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Hands On With the Onyx Boox Typewriter (video)

We just got our first look at the Onyx E-ink netbook I told you about earlier this week, and it’s even better than expected.

Charbax caught up with Onyx at the HK electronics fair this week, and he shot a video of onyx’s latest gadget.

The Onyx Boox Typewriter, as it is currently named, is an Android netbook convertible with a 9.7″E-ink screen. When plugged into the keyboard dock, you can use it like any netbook, but you can also remove it and carry it around like a tablet (it has a capacitive touchscreen).

According to what I was told by one of Onyx’s retail partners, the Onyx Boox Typewriter is still a prototype. Onyx is teasing it to see if there is enough interest to justify taking it to production. They’re also taking feedback on the design, so if you would like it with the new 10.3″ E-ink screen, now is the time to speak up.

Speaking of which, the second half of the video focuses on Onyx’s new 10.3″ device. It doesn’t have a price or release date yet, but we do know that its touchscreen uses an electromagnetic stylus.

Onyx has been getting away from that type of touchscreen on its latest devices, but it makes sense to use a stylus on such a large screen.

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Comments


Lemondrop April 15, 2017 um 3:36 pm

Got to hand it to Onyx. They’re kicking the competition’s asses when it comes to innovation.

Will Entrekin April 17, 2017 um 8:16 am

Are they? Isn’t this just a (possibly) cheaper Freewrite with a more familiar design?


hue April 15, 2017 um 4:47 pm

Where does Onyx "take feedback"? Do you have a link to that feedback form?


djrichard April 16, 2017 um 6:12 am

Presumably one can roll their own, say with the Onyx Boox Max and a bluetooth keyboard with integrated touchpad. Is anybody finding that acceptable?


Lemondrop April 16, 2017 um 7:41 am

The trouble with Bluetooth keyboards is that they are small and of poor quality.

elo April 16, 2017 um 8:49 am

@Lemondrop: Logitech’s K780 keyboard should be good enough, no? It’s apparently available in black and white versions. I think, I’ve recently seen the latter in a shop. Very heavy, but therefore should also be save for use with larger tablets without tilting over. No illuminated keys and only crippled arrow keys though.


Peter Winkler April 16, 2017 um 6:13 pm

So, this is basically a flying keyboard with a display shorn of all the other functions laptops posess? I have no idea why anyone would want one if that’s the case. Even a lowly Chromebook is a multi-function device that shines compared to this. Color me puzzled, ’cause I just don’t get the point of this thing.

Nate Hoffelder April 16, 2017 um 9:46 pm

People are spending $500 on the Freewrite. If this could come in cheaper then it has a ready market.


KS "Kaz" Augustin April 17, 2017 um 4:17 am

Talk talk talk talk talk but…screen backlight? Keyboard backlight? Are there any inputs on the keyboard? Tablet? Can you wire a connection rather than bluetoothing it?


KS "Kaz" Augustin April 17, 2017 um 4:30 am

Watched it a second time. Caught "frontlight" from the Spanish rep.


e-book-news.de » Onyx Typewriter – das erste E-Ink-Notebook der Welt April 20, 2017 um 7:12 am

[…] (via liliputing.com & The Digital Reader) […]


Patrick Byrne May 5, 2017 um 9:02 am

The Freewrite screen is tiny. I want to be able to see what I type!
The Freewrite is bulky too – it looks like something out of the early 1980s.
Onyx’s proposed offering also allows one to detach the screen so it operates as an ebook reader as well. All in all just what I need.
Although a 13.3 inch screen Max with a keyboard would be even better!


Hands on with the Onyx Boox e-Note 10.3 | The Digital Reader May 25, 2017 um 7:47 am

[…] addition to the Boox Typewriter and the Onyx Boox Max Carta Elite Ultimate,  Chinese ereader maker Onyx also showed off its new […]


Onyx Boox Max Carta eReader Doubles a 13.3" Second Screen Monitor (video) | The Digital Reader June 2, 2017 um 6:41 am

[…] am pleased to report that the Onyx Boox Typewriter is not the only new gadget Onyx is showing off at the Hong Kong electronics fair, nor was it the […]


Onyx Boox Prometheus 2 Android eReader – $422 | The Digital Reader June 8, 2017 um 1:41 pm

[…] has a number of cutting-edge gadgets like the Onyx Typewriter, Onyx Boox Monitor, and the Boox e-Note in the pipeline, but that doesn't mean they've stopped […]


A.G. Riddle June 22, 2017 um 2:48 pm

I’d buy one. Would prefer the larger screen.

Or better yet, an E-Ink monitor for PC. Would buy that first.


Sony to Produce Laptop With E-ink screen (?) | The Digital Reader August 28, 2017 um 8:50 pm

[…] I think an E-ink laptop like the prototype Onyx Boox Typewriter would be very cool, we really cannot say with any certainty that Sony is working on […]


Sony and E-ink Launch New JV, Linfiny, to Develop E-ink Notebooks (But Possibly Not Laptops) | The Digital Reader September 11, 2017 um 8:21 am

[…] suggests a digital replacement for a paper notebook rather than a device like the prototype Onyx Boox Typewriter, which has a keyboard and a 9.7" E-ink […]


Catie Danielson May 23, 2018 um 8:01 pm

If I had the money, I would develop and market an e-ink laptop. I have genetic vision problems, so the less time I spend staring at an LCD screen, the better. But a lot of the aging population has basically the same problems– I just ended up with them really early. This population is huge, growing daily, and many of them have a lot of disposable income. The moneymaking opportunities are incredible. If Onyx is smart, they will actually bring this to market.


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