Xteink X4 Pro - A Cult Favorite Pocket E-Reader Finally Gets a Frontlight

Plenty of brands have tried making a pocket e-reader over the years, but very few have managed to shrink one down to something that genuinely fits in your pocket. Having already ordered and used the Xteink X3 myself, the news that its successor, the X4 Pro, finally adds the frontlight I'd been missing — for just $99 — immediately caught my attention.

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📊 Quick Info

Item	Details
Brand	Xteink
Price	$99
Materials/Specs	Compact E-Ink panel, newly added frontlight, form factor smaller than a smartphone
Key Feature	A frontlight for reading in the dark + retaining its extremely small, portable form
One-line Verdict	⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ Precisely addresses the one weak point of this cult-favorite model

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✨ 3-Line Summary

• 👍 Best Feature: Adds a frontlight while keeping the ultra-compact form factor that's noticeably smaller than a phone
• 👎 Downside: The small screen makes it better suited for short reads and niche reading sessions than long novels
• 🎯 Recommended For: Anyone who's already used the X3, or anyone hunting for an extremely small e-reader

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📸 Product Gallery

Held on top of a smartphone — noticeably smaller than the phone itself

The screen with the frontlight turned on

Button and touch page-turning, carried in a pouch, and a comparison of its 5.95mm thickness

Front, side, and back three-way view

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🔍 Why I'm Interested

The relief of having actually used the X3

I've been using an X3 I ordered myself — 58g and 5.1mm thick — and the one thing I found lacking was the absence of a frontlight. In a dark room, I always ended up needing a separate light source. Seeing the successor address exactly that gap felt like a sign the brand is genuinely listening to user feedback.

Adding a feature without growing the form factor

Adding a frontlight usually means adding thickness or weight, so if the X4 Pro really kept its "smaller than a phone" identity intact, that's a well-restrained piece of engineering.

Why the cult following makes sense

Part of this brand's appeal is its active open-firmware community (like CrossPoint). Beyond the hardware improvements, there's the added fun of flashing custom firmware, which extends its appeal as an EDC hobby item too.

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🤔 Points to Consider

Real-world frontlight uniformity is unverified

The spec sheet says a frontlight has been added, but actual brightness uniformity and glare will need more hands-on reviews before we can really judge them.

The fundamental limits of a tiny screen

No matter how good the frontlight gets, the physical limitation of a small screen remains. It's still better suited to short pieces, newsletters, or notes than to sitting down and reading a novel cover to cover.

Domestic purchase/shipping needs confirming

Since I ordered the X3 from overseas, the X4 Pro will likely also be more accessible through direct overseas ordering than official domestic distribution.

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📋 Product Features (Subjective Rating)

• Design: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Portability: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Practicality: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
• Value for Money: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆

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🛒 Before You Buy

✅ Recommended For

• Anyone who's used the Xteink X3 and found the missing frontlight to be its only drawback
• Anyone who enjoys niche reading on an e-reader smaller than their phone

❌ Not Recommended For

• Anyone who wants a large screen for comfortably reading long novels
• Anyone already satisfied with a bigger e-reader (like a Kindle)

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🎯 Final Verdict

The successor addressing the exact one shortcoming I noticed while actually using the X3 — the lack of a frontlight — makes this feel like a pretty direct hit for me. Adding functionality while keeping the form factor intact also inspires confidence in its design.

That said, the fundamental nature of its tiny screen hasn't changed, so it makes more sense to approach this as "the backup reader that's always in your pocket" rather than your "main e-reader." As an X3 user, this is a product that genuinely has me considering an upgrade.

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Source: Yanko Design Product Page