E-ink screens do not glow. They arrange tiny particles of pigment to form the page and then use no power to hold it there, which is why they look like paper and why their batteries last for weeks.

A ten-inch e-ink tablet is big enough for documents and papers as well as books, and with a stylus it becomes a notebook. I used one for a month to read long articles, mark up drafts and take meeting notes.

For reading, it is a joy. Hours of it leave my eyes fresher than an hour on a laptop. Notes feel close to pen on paper, with a slight drag that helps handwriting.

Everything else is a compromise. Pages refresh with a visible flash, scrolling is slow, and there is no colour. It is a reading and writing tool, and it is excellent at being exactly that.