Boox’s new Go 7 E Ink tablets support handwriting with a $46 stylus

Boox, a company that makes E Ink gear ranging from palm-sized devices to desktop monitors, has a new pair of ereaders. The Go 7 and Go Color 7 (Gen II) combine a Kindle Oasis-like form factor with Android 13. For the first time in this lineup, they support handwriting, courtesy of a $46 stylus. And since the E Ink tablets ship with the Play Store, you can use any ebook storefront you like.

The Boox Go Color 7 (Gen II) uses E Ink Kaleido 3 tech, also found in the Kobo Libra Colour and Kindle Colorsoft. (However, Amazon modified the latter with a custom display stack.) Like those competitors, the Go Color 7 shows color content at 150 ppi and black and white at 300 ppi.

Meanwhile, the Go 7 has a monochrome Carta 1300 Monochrome display that shows content at 300 ppi.

Both devices have an asymmetrical form factor with physical page turn buttons on one side. They’re the latest design inspired by the Kindle Oasis, which Amazon discontinued last year. Variations of this form are also found in the Kobo Libra, Sage and Elipsa lines. If you’ve never tried one of these offshoots, they’re made for maximum one-handed ease.

One advantage Boox’s readers have over competitors is that, since they run Android and include the Play Store, you can install whatever reading app you like. Ditto for note-taking apps, browsers, mail clients, social apps or anything else you want. (But don’t expect anything with video to be usable on E Ink screens.)

The Go 7 and Go Color 7 each have 4GB of RAM, 64GB of internal storage and microSD support. Each device weighs 195g (6.9oz).

Although both Go 7 readers support pen input for note-taking, highlights and markups, you’ll have to spend more to enjoy that. That’s because, alongside the devices, Boox is launching a $46 InkSense stylus with 4,096 pressure levels of sensitivity. The pen, which looks a bit like a gray Apple Pencil, has a multifunction button on the side and recharges via USB-C.

You can preorder the $250 monochrome Go 7 from Boox’s website today. The company expects it to ship around May 7. Meanwhile, the $280 Go Color 7 is listed as “coming soon.”