beside the Kobo ones with a Pocket-Integration? I am VERY upset with the battery of the new Kobo devices, so i am looking for a replacement.

[@ChalidRaqami]

Not directly... but with a bit of tinkering there are workarounds. You can usa Calibre to fetch the articles (blog.getpocket.com/2010/02/read-your-list-on-your-kindleebook-reader-with-calibre/ or github.com/mmagnus/Pocket-Plus-Calibre-Plugin), save them to a Dropbox dictionary and that way automatically sync them to a Pocketbook ereader, which also has Dropbox. There's also a third party service for Kindle, but that is closed source as far as I know, so I'd go with the Calibre -> PocketBook solution.

[@unwired2097]

Correct me if I’m wrong, but there isn’t a 7.8-8 inch carta 1200 with expandable storage in the market right now is there? I’ve had my pocketbook InkPad 3 for a while and I enjoy it but after seeing carta 1200 side by side to it it’s a big difference in quality. I read manga mainly and I’ve returned a few kaleido 3 devices as the grid array bothers me still.

[@ChalidRaqami]

Yes, unfortunately, many companies moved away from expandable storage either with waterproofing (PocketBook InkPad 4) or just because it was an additional cost. The Bigme S6 probably comes closest to that with "regular" E-Ink Carta, but I'm not a huge fan of their UI.

[@Zayatoshi]

Hello. Thank you for this great video. Do pocketbooks have a reading option for ebooks to align / justify the text as on kobo? Thank you.

[@benjaminRhodesLEGO]

Can I search for text in the PDF with this?

[@Vimes.]

A most interesting review of an eReader that is not a Kobo or a Kindle..... I wonder if the Inkpad 4 will have a Pro variant..? If so that will probably arrive a week or two after I buy the std model, if I should do that. Lol. Was the 3 Pro launched a while after the 3..? The screen clarity, brightness and contrast does seem an improvement over that of the Era model, you commented in the Era review about the screen not being as great as what was available at the time. Would you consider the Inkpad's 4 screen to be comparable with what Kobo and Kindle currently offer - thinking about Libra 2 and the latest Kindle 6.8" type devices...? The openness and somewhat customisation offered are intriguing, accepting it costs a little bit more for that. A pity that availability, in the UK, is not that great in terms of e-tailers offering this device. Thanks again for the review......live long and prosper.

[@sisterparfums]

Can you do a video about full reading immersion with professional voices as kindle while looking the reading progression in the same time enlightening , I don’t know which tablet offers this option or what method to use ? That will be so useful for me please

[@mdatab]

Thanks for the great review! Just a small side-note: The last two chapters of the video („Android Apps“ and „Battery Life“) are not really present and by mistake, I guess?

[@ChalidRaqami]

Thanks - copy and paste mistake ... fixed! :)

[@monolithsoft_guy]

Hey, I watched a couple of your videos, all great. However, I still don't know which ebook reader to buy. Do you have a recommendation for someone who wants to predominantly read manga on the ebook reader? The Ink 4 sounds great, except for the lack of an SD card-slot. If possible, built-in speakers for audiobooks would be nice-to-have, but aren't a must. All I heard so far is that 8 inch (or 7.8 inch) is about the perfect size for manga-reading. Thanks for any feedback!

[@ihaveneverwantedto]

Love the Star Trek theme set. 🖖

[@kittyselection]

How can u get books with this device? Because the only ebook device i got kindle so no idea there more better ereader.

[@ChalidRaqami]

It's completely separate from Kindle - so it's a different provider. You can buy ebooks and read them directly on the InkPad 4 as well. But you don't have access to your old Kindle ebooks. You'd need to convert them first (with Calibre), if you want to read them on any other ereader than a Kindle.

[@yuven437]

I just got a kindle, and was very disappointed that it could not handle the PDFs i usually reads (Masks of Nyarlathotep for Call of Cthulhu ttrpg) I might return it and get one of these instead

[@Kilian2]

"Works with Calibre Tags" - you just sold a unit to me ;)

[@ВарвараПрошкина-ф3ф]

Hi, Chalid, could you please tell, how to download the extra dictionaries to that model PB. I have the PB3pro, 4 years already, but still don't understand dictionary point.. 😢😢

[@ChalidRaqami]

Sorry just saw your question now. When you look up a word by long-pressing it and opening the dictionary, there's an option to switch and add more dictionaries. Check out 9:56 in the video - there you can see the pop-up with the download-link.

[@HassanAli-ol9il]

Do you think the Huawei MatePad Paper is good so far? I have two options: either the Nova Air C (used, $407) or the Huawei (new, $381), both with a case. What do you choose for me? Can someone help me?

[@ChalidRaqami]

Really depends on what you want to do. The Nova Air C has colors, which is a big plus IF you need them. But the image quality isn't as paper like as regular E-Ink or with newer Kaleido 3 devices. The Matepad Paper has expectional hardware, but the software is lacking. It got feature updates in the past so it got better over time, but compared to the Boox software, it's still limited in terms of functions. Personally I'd go for the Nova Air C because of the better software features, but just be aware, that the screen is much darker and the color resolution is noticably worse.

[@marcosmusicstudio]

Nice Review! I am doubting between the ink pad 4 and the ink pad color 2. While they are two different concepts, when reading a book in black and white ( not in color) the dpi on both is 300 so I am not certain if still the reading quality is better in inkpad 4 as it is in inkpad color and why? Do you know that? Thanks!

[@ChalidRaqami]

Reading quality is definitely better on the InkPad 4, because it lacks that additional color layer, which has a low resolution on the InkPad Color 2. But I'd suggest you wait a little longer, because PocketBook surprisingly announced the InkPad Color 3 yesterday. That one has a Kaleido 3 screen, which is much better than the Kaleido Plus screen of the InkPad Color 2. With Kaleido 3 I'm inclined to say that the InkPad Color 3 is actually the better choice. But I'll know for sure, once I have it here, to test it. I'll post a review as soon as possible :)

[@marcosmusicstudio]

Uau! That is importante News ! Do you mean will this color 3 Launch this year maybe by Black Friday? I just joined your channel to follow up

[@PixogenPixels]

Any ETA on first impressions?@@ChalidRaqami

[@assommnor2309]

Very important question, please answer. I want to buy a Nova Air 2 device, but I am afraid of putting the battery in the device. Perhaps I will wait for the third generation of it, but after contacting the company, they will not release it this year, unfortunately! ..so what is your advice

[@ChalidRaqami]

The battery life on the latest Onyx Boox devices has actually been pretty good in general. Especially standby time isn't an issue imho. The most power hungry feature of the latest devices was the ultra fast display mode on the Boox Tab devices, which the Nova Air 2 doesn't have. So I wouldn't worry about battery life specifically. But it obviously depends on what you intend to do with it. Watching videos and running lots of dynamic apps, the battery will still drain faster. Just for reading normal ebooks and PDFs, and occasional browsing the web, it shouldn't be in issue. I'm inclined to believe them, when they say the don't plan to release a Nova Air 3 this year, because there's not much to improve on at this point. I suspect their next device will be the Boox Note Air 3, possibly with a Kaleido 3 color display.

[@assommnor2309]

@@ChalidRaqami Thank you, my use is for reading only and sometimes I take some notes without turning on the internet or bluetooth.. I mean an average of two hours of reading per day, how long do you have left? Do you advise me to buy it without waiting for the next generation?

[@ChalidRaqami]

@@assommnor2309 Writing notes will drain the battery MUCH faster. That's the case on all notetaking devices with an E-Ink screen. So it highly depends on how often you'll make use of that feature. With often taking notes, you can drain the battery in a couple of hours. I didn't test the Nova Air 2 so can only speak from my experience with other Boox device. But in general, besides the notetaking, it also depends on the frontlight setting. Without the frontlight the battery should last around 30 days with reading 2 hours per day and not doing anything else. With the frontlight at 50% the battery should last 8-12 days with 2 hours of reading. And with the frontlight at 100% it can drain in 3-5 days with 2 hours of reading. Don't take these numbers as a hard fact. It can vary depending on a couple of factors. But it should give you a rough idea of what to expect imho. Personally I wouldn't wait for the next generation in this case. I doubt there's much to improve upon. The step from the Nova Air 1 to the Nova Air 2 was actually pretty small already. I don't see many important changes in a potential Nova Air 3 at the moment. ONLY wait if you're interested in a color E-Ink Kaleido 3 screen. I wouldn't be surprised if they released more devices with that screen technology.

[@assommnor2309]

@@ChalidRaqami Thank you for this valuable information. I mean writing some words when reading pdf books inside a page .. I am currently thinking about the current version .. And the last question is what distinguishes E-Ink Kaleido 3 compared to Tab Mini C? The problem with color devices is that the screen color is close to gray.

[@ScapeRuneQ]

Thank you for the review! Clear, comprehensive, and very informative! I'm really struggling to choose between this and the Era. The Era seems to be about 50 euros cheaper, and I struggle to find what the InkPad 4 has over it, except a better screen? What advantages does the 4 have?

[@ChalidRaqami]

Thanks! :) They are essentially the same device, other than the design and the screen size. The better screen on the InkPad 4 is not a huge deal imho and only really noticeable in direct comparison or if you're pixel peeping. You can't really go wrong with either one tbh. If the Era sounds good to you, I'd recommend getting it from a seller, where you can easily return it. So just in case the screen doesn't meet your expectations (which I doubt many people will have issues with), you can still get the InkPad 4 instead.

[@neilfleischer824]

I enjoyed the video. When you highlight passages in a book does it send it to the note section like the kindles do?

[@ChalidRaqami]

Yes, there's a dedicated notes-overview that allows you to view all notes in a book. You can also view notes in a dedicated notes app, filter, sort and export them.

[@JustTrueSchool]

Can highlights be exportared?

[@ChalidRaqami]

Yes, export format is HTML

[@quangpham464]

Hi. Since you’ve been using a lot of e-reader devices. Which device is the best e-reader in your opinion. in terms of screen display quality. I used to have libra 2 then I swapped to leaf 2 because i want to listen audio books. But the screen quality of leaf 2 is so bad. so I lost my inspiration to read books. Want to back to libra 2 but considering if is there any e-reader better than libra 2. Hope you will give me some advice

[@ChalidRaqami]

I terms of screen quality (contrast and frontlight uniformity) the Libra 2 is the best. There's really no other ereader I've seen so far, that's as good as the Libra 2. I'd say the closest is the Kindle Paperwhite, but that only allows to use audiobooks from Audible and not from other sources. The Boox Page might also be worth a look, as it uses the same E-Ink Carta 1200 screen technology. But I haven't tried it yet. You can actually use the Libra 2 for sideloaded audiobooks as well. The player just isn't very good, but listening to audiobooks works just fine: www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=342747

[@rmmccarthy1240]

Wonderful review! Thank you.

[@sisterparfums]

What about the note taking and which pen to use with ¿ thanksssss

[@ChalidRaqami]

There's no pen support on the InkPad 4 unfortunately. So it's "only" an ereader.

[@alexmikhylov]

brands finally ditching soft touch coating makes my happy.

[@lucefan2816]

Hi how to disable this black refreshing?

[@sandortamasmegyeri8872]

Is it possible to listen KZbin videos (possibly wo. the video) in the browser?

[@ChalidRaqami]

No, that's unfortunately not possible. You can open a video in the browser and it plays with sound, but PocketBook hasn't implemented a special viewing mode so the video is choppy (sound is fine), and the responsiveness of the device also suffers. I'd recommend downloading the video's audio as an MP3-file beforehand on the PC and sync it to the device via Dropbox.

[@sandortamasmegyeri8872]

Super, that's what I am looking for :) My main goal is to listen to historical podcasts on the same device, what I use for reading.

[@myaccount0000]

did they add any kind of internal frame yet like kobo/kindle? else they are super unreliable

[@andrzej9779]

One question is still not clear for me. Is there any visible difference in the screen contrast between InkPad 3 and 4?

[@ChalidRaqami]

Yes, but it's only a minor difference in favor of the InkPad 4. Just for that I wouldn't recommend upgrading to be honest. The InkPad 3 (Pro) is still a very good device.

[@fernandodaniel7978]

Thanks for ur video. Very clear and interesting. Do u know if it is possible to use it as a pc monitor? It will help my eyes . Or if u know is possible to install a wordprocessor on it ? I know is a lot more than a eReader is thought for but maybe it is possible😅

[@johnbaptist7082]

You can buy an eink pc monitor for this

[@cjfetters]

can you read Barnes and Noble books on this? I left my Nook on a plane and now need another ereader.

[@ChalidRaqami]

No, not easily because B&N uses a DRM system (copyright protection) and as far as I know that doesn't work with Pocketbook. Unfortunately I can't test it because B&N doesn't allow me to purchase books from outside of the US and always cancels my orders....

[@bovasj161]

Can you suggest me an ebook reader where I can load my epub collection. Can we load external files with Kindle?

[@ChalidRaqami]

Kindle only supports epub files after conversion, even now. To read epub files on a Kindle you either need to convert them yourself (with Calibre for example) or use the Send-To-Kindle function. Personally I'd pick a PocketBook ereader right now for epub. The UI is clean and easy to use and offers plenty of options. And you don't need to convert the epub files and have an awesome library function. The InkPad 4 is actually a pretty good pick of you liked what you saw in the review. Other than that, PocketBook will release two cheaper and smaller models (Verse & Verse Pro) within a few days. I'll take a closer look in the reviews when they are available.

[@blueaquilae]

It seems to still lack basics fonts setup. This sadly remove a lot of interest from a strong hardware. Thanks for the review.

[@ChalidRaqami]

Yes, good point, others offer more options in that regard. I'll keep that in mind to point out in my next PocketBook reviews. However, if you like to tinker a bit, you can install KOReader, which has a couple more options.

[@nnk.g]

Könntest du ein Video über den besten eReader für Mangas machen. Wäre wirklich super. Auf Grund von Platzmangel möchte ich Mangas nur noch digital lesen. Das PocketBook 4 hört sich gut an, aber wegen der schlechteren Graustufen und dem fehlenden SD Slot bin ich mir unsicher.

[@ChalidRaqami]

Das InkPad 4 ist ein tolles Gerät, aber primär für Comics und Mangas würde ich inzwischen ein Farb-E-Ink Gerät empfehlen. Schau dir mal meine beiden Boox Tab Mini C und Boox Tab Ultra C Reviews an. Da kann man ganz gut sehen wie das aussieht. Was besseres gibt's für Comics und Mangas derzeit meiner Meinung nach nicht. Aber ich plane ein Video explizit dazu zu machen. Wird allerdings noch dauern, da ich schon so viele andere Videos in der Pipeline habe, dass ich bis Oktober zuerst mal meine Warteliste abarbeiten werde ;) kzbin.info/www/bejne/e3Lcf6KCjtereM0 kzbin.info/www/bejne/bpDao5dsidydqNk

[@nnk.g]

Aber Mangas sind nur Schwarz/Weiß. Ich finde das sollte man berücksichtigen und nicht in einem Topf mit Comics packen.

[@JeanLucConnery]

I couldn’t understand what you said about the screen at the beginning.

[@ChalidRaqami]

It got E-Ink Carta 1200 technology. That's the latest E-Ink screen tech right now, with better contrast levels and quicker response times.

[@JeanLucConnery]

@@ChalidRaqami I think the latest is 1300.

[@DrowningInTea]

It's way too expensive for what it is. I had a Kobo Aura One (£189.99) which I liked, but it was too sluggish. It seems that the Inkpad 4 is as slow as the Aura One, and I don't think it's worthy of that £245.99 price tag.

[@andriitsvynda]

Use this one ca 3 months. I’m enjoy

[@jobee-wq7ps]

I really want to know if it support Arabic language

[@annasandygren9977]

Can I read kindle ans nook books on this?

[@ChalidRaqami]

No, Kindle e-books need to be converted to the right format first. Which needs to be done on a computer. PocketBook supports almost all other file-types for ebooks though.

[@jobee-wq7ps]

Does it support Arabic language?

[@croissants1280]

Great video! Is it possible to annotate pdf files on this eReader? Also the price is kinda high at around 310 euro. In your opinion for an 8 inch Ereader, is it worth it? Thanks!

[@sadocmunoz717]

Porque silvas ?!