While kids nowadays ask for iPads (and even iPhones) for their birthdays and holidays, I was the type of kid who begged her parents for an eReader. I’d obsessively watch my favorite “booktubers” show off exactly how they set up their Kindles, and my craze for it only stopped when my parents finally caved in and bought me one. For years, my Kindle was practically my entire personality. I’d read for hours on end every single day, and that continued until I fell out of my reading habit because of, well, life.
I eventually got an iPad Air and an Apple Pencil for all my college note-taking and started to convince myself that I didn’t really need a separate eReader anymore — that I could do all my reading on it. And boy, was I wrong. I didn’t pick up a book for years, until I found a device that replaced both my iPad and eReader for me: an E-ink note-taking tablet.
E-ink tablets bring the best of both devices together
All in one neat package
Think about it: I bought an eReader because I wanted a dedicated device for reading that didn’t feel like I was staring at a glowing screen every time I opened a book. I didn’t want my eyes to feel tired and feel a migraine creeping in mere minutes after getting all cozied up for a reading session.
On the other hand, I bought an iPad because I wanted to shift to digital note-taking. I was tired of lugging around bulky textbooks all day, and needing to maintain what felt like a million notebooks every semester.
With an eReader like the Kindle Paperwhite, I could finally read for hours without straining my eyes, carry a library’s worth of books in one lightweight device, and actually enjoy getting lost in a story again. With a tablet like the iPad Air, I could take all my notes on note-taking apps like GoodNotes or Notability, have practically all the content I studied throughout high school and college in one place, and never worry about losing a single page of my notes.
An e-ink note-taking tablet, which is essentially a tablet built with an E-ink display, combines the best of both worlds. I get the benefits of an e-ink display and can read for hours without eye strain, while still taking all my notes digitally.
Focus comes naturally on an e-ink display
You can wander off-task, but it’s hard to drift too far
As much as I like e-ink displays, they’re admittedly… boring. The colors are dull compared to an iPad’s glossy display, the screens are matte, and the whole experience feels almost too minimal if you’re used to the punchy brightness of a traditional tablet. Reading a book on an eReader is supposed to feel like you’re reading on an actual page, and given an e-ink tablet is built on the same display tech, it keeps that same calm, paper-like feel.
While eReaders are typically locked into a limited ecosystem with only a handful of supported apps and only let you read, e-ink tablets give you more flexibility. For instance, I use the Boox Note Air 4C, which runs on Android 13. This means I can use the Google Play Store to download all the third-party apps I need. Naturally, this also means I have complete freedom to download all the apps that would normally distract me.
My e‑reader now doubles as a notebook thanks to this stylus
Move over iPad, my e‑reader now does it all.
Now, imagine watching a YouTube video on an e-ink display. Imagine doomscrolling on Instagram or TikTok, or even texting your friends. You can technically do all of that, sure, but it looks so flat and sluggish that you won’t want to.
The lack of color and animation naturally makes you put the device down and get back to whatever you originally picked it up for. While this doesn’t seem like a huge advantage at first, the change it has made to my workflow is more than enough to justify the switch. I’m suddenly spending less time bouncing between apps and more time actually getting things done — without using a single focus app.
I didn’t realize how much the paper-like screen would help
Makes a bigger difference than you’d think
I’ve been taking notes digitally on my iPad for around three years now, and although many people don’t like the experience of writing on a glossy screen, I love it. It’s strangely satisfying, and I’ve gotten used to the responsiveness and precision of the Apple Pencil.
Given that I never really had any complaints about it, I never invested in a paper-like screen protector. But when I started using an e-ink note-taking tablet, I immediately noticed the difference. The texture actually gives my handwriting more control and a natural feel, and it genuinely feels like I’m writing on paper. The only real con is that I’ve found I write slower on my tablet compared to my iPad, but that’s more of a me problem.
The paper-like e-ink display has also made a noticeable difference in how long I can write without my eyes or brain getting tired. With the iPad, even if I turned the brightness down, I was fundamentally staring into a lightbulb for hours at a time. With the e-ink tablet, I’m just looking at reflected light, exactly like a physical notebook.
The battery on e-ink tablets lasts for weeks
You can forget about daily charging
Similar to how a Kindle eReader only needs charging once every few weeks, e-ink tablets can easily go for days or even weeks on a single charge, even with heavy note-taking and reading.
With an iPad, though, you typically need to charge it at least once per day. In my case, I’d find myself plugging in my iPad right after my classes (since it’d be holding on for its life during my last class) and then once more before heading to bed to ensure it would last through the next day.
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With my e-ink tablet, though, I only charge it once every few weeks, and it’s good enough to use all day. While the underlying technology of the e-ink display is primarily why it lasts so long (it only uses power when the image changes), the fact that you won’t constantly find yourself checking notifications, scrolling through feeds, or watching videos means the battery barely drains.
Combined with the low-power e-ink technology, this makes it easy to go days or even weeks without reaching for the charger.
The best device for reading and note-taking
At the end of the day, an e-ink tablet isn’t the best bit for everyone. If you want a device purely for reading and don’t expect to be getting a dedicated device for note-taking anytime soon, an eReader is perfect for you.
Similarly, if you use your iPad for anything beyond note-taking, like watching videos, gaming, or running multiple productivity apps, then an iPad will still serve you better. In my case, it’s simply the best of both worlds.