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Dasung Paperlike E-ink Monitor Up for Pre-Order on Indiegogo, $799

With two limited production runs and a single retail partner, it’s not exactly easy to get your hands on a Paperlike E-ink monitor, but now is your chance to get in line to pre-order a Paperlike at a discount.

A few days back Dasung quietly launched an Indiegogo campaign for the Paperlike. (The launch was so quiet that they didn’t even tell me.) The campaign is three days old and has already achieved its goal of $10,000, and that means it is now on schedule to ship the monitors in August 2016.

dasung paperlink the digital reader

The Paperlike is currently the world’s first and only E-ink monitor, and thus one of the few types of screen which sufferers of computer vision syndrome can use. (LCD screens give them migraines.)

It’s built around a 13.3″ E-ink screen, and connects to your PC via a USB cable which supplies both power and data. It has a screen resolution of 1600 x 1200, and supports two plus native display modes. The Paperlike can mirror your existing monitor or act as an external monitor at resolutions of 800 x 600 or 1600 x 1200. Also, the latest set of drivers will also let you mirror your existing monitor at its current resolution.

For example, my Dell laptop has a maximum screen resolution of 1366 x 768. The Paperlike can take that screen resolution and either stretch it to fit its 13″ screen or mirror my laptop’s screen in a window which measures 1366 x 768. It can also use one of the lower resolution screen settings, and display that on its E-ink screen.

The stretch mode doesn’t look great, but it is very, very usable.

You can find additional videos in the post I wrote last week.

I wouldn’t want to stick with the Paperlike for all my computer activity, but when it comes to basics like web browsing, writing, email, etc, it works surprisingly well. In fact, I am typing this post with the Paperlike.

Or at least I was until it fell over, which brings me to a problem.

dasung paperlink the digital readerThe Paperlike ships with a wholly inadequate stand which isn’t really up to supporting the monitor properly. If you buy one you should also invest in a real monitor stand/arm to go with it.

Fortunately the Paperlike has the standard mounting points on the back so it should work with standard equipment.

I’ve been following the development of the Paperlike since I first discovered it at CES 2015 sixteen months ago, and I feel that today (for the first time) I can honestly say that the Paperlike is ready for consumers. Over the past couple weeks the software has lived up to the promise of E-ink screen.

Now would be a great time to get one.

P.S. Full disclosure: I bought a Paperlike in the pre-order last year. I was one of the owners' whose monitor died, and so this year Dasung sent me a free replacement. That replacement monitor is currently sitting on my desk.

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Comments


vicente May 26, 2016 um 1:32 pm

I don’t understand: GoodEreader 13.3inch ereader campaing demanded at least 42.0000$ on Indiegogo to order their devices, and these people needed only 10.000$…

Aside, what a pitty it hasn’t got a built-in light

Nate Hoffelder May 26, 2016 um 1:41 pm

Dasung is the maker of the Paperlike. They’re also a Chinese company, and can work more closely with factories there. (They are probably also raising capital.)

BadeReader, on the other hand, is a Canadian site which has no technical staff, engineering ability, or experience with manufacturing. That site has to order the devices from Netronix, the company which will/might make the device.


Dave May 26, 2016 um 3:42 pm

So you could buy that for $800. Or you could get a more versatile USB-powered color LCD for under $200:

16″ 1080P @ $180:
http://www.amazon.com/AOC-e1659Fwux–1920×1080-Brightness-3-0-Powered/dp/B0105TIGI8/

16″ 768 @ $95:
http://www.amazon.com/AOC-e1659Fwu-1366×768-Brightness-3-0-Powered/dp/B00CMKOVMO/

Nate Hoffelder May 26, 2016 um 3:44 pm

Yes, but –

E-ink displays don’t cause headaches like LCD screens do. It’s called computer vision syndrome.


Paperlike is an E Ink monitor for your PC News | Data quality News May 26, 2016 um 3:48 pm

[…] ViaThe Digital Reader […]


Paperlike is an E Ink monitor for your PC – techietricks.com May 26, 2016 um 3:51 pm

[…] ViaThe Digital Reader […]


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[…] ViaThe Digital Reader […]


Mike May 26, 2016 um 9:28 pm

This article is very good!!!
Nate Hoffelder is great, help us to find this monitor
DASUNG done a great try, I need an electronic paper display!


Mindaugas May 27, 2016 um 3:43 am

I also bought a Paperlike in the pre-order last year and it worked fine with Windows 7. Recently I upgarded my computer to Windows 10. I downdloaded DASUNG Driver 3.3.1 from their site and updated monitors USB driver (“Paperlike EM0312” Driver “libusb-win32 (v1.2.6.0)). The monitor no longer works! When I connect it to computer it just blinks and does not respond to Dasung Driver application at all. Could anybody help, please…

Yunqing May 28, 2016 um 10:04 pm

Hi,you can send email to [email protected] .Engineer will reply you and give your help!
Good luck


Frank May 27, 2016 um 8:35 am

Nate in the phrase "was so quite", you misspelled "quiet".

It is nice there is an e-ink screen on the market, more options is always good.

Nate Hoffelder May 27, 2016 um 8:46 am

Thanks, Frank.


The Paperlike is the World's First E-Ink Computer Monitor | Digital Trends May 27, 2016 um 12:57 pm

[…] The Digital Reader, which received a unit in June of last year, notes that the monitor handles basic tasks like web browsing, word processing, e-mail, and even video with surprising ease. It’s particularly well-suited to environments prone to producing glare, and an excellent option for working outdoors. […]


Com preço bem salgado, ‘Paper Like’ é o primeiro monitor e-ink do mundo | Roraima+ May 28, 2016 um 4:26 am

[…] a tela estivesse sempre um pouco atrasada ao realizar transições. Entretanto, o blog The Digital Reader testou a novidade e contou ao público que se surpreendeu com o monitor monocromático: […]


Computer Vision Syndrome, or Why We Would All be Better Off With an E-ink Monitor | The Digital Reader June 5, 2016 um 11:09 am

[…] NYTimes published an article last week which reminds us why an expensive toy like Dasung's E-ink monitor is less an indulgence than a […]


Gavin June 8, 2016 um 6:02 am

I’m about to back this campaign. I’m in my fourth year of software eng. and I’ve pretty much been coding, reading journal articles and writing essays non-stop. I’m curious as to how much the display weighs? Thanks!

Nate Hoffelder June 8, 2016 um 7:11 am

Sorry, but I don’t have a scale so I can’t be exact. It weighs about a USB monitor weighs.


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[…] faulty hardware (I heard numerous reports of dead monitors). The second, much-improved model was crowd-funded and shipped last summer, and was absolutely worth […]


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