The Must-try E-Reader: If you read Chinese
So, we got our hand on the OPPO Pad 5 Matte Display Edition, and with the matte display, of cause we cannot pass on the chance to read some ebooks off it. And this bring us to this article, what is our Must-Try when its comes to ebook reading? look no further than Weixin Dushu (WeRead).
While most e-reading apps (like Kindle or Kobo) ask for your money upfront or somewhere in between, Weixin Dushu operates on a revolutionary principle: Your time is currency.
The Economy of Reading: Get Paid to Read
Weixin Dushu is the only major app that gives you actual rewards just for reading books. It’s a “win-win” because the more you learn, the less you pay. While you still can pay for a membership, which open up all books for reads. However, user can also finish a chapter, earn a daily pass that opening up the whole day for free reading.
- Free Membership via Effort: If you read for just a few hours during your first few days, the app rewards you with days pass that opening days or weeks of free reading.
- The 5-Hour Rule: By hitting a 5-hour reading milestone in a week, you can essentially trigger a free weekly membership. For a consistent reader, this means you may never have to pay for a subscription again.
- The “Free Library” Legacy: Even without rewards, the app maintains a massive “Free Library” of classics and curated titles that cost nothing to access.
AI Audio: Your Book, Your Podcast
Weixin Dushu can turn any book in the library into an audiobook with Ai for free, even if a human never recorded it. For example, this book “Give and Take” by Adam Grant, most like already have an English audio book version, now be converted to a Chinese audio book with the built in Ai.
- Natural Voices: Unlike the robotic text-to-speech of the past, the latest AI Voice is nearly indistinguishable from a human narrator. The app also let you pick the AI voice model according to your liking.
- Hands-Free Listening: You can start a work on your tablet’s main screen while the AI reads a book to you in the background. It turns a mundane task into active learning time.
The “Small but Mighty” English Collection
While most people use the app for Chinese books, it is still have a great collection of English books too. For example, with about 400 English books of popular titles available. However, what we can see is mostly Harry Potter series and Disney movie novel.
Community Reading: The Social “Knowledge Graph”
Reading doesn’t have to be something you do all by yourself. Weixin Dushu connects you with your friends and family so you can share what you are learning. For example, if your spouse or colleague is reading the same book, you can see their notes in the margins and compare how much progress you have both made this week.
- See What the Experts Read: You can follow friends, mentors, or industry leaders to see what they are highlighting and recommending.
- Shared Progress: You can share your reading milestones with your family or team, turning a self-improvement goal into a group activity.
- In-Book Discussions: See “bubbles” left by other readers on specific paragraphs. It’s like a global book club happening in the margins of your page.
Why the Oppo Pad 5 Matte Display Edition?
You can technically use this app on your phone, but it works much better on the OPPO Pad 5 Matte Display Edition because of the extra screen space and the matte display. For example, on a small phone screen, trying to read a book while checking your messages is cramped and frustrating; on a tablet, you can keep your book open on one side of the screen and your notes or emails on the other, making it feel like a real desk.
- Side-by-Side Multitasking: Use the “Split Screen” feature to keep Weixin Dushu open on one side while you take notes in Google Keep or Notion on the other.
- The “Canvas” Feel: The larger screen real estate makes the “Social Reading” bubbles and community comments feel like a natural part of the page rather than a cluttered distraction.
Time is your currency
If there’s only 1 thing I can say about the Weixin Dushu, is that the model of “Time if Currency” is beyond my expectation. This is a platform that respects your effort, rewarding your discipline, simplifies your life with AI audio, and connects you to a global community of thinkers.
