This tiny, magnetic e-reader could keep you from doomscrolling

It was love at first sight. It felt like scouring the mall, going in and out of big department stores looking for a specific, elusive item, only to finally find what you’re looking for. Except I didn’t even know I was looking for something like that Xteink X3because I never dared to dream of something so delightful: a tiny, MagSafe-compatible e-ink reader that could plug into my iPhone like a Pop Socket.

That was it. My life would change forever. I would get my hands on the Xteink X3 and stop doomscrolling forever. I would read more books than ever before… which is saying something since – brag – I read at least 50 books a year. But – no bragging – I probably spend more time on social media than reading. I know I generally feel less stressed when I limit my time on social media, but unfortunately, TikTok’s siren song beckons. What if instead of opening social media, I could just flip my phone over and read on a tiny Kindle-like e-ink screen? Could this $80 gadget fix me?

I have tried reading books (… or downloads from AO3) on my phone, immersing myself in a fantasy world, instead of the president’s posts in which he threatens to wipe out an entire country. But something about looking at my phone, where I’m constantly tempted to open Instagram to see what Reel sent me, doesn’t calm me like a book or an e-ink device like the Kindle.

I was so excited for my X3 to arrive that I kept refreshing the tracking link until it finally delivered. Even though I had carefully compared the dimensions of the X3 with my iPhone 16 or my Pop Socket wallet, I was still concerned that it might not fit – the previous model, the Xteink X4 (basically the same device but a little bigger) only fits larger phones like the iPhone Pro Max series. But sure enough, the X3 was magnetically attached to the back of my phone as if it was custom-made to fit.

My X3 came in the mail about two hours before I had to leave to go to a Phillies game, so I ran to put books in it because I thought it would be really funny to take pictures of me reading “The Power Broker” in a packed baseball field. Here is my project:

For the first few days I had the X3, I carried it around with me on the back of my phone. This made me a little nervous, though, as I’m used to having a Pop Socket wallet, which means I’m used to leaving the house without my actual wallet. But I found I used the X3 just as well when I carried it in my purse or pocket, rather than plugging it into my phone. I’m still not sure if I’ll keep this setup or if I’ll actually start using an actual wallet to be able to attach the reader, but for now, this is the most natural. Additionally, my X3 ships with a very compact, cute, magnetic case, which perfectly protects the device and its screen and makes it a little easier to hold. At just $9 for the case, I’d recommend getting one. The case can also be magnetized to your phone, though it feels a bit less secure than just attaching your X3.

During my two weeks of testing, I found that the X3 helped me read more. If you’re in line at a coffee shop or waiting for the bus, you can just pull out your ereader instead of opening Instagram. I didn’t find it difficult to read the small screen either. But just buying the device won’t change your habits – you have to remember that you have a 3.7-inch screen in your pocket that holds hundreds of books.

The Xteink X3 is very close to being my dream device, but it’s not there yet. The firmware that comes with the device is pretty flimsy – not useless, but not exactly intuitive. I expected this, as the Xteink Reddit community is buzzing CrossPointa free open source firmware created by the community. The process of downloading CrossPoint was a little intimidating as someone who writes words, rather than code – but with the instructions on the CrossPoint website (and a few videos), it was pretty easy. I ran into some difficulties at first, but then I realized it was because I was trying to download the X4 firmware to my X3, so… my bad. You probably won’t even need the YouTube videos!

When you start loading books and open source firmware onto your X3, you’ll notice another divisive aspect of the device: it doesn’t have a USB-C port, unlike the X4. Instead, it uses a magnetic charger. Yes, it’s annoying to have yet another charging cable specifically for this device, but I don’t really care. After two weeks of continuous use, my X3 dropped from 100% charge to 96%, so I can’t imagine I’ll be using this magnetic charger very often. You don’t even need the cable to add new books to your ereader – you can transfer files over Wi-Fi from your phone or computer (I wouldn’t call the process user-friendly, but I was able to figure it out without Googling anything).

Speaking of loading books, that’s another downside. Most of what I read on my Kindle comes from Libby, which is my favorite app (#notsponsored). The Libby app lets you easily borrow e-books or audiobooks from your library and send them to your Kindle. But you can’t transfer these ebooks (legally) to an Xteink reader, as libraries use protected versions of .epub files that prevent users from copying them (you also can’t read books you buy from the Amazon e-book store on non-Amazon devices, due to capitalism). This lack of compatibility is a downside, but it also makes the device feel unique – it’s a ‘dumb’ device with no apps and no touchscreen, which feels surprisingly refreshing in an age of AI-enabled fridges.

It’s not hard to find interesting .epub files to load onto the X3, even if you can’t access your Kindle library or Libby. Many great books are in the public domain, meaning they are no longer subject to copyright and can be downloaded for free (strangely I’ve never read Pride and Prejudice, so it’s about time). A few months ago, I bought the entire .epub catalogs of sci-fi authors Charlie Jane Anders and Annalee Newitz as part of a charity fundraiser, which will keep me busy for quite some time. If you wanted to, you could even convert online articles or blogs to .epub using a free program like Caliber.

So, did the Xteink X3 fix me? Am I now a newly reformed woman who has a healthy relationship with social media and has read a bunch of classic novels that I never read as an English speaker, having mostly taken courses with ridiculous titles like Aestheticus Extremus: The Politics of Precarious Invention in North American Poetry and Poetics? It’s not that simple. But if you meet the X3 halfway and make a concerted effort to use it, then you might save yourself a bit more of a stroke.