BOOX Note Air 4 C · Guides
Make Android apps look right on the BOOX Note Air 4 C
What the BOOX refresh modes do, when to use colour versus black-and-white, which mode to use for reading versus scrolling, and how to stop ghosting and grey text.
Almost every complaint about a BOOX comes down to refresh settings left on the defaults, and on a colour device there is one extra rule: read plain text in black-and-white mode for the sharpest result, and turn colour on only for content that needs it. Sharpest, slowest mode for reading; a faster mode for scrolling and colour; full refresh every page or few pages for anything that ghosts. Set these once per app and the Note Air 4 C stops feeling like a compromise.
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Understand why apps look wrong at first
Android apps assume a fast colour screen that redraws 60 times a second. E-ink redraws slowly and leaves a faint trace of the last image (ghosting). BOOX bridges the gap with "refresh modes" that trade sharpness for speed, applied globally and per app.
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Know what the colour layer costs
The Kaleido 3 colour screen puts a colour filter over the black-and-white panel. Colour content looks muted and slightly lower-resolution than the crisp black text, and colour needs a faster (less sharp) refresh mode. For plain reading, switch the device or the app to black-and-white mode — text is noticeably sharper.
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Learn the four modes
From sharpest and slowest to fastest and roughest, the modes are usually named HD (or Regal), Balanced (or Normal), Fast (or Speed), and Ultrafast (or A2). HD is for reading still pages of text. Balanced is a good all-rounder and the usual choice for colour. Fast and Ultrafast are for scrolling and video-like content and make text look grainy.
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Set a sensible global default
In the control centre (swipe down from top-right), set the global mode to Balanced or Regal. This is what any app uses until you give it its own setting. Do not leave the global mode on a fast setting — everything looks grey.
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Give reading apps a slow, clean mode
For the Kindle app, Kobo app, KOReader and any text reader, set the per-app refresh mode to HD or Regal, and use black-and-white mode unless the book has colour images you care about. Text is a still image between page turns, so it should get the sharpest mode.
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Give browsing, comics and magazines a faster mode
For a web browser, a file manager, a comic reader or a colour magazine app, allow Balanced or Fast so scrolling is not painful, and keep colour on. You can switch a single app's mode on the fly from the control centre while it is open.
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Fix ghosting with full refresh
Ghosting builds up over several page turns and is more visible on the colour screen. In a per-app setting, turn on "full refresh every 1 page" for the worst offenders, or every 5 pages as a compromise. There is also a manual "full-screen refresh" button in the control centre.
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Fix grey or faint text
If text looks washed out, turn on "bleach whites" or "enhance contrast" for that app, switch that app to black-and-white, and set its own theme to plain light. Avoid dark mode on e-ink — inverted text ghosts badly.