The best Xteink X4 Pro alternatives in 2026, by what you want to fix

It's worth being clear about why the X4 Pro is popular before looking past it. For $99 at Xteink ($109 with the charging stand), you get a 4.3-inch touchscreen plus side page-turn buttons, a warm/cool front light, a 1,100 mAh battery and a magnetic back, in a 72 g body. Stark Insider gave it 5/5 and TechCrunch found it good enough to use as a main reader.

Its software story has also improved: the open-source CrossPoint firmware, which most owners install, has officially supported the X4 Pro since version 1.6.0 on 5 September 2026. If you're happy with all that, it remains a solid buy.

The same complaints come up across reviews and owner forums:

• Charging: a magnetic pogo-pin cable with a small adapter that's easy to lose, instead of plain USB-C.
• Sharpness: at 219 PPI, small text is softer than on sharper readers. One Lifehacker reviewer found it less crisp than Xteink's own 259 PPI X3.
• Light: TechCrunch found the lowest setting still too bright for a dark bedroom, and some owners report the light switching off between page turns on Xteink's stock firmware.
• Water: it has no water-resistance rating.
• Availability: it has sold out repeatedly since launch.
• Books: like most pocket readers, it reads DRM-free files only, so Kindle purchases and Libby loans won't open.

Moov is built for the same job as the X4 Pro: a front-lit touchscreen with physical page-turn buttons, in a body that rides in a pocket or on the back of your phone. It differs where the X4 Pro draws complaints: it charges and transfers files over USB-C, its 4.5-inch screen is larger, and it measures 110 × 66 × 6 mm, a slightly smaller footprint than the X4 Pro's 111 × 69 mm.

Moov Lite ($99) matches the X4 Pro's 219 PPI on the bigger screen. Moov Pro ($129) steps up to 300 PPI, the first pocket-sized e-reader we know of at that sharpness, adds IPX8 water resistance and enhanced PDF reflow. Both run CrossPoint out of the box, support EPUB, MOBI, TXT and PDF, and take books from the IKAWE companion app. The X4 Pro is 3 g lighter and cheaper on sale, and it's been reviewed far more widely. This is our reader, so weigh this pick accordingly; the full Moov vs X4 Pro comparison goes into detail.

The Boox Picco is the most direct small alternative: a 3.97-inch, 235 PPI touchscreen with a warm/cool front light, physical page-turn and function buttons, USB-C and a 920 mAh battery, in a 105.5 × 62 × 5.5 mm body of about 58 g. It costs $109.99 from Boox's US warehouse or $99.99 from Hong Kong, and preorders ship around November.

The catches are in the software: it runs Boox's own closed, non-Android system, books go on through Boox's Tiles app or website, and it doesn't open PDFs (The eBook Reader called the transfer process "a serious sticking point"). The reader itself has no magnets; a $12.99 case adds a magnetic ring.

If you liked the X4 Pro's size but not its price, Xteink's button-only readers cost less. The X4 Classic ($79 on sale) is thinner at 4.9 mm, with page-turn buttons on both sides and tilt- or shake-to-turn, a 920 mAh battery and an ESP32-S3 chip; CrossPoint supports it from version 1.6.5. The X3 ($69 on sale) is smaller and sharper at 3.7 inches and 259 PPI. Neither has a front light or touchscreen, both charge through pogo pins, and the X4 Classic was listed as sold out when we checked. More in Xteink e-readers explained.

A 6-inch reader weighs more than twice as much as the X4 Pro, but solves its biggest limitation: books. These connect to stores and libraries:

• Kobo Clara BW ($159.99): 6-inch, 300 PPI, IPX8, warm light, Kobo store and Libby built in, 174 g.
• Kindle (2026) ($149.99): 6-inch, 300 PPI, the Kindle store and Amazon's library integration in the US.
• PocketBook Q (€199, expected late 2026): 5.84-inch, 300 PPI, IPX4, Libby preinstalled, 130 g, shaped like a phone.
• Boox Palma 2 ($269.99) and Palma 3 ($339.99, coming soon): 6.13-inch, 300 PPI Android readers that run any reading app, at 170 and 195 g.

• Seeed reTerminal Sticky ($49.90): 3.97-inch touchscreen, USB-C and a magnet, no front light. A flashable e-paper gadget that runs CrossPoint.
• M5Stack Paper Mono ($65, or $55 for the Lite): a 3.97-inch e-paper development board with touch and a front light (CNX Software). Expect to build your own setup.
• Open Book Touch ($149, shipping by April 2027): an open-source 4.26-inch reader with a warm/cool light, crowdfunded on Crowd Supply.
• Xteink S4: a 4.3-inch Android reader with a front light and USB-C, but sold only in China, with no plans for an international release.