I don’t really know how they do it, but some do run newer Android versions like Android 14 (Meebook M8, Bigme B7). Anyway, the lack of Play store isn’t really a consideration in China, it’s only for foreign markets they have to include the Play store. This also means that China has many more Android e-ink brands than are available to us (which mostly are Boox, Meebook, Bigme or Hisense).

To be honest I don’t really find them prohibitively expensive if you count the value you’ll get from them over the years. I have both a Kobo Libra 2 and an Android Boox Page, which I bought for different use cases. I see them both lasting me many years. My previous Kobo Aura One lasted me 7 years in itself before I sold it 2nd hand. My reading skyrocketed once I bought an e-reader.

It’s better to pay for a VPN provider that is verified to work in China. And no, they won’t kidnap you for using a VPN as some people write here. It’s a non-issue just to bypass the GFW. The issue is when you write to a Chinese audience things that the CCP do not like.

You don’t have to set up your own VPN. Many public providers work.

Love my Boox Page

One of the worlds greatest wonders

Been switching between Literata and Vollkorn on my ereader. It’s super subjective in the end

I used it for a bit on my e-reader but decided to switch away from it. It’s quite good either way.

Exactly this.

At the same time, China is a more united place than Europe which consists of various countries with their own economy and culture. And to be fair, some countries have had their fair share of tech giants, like Spotify, Klarna or Ericsson from Sweden for example.