Is this the dawn of a paradigm shift in how we consume screens? That's what Asian companies like Bigme think, with their Hibreak Pro, a smartphone featuring a beautiful E Ink display. Here's a complete review to see what this device has in store.
Note: This smartphone was sent to me by the brand so that I could present it to you.
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Here's where you can get this E Ink smartphone:
Unboxing and Packaging
The box the Bigme Hibreak Pro smartphone comes in is quite standard: a small cardboard box, a charging cable, and a quick start guide.
As it's a smartphone, it runs on Android 14, an operating system you're likely very familiar with, allowing you to install numerous reading, entertainment, and work applications.
Even though Bigme is known for its e-readers (also running Android), they've decided to offer something different this time, aimed at users looking to implement a digital detox without cutting themselves off from their favorite apps.
As we'll see, the black and white E Ink screen completely changes the game regarding smartphone use. To explain this, I'll obviously talk about my personal experience and how I use this type of tool.
After examining the HiBreak Pro, the build quality appears to be good, with smooth plastics that are pleasant to the touch and a minimalist off-white style reminiscent of Apple's best days.
On the right edge, you'll find the usual three buttons: a power button and two volume control buttons. On the left edge, there are two other buttons.
On the bottom edge, there's the SIM card slot (it is indeed a smartphone) and the USB-C charging port.
The device is equipped with a front-facing video sensor and a 20MP sensor on the back.
Upon turning it on, you'll be pleased to find a black and white E Ink screen with excellent resolution and a very smooth touch.
You'll be prompted to select your language, Wi-Fi network, and install a system update (allow about ten minutes). Then, you'll access the smartphone's home screen, which allows access to all applications.
Overall, this smartphone from Bigme makes a good first impression.
In the rest of the review, I won't dwell on the phone's features: it's a smartphone as you know.
Ebook Reading and Screen
This HiBreak Pro promises to merge your e-reader with your smartphone and combine it all into one easy-to-carry device.
That's the case because, with classic smartphone dimensions, you end up with a device that's much more portable than an e-reader while retaining the reading comfort of an E Ink screen.
Bigme offers two reading applications for reading ebooks: xReader and xReader Pro. Both applications work well, with most of the classic options you'd expect from an e-reader:
- Font size
- Line spacing
- Margins
- Font selection
In these reading applications, the volume buttons on the side of the device also allow you to turn pages, which is very convenient.
Indeed, unlike a Kindle or a Kobo, you hold the HiBreak Pro in one hand. It's therefore very easy to turn the pages using these buttons!
The screen displays the characters very well, and the pages also display very quickly. It's even one of the fastest reading devices I've had in my hands (along with the Kindle and Kindle Paperwhite e-readers).
The HiBreak Pro uses the Android system, and you have access to the Google Play application ("Play Store") to install other applications. So, you can use the reading application of your choice.
For those with a library already well-stocked with EPUB files, my version of this smartphone has 256 GB of storage, which should be more than enough.
But remember that this isn't just a reading device, and the storage will also be used by your applications, videos, photos, and music.
Now let's move on to the E Ink screen. It's a 6.13 inch diagonal that offers a nice screen area, even if it's much taller than it is wide. In terms of display precision, it has a high definition of 300 PPI, which is perfect for this type of screen.
The integrated lighting does a very good job, and it will be possible to activate a blue light filter (which tints the screen a yellow/orange color) for more comfort.
It should also be noted that there are different profiles for the lighting, which will allow you to define a lighting intensity for the night, for example.
There's also a dark mode called "color inversion" here, which works throughout the system (not just in the reading application).
Finally, as this HiBreak Pro is a versatile device, there's an E Ink control center that allows you to adjust the display properties of the electronic ink, according to different profiles:
- Default: versatile display mode
- Magazine: slower display but with better definition and precision of characters and images
- Comic book
- Video: less precise but faster display.
- Custom: to make your own settings.
You'll therefore sometimes have to test to find the best compromise between display precision and speed. However, and from my experience, leaving the default mode works well in most cases.
So, the screen is very pleasant, even if we'll see later that there are still drawbacks due to the technology used.
Video and Various Applications
Let's talk about the first noticeable drawback: the screen doesn't do wonders with video. As you can read in the specifications, this smartphone uses a screen coupled with "SSS" fast refresh technology (21 frames per second). This seems to be a software technology similar to Kobo's FastGLR.
Even though 21 frames per second is an excellent refresh rate for an E Ink screen, it's obvious that this type of screen won't be suitable for video (Netflix or other) and dynamic video games that require significant reflexes.
But that's quite logical: E Ink wasn't designed to display video. So, it's already a feat to be able to watch YouTube videos with this smartphone because, yes, it's possible!
And there are even 2 advantages to this screen:
- It works very well in direct sunlight: no more readability problems like with other LED or OLED smartphones, it's a real joy to use this smartphone outdoors.
- It allowed me to limit my consumption of harmful content, like social networks.
I'll come back to the second point a little later.
So, as this device isn't designed for video, it won't be suitable for video games either. Moreover, more than fluidity, it's especially (for me) the lack of color that's problematic for this type of content.
Apart from that, you can install the applications you want from the Play Store, and you have a complete and fully functional Internet browser. Internet browsing works completely, and you can even consult sites like YouTube or Facebook from the browser.
This isn't surprising, since this HiBreak Pro is a true complete smartphone.
Photography and Video
A smartphone review wouldn't be complete without talking about photography and video shooting.
Even though I'm not an expert, I noticed that the photo sensor lacked precision. It allows you to take photos, but clearly not as successful as on my Honor Magic 6.
For video, it allows you to film in 1920×1080 pixels (full HD resolution), but it has significant difficulties when the light is low.
It's clearly not a device truly capable in photography, even if it's interesting to have this option anyway.
In any case, you can still use it to take some photos.
Note that the photo application (the camera) provided with this smartphone is very minimalist: it would therefore be conceivable to improve things by using another application available on the Play Store.
Integrated Bookstore
There's no real bookstore integrated into this smartphone. So, you'll have to install an application like Kobo or Kindle to enjoy ebooks.
You can also quickly load your EPUB files by copying them into the "Books" folder of the device if you want to use the default application.
This is also one of the advantages of this HiBreak Pro: it allows you to find all your digital books in one device, regardless of their origin!
Technical Specifications and Other Features
Finally, to complete this tour of the features, this device also offers interesting functions:
- GPS for navigation applications
- Bluetooth: connection of wireless speakers, for example
- NFC
- Fast charging
Here are the technical characteristics of this Hibreak Pro:
- Processor: Mediatek Dimensity 1080
- RAM: 8 GB
- Storage: 256 GB
- Screen: 6.13 inch ePaper (electronic ink), 300 PPI, Black and White
- Battery: 4500mAh
- Fast Charge: 18W
- Rear Camera: 20MP (optimized for document scanning with automatic OCR)
- SIM: Dual SIM (5G Dual SIM Dual Standby)
- Connectivity: 5G, 4G
- 5G NR Bands: NSA : N1/2/3/5/7/8/20/25/28/38/40/41/66/77/78 ; SA : N1/2/3/5/7/8/20/25/28/38/41/77/78
- 4G LTE Bands: LTE-FDD : B1/2/3/4/5/7/8/12/13/17/18/19/20/25/26/28/66 ; LTE-FDD : B34/B39/B38/B40/B41
- Operating system: Android 14 with Google Play Store
- Other: Integrated compass, "SSS" fast refresh technology (21 frames per second), Patented automatic ghost image removal technology, TTS (Text-to-Speech), text translation, annotation, Available in White or Black.
A Smart Digital Detox Tool
For years, I've been following the "digital detox" movement, which aims to take a break from, or cut off, all digital tools to reduce mental load or, at least, find some time away from screens.
But, I notice that cutting yourself off from certain digital tools also means cutting yourself off from the world and, sometimes, from our loved ones. Because how can you find peace if you find yourself alone?
This is, in any case, something I think about regularly. As such, I think an e-reader is a digital detox tool, even if it's an electronic device.
Still, this HiBreak Pro smartphone offers a different approach. Thus, the device has considerably reduced my consumption of Internet content.
When I used it, I found myself consulting only the essentials: a few emails, messages from family or work (texting, WhatsApp).
Of course, I still consulted my favorite sources of entertainment, like YouTube (I can spend hours there normally). But, using a smartphone with an E Ink screen, the funny videos seemed much less entertaining. So, I watched more informative videos, whose narration or voice are at the center of their concept.
Thus, I was able to keep a lot of time for myself or my work.
So, I think that rather than trying to cut yourself off completely from digital sources, it's better to use them and consume them wisely. And this HiBreak Pro smartphone is an excellent way to achieve this.
In any case, I can't wait to know the opinion of those who will buy or try this smartphone!
Conclusion: One of the Best Digital Devices I've Tested
Even though this device has some flaws, I consider it to be a truly innovative and particularly interesting concept for those who are looking to use their smartphone differently.
Regarding reading, its screen is remarkable, even if it takes some getting used to in order to fully enjoy its tall format. But, once that's done, it's a very practical and complete reading machine (you can also read audiobooks with Audible, for example).
The only real complaints are related to its photo sensor, which is far from great, and, of course, its price.
As I write these lines, this HiBreak Pro is available for around $450. It's a bit expensive for a smartphone, even if that's perfectly understandable since it uses an E Ink screen that's technically complicated to manufacture.
But, at a time when you have to spend around $180 for a good e-reader with a high-definition screen, the purchase of this HiBreak Pro is quite relevant.
Finally, I warmly recommend that you consider purchasing this smartphone if you want to limit your consumption of video, games, or social networks!
Advantages:
- A real Android smartphone with a high-definition E Ink screen
- A digital detox tool that doesn't cut you off from the world
Disadvantages:
- Photo sensor not great
- Price
Here's where you can get this E Ink smartphone:
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