Boox Note Max Is a True Beast of Digital Notebooks

Chances are good that if you’ve ever owned an e-reader, it was one of the many varieties of the Amazon Kindle. But while Kindle is the most widely used e-reader, that doesn’t mean it’s the best, and it doesn’t mean other companies haven’t beaten Amazon at the game it more or less invented.

One of the more interesting competitors in this space is Onyx International, a Chinese company that has been producing innovative e-readers under the Boox brand for over a decade, often incorporating new features (like color e-ink displays) years before Amazon introduced them to the Kindle.

While Boox makes my favorite e-reader device (it would be the phone-shaped Boox Palma , which I’ll recommend every time I get the chance), they’ve expanded well beyond the e-reader market with several lines of e-ink laptops. You can think of these devices as a cross between a Kindle and an iPad—they typically have familiar grayscale screens, but can run apps and operate with a stylus like a full-fledged tablet. I recently reviewed the Boox Note Air 4C , the company’s latest color e-ink digital laptop, and came away very impressed: While the price may be a deterrent for some, it’s a great option for those looking for a device with write capabilities, a paper-like screen, and enough features and processing power to serve as a truly all-around productivity tool.

I’ve been testing the industry’s newest Boox for the past two weeks, and I think I like it even more than the Note Air 4C for one simple reason: as the name suggests, the Boox Note Max is freaking huge, in a good way.

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A truly massive device

I know they make big iPads, but the biggest tablet I used before the Note Max had a 10-inch screen. This 13.3-inch device feels much larger. It’s like that mathematical equation that proves you should always order a larger pizza , because it turns out there’s a pretty big difference between a 16-inch pizza and an 18-inch pizza. The Note Max is about the same size as my laptop screen, but feels much larger when held in your hands, but it’s also very thin, making it a truly high-end device (which I suppose equates to the tempting $650 price tag). The included stylus, with 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity, also rivals the Apple Pencil in terms of writing comfort and robust design.

For most things you’ll want to do with this device, you’ll really appreciate the extra space. Whether you’re marking up a PDF, flipping through a recipe book, reading a manga, or using a split screen to read a book and take notes at the same time, it’s great to have everything this large (and I say that as someone who usually prefers an iPhone-sized e-reader).

The HD E Ink Carta 1300’s screen has a resolution of 3200 x 2400 pixels (300 pixels per inch) and delivers impressive clarity: text looks particularly crisp even when enlarged, and images are so clear you’ll have no trouble reading tiny dialogue bubbles in comic books. The Carta 1300 is supposed to look brighter and whiter than older e-ink displays, but honestly, if you asked me what color the screen was, I’d still say grey.

Which brings me to the one big caveat about this device: love it or hate it.

For some reason there is no front light

At least since the release of the first Nook Glowlight, a front-lit backlit screen has been a standard feature on most e-readers—especially any more expensive model. And another thing that a temperature-controlled front light is good for is making a gray e-ink screen brighter and whiter. So why then does the Boox Note Max not have a front light?

This is due to the intended use case for this Boox device. It’s a digital notepad aimed at users with specific and relatively complex needs: reading and editing documents, organizing a calendar, and, most importantly, taking written notes.

It turns out that installing a front-light on an e-ink tablet involves placing an additional layer between the display and the outer glass. This also means that when you use a stylus, the tip of the pen is much further away from the surface you’re actually writing on. This doesn’t impact performance much, but the effect is certainly a little less smooth – at least that’s what I found when comparing the Note Max to the Note Air 4C, which I recently reviewed. Taking notes or doodling on the latter is a good approximation of putting pen to paper, but the Note Max really improves on that. Eliminating that little extra distance adds a lot more verisimilitude to the experience, which in turn makes the device very pleasant to write on – even kind of fun, although I imagine the novelty will wear off over time.

Obviously, the lack of a front light also improves overall clarity, which is a good thing because you’ll need it if you try to use the Note Max anywhere other than direct light. I’m old enough that I already need to turn up the brightness on my laptop to make it easy to read, and I had a little trouble with small print on the Note Max unless I was sitting in a fairly bright room.

Is the trade-off worth it? I think if you plan on taking a lot of handwritten notes on it, yes – the improved writing interface and larger screen will serve you well. But if you really need that kind of front light, the Note Air 4C, which is significantly smaller but still very capable, is probably a better choice.

The digital note-taking device of your dreams

If a device is optimized for use as a digital notepad, it better be good at those tasks (note-taking, marking up PDFs, linking files, working online and offline) to justify losing a useful feature like front lighting. And this is where the Note Max really excels.

It has almost the same features as the Note Air 4C, but with a larger screen. Using the Notes app is a breeze, and there are plenty of options to customize, from the type of virtual writing tool you’re using to the thickness of your lines. You can enlarge the PDF and move it around with a slight delay. There’s even a built-in microphone that lets you record voice notes that can be linked to a specific section of your notes.

Split-screen mode lets you run any two apps at the same time, so you can, for example, read an online article and take notes on it at the same time.

While I haven’t used Kindle Scribe, Amazon’s flagship notepad, I’ve read plenty of user reviews filled with complaints about difficulty downloading files to and from the device. Note Max solves this problem by integrating with most major cloud services such as Google Drive and Dropbox. Importing and exporting PDFs, notes, and whatever else you’re working on is a matter of a few clicks (and, of course, mastering the not-always-intuitive file structure).

In short, if you’re looking for a digital notebook that can handle any planning, research, and organization task, then this is the notebook you need.

Be prepared for a learning period

Considering that Boox’s native apps were likely developed in Chinese and localized for an English version, I’m even more impressed by how easy they are to use (this is definitely not the case for every translated app I’ve used). However, that doesn’t mean it’s easy.

The thing is, there’s so much the Note Max can do that figuring out how to make it work best for you will require a lot of tinkering, experimentation, and trial and error. Several times during testing, I had to Google how to perform a particular task, from opening a PDF in split-screen mode to directly linking to a website for a specific word in my notes or PDF.

On the other hand, I never encountered a need that the Note Max couldn’t satisfy—the built-in notes apps are truly feature-rich and built with power users in mind—but it did take some work to get to grips with them all. If you’re used to Apple holding your hand when using one of its apps, you might be disappointed, but I think the robust set of tools and customization options are worth it.

Much more than just a digital notepad

While the digital laptop’s capabilities are certainly a reason to choose the Note Max, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t excel as an e-reader for many of the same reasons I praised the Palma and Note Air 4C. Like those devices, the Note Max runs on a fairly basic version of Android 13 that allows you to access the Google Play Store straight away. This means you can install almost any apps you want, and the format agnosticism is great if you’ve amassed a collection of e-books over the years from a variety of sources—Kindle, Nook, Kobo, and more.

An excellent device for reading books, manga and black and white comics.

The massive screen is a pleasure to read if you’re sitting comfortably, although I think the device is heavy enough that it’s impractical to read in bed or while commuting. However, the size is especially convenient if you want to read something with a lot of graphic elements, such as comics or manga.

Of course, only displaying a black-and-white image means you’ll have to fiddle a bit with the settings to make color images more legible, and of course, some will be lost in translation. But reading manga or other black and white comics is a real pleasure due to the size and crisp resolution.

If you prefer to “read” audiobooks, you can download the Kindle app (or any audio player you like) and listen through the surprisingly loud internal speakers located next to the power port. There’s no headphone jack, so if you want to use headphones or in-ear headphones, you’ll have to rely on Bluetooth or a USB-C connection.

Use whatever apps you like (with mixed results)

Access to the app store doesn’t limit you to just e-reader apps, and you can definitely use the Note Max to access Gmail, use Google Docs, play games, and even watch videos. Like other Boox branded devices, the Note Max includes several screen modes, from Normal to Royal to A2, which control the refresh rate of the e-ink display. What’s more, you can set how often the screen will perform a full refresh for each app, which is a good option considering that not all tasks have the same hardware requirements.

High-resolution modes provide ultra-sharp text and images, but you’ll likely see a lot of ghosting (residual images visible after changing what’s displayed on the screen), making them best for relatively static tasks like reading a printed e-book. Faster modes provide faster scrolling and much less ghosting, which is essential when trying to scroll a website or watch a video, but there’s a trade-off: you’ll lose a lot of detail.

In short, this means that while the Note Max can technically do everything you’d ask your iPad to do, with the exception of FaceTime calls, the experience won’t necessarily be all that satisfying. It’s great for reading Reddit, but you probably won’t want to use it for watching Netflix.

Good battery life even with heavy use

One of the benefits of not having a front light is the improved battery life compared to a device like the Note Air 4C. While I didn’t specifically test the battery, I found that with fairly heavy use the percentage drops by about 10% per hour, meaning the replacement will likely take several days. On the other hand, the 3,700 mAh battery charges quite quickly via USB-C, going from 0% to 50% in about 30 minutes.

Reliability Note

To be clear, I didn’t experience any hardware issues while testing this device. It continues to perform as you would expect from a new device. However, what few people know is that Boox devices get a lot of customer support, and if you have a problem with yours—say, you drop it and the screen breaks, or you have an unexplained screen glitch like the ones I’ve read about on Reddit—you’ll likely foot the bill for repairs.

Dissatisfied customers report they were unable to get what they believed was a faulty device repaired under warranty, and mail-in service involves shipping to China. However, if you purchase the device from Amazon rather than directly from the company, you’ll be covered by Amazon’s typically generous returns and exchanges policy.

The optional keyboard case looks nice, but isn’t quite ready yet.

If you buy the Boox Note Max directly from Onyx, it comes with a relatively simple magnetic cover (which you can also buy separately on Amazon if you’re not comfortable ordering from a Chinese company with questionable customer service reviews), but you can also pay another $170 for a case with a built-in keyboard. I took one of these to test alongside the Note Max, and I’d say that, like the tablet itself, it’s not for everyone.

The only thing that sets the case apart from the keyboard is the build quality: with a faux leather exterior, a weight that feels significant if not heavy, a large trackpad, and a keyboard that’s about as comfortable to use as the one on my MacBook Air, it definitely has premium attributes. Just look at this:

Unfortunately, it’s not actually that pleasant to use, but I think that’s mostly due to the nature of the e-ink. You can open the Notes app or an email window and start typing, but the delay between your typing and the character appearing on the screen… is not short. This is very noticeable, and if you’re a clumsy touch typist like me, it will mean a lot more typos.

The trackpad also gave me some problems; again, the delay time is to blame. You feel like you’re not moving the cursor, but rather dragging it. This makes it surprisingly difficult to do things like select from a drop-down menu or click a button.

However, it is very beautiful, and I have read anecdotal reports that it continues to improve with subsequent software updates.

Bottom line

After spending over a week testing the Boox Note Max, I feel like I’m just beginning to realize its potential. Its excellent build quality and sheer size compared to other digital laptops make it a pleasure to read (and write!) on, but the complex array of features and settings is far from intuitive and will take some effort to fully understand, let alone get you to work. That’s not really a negative – all these options mean you can customize it the way you like – but I feel like this is a device for power users.

That is: if your needs include text editing and digital note-taking, you’ll love it. If not, it may be more devices than you really need.

Technical specifications of Onyx Boox Note Max

• Display: 13.3 inches E Ink Carta Plus (Carta1300), 300 ppi.

• Processor: Qualcomm Octacore processor clocked at 2.8 GHz.

• RAM: 6 GB

• Memory: 128 GB

• Connectivity: Wi-Fi 5 (2.4/5 GHz), Bluetooth 5.0.

• Lighting: No

• Operating system: Android 13.

• Battery/Charging: 3700 mAh via USB-C

• Size: 287.5 x 243 x 4.6 mm.

• SD card support: no

• Weight: 615 g

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