How I Reached My Summer Reading Goal With the Boox...

I used to usually learn greater than 125 books a 12 months, every meticulously logged on my Goodreads profile. I learn throughout my commute and to wind down at night time. I all the time had a paperback in my bag or an audiobook in my ears. Then I obtained a smartphone. Then I obtained on Twitter. Then the 2016 presidential election occurred. Then there was a pandemic, and for some time I finished commuting altogether.

With yearly, it appeared like there have been extra issues to spiral about on-line, and fewer hours within the day to loosen up with a novel or learn some stimulating non-fiction. Immediately I discovered it arduous to satisfy my far more modest studying targets, which dropped to 75, then 50, then 30 books a 12 months. In 2023 and 2024, I set my sights on ending simply 20 books (together with graphic novels and stuff I learn aloud to my youngsters). I nonetheless needed to cram in a number of brief books in December to handle even that comparatively sluggish tempo.

However issues are completely different in 2025. It is mid-July, and I’ve already hit my aim of studying 5 books over the course of the summer season months. Honestly, I owe all of it to my Boox Palma 2, a phone-shaped e-reader I can simply carry with me wherever I’m going—together with the seashore, the place I can simply learn its e-ink show as a substitute of squinting at my iPhone display within the solar.

A tool so good it has a cult following (in the event you can abdomen the worth)

As I famous in my review of the original Boox Palma—the almost similar predecessor to the Palma 2—it is probably the most lovable digital units I’ve ever owned, a near-perfect marriage of type (the easy-on-the-eyes e-ink display popularized by Amazon’s Kindle in a compact dimension that matches an iPhone 16 Plus) and performance: With an open Android working system and entry to the Google Play retailer, you should use it to run studying apps from a wide range of retailers, hearken to audiobooks with Bluetooth headphones, or get a bit of work completed on productiveness apps like Gmail and Google Docs.

At a time when increasing numbers of people are opting to make the switch to a “dumb phone” to flee the pull of their display addictions, the Palma 2 occupies a novel spot available in the market: Whereas it might probably do an ideal deal greater than your normal Kindle, it nonetheless feels clunky and sluggish compared to your smartphone, however in one of the simplest ways. It does not have a mobile connection, so in the event you aren’t on wifi, you may be unable to make use of the web or replace your social feeds. The black-and-white show means utilizing it’s soothing as a substitute of stimulating, whereas nonetheless scratching that “gotta pull out my machine” itch. Its quirky qualities have garnered it a cult following of types (paradoxically, adherents collect to debate the machine on Reddit and TikTok, two locations to keep away from if you wish to get any studying completed).

With this area of interest enchantment comes a excessive price ticket, nonetheless. When launched, the Palma 2 value $280, and tariffs have since raised that to $300. For a time you can decide up the primary Palma at a reduction (as little as $200 in the event you ordered immediately from the Boox storefront), however that machine seems to be completely out of inventory, at the least for U.S. prospects. As of this writing, the Palma 2 is on sale at Amazon for $269.99, however that low cost is more likely to disappear quickly.

Is that this price it, paying as much as $100 greater than you’d for a Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition? Personally, I might pay $100 to not be locked into the Amazon ecosystem, however not everybody goes to really feel the identical method. In the event that they made a less expensive Palma with out among the superfluous options that make it really feel extra like a hobbled smartphone than a souped-up e-reader (e.g. the digicam, the excessive-for-most-users 128GB of storage), would I select that as a substitute? Sure. Would I nonetheless select a $300 Palma over a $200 Paperwhite? Additionally sure.

The proper type issue

Leaving apart all of the issues social media and app builders do to make their merchandise addictive, I battle with regulating my telephone use for the only real purpose that my telephone is all the time with me. It is how I communicate with my partner and children and it has effectively replaced my wallet, due to this fact it should be in my pocket always and hey, I’d as effectively pull it out at each idle second to examine my notifications. Sure, I may carry a ebook or a standard-sized e-reader to have a look at as a substitute, however that requires carrying a bag of some type (or giant pockets), and it is arduous to beat the comfort of one thing you may shove into any pair of denims.

Nicely, the Palma 2 may be shoved into any pair of denims. It has principally the similar type issue to most smartphones, and might even occupy the identical pocket as my iPhone 14. Which means that once I’m standing in line on the put up workplace, or ready for the practice, or making an attempt to take care of my stability on the practice and with just one hand free, or studying on the seashore, I can effortlessly pull out my e-reader as a substitute of my telephone and soak up a number of pages quite than frantically making an attempt to refresh my Bluesky feed at subway stops.

Gradual and kinda clunky (in a great way)

If the Palma 2 can entry the Google Play retailer, what’s to maintain you from loading it up with the entire apps that already make your smartphone so addictive? Nothing! Go for it—stick Bluesky on there. Add Fb and Instagram in the event you’ve but to flee Meta’s ecosystem. You may even load up video-based apps like YouTube and Netflix and time-wasting video games like Subway Surfers.

For those who do, although, you may rapidly discover that none of them are that pleasing to make use of. Although Boox readers’ e-ink shows make use of variable refresh fee tech that makes them infinitely sooner than early era Kindles (the place you can pause for a heartbeat between urgent a key on the digital keyboard and really seeing the textual content seem on the display), even within the quickest modes they’re solely a fraction as responsive as a telephone or pill’s LED display.

So when you definitely can use your Palma 2 to scroll social media or watch a number of TikToks, you will not significantly wish to, as a result of it is form of unhealthy at them, however in a method I really like: The machine is optimized for studying textual content or comics (significantly black and white manga), and it presents that materials so effectively, and so conveniently, that I wish to carry it round with me in all places so I can learn on it on a regular basis.

Up to now, it is going effectively: As I mentioned, I’ve already hit my summer season studying aim. Within the meantime, in the event you’re searching for books you may binge to get you out of a doomscrolling funk, I like to recommend the Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman. After selecting up the primary one in February, I blew by way of the seven thus-released books (ranging in size from 400 to 800 pages) in about six weeks. And sure, I learn each phrase of them on my Palma 2.