What are the best e-readers on the market?

I’m a lover of physical books but I’m looking to get an e-reader as well, for those books that are hard to find physical copies of, or are just very expensive.

I’ve ruled out Onyx, because I try to avoid Chinese tech as it’s usually poorly made. But I’m not sure whether Kindle or Kobo is best. Is being tied to Amazon’s ecosystem too restricting? Are the Kobo e-readers compatible with everything you need? Which ones have the best screens, ideally how a physical book would look?

So many questions, but hopefully some of you can help. 😁

intensely_human,

I’ve used a kindle paperwhite for maybe a decade. Any time one dies or gets lost I replace it. I’ve bought 3 or 4 now.

I love it. Very happy with this little machine. Haven’t tried Kobo to compare.

BlackSkinnedJew,

I’m using a Lemon Read, very good reader for the pocket.

spittingimage,
@spittingimage@lemmy.world avatar

I use a Kobo Glo with Calibre and it’s been great. Calibre will even install firmware updates for me.

The screen doesn’t really look like a page and the experience isn’t like having a physical book, but it’s been good enough for me to enjoy it.

Jollyllama,

I picked up 2 ancient kindles on FB marketplace for $25 and they work great as long as airplane mode stays on. They throw a fit trying to connect to Amazon if you get on WiFi.

Grass, (edited )

Get a Kobo. They are excellent. I had a 2020 or so Paperwhite from 'zon but it made me feel sad all the time. My Kobo Libra 2 has caused me to read more since I got it than the entire before portion of my life.

If you get any books off amazon use calibre and DeDRM. IIRC DeDRM has stopped but also has been forked on git and continued by someone else so you would want the more up to date fork. Adobe digital editions DRM or whatever it was called I believe can also be removed up to a certain version but you have to download it for the first time with an old enough Adobe app version get the old drm version or it will get permanently locked to the newer version that can’t be removed. Anyway removing DRM let’s you read the ebooks on whatever device you want. It’s not illegal in any country I have bothered to research except if you are doing it to distribute or sell.

As a side note if it helps anyone, I was able to get the whole procedure to work on Linux too by installing the required versions of kindle desktop and Adobe digital editions via Lutris and wine. Calibre and plugins are already cross platform.

Edit: updated DeDRM fork link because goog search results are utter shit these days. github.com/noDRM/DeDRM_tools

helmet91,

I have a Kobo Aura 2, and I love it. That’s my first ebook reader, and I haven’t had any other one since.

Personally I avoid Amazon because I definitely don’t wanna get tied to them. I’m not sure if this is still true, but when I got my ebook reader, these were my choices:

  • get a non-Amazon device, and I can read anything except books from Amazon
  • get an Amazon device, and I can only read books from Amazon

So it was a no-brainer for me. One of the best purchases I’ve ever made.

You can get ebooks from any source (well, not considering the AI generated crap that Amazon is getting flooded with; if you want that, you need to get a Kindle), and your computer/smartphone will handle it as a standard USB storage device, so you can simply copy over your ebooks.

DashboTreeFrog,

I’m gonna chime in with some of the others and say Onyx is actually really good. I got my Nova 3 (black and white, not color) to replace an old Kindle and I’ve been loving it. The fact that I can write notes on it has been a game changer for me and has completely replaced pen and paper notes. On top of that, the fact that it’s Android means I can install other apps and that just opened all kinds of windows for experimenting with the device that I didn’t expect, it really is just basically a tablet with a much more readable screen. And second best thing to notes I’ve found about my Nova is how nice reading manga is on it, I’m even paying for a subscription to Shonen Jump now plus using Tachiyomi for fan-scans.

Only damage the thing has taken in the time I’ve had it is a couple corners coming off the case, which I just glued back on. Device itself feels good as ever.

Duallight,

I have a kobo libra 2, but have had kindle paperwhites in the past. The kobo is the better experience IMO, for 3 big reasons. 1, physical buttons. The buttons on the side also mean there’s a good place to hold the device, where on my old paperwhite I would accidentally skip to the next page constantly. Someone with smaller hands probably won’t mind as much though. 2, easier to get library books. Overdrive is built in, so I don’t have to go find my phone to search for books. 3, more customizable with the fonts and layouts and I can load in custom fonts really easy. That being said, my partner has the newest Kindle, and she adores that thing and hates how big the kobo is.

itchick2014,

I have a Kobo Aura H2O that I have had for ages that I love. It replaced another kobo without water resistance. Had kindles before that and I like the integration with overdrive too much to move on to anything else. Plus the store if you want to use it is nice and also has some DRM free options available last time I looked.

pan_troglodytes,

had a 1st gen paperwhite for years and eventually it just became too slow to use. go a fire8 tablet recently, does all the same things + other options.

eighthourlunch,
@eighthourlunch@kbin.social avatar

I've thoroughly enjoyed my Kindle Paperwhite. I've had it for six years now. I've occasionally cursed it when it forgets the WiFi, but that hasn't really happened a lot.

The phone app has a lot more features, but it hurts to read on something that small and heavy for very long.

ultranaut,

I’ve had a Boox Palma for a few months, it seems very well made. I’ve been really happy with it so far and have no regrets about buying it. My only complaint would be the battery goes quick with the radio enabled. I like the screen a lot, you can adjust all kinds of settings to get things dialed in. It’s Carta 1200, which I think is the newest and best version of eink besides the color stuff.

Chaosgasket,

I know you said you ruled out Onyx but I would actually suggest giving that a second thought. My spouse had a Kindle Paperwhite and switched to the Onyx Boox and really likes it. The construction is very similar to a Kindle but you aren’t stuck in the Kindle environment. It also has fantastic battery life (like most eink readers). Since it runs Android it works with basically any e-reader app you might want to use, she consistently uses Google Books and Libby and they work great.

NaibofTabr,

I have a Poke 2 Color and I have to do disagree with your opinion of Onyx. This device is very well made, battery life is fantastic even with active use, and the software isn’t locked down like Kindle.

Statlerwaldorf,

I just replaced a Kindle Paperwhite that was probably 7/8 years old with a Kobo Libra 2. Can’t compare it to a modern Kindle, but the Kobo screen is bigger and looks more like paper.

My only gripe is that the software has some odd design choices. On a Kindle, the night mode button is on the main drop down menu, but in Kobo you have to hit the gear button to get to the settings, then scroll down a page to toggle night mode.

Both devices seem to read most formats out there. Look up a program called Calibre to maintain a local library on your PC and convert formats easily.

The main selling point for the Kobo was not sending more money to Jeff Bezos. I cancelled Prime last year and the Kindle was my last link to the Amazon ecosystem. I usually get my books from the library or other online sources but sometimes I’d be out of town craving a certain book and I’d buy it on the Kindle just for ease of use.

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