Hardware - It’s been a month since I got my first xteink, the X4 Pro. I was definitely skeptical about the size at first. But considering it’s half of a 6 inch screen, I took the plunge and boy am I glad I did. I easily finished 6 books on the X4 Pro and the one thing that really surprised me about this little device was the weight. Unbelievably lightweight even with the case on. It’s now going to be my first recommendation for people who get pain easily when they read too long. 

Software - I’m currently on the Chinese stock firmware XTOS v7.6.11 and super chuffed it has some of the new features that Licorice has (epub cover for off screen, ttf support). It’s probably slower because it’s not beta like Licorice is. I’m looking forward to future updates with the other features I’ve seen like dictionary support, statistics, jump-to progress bar, etc. 

Here’s my post on the mini library - https://www.reddit.com/r/ereader/s/GEkR8Y4Mxe

I lowkey want another xteink (looking at you X3, lol) but it’s really just a want, not a need. If I do get it, it’ll probably be left in a drawer anyway since I love the X4 Pro so much. Maybe when an X3 Pro comes out or a color version (hot take, I know, but I like to see my covers in color lol). 

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Ink-boy,

My custom firmware built on crossink that can run Gameboy games on the xteink X4 pro

Https://GitHub.com/hellominecraft913-dev/Ink-boy

Enjoy!

I picked up an X3 during the Amazon lightning deal last month and started hearing how fragile the screen is, so I had to find a matching cover, although the wallpaper looks far better.

First photo: Composition book covers on MacBook Air 13, iPad Mini, and X3.
Second photo: X3 with composition book wallpaper.

Hello,

Following up on my earlier TTF/OTF post. That one was about getting custom fonts working. This is about making the text actually look good.

TLDR: You don't need AA anymore, the base quality of the font is great now thanks to FreeType and hinting.

Link: XPoint Release v2.2.0

I swapped the font engine for FreeType

The reader was drawing text with an old built-in font engine. On PSRAM boards (X4 Pro, and any other board with PSRAM) it now uses FreeType instead, which is what proper e-readers use. Same for you as a user: drop your .ttf or .otf into /fonts or /.fonts like before, and the text just looks better.

What changed for the better:

1. Crisp, clean letters. The old way drew text in shades of grey and then messed with it to fake it into black and white, which made small text look smudged. Now it draws straight to black and white. Sharper letters, and it does less work doing it.
2. Text lines up properly. Letters now sit neatly on the screen grid instead of wobbling slightly off it. This is most obvious on body text at the smaller reading sizes, which is where smudged text is hardest to read for a long session.
3. Faster page turns. Fonts stay loaded between pages, so turning a page no longer re-reads the font you were already looking at.

This is the release I am happiest with, because it is the one that makes an actual difference to sitting down and reading. The fonts you already use will just look better.

What else is in the fork

Nine things only my fork has, made for the X4 Pro. They are on by default, they are not in the main Crosspoint, and they stay out of your way until you want them.

1. Reading stats on the home screen. Per-book and overall stats, with a proper words-per-minute reading speed. Design credit to u/uxjulia.
2. Reading Rhythm. See your reading sessions over time: when you read, how long you read, and how your pace changed. This one made me look at my own habits differently.
3. An honest words-per-minute number. Most readers divide your word count by how long the page was on screen, which really means "how long until I got bored or interrupted." This one measures the actual time you spend on each page and smooths it out, the same way a Kindle does.
4. Reading Achievement. Your milestones over time: books finished, pages turned, time read, longest session, and the days you actually sat down and read.
5. Finished Books. A shelf of what you finished and how long each one took, so the books you gave up on stop sitting next to the ones you loved.
6. Time left in the chapter. A live "47 min left" in the status bar, based on your real reading speed. Show it on the left, the right, or hide it.
7. Time left and progress on every book cover. "42% - 2h 30m" right under each book in Recent books, so you know where you left off without opening anything.
8. Frontlight side-swipe gestures (frontlight-equipped devices only): while reading, swipe up and down on the edges of the screen. Left edge changes the colour temperature (up is warmer, down is cooler), right edge changes brightness (up is brighter, down is dimmer), and sliding all the way down on the right turns the light off. Works whether or not you have touch controls on, and you can switch it off in Settings → Display.
9. Configurable Home button. Short press, double press, and long press are three separate actions you can each choose in Settings → Controls.

Credit where it is due: the stats card design is u/uxjulia's CrossInk, and the Reading Rhythm, Reading Achievement, and Finished Books screens are ported from u/Sichroteph's YACP.

One more thing worth knowing: every release ships with a signed file that the device checks before it installs anything, so a corrupted or tampered update gets rejected instead of installed.

I apoligize for the delay, I announced that I would upload the Quran files for the X4 reader in the best possible quality. It took some time, but I finally managed to finish it today!

I have attached the ZIP file with all the files included.

I ask Allah to make this beneficial for all of us. Please feel free to share this with anyone else who has an X4 reader!

https://www.mediafire.com/file/dtaij9jfccvfjlm/Quran\_Xteink\_X4.zip/file

I was putting together an everyday carry shot and realized how quickly certain things just become part of the routine.

Wallet, glasses, a few small essentials — and lately, something to read.

A pocket eReader is one of those things I barely think about carrying anymore. It just stays in the bag.

Curious what other people consider a genuine everyday essential.

Personally, I will not use the X3 for daily reading, but more for emergency reading.

If I'm going somewhere without my current reader, this is a good alternative to read on the go.

I bought this as a digital photocard in mind 😍

Rather than constantly buying paper photocards, this is a good alternative.

Overpriced photocard or is it a way of not wasting paper (and space)? 🤔