In the beginning, Amazon pushed the Kindle e-reader into mainstream popularity, and it was good. But then, in 2014, Boox dropped the i63ML Newton and changed the trajectory of the market forever by including access to the Google Play Store on its device (check out these awesome Boox e-readers). No longer were users locked into the default apps that their devices shipped with. Instead, they had the entire Android ecosystem at their fingertips. But not all apps are created equally, especially when it comes to running on E Ink-based devices. That’s why Android Police is on the beat to help you find the best Android apps for your E Ink e-reader.
1 Amazon Kindle
An great all-around e-reading app
Just about every E Ink tablet comes with a native e-reading app, but given the option to add one to your e-reader, you’d be hard-pressed to find one better to start with than Amazon Kindle. The Kindle app is more than just a simple e-book viewer. It has all of the basic functionality you need, like the ability to change fonts and typefaces, bookmark pages, highlight text, track progress, sync across devices, and so much more. On top of all that, you get access to Amazon’s vast library of e-books as well as its premium subscription service Kindle Unlimited.
Amazon isn’t the only name in the game when it comes to e-reading. There are lots of good apps out there. Moon+ Reader is extremely popular, and if you want access to books you can buy, PocketBook, Google Play Books, and Kobo Books are also solid choices.
What is Kindle Unlimited?
Our complete guide to Kindle Unlimited explains what it is, how it works, the cost, the type of content available, and why you should try it
2 EinkBro
Browsing bespoke for e-readers
Surfing the internet is an integral part of modern life, but most modern web browsers aren’t built with E Ink screens in mind, although it might be more accurate to say that the modern web isn’t built with e-reader accommodation in mind. The web is fluid and always moving with transitions and animations that render poorly on high-latency E Ink displays. EinkBro, the only E Ink–first browser, obviates these issues by preventing unnecessary animations and transitions. Further, its user interface is built around simple black-and-white icons that are easy to see on any E Ink screen.
EinkBro also comes with a slew of features that are purpose-built for e-readers. You can tap on the screen to page up or down, similar to turning pages in an e-book. You can use the volume or page-turn buttons to scroll, and you can even export web content to an EPUB file to read offline. If you want to get EinkBro for your Android-enabled e-reader, you can’t find it on the Play Store; you’ll have to use F-Droid or sideload the APK.
3 Hidden Folks
The perfect e-reader game is right under your nose
Most games on the Play Store are flashy with lots of animation and movement, taking advantage of ever-faster refresh rates to offer buttery smooth gameplay no matter how intense the action. E Ink is simply not capable of matching that kind of performance. Games that flourish on e-readers have minimal animation and don’t require updating the screen every half second. The game fits on E Ink screens perfectly while still being fun and engrossing; known as Hidden Folks, and it is a slick hidden object game any age can enjoy.
Similar to Where’s Waldo, without a mass of color, Hidden Folks is black and white with minimal animations. You can even invert the colors if you want to play in night mode.
Other types of games that do really well on e-readers are puzzles like crosswords/sudoku, visual novels, and choose-your-own-adventure titles.
4 Feedly
The news you want, when you want
There are a lot of apps out there that corral and deliver the news to you, but not all of them are suited for an e-reader. Purpose-built apps from big names like the New York Times are good, but most come with a subscription that not everyone is willing to pay; plus you only get your news from one source. That’s why when it comes to news, we like aggregators, and one of the best for your e-reader is Feedly.
There are a couple of factors that make Feedly well-suited for use on your Android-enabled E Ink device. The most important factor is that Feedly gives you the option to either load stories in its own minimalist web browser, or in the system browser (which you should set to EinkBro), saving you from the unending onslaught of internet advertisers. You can also customize your feed view to text only, letting you focus on the story and not the multimedia.
5 Fossify File Manager
Keep yourself organized
A good file manager is an essential part of any Android device. There are a lot of apps to choose from in this category, but Fossify File Manager makes the list because of its color customization and the fact that it’s open source. Other apps lock you into a Material You theme or, at most, offer you a light and dark theme, but Fossify File Manager gives you full control over the colors, meaning you can set up your theme the way you like it so that it’s easy to read on an E Ink screen. It even has a default black-and-white theme, so you don’t have to venture far in the settings.
Fossify File Manager is a complete file manager that lets you move, delete, rename, and decompress files. And because it’s open source, you won’t have to worry about watching an ad just to edit a directory.
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Make the most of your Android-based E Ink e-reader
It’s not easy finding apps purpose-built for E Ink devices, considering that over 90% of the market is controlled by either Kindle or Kobo, neither of which use Android in their e-readers. But the popularity of Android-based e-readers is growing, and with that growth, hopefully, we’ll see more apps built to thrive on E Ink.
