Onyx Boox Note Air 2 Plus review: A stylish, versatile ebook reader with an outstanding battery and premium price. The successor to the Onyx Boox Note Air 2 is finally here with a slew of enhancements.
Electronic book readers, or e-Readers for short, have endeared themselves to book lovers for their simplicity and, to be honest, their very cheap prices. Devices like Amazon’s Kindle and Barnes & Noble’s NOOK allowed them to carry hundreds, if not thousands, of books, magazines, and work documents in a device that might even be lighter than some smartphones. But just as the audience that flocked to these pocket libraries has grown, the devices themselves have evolved over the years. Sure, Kindles have remained largely unchanged over the years, and some might even see them as stuck in the past. However, other e-readers have changed drastically, for better or worse, and have become almost unrecognizable to long-time e-book reader users.
The Note Air 2 Plus is the latest ebook or ePaper tablet in the Onyx Boox Note series, priced just a tad bit higher than its predecessor but boasts a slew of enhanced features.
It has a sleek massive screen with an aluminium body that’s only 5.8mm thick and weighs 445g.
The Note Air 2 Plus is so robust and tough and feels like it will take a beating when being transported.
Unlike the Note Air 2, this comes in an elegant Pine Green colour which just elevates its already premium look.
It may be slightly heavier this time around but this is probably due to the larger battery which is a great enhancement and worth the additional weight. I found that it was fine to carry round and use over long periods of time despite it being heavier.
One of the new additions to the Note Air 2 Plus is the new magnetic protective case.
This case is really classy and complements the tablet very well with its grey or terracotta colour scheme.
It not only looks lovely but grants that extra protection and increases the device’s versatility by acting as a stand also.
The case doesn’t come included with the ebook reader and will cost £45.99, which is a little pricey for what it is.
The Note Air 2 Plus is certainly one of the more premium-looking ebooks I have ever seen, its design is practical with each element complementing its overall aesthetic.
The Note Air 2 Plus’ large screen is 10.3-inch and utilises E INK Carta HD display technology, which is pretty standard with all black and white ebooks.
It has a resolution of 1872×1404 with 226 PPI which is very good compared to what’s on the market.
The eye-pleasing display is crystal clear with text, comics, and images that resemble how they would look on paper. The color comics are also excellently displayed, obviously as it’s black and white some detail was missing but it was all very fitting.
The screen works great with a fast refresh rate that can be adjusted at the expense of overall quality, but the dropout isn’t that noticeable.
You can watch videos on Note Air 2 Plus but I would not recommend it at all as the quality will not be the best.
One of the main features of the Note Air 2 Plus is the ability to take notes and draw on the device. making it ideal for artists, designers and illustrators or anyone who doodles.
The Note Air 2 Plus comes with a 1.8GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 646 processor with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, which is more than enough for books and most comics.
This is very powerful for what most people will use the e-book for, but it allows for a smoother experience with almost no lag.
Having 64GB of RAM is great if you only use the device to read books; however, if you start downloading podcasts, the audiobook image space might run out much sooner than expected.
PROS:
- Stylish, business-minded design
- Runs Android 11 with Google Play Store
- Responsive and accurate stylus with paper-like screen
- Crisp and clear display for text and images
CONS:
- A bit heavy to hold for long periods of time
- No buttons for page-turning
- Localization in some languages is incomplete
RATINGS:
LOOKS – 4/5
EFFICIENCY – 3.5/5
PERFORMANCE – 4.5/5
SUSTAINABILITY / REPAIRABILITY – 2/5
VALUE FOR MONEY – 4/5
