Storytel Reader has already been released in Sweden and Denmark, among others, but as of today is on sale in the Netherlands and Belgium. What sets the e-reader apart is that you can choose whether you are listening or reading a book and you can switch between these two formats. You can do this by pressing the headset or glasses icon.
A disadvantage of the reader is that without a Storytel subscription (12.99 euros per month) it is useless. The reader only works if you are logged in. You can add your e-books via the Storytel app. When you buy Storytel Reader for €129, you get a 2-month subscription. This applies to both existing and new members.
The reader comes with 8GB of storage, has a 6-inch black and white eInk display and has two physical buttons on the sides for browsing. The device has a headphone port on the bottom, but it can also be played via Bluetooth.
Not everything is available
You rely on Storytel’s database to supply books, even though the service has access to more than 300,000 books. Almost all popular books can be found there. The e-book version is not available for every audiobook, and vice versa, so to switch between listening to reading, the range is more limited.
First impression
The reader does not excel in beauty. Compared to A kobo reader Or with the Amazon Kindle, the e-reader is quite thick and has very large bezels around the screen. This is of course also because there was room for the headphone jack and for the physical buttons that you could browse through, but then it could have been a lot more elegant.
Also, the reader is not a speed demon. Anyway, e-readers are always a bit slow because of the e-ink screen, but Storytel goes one step further in terms of slowness. Flipping the pages is smooth enough, but switching between reading and listening can easily take four seconds. Typing on an electronic keyboard to find a book is also a crime.
I’m excited about the concept of being able to switch between reading and listening. I have a different preference for each situation: in bed I prefer reading, while on the train I prefer listening.
This e-reader is a tool for true book lovers who can’t stop reading/listening. For the first year, for example, you pay 129 euros to the reader plus a 10-month subscription, which is a total of 258.90 euros. If you want to stop your subscription, the reader will not be of any use anymore. This reader probably won’t have real sales success, but it’s a great invention.
Bram Van Dyck, Presenter Bright
