PocketBook InkPad Color

PocketBook InkPad Color: At a Glance

Last year, PocketBook became the first provider in Europe to launch an eBook reader with Print-E-Ink technology. In our review, the eReader performed well overall, but in the end we could only recommend it to those who primarily read illustrated documents and to tech-savvy early adopters. The two main points of criticism at the time were the relatively small 6-inch display and the somewhat dark screen.

PocketBook has addressed both of these issues with today’s newly introduced color eReader, the InkPad Color.

E Ink Kaleido Plus

As with the InkPad 3 (Pro), the new eReader features a 7.8-inch display and uses the same housing (195 × 137 × 8 mm; 225 grams).

But let’s get to the most interesting part: The E-Ink screen has a resolution of 1872×1404 pixels, resulting in a pixel density of 300 ppi. The color layer itself offers a resolution of 100 ppi and a color depth of 4,096 colors, which matches the capabilities of the smaller PocketBook Color.

Perhaps most notable is the mention of the color E-Ink technology, now named “E Ink Kaleido Plus.”

Although the press release rather unimaginatively refers to it as “E-Ink new Kaleido”, it is in fact an advanced version of the technology already used in the PocketBook Color. Specifically, PocketBook points out that the color filter pattern has been changed, resulting in brighter and more saturated colors. At the same time, the page background is said to look whiter.

Our review of the PocketBook Color eReader went into great detail on these aspects. The diagonal RGBW matrix of the color filter provides significantly better rendering than older E-Ink Triton displays, but it still noticeably darkened the screen background. I’m very curious to see how the new matrix of the InkPad Color color layer is designed to improve on this characteristic.

New and familiar technology

Aside from the new E-Ink Kaleido technology, the InkPad Color follows in the footsteps of the InkPad X when it comes to USB ports: the eBook reader brings a USB-C port to the 7.8-inch segment. So far, many manufacturers have been hesitant to adopt the (not so new anymore) USB technology. Even if it doesn’t have a massive effect on eReader usage, the move to a modern port – away from Micro-USB – is definitely a welcome change.

The InkPad Color does not include built-in waterproofing, but it does offer storage expansion via memory card. This means the already generous 16 GB of internal storage can be expanded by up to 32 GB. With the increased storage demands of colorfully illustrated comics, manga, and other documents, this option will no doubt come in handy. Additionally, the eBook reader once again features audio functionality, so you can play (also storage-hungry) audiobooks and music.

And one last interesting point: the battery is notably large at 2,900 mAh. In comparison, the InkPad 3 models are equipped with “only” 1,900 mAh batteries. As a result, the new InkPad Color should offer impressively long battery life on a single charge.

The device is available in a black-and-silver color combination and retails for 299 euros.