Bigme B6 vs Boox Go 6 II: The Speaker Decides

Choose the Bigme B6 Black & White if you want a compact reader with a built-in speaker for music while reading. Skip the BOOX Go 6 Gen II when a built-in speaker is mandatory: it has none, so listening requires external audio equipment. eWritable’s B6 BW review and Notebookcheck’s Go 6 Gen II review confirm that hardware difference.

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That recommendation settles which reader contains the necessary hardware. It does not establish that the B6 sounds good enough to replace a music speaker, or that every streaming app will keep playing behind every reading app.

The speaker requirement eliminates the Go 6 Gen II

The B6 Color’s speaker is explicitly identified in Bigme’s quick-start guide. The table’s remaining hardware and app distinctions are documented in the linked B6 BW and Go 6 Gen II reviews and TechRadar’s B6 Color review.

Google Play access and audio playback capability do not imply that a reader has a speaker. Notebookcheck specifically confirms that the Go 6 Gen II works with Bluetooth speakers and headphones despite lacking an internal speaker. That makes it suitable for listening through an accessory, but unsuitable if your goal is to carry one device and hear music directly from it.

A microphone does not change that answer. Recording sound and reproducing sound require different components. Likewise, installing a music app cannot compensate for missing speaker hardware.

Choose the monochrome B6 unless you want color content

The B6 Black & White is the more direct alternative for reading novels with occasional background audio. The B6 Color deserves consideration when colored illustrations or highlights matter too; color is not necessary to obtain a speaker.

Be careful with the product name. B6 Black & White describes the display, while a B6 Color can also have a white or black enclosure. Selecting a white device does not necessarily select the monochrome reader. Check the full model description before ordering.

In his B6 BW review, eWritable’s Dan Dutton preferred its monochrome display to the color version for clarity and prolonged reading. He also found the native reading software less polished than third-party alternatives. Those are attributed observations, not measurements made by this site. eWritable’s B6 BW review

The practical tradeoff is straightforward: choose the monochrome B6 when the book’s text matters most, and consider the B6 Color when color contributes something useful to the book. Neither decision establishes superior audio quality between the two versions.

A built-in speaker is not a music-quality guarantee

The strongest caution concerns the B6 Color. Root-Nation reviewer Julia Alexandrova reported audible distortion above roughly 60% volume on her review unit. That is a listening observation tied to a volume setting, not a calibrated maximum-volume or distortion measurement. It should not be treated as a universal threshold for every B6, particularly the monochrome version. Root-Nation’s B6 Color audio assessment

Nevertheless, it changes the buying advice. Consider the B6 Color for convenient audio near you; do not buy it on the assumption that its speaker will deliver clean, loud music across a room. The reviewed evidence does not support that promise.

No calibrated speaker loudness, frequency-response, or distortion measurements were found for either B6 version in the sources reviewed here. The monochrome model’s speaker is confirmed, but its musical performance remains unresolved.

If you need substantial bass or room-filling playback, separate the reader decision from the audio decision. A dedicated speaker becomes relevant, and the Go 6 Gen II becomes viable again because you have relaxed the built-in requirement. The site’s Bose Flex 2nd Gen and Harman Kardon Luna comparison addresses that separate purchase.

Music while reading needs a background-playback check

Playing a track with its app open and continuing that track while reading are different requirements. Android supports background playback, but the media app must implement it appropriately. Google’s documentation describes keeping playback running separately from the app’s visible interface. Android’s background-playback documentation

The B6 BW includes a music player, according to eWritable. That establishes a local playback option; it does not verify uninterrupted playback with every reading app, streaming service, or firmware release. eWritable’s software assessment

During the return period, check the actual combination you intend to use:

1. Disconnect Bluetooth audio accessories so you are evaluating the internal speaker.
2. Start a familiar track in your intended music app.
3. Open your reading app, turn pages, and read for a normal session.
4. Check whether playback continues when the reader sleeps, if that matters to you.
5. Repeat with downloaded audio if offline listening is required.

These are acceptance checks, not a claim that this site performed them. If playback stops only after changing apps or sleeping the device, that result alone does not identify a speaker fault. Give Bigme support the exact B6 variant, firmware version, music app, reading app, and stopping behavior. The documentation reviewed does not establish a universal settings fix.

Battery results narrow the B6 Color recommendation

TechRadar recorded approximately five hours reading manga in the Kindle app on the B6 Color, versus approximately ten hours reading a locally stored PDF novel. Those are different reading workloads, not music-playback endurance tests. They also cannot be transferred to the B6 Black & White. TechRadar’s measured B6 Color battery results

The useful finding is that app choice and workload can materially change endurance. Do not assume that an e-reader’s reputation for infrequent charging applies to simultaneous Android reading and speaker playback. No verified runtime for that exact B6 workload was found.

Buy the B6 Black & White when an internal speaker and monochrome reading are the priorities, with sound quality and app behavior checked during the return period. Consider the B6 Color when you also need color and accept the documented audio and endurance compromises. Keep the Go 6 Gen II off the shortlist while built-in sound remains a requirement; it becomes an option only when external audio is acceptable.