The new portable E Ink monitor from Dasung features a refresh rate of 60Hz.
E Ink receives a speed increase.
Dasung has introduced a new compact E Ink monitor, which is the company's first to offer a refresh rate of 60Hz. The Paperlike 103 features a 10.3-inch electronic paper panel, making it comparable in size to devices like the Boox Go 10.3 or the Amazon Kindle Scribe. The latter usually have limited refresh rates, but by raising the refresh rate of the Paperlike 103 to 60Hz, this portable monitor allows users to enjoy the benefits of E Ink, such as reduced eye strain and low power consumption, while tasks like scrolling through documents and web pages, and even watching videos, become smoother, resembling the experience on LCD and OLED screens.
The price of the Paperlike 103 is 1,999 yuan, which is approximately $274, and pre-orders can already be made through the Chinese retailer Jing Dong. Although it is not yet available globally, Dasung generally distributes all its products outside of China over time. The company offers a similar version of the Paperlike 103 that starts at $699 and features a larger 13.3-inch E Ink panel. This version has a refresh rate limited to 40Hz, but a comparison of its performance against an LCD suggests that the Paperlike 103 could exhibit even fewer residual image effects.
With a low-power E Ink panel, the Paperlike 103 draws all the energy it needs through a USB-C port. Its resolution is 1,872 x 1,404 pixels in a 4:3 aspect ratio, and at 227 ppi, it falls slightly short of the 300 ppi offered by E Ink displays in the Kindle Paperwhite, Scribe, and other e-readers released in recent years. However, the Paperlike 103 provides similar lighting options with LEDs on the edge of the screen that do not directly illuminate the eyes, along with color temperature adjustments ranging from cool to warm to reduce eye strain—ideal for long usage sessions.
The monitor's body is made of aluminum alloy and has a thickness of just five millimeters, making it lightweight and sufficiently durable to withstand accidental compression in a backpack. Furthermore, it does not have a battery, avoiding an increase in bulk and weight. The Paperlike 103 connects to source devices like computers and mobile phones via USB-C and is equipped with a set of six physical buttons on the left edge that allow users to turn the monitor on and off, adjust brightness and color temperature of the lighting, and switch between different viewing modes optimized for text, video, or images.
