--- source_url: "https://lifehacker.com/tech/xteink-x4-ereader-review" title: "Xteink X4 Review: After Three Months, I Love This Teeny-Tiny E-Reader More Than Ever | Lifehacker" mirrored_at: 2026-08-19T01:38:50.289Z host: lifehacker.com cited_in_42a: true mirror_canonical: "https://index.42a.ai/lifehacker.com/tech/xteink-x4-ereader-review" --- > **Original source:** https://lifehacker.com/tech/xteink-x4-ereader-review It's the minimalist, carry-anywhere device you didn't know you needed. [Joel Cunningham](https://lifehacker.com/author/joelcunningham) Joel Cunningham Deputy Editor Experience Joel Cunningham is Lifehacker’s Deputy Editor. He has 15 years of experience as a writer and editor. Previously, he was managing editor of content marketing for Barnes & Noble, where he founded the Barnes & Noble Sci-Fi & Fantasy Blog. Areas of Expertise [Read Full Bio](https://lifehacker.com/author/joelcunningham) March 30, 2026 [Add as a preferred source on Google](https://www.google.com/preferences/source?q=lifehacker.com) [Add as a preferred source on Google](https://www.google.com/preferences/source?q=lifehacker.com) We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Quick Look 3.5/5 What it lacks in features and ease of use, the Xteink X4 e-reader makes up for in lovability—and by being pretty cheap and really small. ## Table of Contents * * * For two years now, [I've been a huge booster of the Boox Palma](https://lifehacker.com/tech/boox-palma-2-pro-review) family of e-readers for two reasons. One, it's not tied to any one retailer's ecosystem. And two, because it has the form factor of a phone, it's easy to slip into my pocket and carry it with me wherever I go, so I use my phone-shaped phone a lot less. These two factors go a long way toward justifying [its $250+ price tag](https://zdcs.link/z64Awl?pageview_type=Standard&template=review&module=content_body&element=offer&item=text-link&element_label=its%20%24250%2B%20price%20tag&object_type=review&short_url=z64Awl&u=https%3A%2F%2Flifehacker.com%2Ftech%2Fxteink-x4-ereader-review&event_label=its%20%24250%2B%20price%20tag "open in a new window"). So of course I'm intrigued to learn that there's a new, even smaller e-reader on the market, and [you can pick one up for around $70](https://zdcs.link/QG8wxJ?pageview_type=Standard&template=review&module=content_body&element=offer&item=text-link&element_label=you%20can%20pick%20one%20up%20for%20around%20%2470&object_type=review&short_url=QG8wxJ&u=https%3A%2F%2Flifehacker.com%2Ftech%2Fxteink-x4-ereader-review&event_label=you%20can%20pick%20one%20up%20for%20around%20%2470 "open in a new window") on Amazon. Like the Palma, [the Xteink X4](https://zdcs.link/QG8wxJ?pageview_type=Standard&template=review&module=content_body&element=offer&item=text-link&element_label=the%20Xteink%20X4&object_type=review&short_url=QG8wxJ&u=https%3A%2F%2Flifehacker.com%2Ftech%2Fxteink-x4-ereader-review&event_label=the%20Xteink%20X4 "open in a new window") is a Chinese-made gadget with an e-ink screen similar to the one on the Amazon Kindle. Unlike the Palma, which is loaded up with high-end features like a temperature-adjustable front light, a camera, an Android-based operating system with access to the Google Play store, and a ton of internal storage, the Xteink X4 is about as bare bones as it gets. There's no lighting, no touch screen, and the native onboard software is so basic, calling it an operating system feels like an overstatement. There's not even any internal storage—instead, it ships with a 32GB SD card. I love it. Since I first started testing it in late 2025, it has more or less replaced my Boox Palma 2 as my daily driver for e-book reading. I love that it is truly easy to carry with you—yes, more so even than phone-sized e-readers like the Palma or the [AiPaper Reader](https://lifehacker.com/tech/viwoods-aipaper-reader-review). It's so small that it has a magnetic ring on the back intended to allow you to attach it to the back of your phone, provided your phone is large enough (don't be fooled by the pictures on the Xteink website that show it perfectly clipped to an iPhone; it's slightly too big for my iPhone 14 and some research suggests [it doesn't really align with the larger "Max" iPhone models either](https://www.reddit.com/r/xteinkereader/comments/1p3kxg1/behold_the_most_robust_and_slightly_janky_way_ive/ "open in a new window")). But even standing alone—even in its tiny magnetic cover (sold separately)—you'll barely notice the Xteink X4 is in your pocket, so you'll have no excuse not to carry it everywhere and pull it out to read instead of doomscrolling on your phone. ## Xteink X4: Design and build ![Xteink reader next to a credit card](https://lifehacker.com/imagery/reviews/01KBN2VCKW3DVD62DKZMP0N5SW/images-2.fill.size_2000x1125.v1764865454.png) This thing is tiny—not that much bigger than a credit card (or union membership card). Credit: Joel Cunningham I should start off with a major caveat: Unless you're at least mildly tech-savvy and you enjoy fiddling around with gadgets, the Xteink X4 is not for you. While I found it fairly easy to get up and running, it does come with a learning curve, both because it's so stripped down (this is the first e-reader without a touch screen I've used in more than a decade) and because it's designed for basic functionality over a good user experience. I think this is kind of great, but I'm someone who reviews e-ink devices regularly, so I'm not exactly a neophyte. In any case, the [r/xteinkereader Reddit community](https://www.reddit.com/r/xteinkereader/ "open in a new window") is already thriving, and [the Xteink Community Hub](https://xteink.dontthinkjustbuild.com/ "open in a new window") has a [crowdsourced PDF guide](https://xteink.dontthinkjustbuild.com/guide "open in a new window") filled with tips and tricks to help get you started. (There's even a [crowd-sourced operating system](https://github.com/crosspoint-reader/crosspoint-reader "open in a new window") you can install onto the device with just a USB-C cable, a laptop, and a few clicks—more on that in a bit.) With the sticking points out of the way, here are the specs for this super simple device: - a 4.3-inch e-ink screen - 220 ppi resolution - 32GB of storage via a microSD card (expandable up to 512GB) - Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz & Bluetooth - 650mAh battery with USB-C charging (good for ~14 days on a single charge) - 114mm x 69mm (somewhere between the size of a credit card and a standard iPhone), 5.9mm thick - Physical power, navigation, and page-turn buttons - 74g weight - compatible with: TXT, EPUB, JPG, BMP files; BIN fonts And that's it. Even as e-readers go, the Xteink X4 is dead simple. Navigating around the bare-bones menus requires using the physical buttons on the right side and lower bezel, made doubly tricky by the fact that some of the buttons do different things depending on which part of the button you press. It will take you some time to get familiar with which button does what, and to figure out what the different options in the settings and e-book menus actually _do_, but once you've done that, you'll realize that if all you want is an e-reader that makes it easy to read wherever you are, it does the trick. Easy, that is, once the books are on the device. ## Xteink X4: Ease of Use ![The settings menu on the XteinkX4](https://lifehacker.com/imagery/reviews/01KBN2VCKW3DVD62DKZMP0N5SW/images-1.fill.size_2000x1125.v1764865454.png) Joel Cunningham Credit: Joel Cunningham Actually getting your books onto the Xteink X4 can be slightly tricky, starting with the fact that you need to have a collection of e-books in DRM-free EPUB or TXT format to read anything at all. ### Only DRM-free e-books will work Many e-book retailers, including Amazon and Barnes & Noble, mostly sell ebooks with DRM (which stands for "digital rights management"), anti-piracy software designed to ensure you can only read your legally purchased books in certain ways or on certain devices. (DRM is why you can't read your Kindle books on a Nook, for example.) Though DRM can be stripped from your files with tools you can find online, [it's technically illegal](https://lifehacker.com/tech/you-can-remove-drm-from-your-digital-books-but-its-probably-illegal) (stern frowny face emoji) so you'll need to either purchase books in EPUB format without DRM or download public domain titles from sources like [Project Gutenberg](https://www.gutenberg.org/ "open in a new window") if you want to load them onto the Xteink X4 with your sense of moral superiority intact. ### Loading files is a bit fussy Once you do have your files ready, you can get them on the device in a couple of different ways. You can remove the SD card, stick it into a card reader, mount it to your computer, and drag the files onto it (this wasn't an option for me, however, as my work laptop won't let me mount external drives). You can also transfer files via wifi by logging the Xteink X4 into your wifi, then setting it up as a hotspot, connecting your computer, and typing a specific URL into a browser window, which will open up some simple file-sharing options that allow you to upload books, fonts, and image files. (There's an additional menu option for "Upload from Phone" but when you select it, you get a popup that says "Feature in development.") Once loaded, your books (and all your other files) show up in the same Folder. ## Xteink X4: The reading experience ![Reading outdoors on the Xteink X4](https://lifehacker.com/imagery/reviews/01KBN2VCKW3DVD62DKZMP0N5SW/images-3.fill.size_2000x1125.v1764865454.png) Spot the minor formatting errors. Credit: Joel Cunningham Once you've got your books loaded up, the reading experience is better than you might expect from such an inexpensive gadget. At 220ppi, the screen is crisp enough to be easily readable, though as with a paper book, there's no lighting, so you'll need to provide your own (I recommend light bulbs, but the sun works well if you're outdoors during the day). What do you think so far? Your books won't look _great_—there are only two pre-installed fonts (though you can install more, in BIN format), and though there have been regular improvements to the software since I first started testing it back in December 2025, formatting options remain limited. While books will now display their cover images on the device home screen, for example, images still won't appear within the book itself. Navigating from the table of contents to a specific chapter is still hit or miss too—there are workarounds for this in the e-book navigation menus, but they are pretty clunky and involve a lot of guesswork. Perhaps a bigger issue: Text styling like paragraph indents, italics, bold, and underlining are currently spotty at best, and non-functional at worst, which can make some books tricky to parse—I'm currently reading a book that occasionally quotes song lyrics in offset italics, which just render as lines of regular text on the Xteink X4. Confusing! The silver lining here is that, as noted, this is still a fairly new product, and the developers promise to do their best to continue making the software better via over-the-air updates. (There have already been several since I started using it late last year.) On the plus side, there's an optional system-level dark mode that looks pretty decent, if dark mode is your thing. You can also create bookmarks by holding down the left hand button on the lower bezel. ## Xteink X4: The CrossPoint Reader custom firmware experience ![The Xteink X4 displaying the CrossPoint firmware with the Infinite Jest ebook cover visible. The device is sitting on top of a text copy of Infinite Jest.](https://lifehacker.com/imagery/reviews/01KBN2VCKW3DVD62DKZMP0N5SW/images-4.fill.size_2000x1125.v1774889800.png) Credit: Joel Cunningham As noted above, however, you need not resign yourself to the software that ships with the device. The Xteink X4 has already developed a cult following of programmers and tinkerers online, and these folks have gone so far as to craft an entire custom operating system for the device, which they've dubbed [CrossPoint Reader](https://github.com/crosspoint-reader/crosspoint-reader "open in a new window"). The CrossPoint OS can be flashed on the device by hooking it up to your laptop with a USB-C cable, navigating to [this website](https://xteink.dve.al/ "open in a new window"), and clicking one button—no advanced technical knowledge needed. Once CrossPoint is installed, you'll suddenly find reading on the device is a lot closer to the experience you'd get from a Kindle (or at least, it's a lot more usable). There are more fonts and more options to adjust things like margins and paragraph breaks, and you'll have the ability to customize what all the different buttons do, change your home screen view, and more. While flashing with CrossPoint is hardly necessary to enjoy reading on the X4, it is unquestionably superior to the OS that ships with the device. It's the first thing I recommend doing after powering it on for the first time. ## The bottom line: Who the Xteink X4 is for If you've got a huge Kindle library or you're the type of person who just wants their tech to work without a hassle, [get an Amazon e-reader](https://lifehacker.com/tech/which-new-kindle-is-best-for-you). If you own a lot of books from different sources and want to read them all on the same device, an Android-based reader like the [Boox Palma 2](https://lifehacker.com/tech/i-already-destroyed-my-summer-reading-goal-thanks-to-the-boox-palma-2) or [Boox Go 7](https://lifehacker.com/tech/boox-go-7-review) will serve you well. But if you're a minimalist (or a techie who likes fiddling around with weird gadgets), I think you'll find this little guy incredibly endearing. Though there are about 10 different e-readers scattered around my home and I used to swear by my [$400 Boox Palma 2 Pro](https://lifehacker.com/tech/boox-palma-2-pro-review), since getting the Xteink X4, I've read the majority of my books on its tiny screen, and I've convinced a handful of people that they need one. (Hopefully I've now convinced you too.) ## How to buy the Xteink X4 I first wrote this review in December of 2025. Back then, the only ways to get the X4 were to [order it directly from the manufacturer](https://zdcs.link/z7MxkL?pageview_type=Standard&template=review&module=content_body&element=offer&item=text-link&element_label=order%20it%20directly%20from%20the%20manufacturer&object_type=review&short_url=z7MxkL&u=https%3A%2F%2Flifehacker.com%2Ftech%2Fxteink-x4-ereader-review&event_label=order%20it%20directly%20from%20the%20manufacturer "open in a new window"), or to [buy it on the Chinese e-commerce platform AliExpress](https://zdcs.link/QOgkoE?pageview_type=Standard&template=review&module=content_body&element=offer&item=text-link&element_label=buy%20it%20on%20the%20Chinese%20e-commerce%20platform%20AliExpress&object_type=review&short_url=QOgkoE&u=https%3A%2F%2Flifehacker.com%2Ftech%2Fxteink-x4-ereader-review&event_label=buy%20it%20on%20the%20Chinese%20e-commerce%20platform%20AliExpress "open in a new window"). Both these options had their downsides—Reddit is filled with complaints from buyers who say Xteink takes forever to ship their orders, while devices purchased from AliExpress are likely to come with the Chinese firmware installed, requiring users to mess around in the settings to switch them to English. Though you're still welcome to use either of those methods, most people in the U.S. will be happy to know that, as of a few weeks ago, [the device is now sold on Amazon](https://zdcs.link/QG8wxJ?pageview_type=Standard&template=review&module=content_body&element=offer&item=text-link&element_label=the%20device%20is%20now%20sold%20on%20Amazon&object_type=review&short_url=QG8wxJ&u=https%3A%2F%2Flifehacker.com%2Ftech%2Fxteink-x4-ereader-review&event_label=the%20device%20is%20now%20sold%20on%20Amazon "open in a new window"), meaning you can have it in your hands within a few days, and enjoy all the peace of mind offered by Amazon's flexible return policy. ## Xteink X4 Ereader Review FAQ ## Can I read my Kindle books on the Xteink X4? If you've got a large library of Kindle books and want to read them on your X4, you're probably out of luck. As noted above in the section about DRM, Kindle books come with special software that prevents them from being read on anything but a Kindle. There are ways to remove DRM, [but they're probably illegal](https://lifehacker.com/tech/you-can-remove-drm-from-your-digital-books-but-its-probably-illegal), and they require you to have a downloaded file of the book—but Amazon no longer lets you download your Kindle files directly. ## Will the Xteink X4 fit on the back of my iPhone? Don't be fooled by marketing images that show the X4 attached to the back on an iPhone. Though it does have a built-in magnetic ring that will attach to an iPhone's MagSafe connection, the device is too large to fit snugly on standard-sized iPhones, and it doesn't line up properly with the larger Max devices either. ## Does the Xteink X4 have a front light? The X4 is pretty bare bones by design, which means it lacks some features that have become standard on other e-readers—including a built-in front light. You'll have to provide your own lighting if you want to read in a dark room. ![Joel Cunningham author illustration](https://lifehacker.com/imagery/authors/01HF2FBFEP3QZKNBKWAKSHQ5P3/image.fill.size_150x150.v1743539315.jpg) Joel Cunningham Deputy Editor Covering e-readers, social media, entertainment, and more. [Read Joel's full bio](https://lifehacker.com/author/joelcunningham) More by Joel * * * * * * * * *