I backed their 25" monitor and never received it, despite emailing support bi-weekly for months. Highly recommend staying as far away from them as possible.
Is it this[1] campaign? Some people indeed report problems, at the same time others write about receiving their product and being happy with it. YMMV I guess.
Dasung manufactures in china and Mexico. So from china that $700 becomes, what? $1500? But from Mexico? What’s the tariff with Mexico today, May 9, 2025, 9:28 gmt-6?
Due to "tariff engineering" it can be shipped to the U.S. via Mexico for no additional tariffs.
In a nutshell, this would involve shipping any products manufactured in China to the Mexican facility for "remanufacturing."
Very risky in normal times, but since DOGE fired a bunch of Customs employees and cut their budget, Customs doesn't have the manpower to police tariff violations like this (which requires detail reviewing the history of every item) so it's effectively a de minimis risk tactic. Ironic, given that the President's budget is dependent on enforcing tariffs...
They do claim "a revolutionary leap in E-ink monitor refresh speed" and very specifically "37Hz". It seems plausible to me that this is a genuine technical advance.
Best eInk refresh rates are in the several-Hz range, and that with a tremendous degredation in image quality over a full-refresh.
(I've own an Onyx BOOX Max Lumi for 4+ years now, using an eInk Mobius Carta display (2,200 x 1,650 207 ppi). I'm quite happy with it, but I'm also well aware of its display limitations. For reasonably static text it is indeed excellent.)
Maybe a good time to ask the crowd: Is there any tablet sized, lightweight ereader for reading textbooks? Ideally without crazy vendor lock in? Deciding between the Boox (but there are a dizzying number of options) or Kindle Scribe. Or maybe I should just use an iPad?
What is not fine is that they actively violate the GPL [1], use outdated and vulnerable Android and kernel versions, and send loads of telemetry to some Chinese servers [2].
I use a Boox Tab Mini C. If you're in the Android ecosystem, it's amazing. KOReader is the best app you can use once you learn how to set it up (it takes a minute). I have both the Palma and the Tab Mini C. I use the Palma for reading lighter books and the Tab Mini C for textbooks.
I also have a larger Android tablet for more colorful books though. I'd recommend getting the largest Boox tablet you can comfortably afford/hold. And one with their older stylus. The new ones are moving away from Wacom I think.
I really liked my boox. Its basically just a android tablet with eink and good pen support and decent builtin apps. Its phoning home to china tough, but thar can be bøocked.
The color is effectively an extra sticker and some software. All that's different between the screens is a color filter is added as layer during manufacture. With the software changes it knows which pixels to make white or black when combined with the filter to make the desired color.
There are a bunch of tradeoffs with this method. Contrast is worse because of the color layer, color has lower DPI too.
Only thing I can imagine is that each black & white pixel becomes a red or green or blue subpixel taking the dpi down to a third unless they have some subpixel hinting.
That’s exactly how it’s done. They apply a sticker to the screen with little red/green/blue dots aligned to the eInk pigments. Every “pixel” can then be turned black or coloured. It looks pretty washed out, but works.
In this video you can see Jerry peel off the sticker at the end:
If this monitor really uses the Kaleido 3 display as speculated in the article, the color would be very mute and it would only be suitable for reading Manga or magazines.
From what I can tell, the Kaleido display uses a filter on top of a black/white display to show different colors. That's why they can do 300ppi on black/white content, but only 150ppi on color content.
The Kindle Colorsoft uses the Kaleido screen, and it's the worst rated Kindle product on Amazon for a reason.
For high PPI color e-ink display, the only option today is the Gallery (https://www.eink.com/brand/detail/Gallery), and the only product that I know of is the reMarkable Paper Pro (reMarkable call it Canvas color play) which costs ~$600.
I struggle to understand what the target market is for products like this.
I can't imagine a legitimate market for (in my opinion gimmicky) colour e-readers, and I believe this would be a horrific experience as a daily-use monitor.
Is this intended for some form of advertising or marketing?
I've started to noticed these hardware products in the $500-$1000 that don't really solve any problems. See the $500 digital album art frame that sold out and I do not think ever shipped. Or the Orchid synth which is a $600 musical toy with an amazing amount of included modules and bugs. Patreon and Discord support channels filled with issues and help requests, being met with radio silence or asking for patience or "an update is just wrapping up", all while just feeding the social networks more 5 second clips of people playing an arpeggiated chord and announcing a second drop.
I guess people crave purpose and perhaps a bit of connection too; and they’re willing to spend money in a slightly misguided attempt to find it. Speaking as a person who owns too much music gear.
It's true and I'm no different and in constant contradiction. I'm envious of both the creators of the Orchid and its customers. I don't have money for these kinds of purchases, so these products are not a consideration for myself. Not everyone shares that luxury. Instead, I spend way more time than I'm worth hourly than that $600 fighting the web audio context to make something similar.
I don’t know if you want advice so skip this comment if not; for anyone who is in a similar situation and does:
I’d skip expensive gear and use cheaper replacements or whatever I already have. Pick an iphone, ipad, ableton lite, acoustic guitar, or any other tool or instrument. Use that to make music and have fun. Optionally show my music to other people.
I would love to be able to comfortably use my laptop in outdoor conditions. (Or indoors but in a sun-lit area.) This is one of the ways to achieve that. I'd even replace my laptop's screen with an e-ink display if I had that option.
If you can use a regular monitor with mental hassle they're probably isn't a good reason to consider a product like this. There is some niche appeal to general tech hobbyists who find it cool, and also to the minimalist-yet-buys-expensive-stuff-regularly crowd. Perhaps there are also some use cases like writing a book where it can provide a wonderful experience.
On the other hand a portion of the population has an absolutely horrible time using backlit monitors. Simply put, they will tolerate just about anything to have a usable alternative that doesn't cause migraines and eye strain. I'm getting there, and I can confirm it's a ridiculous experience. Completely destroyed my workflow, to the point where I was very seriously considering digging up my old t60p ThinkPad from over a decade ago because it had a special LCD panel that looked like paper.
Let's assume refresh rate and color quality can get "good enough" to where it can work for daily work stuff, excluding gaming or graphic design. Then I see a strong argument for eink. I think we're all damaging our eyes staring at LEDs all day.
I'd have thought that the big win market for an e-ink display is smart phones. The biggest problem with smartphones is the battery; an e-ink display should be much lower battery consumption than a screen. Plus, they're often used outside, where e-ink can (ahem) shine.
A quick google turns up a few e-ink phones, but none of them seem really mainstream. Is there something I'm missing that makes e-ink sub-optimal for phones? (Thickness, perhaps?)
An e-ink phone could mostly be used for utility (and great utility!), but not for entertainment. And the cost/benefit for e-ink phones on offer is not there yet.
I just pre-ordered a Bigme 13-inch color e-ink monitor with a 30Hz refresh rate. At $499, it's much cheaper than the Dasung, though the quality and e-ink display algorithms might not be as good
been burned before by preorders so i'm always a little cautious with new hardware drops like this- you think most of these niche screens will actually catch on, or is it just hype for early adopters?
Not sure about this model, but there 25.3 inch screens are not compatible with mac. Really ungood for me. Would consider buying other non mac but dont feel lile making that move right now.
Are you talking about the macOS flicker issue on eink? I've heard it was fixed by the Stillcolor app, and there's a video of it fixing the eink flicker issue here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=siufMXZ4tN8&t=17s
they dont explain but if you go on their website and look at 25.3 inch new ultrafast (non flicker) screens... they have large warnings that it is not compatible with mac and voids all warranty with mac
I backed their 25" monitor and never received it, despite emailing support bi-weekly for months. Highly recommend staying as far away from them as possible.
Is it this[1] campaign? Some people indeed report problems, at the same time others write about receiving their product and being happy with it. YMMV I guess.
[1]: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/paperlike-253-the-first-2...
I ordered their Paperlike Display, I received it, it's not a scam, but it's still very emerging technology
Dasung manufactures in china and Mexico. So from china that $700 becomes, what? $1500? But from Mexico? What’s the tariff with Mexico today, May 9, 2025, 9:28 gmt-6?
Only if you're in a country that applies such ridiculous tariffs. Dasung can hardly be blamed for that.
[flagged]
Due to "tariff engineering" it can be shipped to the U.S. via Mexico for no additional tariffs.
In a nutshell, this would involve shipping any products manufactured in China to the Mexican facility for "remanufacturing."
Very risky in normal times, but since DOGE fired a bunch of Customs employees and cut their budget, Customs doesn't have the manpower to police tariff violations like this (which requires detail reviewing the history of every item) so it's effectively a de minimis risk tactic. Ironic, given that the President's budget is dependent on enforcing tariffs...
Just wait 2 weeks and the tariffs from China will be back to their previous levels (approximately)
Modulo shipping lags and sorting out massive disruption.
Trump just said the current vibe is 80%, so maybe it'll be $1250.
Vibe tariffing
The refresh rate in the linked video looks so good I have to believe it's fake
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERbTXVbSuEc
The video is very clearly a render and not a video of the real screen...
They do claim "a revolutionary leap in E-ink monitor refresh speed" and very specifically "37Hz". It seems plausible to me that this is a genuine technical advance.
My Daylight tablet runs at 60fps but I know that it's "e-paper" and not "e-ink," although I couldn't tell you what the difference is :P
Totally different technology. Transflective LCD, which has response rates of 480 Hz or better (as LCD television displays).
Edit: cite link: "60Hz vs. 120Hz vs. 240Hz vs. 480Hz - LCD Response Rate" <https://lcdtvbuyingguide.com/lcdtv/120hz-240hz-60hz.html>
Best eInk refresh rates are in the several-Hz range, and that with a tremendous degredation in image quality over a full-refresh.
(I've own an Onyx BOOX Max Lumi for 4+ years now, using an eInk Mobius Carta display (2,200 x 1,650 207 ppi). I'm quite happy with it, but I'm also well aware of its display limitations. For reasonably static text it is indeed excellent.)
If you had a real e-ink screen for comparison, the difference would be very obvious. E-ink has much higher contrast versus trans reflective LCD.
IIRC, the Daylight is a trans reflective LCD panel
Maybe a good time to ask the crowd: Is there any tablet sized, lightweight ereader for reading textbooks? Ideally without crazy vendor lock in? Deciding between the Boox (but there are a dizzying number of options) or Kindle Scribe. Or maybe I should just use an iPad?
I have a Boox Go 10.3 and the hardware is fine.
What is not fine is that they actively violate the GPL [1], use outdated and vulnerable Android and kernel versions, and send loads of telemetry to some Chinese servers [2].
If you do end up going this route, consider not giving it internet access or securing it in other ways. You may also want to consult this guide: https://gist.github.com/fardjad/97baf36de97d1c4ae3953b3d359b...
[1] https://www.reddit.com/r/Onyx_Boox/comments/hsn7kx/onyx_usin...
[2] https://github.com/JordanEJ/Onyx-Boox-Blocklist
I use a Boox Tab Mini C. If you're in the Android ecosystem, it's amazing. KOReader is the best app you can use once you learn how to set it up (it takes a minute). I have both the Palma and the Tab Mini C. I use the Palma for reading lighter books and the Tab Mini C for textbooks.
I also have a larger Android tablet for more colorful books though. I'd recommend getting the largest Boox tablet you can comfortably afford/hold. And one with their older stylus. The new ones are moving away from Wacom I think.
I really liked my boox. Its basically just a android tablet with eink and good pen support and decent builtin apps. Its phoning home to china tough, but thar can be bøocked.
> taking pre-orders for $749. ... There’s also a black-and-white only model that sells for $679.
So only $70 more for color? I find that surprising unless there are some massive differences like DPI or longevity or something.
The color is effectively an extra sticker and some software. All that's different between the screens is a color filter is added as layer during manufacture. With the software changes it knows which pixels to make white or black when combined with the filter to make the desired color.
There are a bunch of tradeoffs with this method. Contrast is worse because of the color layer, color has lower DPI too.
Historically color e-ink takes a DPI hit even on B&W workloads. Perhaps they solved it, but then why such a small price delta?
Only thing I can imagine is that each black & white pixel becomes a red or green or blue subpixel taking the dpi down to a third unless they have some subpixel hinting.
That’s exactly how it’s done. They apply a sticker to the screen with little red/green/blue dots aligned to the eInk pigments. Every “pixel” can then be turned black or coloured. It looks pretty washed out, but works.
In this video you can see Jerry peel off the sticker at the end:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=JNF5R11mX-8
If this monitor really uses the Kaleido 3 display as speculated in the article, the color would be very mute and it would only be suitable for reading Manga or magazines.
From what I can tell, the Kaleido display uses a filter on top of a black/white display to show different colors. That's why they can do 300ppi on black/white content, but only 150ppi on color content.
The Kindle Colorsoft uses the Kaleido screen, and it's the worst rated Kindle product on Amazon for a reason.
For high PPI color e-ink display, the only option today is the Gallery (https://www.eink.com/brand/detail/Gallery), and the only product that I know of is the reMarkable Paper Pro (reMarkable call it Canvas color play) which costs ~$600.
I struggle to understand what the target market is for products like this.
I can't imagine a legitimate market for (in my opinion gimmicky) colour e-readers, and I believe this would be a horrific experience as a daily-use monitor.
Is this intended for some form of advertising or marketing?
I've started to noticed these hardware products in the $500-$1000 that don't really solve any problems. See the $500 digital album art frame that sold out and I do not think ever shipped. Or the Orchid synth which is a $600 musical toy with an amazing amount of included modules and bugs. Patreon and Discord support channels filled with issues and help requests, being met with radio silence or asking for patience or "an update is just wrapping up", all while just feeding the social networks more 5 second clips of people playing an arpeggiated chord and announcing a second drop.
Orchid synth: https://telepathicinstruments.com/products/orchid-limited-pr...
I guess people crave purpose and perhaps a bit of connection too; and they’re willing to spend money in a slightly misguided attempt to find it. Speaking as a person who owns too much music gear.
It's true and I'm no different and in constant contradiction. I'm envious of both the creators of the Orchid and its customers. I don't have money for these kinds of purchases, so these products are not a consideration for myself. Not everyone shares that luxury. Instead, I spend way more time than I'm worth hourly than that $600 fighting the web audio context to make something similar.
I don’t know if you want advice so skip this comment if not; for anyone who is in a similar situation and does:
I’d skip expensive gear and use cheaper replacements or whatever I already have. Pick an iphone, ipad, ableton lite, acoustic guitar, or any other tool or instrument. Use that to make music and have fun. Optionally show my music to other people.
I would love to be able to comfortably use my laptop in outdoor conditions. (Or indoors but in a sun-lit area.) This is one of the ways to achieve that. I'd even replace my laptop's screen with an e-ink display if I had that option.
If you can use a regular monitor with mental hassle they're probably isn't a good reason to consider a product like this. There is some niche appeal to general tech hobbyists who find it cool, and also to the minimalist-yet-buys-expensive-stuff-regularly crowd. Perhaps there are also some use cases like writing a book where it can provide a wonderful experience.
On the other hand a portion of the population has an absolutely horrible time using backlit monitors. Simply put, they will tolerate just about anything to have a usable alternative that doesn't cause migraines and eye strain. I'm getting there, and I can confirm it's a ridiculous experience. Completely destroyed my workflow, to the point where I was very seriously considering digging up my old t60p ThinkPad from over a decade ago because it had a special LCD panel that looked like paper.
Being able to work on a computer when you live in a sunny country.
Our entire civilization has been built to shield office workers in concrete caves so that they can see their screens comfortably.
Let's assume refresh rate and color quality can get "good enough" to where it can work for daily work stuff, excluding gaming or graphic design. Then I see a strong argument for eink. I think we're all damaging our eyes staring at LEDs all day.
Outdoor applications.
Persistent displays.
Daylighting.
Those who prefer illuminated rather than emissive displays.
I'd have thought that the big win market for an e-ink display is smart phones. The biggest problem with smartphones is the battery; an e-ink display should be much lower battery consumption than a screen. Plus, they're often used outside, where e-ink can (ahem) shine.
A quick google turns up a few e-ink phones, but none of them seem really mainstream. Is there something I'm missing that makes e-ink sub-optimal for phones? (Thickness, perhaps?)
An e-ink phone could mostly be used for utility (and great utility!), but not for entertainment. And the cost/benefit for e-ink phones on offer is not there yet.
People don’t want them because they look far worse than a typical LCD or OLED display.
It would be nice to know price and power usage.
I wonder if this kind of display would be good for making super light weight portables.
> Dasung’s Paperlike 13K has an aluminum alloy body that measures 307 x 241 x 5mm (at its thinnest point) and weighs 721 grams.
I just pre-ordered a Bigme 13-inch color e-ink monitor with a 30Hz refresh rate. At $499, it's much cheaper than the Dasung, though the quality and e-ink display algorithms might not be as good
What's the real use cases for this? Comic book reading?
IMO they don't sound loke they actually have better trade offs for comic books than LCD yet. I.e. poor color and low resolution.
Leaving a color screen on a set page seems like the real use case. Signs, often idle museum UIs, etc?
I would love this for reading PDFs. I've got a ton of RPG PDFs that I constantly need to zoom in on on a smaller screen.
Anyone try the Eazeye RLCD monitor? Overall I'm excited for these advances in the space as eye strain is real.
been burned before by preorders so i'm always a little cautious with new hardware drops like this- you think most of these niche screens will actually catch on, or is it just hype for early adopters?
Impressive resolution! Bit pricey for a hobby project though
I’m glad to see the 13.3” format, or full-size 8.5x11
Not sure about this model, but there 25.3 inch screens are not compatible with mac. Really ungood for me. Would consider buying other non mac but dont feel lile making that move right now.
Are you talking about the macOS flicker issue on eink? I've heard it was fixed by the Stillcolor app, and there's a video of it fixing the eink flicker issue here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=siufMXZ4tN8&t=17s
I have a 25.3. Flicker issue is real. I’ll have to try this out. Thanks for sharing
"The Paperlike 13K doesn’t fully support Apple devices including Macs, iPhones, or iPads yet. Windows, Linux, and Android are."
On the other hand, BigMe is selling an identical monitor and they explicitly state that they support Mac.
Not compatible how?
they dont explain but if you go on their website and look at 25.3 inch new ultrafast (non flicker) screens... they have large warnings that it is not compatible with mac and voids all warranty with mac
Thanks. That's ... odd.