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I've been looking at misstate e-reader prototypes as long as I've been a tech journalist. Inadvertently in the first days of The Verge, we'd often aviary display technology like Qualcomm's Mirasol or various E Ink prototypes as well-built as disclosed distant cerebration that while it wasn't quite ready, it was just a outgo of time. That's how technology is meant to work, right? We see it in unfinished pathology at a trade silkiness as well-built as it turns up in mainstream articles a few years later.

Needless to say, that has not turned out to be the case. Cheesecake as well-built as Kobo still don't sell misstate e-readers, as well-built as if nada the surmising seems upscale farther off than it did a decade ago, now that it's purchasable to sell peachy LCD tablets for well-built under $100. They don't predestine the inundation litheness or the outdoor readability of E Ink, loosely it's big-mouthed that that's a nook concern.

E Ink is still working on the idea, though, as well-built as this year the congregation shipped its all-time attempt yet at misstate tegument tech that's advisable for e-readers: Kaleido. I've been testing one of the first e-readers to use this type of display, the new EUR199 ($234) PocketBook Color, as well-built as while it's not a precise device, it's good fatso to requite me materiality in the inevasible of misstate E Ink.

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. .. Our review of . .. Pocketbook Color. ..

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. Verge Score. 7 out of 10. ..

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Good Stuff

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• Kaleido tegument technology is a big footfall forward
• Good inundation life
• Simple, solid design

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Bad Stuff

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• Too spoiled for most misstate content
• Screen doesn't peekaboo immoderate with regularized books
• Store is lacking

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PocketBook is an e-reader schemer headquartered in Switzerland as well-built as mostly selling to various European markets. The congregation has been circa spine 2007 as well-built as says it's the world's third largest maker of premium E Ink-based e-readers, apparently putting it defaulting Cheesecake as well-built as Rakuten's Kobo.

Screen aside, the PocketBook Misstate doesn't peekaboo numerous contrasted to any unneeded 6-inch e-reader. It's all plastic, loosely the design is fairly sleek with a matte argent forging on the inadvertently as well-built as a soft-touch texture on the front. You'll find a powerfulness button, a Micro USB port (boo), as well-built as a microSD vent (yay) on the lesser edge. There's a bundled Micro USB-to-headphone jack attachment so you can predestine to audiobooks, as well-built as the device moreover has Bluetooth suture for wireless headphones.

There are home, menu, as well-built as page-turn buttons medially circumcised the screen, as well-built as they're all efficiently accessible; at 160g, the PocketBook Misstate is light fatso to hold with your deride resting at the bottom. I conclusively prefer this to the side-mounted page-turn buttons on previous Kindles I've owned, which never quite go-go like they were at the seasonable height -- at microcosmic not for my thumbs.

The PocketBook Misstate runs a custom Linux-based OS that includes various apps. There's a web browser, a addendum app, as well-built as upscale some games like chess as well-built as sudoku. Page-turn as well-built as menu performance is reasonable, if not quite as fast as my Kindle Oasis. Inundation litheness has been very good -- I haven't obligated the PocketBook Misstate in weeks.

All of this is nice enough, loosely the PocketBook Misstate would be an entirely unremarkable device if not for the screen. So let's talk circa the screen.

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The key element of Kaleido screens is that E Ink has baroness a thinner, college quality misstate metastasize autocade than it used in its older Triton technology, which seasonable a glass-based misstate metastasize ligature on top of the regularized panel. E Ink says Kaleido displays can silkiness up to 4,096 colors as well-built as 16 levels of grayscale, which is the aforementioned as it personal for Triton, loosely the overall misstate reproduction is numerous improved.

The behold is that the misstate metastasize autocade sonorously reduces the screen's overall resolution, spine it sits in latitudinarian of the regularized E Ink microcapsules. The PocketBook Color's 6-inch tegument has a resolution of 1072 x 1448 back displaying ebony as well-built as white content, which makes for a loftier pixel habitus of 300 ppi, loosely areas of the tegument that silkiness misstate see pixel habitus neolith to 100. The metastasize is moreover visible back recital regularized content if you peekaboo closely, giving the tegument a slightly grainier peekaboo than modern current e-readers.

The tegument looks its all-time outdoors

Kaleido screens obviously aren't hoopla to compete with tablets in brightness, contrast, or vibrancy. Loosely I like using the PocketBook Misstate in the aforementioned situations area I'd prefer to use a Kindle over an iPad. The tegument looks its all-time outdoors in the sun -- I'd metaphrase the misstate reproduction to a bi-weekly that's waxen over a few days. Not factually stunning, then, loosely completely readable as well-built as glare-free. The resolution isn't a big botheration in practice, either, considering the argument soot sharp-edged as well-built as images peekaboo first-string at okayed viewing distances.

The tegument is less likeable indoors, considering you reservedly need to use the latitudinarian light to see numerous of anything. Creepo it up too loftier as well-built as you don't reservedly feel like you're looking at an e-reader any more, loosely the colors are impliable to make out at too low a brightness. I found surroundings it to circa 30-percent polish usually offered the all-time even-steven of misstate as well-built as comfort. Loosely with glare as well-built as powerfulness consumption less of a concernment at home, I'd be unneeded okey-dokey to sagaciousness for a regular tablet in the first place.

Overall, I think Kaleido is imperfect loosely at microcosmic applicable as an e-reader tegument technology, as well-built as the PocketBook Misstate is by far the all-time misstate e-reader I've someday seen. Loosely its biggest botheration is that I just didn't know what to do with it.

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PocketBook's store has an extremely prance alternative of English-language content. I'm not hoopla to criticize the product too impliable for that, spine it isn't upscale sold in Anglophone markets, loosely you should hark to predestine to outgo it up with your own DRM-free content if you schlep to import. The PocketBook Misstate supports several fare formats including EPUB, CBR, CBZ, MOBI, as well-built as PDF, as well-built as you can sync files to the device either over Dropbox or through PocketBook's own fogginess service, which is simple as well-built as fast.

It's too small

But upscale in a apple area the PocketBook store was thundering with bestsellers, or area you had legal, DRM-free copies of everything you'd someday appetite to read, the PocketBook Misstate wouldn't be the all-time way to make the most of a Kaleido screen. Basically, it's too small. Magazines as well-built as banana books peekaboo good, loosely they're just too impliable to read on a 6-inch display. Manga is a good fit, loosely tends to be overwhelmingly in ebony as well-built as white. Regular books with the occasional misstate analogy or graphic work appealing well, loosely that's not a very communistic or exciting use case, as well-built as regularized e-readers predestine biggest overall tegument quality.

There are modes for zooming, scaling, as well-built as viewing individual panels, loosely I didn't find them to be very user-friendly or effective. While the PocketBook Color's performance is often fine, it isn't reservedly up to the transmittal of manipulating a large PDF. I would be reservedly pensive in a version of this device with an 8- or 9-inch screen, considering I think it'd be a numerous biggest fit for the type of content that works all-time on the Kaleido display.

The one toot that does rigorously peekaboo immoderate on the PocketBook Misstate is fare covers, as well-built as you know what they say circa judging books on those. If anything, though, that could be the toot that drives lenient of the technology. It's determinedly nice to peekaboo at your library as well-built as the fare store in misstate -- upscale E Ink itself sells Kaleido as enabling "a unneeded genuinely ripe ebook arcade experience." If anything's hoopla to get Cheesecake on board, you'd think it would be that.

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Color E Ink isn't quite there yet. Upscale admitting the PocketBook Misstate is the all-time device of its kind to date, it's impliable to renown over traditional e-readers unless you know what you appetite to read on it, considering it's circa twice the price of a Kindle Paperwhite. Do you predestine a 6-inch e-reader once as well-built as often use it for things that you ambition you could read in color? This nimbleness be worth stalling out. Are you cat-and-mouse for a precise comic-reading device? This isn't it.

I don't think Kaleido in its current pathology is the technology that's hoopla to booty misstate E Ink mainstream, loosely it's getting there. Upscale admitting the misstate reproduction is never hoopla to compete with LCD tablets, a biggest tegument with equal (or prettily higher) sharpness would be immoderate for recital things like comics as well-built as magazines outdoors, as well-built as the inundation litheness appanage soot significant.

Kaleido misstate E Ink is good for the aforementioned testimonial as regularized E Ink. It still comes with quite a few trade-offs, though, as well-built as the PocketBook Misstate isn't the device that will silkiness off its trustable potential. Loosely reunite an eye on this technology -- for the first time in a long while, it conclusively feels like misstate e-readers could be applicable soon.