Boox Previews 3.97-Inch Picco eReader for November Launch as $100 Pricing Looms

Q: Can a four-inch screen really save your reading habit, or will this tiny device just cause massive eye strain?

A four-inch e-reader can help some people read more, but it is unlikely to be the most comfortable device for long sessions. The strongest case for the Boox Picco is portability. Its 3.97-inch E Ink screen, phone-like shape, front light and physical page buttons make it easy to carry everywhere and use in short bursts on trains, in queues or between tasks. That matters because habit often depends less on screen size than on whether the device is actually with you. Pocket readers such as the Xteink X4 Pro have shown there is real demand for this “always available” reading style. On eye strain, the screen technology helps. E Ink is generally easier on the eyes than a phone’s bright LCD or OLED display because it is glare-free and reflective like paper. The Picco’s front light should also be gentler than a phone screen in dim settings. So the risk is not “massive” eye strain in the way a small, backlit phone can cause. The trade-off is readability comfort. A four-inch display shows much less text than the 6- to 7-inch screens used by mainstream Kindles and Kobos, so users will turn pages more often and may need to adjust font size carefully. For people with weaker eyesight or those who read for hours at a time, that can become tiring even on E Ink. The Picco looks best suited as a companion device for quick, distraction-free reading of DRM-free books, not as a universal replacement for a standard e-reader.

3 articles · Updated · How-To Geek · Sep 6

Boox showed off the Picco at IFA 2026, positioning the 3.97-inch pocket eReader as a more polished alternative in a fast-growing but compromise-heavy niche.
USB-C, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and a microSD slot are built in, while Boox drops Android for proprietary software to preserve the tiny form factor and battery life.
Price, battery life and format support remain undisclosed ahead of the expected November launch, leaving open whether the device can handle protected EPUBs, Kindle books or library services like Libby.
The $100 Xteink X4 Pro sets the key benchmark: if Boox matches or undercuts that level, the Picco could push ultra-compact eReaders further into the mainstream.