Boy, is my wife mad at Amazon for killing off the wonderful Oasis line of premium Kindle e-book readers. I, too, am upset—she’s due for an upgrade and the holidays are right around the corner.
She likes the Oasis’s buttons—the physical, tangible, clicky-clacky, tried and true buttons for turning pages. Amazon says they’re going all in on “touch-forward” devices—i.e. no more buttons.
Fortunately in today’s touchscreen-dominated world, a few brave e-reader manufacturers continue to champion the tactile experience of physical page-turn buttons.
Here are some of the unsung heroes keeping the tradition alive.
Barnes & Noble
Despite facing stiff competition in the e-reader market, Barnes & Noble has consistently included physical buttons in its Nook line of devices.
The latest offerings from the GlowLight series of e-readers start at $150 and incorporate modern features like adjustable color temperature and USB-C charging. And buttons, of course.
Being a bookseller, Barnes & Noble offers a huge variety of downloadable content from its store. If you’re worried about missing out on the ease of downloading books to your Kindle, you’ll feel right at home here.
Kobo
Rakuten’s Kobo has emerged as a major player in the e-reader market by thoughtfully balancing innovation with traditional features.
While not all its models include physical buttons, its premium devices like the $220 Libra Colour and the $270 Sage demonstrate a commitment to tactile controls.
These devices also support bonus features like stylus input and note-taking.
Onyx Boox
ONYX BOOX has carved out a unique niche by creating versatile E Ink devices that bridge the gap between e-readers and tablets.
The 7-inch Boox Page costs $220 and puts e-reading features front and center. Under the hood, though, it’s got a powerful chipset and runs Android, which makes it ideal for tasks beyond book reading such as light web browsing and third-party app usage.