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Comparison Review: Pocketbook InkPad vs Onyx Boox T68 Lynx

With an 8″ screen, the Pocketbook InkPad is the only mid-sized ereader on the market, so it doesn’t quite have any direct competitors. But there are similarly priced ereaders like the T68 Lynx, so for the sake of the contrast I pulled out my T68 and  set them side by side.

I reviewed the T68 Lynx extensively back in June, but I am still working on my review of the InkPad. In the long run this comparison review is intended to complement the main review.

There are eleven ways that these two ereaders differ, but the InkPad and T68 Lynx have a number of features in common, including the same storage options and similar audio support. Both devices have a headphone jack and can play MP3, and they also both support TTS in the ebooks you read. And both the T68 Lynx and the InkPad ship with 4GB internal storage, and they both have a microSD card slot, frontlight, touchscreen, and wifi.

Table of Contents

Comparison

  1. Design – The T68 Lynx has a cheap plastic case which feels and looks like it was slapped together around the electronics with little thought to how it would be to use. The InkPad, on the other hand, sports an intentionally unbalanced design which favors one handed operation (and since it is reversible, it’s good for either hand). The plastic shell is slightly slick, but it also has a rubber pad on the back and a rubber strip on the front right under where you would expect to grip it while reading.
  2. Page Turn Buttons – Both devices have a single set of page turn buttons on one side of the screen, but the ones on the InkPad are easier to press when reading with one hand.
  3. Screen – The T68 Lynx has a 6.8″ display with a screen resolution of 1,440 x 1,080, while the InkPad has an 8″ display with a screen resolution of 1,600 x 1,200. The InkPad has a slightly larger and slightly less sharp screen (250 ppi vs 265 ppi), though I am not sure that anyone would really be able to tell the difference. But you will notice that the InkPad screen is IMO whiter than the screen on the T68 Lynx.
  4. Frontlight – The T68 Lynx has frontlight which is brighter than the one on the InkPad but also fuzzier. When both frontlights are turned on, the screen on the InkPad looks whiter and the text looks blacker.
  5. Software – The Lynx runs Android 4.0 on a 1GHz CPU, and comes with Google Play. The InkPad, on the other hand, runs Pocketbook’s proprietary OS on a 1GHz CPU with 512MB RAM.
  6. Apps – While both devices do let you install apps, it’s a lot easier to find apps in Google Play and install them than it is to install apps on the InkPad. With the latter device you are effectively limited to what it can do out of the box, but with the T68 you can also add support for Kindle, Comixology, Nook, Kobo, and Logos Bible software (just to name a handful).
  7. Apps Redux – And it’s not just ebooks. The T68 Lynx also offers the option if installing better web browsers as well as  Audible, Pocket, Feedly, and other apps.
  8. Speed and Responsiveness – The T68 Lynx is somewhat faster at most activities, including turning the page, loading an ebook, and navigating the menus.
  9. eBook Formats –  The InkPad lists more formats in its spec sheet, but that doesn’t mean it offers broader support. For one thing, many of the listed ebook formats aren’t well supported. But more importantly, the T68 Lynx can install apps, which means it can support just about any ebook app available in Google Play. For example, the InKPad offers better PDf support out of the box, but you can install RepliGo on the T68 Lynx. That is a much better app.
  10. Price and Availability – The T68 Lynx can be bought on Amazon for $199, while the InkPad costs over $240 and is difficult to acquire outside of Europe and Russia.
  11. Accessories – The T68 Lynx can work with external Bluetooth devices and it can accept USB mouses and keyboards. The InkPad is strictly an ereader.

Conclusion

When I last compared two ereaders (the Voyage vs the T68 Lynx) I thought it was pretty clear that one was significantly better than the other. I’m not so sure I can draw a similar conclusion with the T68 Lynx and the InkPad.

One has much better hardware, but the other has much better software as well as the potential of adding more features. While the better hardware on the InkPad contributes to a nicer reading experience, you can do more with the T68 Lynx.

So it is really a toss up which is better.

What do you think?

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Comments


Mango November 25, 2014 um 4:25 pm

I have both devices – my Inkpad arrived yesterday. I will be selling my T68. The main reason for trying the T68 was the ability to use the Kindle app to read my Amazon books. But I don’t like the screen refresh in the Kindle app. And even after updates, the touch recognition is still not as good as it should be.

I prefer the 8″ screen and build quality of the InkPad. I can live with the slower page turns and "less than perfect" reading software. I am sticking with the version 4 firmware for the time being.

I have also ordered the Cybook Ocean, and will keep whichever of the 8″ readers I prefer.

Nate Hoffelder November 25, 2014 um 4:37 pm

Lucky you. I am still unable to order an Ocean. First my payment was rejected and now the website is broken.

Nate Hoffelder November 25, 2014 um 4:44 pm

And I can see why you would keep the InkPad over the Lynx. It’s a lot nicer hardware, and if it had software to match I would have also championed it.

Tomas November 26, 2014 um 5:36 am

Why would you want Cybook Ocean? It has low resolution screen (1024×768) and pretty bad specs (800MHz CPU, 128MB RAM).

Nate Hoffelder November 26, 2014 um 6:14 am

Yep. I would be surprised if the Ocean is better than the InKPad.


Ron Thompson November 26, 2014 um 6:57 am

Has anybody found a way to connect a keyboard to the T68 to circumvent that awful touch screen method. Signing in to Amazon was a nightmare to do on the screen. If there is a way please tell us how.
Ron

Nate Hoffelder November 26, 2014 um 9:19 am

I don’t know about the Lynx, but one of the other T68 variants does take a USB keyboard:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAG-pYuXdg0


zactral November 26, 2014 um 9:49 am

Availability inside Europe is also sketchy at best. If you happen to live in Eastern Europe, you might as well be an uncontacted tribe to most online retailers. I ordered from amazon.de last week via a 3rd party vendor, now that vendor says they are temporarily out of stock.. other shops don’t even recognize my country, so yeah. The product seems quite nice but it seems that they are experiencing trouble actually delivering enough devices to satisfy demand.

zactral November 26, 2014 um 9:49 am

and yes, I live in an EU member state, if you happen to wonder

Nate Hoffelder November 26, 2014 um 10:11 am

The InkPad is hard to get, yes. I ended up having to complain to corporate, and I ordered my unit two months before it shipped.

Tomas November 26, 2014 um 5:54 pm

If you live in EU, you can buy from pocketbook.fr -> http://boutique.pocketbook.fr/index.php?id_product=104&controller=product&id_lang=3 . They ship to whole EU.

freighter November 26, 2014 um 7:30 pm

No they don’t, none of the Baltic States is in the available options when selecting the country for postal address


Joel November 27, 2014 um 10:02 am

When is ther a 8″ or more, ereader with android and glowlight ?

Nate Hoffelder November 27, 2014 um 10:13 am

Onyx is working on one:
https://the-digital-reader.com/2014/10/30/onyx-boox-i86/


Onyx Boox M96C – 9.7" E-ink Screen, Capacitive Touchscreen, Android 4.0 ⋆ Ink, Bits, & Pixels January 30, 2015 um 8:38 am

[…] Comparison Review: Pocketbook InkPad vs Onyx Boox T68 Lynx […]


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