Boox launches the Picco, a tiny $100 e-reader that attaches to the back of your phone

[Daniel Sims]

In a nutshell: Boox has finally pulled back the curtain on its previously announced competitor to the Xteink X4, formally entering the emerging ultra-portable e-reader market. The new device sacrifices some of the versatility of Boox's established brands to reach the smallest size and lowest price in the company's entire catalog.

Pre-orders are now open for the Boox Picco, the first in a new category of smaller, cheaper e-readers from the company. The device, which can attach to the back of a smartphone, is expected to begin shipping in the US in October for $100.

The Picco features a 3.97-inch monochrome e-ink touchscreen with a 480 x 800 resolution at 235 PPI, with a front light and physical page-turning buttons. The device ships with a 16GB microSD card, but storage is expandable up to 2TB. Weighing only 58g and measuring just 105.5 x 62 x 5.5mm, the Picco attaches to the rear of a smartphone with a MagSafe connector, similar to the Xteink X4.

Compared with other Boox devices, the Picco's main drawback is that it doesn't use Android, but rather a minimalist operating system with the Pomodoro, Todo, and Countdown apps built in. While it still supports numerous document and image formats, the company's other e-readers and tablets are general-purpose devices that stand out from most rivals by letting users install any Google Play Store app or Android APK. The $80 Xteink, meanwhile, uses unlocked firmware, letting third-party developers ship custom apps.

Users can transfer e-books and other documents to the Picco in three ways: the Boox Tiles app, a web-based tool at booxtiles.com, and a direct USB-C connection.

Boox calls the Picco the first member of its "Tiles" tier of devices, opening a new size category below its 6- to 7-inch e-readers. Its reveal follows a broad refresh of the company's product stack that includes the recently launched Palma 3, a 6.13-inch, $340 e-reader with digital pen functionality. Other new Boox devices include the 10.3-inch Note Air6 C and 8.52-inch Note Mini C.

Possibly the company's most important upgrade is on the software end. Excluding the Picco, its new devices have been upgraded from Android 11 to Android 16, expanding the range of apps they support and placing them just one OS generation behind the latest Android phones.

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Boox launches the Picco, a tiny $100 e-reader that attaches to the back of your phone

 

[pietklerckx]

This brings up the question why no mainstream phone or tablet maker has made a phone or tablet with a regular screen at the front and an e-ink screen at the back.

 

[LordVile95]

What’s the point exactly?

 

[ScottSoapbox]

This brings up the question why no mainstream phone or tablet maker has made a phone or tablet with a regular screen at the front and an e-ink screen at the back.

Cost.
Durability.
Limited target customers.

 

[NumberNine]

Thank goodness, I was getting sick of this fantastic looking iPhone display and feared I'd never have the chance to read a PDF or epub on a 4" monochrome screen.

 

[Art C]

In a world where no one has ever developed e-book reading software that runs on a smartphone, this is a device whose time has come.

 

[Kazkas]

I’d take for sure… but for (max) 40€ as inexpensive addon for my phone to read anywhere easily and not using phone battery. But for more than 40€ - thnx, I’d rather use a phone

 

[Melkor Unlimited]

I’d take for sure… but for (max) 40€ as inexpensive addon for my phone to read anywhere easily and not using phone battery. But for more than 40€ - thnx, I’d rather use a phone

40€?
With VAT?

Just tell me where are you buying e-book readers for that price.