[erikw]

>> It seems like all of these eink devices are designed that way.

After going through 5 Kindles, I got a Kobo reader a few years ago, and couldn't be happier. It is more expensive than the Kindle because the price isn't subsidized, but the physical design is great, and I haven't broken it yet (I broke 4 Kindles through normal use).

They support loading your own software on without any "jailbreak", and I use Plato (https://github.com/baskerville/plato), which renders documents significantly faster than the stock reader.

[alisonatwork]

Can you read Kindle books directly on the Kobo? I know I could use Calibre to rip/convert/sideload all my books, but that feels like such a pain. I did it that way first time around when I jailbroke my Kindle and it felt like I was spending more time faffing about with software than actually reading books.

The whole point of getting another eink device for me would be to just read without having it feel like my day job, so I'd hope everything was just click and go, a slick, Steam-like experience. That's the thing that has me worried about the Inkpalm - no Gapps without hacking it, which makes the Palma seem more appealing since at least it's just a normal Android with Gapps. I'd probably still put F-Droid on there because I prefer open source if the option is there, but I don't want to do any kind of messing around like rooting it or pairing it with a computer or setting up a new account to sync with some third-party service just to read books I already bought on Amazon.

You're right about the fragility of Kindles by the way, both of mine eventually got smashed, which is how I ended up doing all my reading on my phone with the Kindle app instead.

[magnetowasright]

Switching away from kindle is going to require some initial amount of faffing about, no matter what. I feel your pain.

Once you've done the initial annoyances of deDRMing your kindle stuff, you can use the kobo account and store. I know that's another account which you understandably don't want.

I've never used a kindle but my kobo is amazing. I do use the store but I do deDRM my books on a computer before putting them on my reader, which is not necessary lol

[lidavidm]

You can't without de-DRMing. That's basically the point, right? Amazon has locked you in to their ecosystem.

[magnetowasright]

I got a Kobo Libra Colour on its release and I also could not be happier. It is my first eink device so I've no experience with other devices. I was reading digitally on my phone prior. The kobo is pretty bomb proof and is repairable as well as being pretty open. I don't know what other readers look like IRL but the libra colour looks great. It apparently only uses the colour rendering when there is colour which would help? Idk, I love the thing. I've been taking notes on it, too, which has rendered my fountain pens rather neglected since I got it. It's the furthest I've ever gotten into digital note taking lol

[goosedragons]

If you had used another eInk device you could tell. I did pick up a Kobo Libra Color as well and while I like it there certainly is a noticeable grain and contrast loss compared to my B&W devices. It's just a little less sharp and requires more light to read from. For people just reading novels I think the color screen isn't totally worth it. The Libra Color does finally have a decent CPU compared to prior models so it is nicer on that front but I don't think it's worth it for everyone.

[neilv]

I found the Kindles a little creepy, and wanted to go fully non-DRM and non-phoning-home.

So I made a list of my requirements for that, as well as general ereader features, and ended up with the PocketBook InkPad Lite.

[djfergus]

Curious, what was the failure mode on the broken kindles?

I have a Kindle Keyboard (k3w) and k4 both going strong (including decent battery life) after a decade of use and abuse by my kids and I.

The jailbreak on kindles that support it (don’t connect your new device to the internet until you have checked) is simple and painless - I prefer koreader to plato but they are both great and an embarrassment to the locked down systems these devices ship with.

Kobo is great but Amazon has better bang for buck (due to subsidy and access to the best eink screens first).

[erikw]

1st Kindle DX: Screen cracked, not sure why. Maybe thermal stress? Amazon replaced for free. 2nd Kindle DX: Stopped booting, no physical damage. Kindle: Rolled on it after falling asleep, screen cracked. Kindle Oasis: Dropped directly on its face, screen cracked. This weird anti-bezel obsession means there is nothing to protect the screen. But you need a bezel to hold onto, so not having a bezel makes the device worse in most ways.

The Kobo that I have has large plastic bezels, so it is easy to hold, lightweight, less likely to be dropped, and when dropped, unlikely to suffer direct impact to the glass surface.