eReader for Indonesian

Abiyasha · 02-18-2013, 11:36 PM

Hellow all,

I just registered less than 15 minutes ago but have been checking here and there about eReader that I'd like to buy

I have a friend who's going back to Canada in April for a month and I'd like him to get me an eReader (my first!) either Kobo or Kindle, since I know, he can get the Kindle through amazon.ca. and Kobo is available in stores in Canada.

The problem is, I live in Indonesia and I have no friends, who are using Kindle or Kobo here, so I really don't know the feel of holding those two. I read all the reviews about both devices, the pluses and minuses and still can't decide which one should I choose. I know it's the most common question here

I'm more concerned with my location than anything else.

Let's say, if my friend got me a Kindle/Kobo and he's going back to Indonesia, is it possible for him to buy the books from Amazon/Kobo when he's in Indonesia? Let's say, using his Canadian CC? And I'm thinking about the warranty. Indonesia is far and my biggest concern is, if something happened with the devices I won't be able to use the eReader anymore because of the distance and the fact that shipping back and forth will be sort of annoying, if they can replace it.

So, maybe anyone could help me with this confusion of mine? Any comments will be much appreciated!

Thank you in advance!

xendula · 02-24-2013, 10:22 PM

I can recommend the Kindle. You can buy ebooks from any kindle store you register the device to (which you can also change if you move or for whatever other reason), and Amazon customer service is great. We have MR users who live in parts of Asia and who received replacements free of charge or with free shipping.
I don't have any experience with Kobo devices, though I think they are gorgeous. I did notice that prices for ebooks can be higher and that they detect which country you are in and default you to the store THEY want you to visit, while Amazon lets you decide.
When I am in Europe, for instance, Kobo won't let me see the US store.

The black (!) Basic Kindle for $69 is a great device or, if you want a lit screen and higher screen resolution, I'd recommend the Kindle Paperwhite.

I would change my recommendation if Kobo has content in your language that Amazon does not, though with the free software Calibre, it does not much matter where you buy the content and in which format - it converts the files for you.

Abiyasha · 02-25-2013, 09:14 PM

Hi Xendula,

Finally got a reply! Thank you so much!

At first, I thought about Kindle too but I'm afraid that for South East Asian like me, I will have difficulties in getting the books or if something happened then it will take time and energy just to get a replacement. But, from what I read, Amazon has good customer service. That's a good point.

I prefer Kindle actually but Kobo seems more International to me. I could be wrong.

About Kobo, I'm thinking more into practical side. My friend is Canadian and it will be easier for him to get me a Kobo there. And even though Calibre is exist, I'm still worry that I won't be able to read some books that I want to read with Kindle.

Language is not a problem since I read English novels and books so it's not a big deal for me. I will ask my friends when he's in Canada to find out which one is better for me to use in Indonesia.

Thanks again for your reply. Hope I will pick the right one

xendula · 02-26-2013, 08:57 AM

Hi, I thought you may be interested in this article and its comments.

It would be helpful if Kobo users could comment on here as well.

What I would also suggest you do, is get a list of books you are interested in reading, and compare prices at luzme.com - in the end, unless you want to use Calibre and don't care where you buy your content - you are buying into a specific store, so it's important to consider the follow-up costs. In my genres, Amazon has better prices.
Also, sign up at kobo and amazon and download a free book, to see which process is easier for you, since you are in Indo.... you will have to deal with it for years to come.

About Kobo being more international, I guess it depends. For me, reading in different languages, Kindle is better because book discovery is better, since I can go to the French, German and Spanish stores directly, which Kobo does not allow me to do at all, but your usage will be different.

davidfor · 02-27-2013, 08:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xendula

Hi, I thought you may be interested in this article and its comments.

It would be helpful if Kobo users could comment on here as well.

I found it weird. He loves the Kobo Mini but made no mention of the Kobo Glo. That does everything that he said was important in his decision the get the Paperweight. I can't comment on how well the non-English language features work as I don't speak anything else.

Quote:

What I would also suggest you do, is get a list of books you are interested in reading, and compare prices at luzme.com - in the end, unless you want to use Calibre and don't care where you buy your content - you are buying into a specific store, so it's important to consider the follow-up costs. In my genres, Amazon has better prices.
Also, sign up at kobo and amazon and download a free book, to see which process is easier for you, since you are in Indo.... you will have to deal with it for years to come.

About Kobo being more international, I guess it depends. For me, reading in different languages, Kindle is better because book discovery is better, since I can go to the French, German and Spanish stores directly, which Kobo does not allow me to do at all, but your usage will be different.

Good suggestions. I use the Kobo shop the most mainly because it is convenient. Prices usually match or beat Amazon when I use a promo code. The biggest problem for me is that all the shops have geographical restrictions. I frequently can't buy a book from any of the shops because they don't sell it to Australia. It is easy enough to beat, but adds an extra step.

llcj · 02-27-2013, 10:12 AM

Regarding georestrictions, within the last couple of weeks there have been four threads on the topic. Two threads were in the General Discussions forum, one was in the Kindle forum, and one was in the Kobo.com Discount thread in the Deals, Freebies, and Resources forum.

hapmas77 · 03-01-2013, 11:12 PM

Hi Abiyasha,
I'm also from Indonesia and has been using Kindle Keyboard for more than one year.
You can buy books from papataka and convert it to mobi using calibre. Or from projrct Gutenberg. You can also buy kindle in Jakarta fro third party seller. PM me if you want to chat more.

Abiyasha · 03-02-2013, 09:42 PM

Hello all,

Thanks again for the reply!

@ Xendula : I know I have to deal with it until only God knows when

Thank you for your suggestions. I will not buy books too often, maybe just a couple of times in a year since I still have plenty of books in my computer and I want to read them first. But, if there are books that I want to buy, I just want to know which one is easier to deal with.

@ davidfor : I don't know ebooks have georestriction before I joined this forum. So now, I know

Thanks!

@ llcj : Yes, I checked them out after reading your reply. Thanks!

@ hapmas77 : Thanks! So is it easier to use Kindle here in Indonesia? About 3rd party seller, I'm afraid that will cost way more. I checked them already. I can wait since I'm not in a rush

I have other questions : How to check the book is having a DRM or not? I have some ebooks in epub/mobi and I use my Samsung Tab to read those books and have no difficulties in transferring it. But, will it be easier also to transfer books (either in epub/mobi) from computer to Kindle/Kobo? I heard about this DRM and afraid that after I get my Kobo/Kindle later, I won't be able to transfer the books from my computer.

Once again, thanks for all the reply. I appreciate it so much!

xendula · 03-03-2013, 01:43 AM

Abiyasha, google Apprentice Alf for your last question.

Abiyasha · 03-12-2013, 11:48 PM

Hi Xendula,

I've checked the line you gave me and I didn't really understand, lol. I'm new to this ebook kind of thing. All these times, I've been reading with Samsung tab and I just put the books in attachment in my email and later, download it from the tab.

Will it work with either Kobo/Kindle? (Even though i'm leaning toward Kobo now for some reasons) If transferring from my computer to my eReader is complicated, I think I will just use the same way that I've been doing so far. Put the books as attachment in my email and send it to my other email address and download it. has anybody ever tried this before?

Anyway, thanks a lot!

xendula · 03-14-2013, 11:08 AM

^ You can use a free software called Calibre which can send ebooks to your kindle wirelessly. For more info, check out the Calibre site or the calibre forums here at mobile read.

Sorry, I don't know anything about how kobos work.

davidfor · 03-14-2013, 10:24 PM

For sideloading books, connect the Kobo to a PC and use calibre to send them to the device. Very simple.

To get books wirelessly, you can use the built-on browser to visit a site and download them. Calibre can act as a server to allow the books to be downloaded from it.

Abiyasha · 03-18-2013, 03:15 AM

Hellow,

@ xendula & @ davidfor : I have Calibre in my netbook and so far, I haven't really used it, but hope once I get my eReader, it will play an important role in my ereading experience

Thanks a lot for your help guys, I guess, I will go with Kobo even though the customer service, somehow, has a minus point compared to Amazon, but we'll see. I guess, no eReader is perfect and hope Kobo will get a love from me

This is a tricky thing actually but I hope I made a good choice

danicca · 03-18-2013, 10:16 AM

If your friend is buying kobo from the store he can check it right away to see if there are obvious defects. The books you have are probably non DRM if you can read them on both tablet and netbook so you can probably just do copy paste via usb to kobo or you can copy them to sd card and pop it inside reader. There is no reason why you can't register on both amazon and kobo to check where it's cheaper.(or any other store for that matter). It probably wouldn't be amiss to find a case/cover for ereader.
If you don't mind telling which kobo are you getting

xendula · 03-18-2013, 11:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Abiyasha

Hellow,

@ xendula & @ davidfor : I have Calibre in my netbook and so far, I haven't really used it, but hope once I get my eReader, it will play an important role in my ereading experience

Thanks a lot for your help guys, I guess, I will go with Kobo even though the customer service, somehow, has a minus point compared to Amazon, but we'll see. I guess, no eReader is perfect and hope Kobo will get a love from me

This is a tricky thing actually but I hope I made a good choice

The Kobos are sexy looking devices, IMO, so congratulations!!! Which one are you getting and in which color?
With Calibre, all I have to do is plug it in amd it automatically converts any book I have in the Calibre library to the format my reader needs - like Magic!

We should build a statue for the developer!!!

02-18-2013, 11:36 PM	#1
Abiyasha Member Posts: 11 Karma: 472354 Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Bali, Indonesia Device: none	eReader for Indonesian Hellow all, I just registered less than 15 minutes ago but have been checking here and there about eReader that I'd like to buy I have a friend who's going back to Canada in April for a month and I'd like him to get me an eReader (my first!) either Kobo or Kindle, since I know, he can get the Kindle through amazon.ca. and Kobo is available in stores in Canada. The problem is, I live in Indonesia and I have no friends, who are using Kindle or Kobo here, so I really don't know the feel of holding those two. I read all the reviews about both devices, the pluses and minuses and still can't decide which one should I choose. I know it's the most common question here I'm more concerned with my location than anything else. Let's say, if my friend got me a Kindle/Kobo and he's going back to Indonesia, is it possible for him to buy the books from Amazon/Kobo when he's in Indonesia? Let's say, using his Canadian CC? And I'm thinking about the warranty. Indonesia is far and my biggest concern is, if something happened with the devices I won't be able to use the eReader anymore because of the distance and the fact that shipping back and forth will be sort of annoying, if they can replace it. So, maybe anyone could help me with this confusion of mine? Any comments will be much appreciated! Thank you in advance!

02-26-2013, 08:57 AM	#4
xendula eBookworm Posts: 2,300 Karma: 4525746 Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: East Coast brrrrr Device: Kindle 4B/K ~ Nexus 7 ~ Kindle Paperwhite 1&2 ~ iPad Air	Hi, I thought you may be interested in this article and its comments. It would be helpful if Kobo users could comment on here as well. What I would also suggest you do, is get a list of books you are interested in reading, and compare prices at luzme.com - in the end, unless you want to use Calibre and don't care where you buy your content - you are buying into a specific store, so it's important to consider the follow-up costs. In my genres, Amazon has better prices. Also, sign up at kobo and amazon and download a free book, to see which process is easier for you, since you are in Indo.... you will have to deal with it for years to come. About Kobo being more international, I guess it depends. For me, reading in different languages, Kindle is better because book discovery is better, since I can go to the French, German and Spanish stores directly, which Kobo does not allow me to do at all, but your usage will be different. Last edited by xendula; 02-26-2013 at 09:00 AM.

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02-24-2013, 10:22 PM	#2
xendula eBookworm Posts: 2,300 Karma: 4525746 Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: East Coast brrrrr Device: Kindle 4B/K ~ Nexus 7 ~ Kindle Paperwhite 1&2 ~ iPad Air	I can recommend the Kindle. You can buy ebooks from any kindle store you register the device to (which you can also change if you move or for whatever other reason), and Amazon customer service is great. We have MR users who live in parts of Asia and who received replacements free of charge or with free shipping. I don't have any experience with Kobo devices, though I think they are gorgeous. I did notice that prices for ebooks can be higher and that they detect which country you are in and default you to the store THEY want you to visit, while Amazon lets you decide. When I am in Europe, for instance, Kobo won't let me see the US store. The black (!) Basic Kindle for $69 is a great device or, if you want a lit screen and higher screen resolution, I'd recommend the Kindle Paperwhite. I would change my recommendation if Kobo has content in your language that Amazon does not, though with the free software Calibre, it does not much matter where you buy the content and in which format - it converts the files for you.

02-25-2013, 09:14 PM	#3
Abiyasha Member Posts: 11 Karma: 472354 Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Bali, Indonesia Device: none	Hi Xendula, Finally got a reply! Thank you so much! At first, I thought about Kindle too but I'm afraid that for South East Asian like me, I will have difficulties in getting the books or if something happened then it will take time and energy just to get a replacement. But, from what I read, Amazon has good customer service. That's a good point. I prefer Kindle actually but Kobo seems more International to me. I could be wrong. About Kobo, I'm thinking more into practical side. My friend is Canadian and it will be easier for him to get me a Kobo there. And even though Calibre is exist, I'm still worry that I won't be able to read some books that I want to read with Kindle. Language is not a problem since I read English novels and books so it's not a big deal for me. I will ask my friends when he's in Canada to find out which one is better for me to use in Indonesia. Thanks again for your reply. Hope I will pick the right one

02-27-2013, 10:12 AM	#6
llcj Addict Posts: 250 Karma: 883854 Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Canada Device: kobo touch	Regarding georestrictions, within the last couple of weeks there have been four threads on the topic. Two threads were in the General Discussions forum, one was in the Kindle forum, and one was in the Kobo.com Discount thread in the Deals, Freebies, and Resources forum.

03-01-2013, 11:12 PM	#7
hapmas77 Connoisseur Posts: 74 Karma: 691140 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Jakarta, Indonesia Device: iPad Mini 2, Galaxy Tab S2 9.7, Kindle PW	Hi Abiyasha, I'm also from Indonesia and has been using Kindle Keyboard for more than one year. You can buy books from papataka and convert it to mobi using calibre. Or from projrct Gutenberg. You can also buy kindle in Jakarta fro third party seller. PM me if you want to chat more.

03-02-2013, 09:42 PM	#8
Abiyasha Member Posts: 11 Karma: 472354 Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Bali, Indonesia Device: none	Hello all, Thanks again for the reply! @ Xendula : I know I have to deal with it until only God knows when Thank you for your suggestions. I will not buy books too often, maybe just a couple of times in a year since I still have plenty of books in my computer and I want to read them first. But, if there are books that I want to buy, I just want to know which one is easier to deal with. @ davidfor : I don't know ebooks have georestriction before I joined this forum. So now, I know Thanks! @ llcj : Yes, I checked them out after reading your reply. Thanks! @ hapmas77 : Thanks! So is it easier to use Kindle here in Indonesia? About 3rd party seller, I'm afraid that will cost way more. I checked them already. I can wait since I'm not in a rush I have other questions : How to check the book is having a DRM or not? I have some ebooks in epub/mobi and I use my Samsung Tab to read those books and have no difficulties in transferring it. But, will it be easier also to transfer books (either in epub/mobi) from computer to Kindle/Kobo? I heard about this DRM and afraid that after I get my Kobo/Kindle later, I won't be able to transfer the books from my computer. Once again, thanks for all the reply. I appreciate it so much!

03-03-2013, 01:43 AM	#9
xendula eBookworm Posts: 2,300 Karma: 4525746 Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: East Coast brrrrr Device: Kindle 4B/K ~ Nexus 7 ~ Kindle Paperwhite 1&2 ~ iPad Air	Abiyasha, google Apprentice Alf for your last question.

03-12-2013, 11:48 PM	#10
Abiyasha Member Posts: 11 Karma: 472354 Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Bali, Indonesia Device: none	Hi Xendula, I've checked the line you gave me and I didn't really understand, lol. I'm new to this ebook kind of thing. All these times, I've been reading with Samsung tab and I just put the books in attachment in my email and later, download it from the tab. Will it work with either Kobo/Kindle? (Even though i'm leaning toward Kobo now for some reasons) If transferring from my computer to my eReader is complicated, I think I will just use the same way that I've been doing so far. Put the books as attachment in my email and send it to my other email address and download it. has anybody ever tried this before? Anyway, thanks a lot!

03-14-2013, 11:08 AM	#11
xendula eBookworm Posts: 2,300 Karma: 4525746 Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: East Coast brrrrr Device: Kindle 4B/K ~ Nexus 7 ~ Kindle Paperwhite 1&2 ~ iPad Air	^ You can use a free software called Calibre which can send ebooks to your kindle wirelessly. For more info, check out the Calibre site or the calibre forums here at mobile read. Sorry, I don't know anything about how kobos work.

03-14-2013, 10:24 PM	#12
davidfor Grand Sorcerer Posts: 24,907 Karma: 47303748 Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Sydney, Australia Device: Kobo:Touch,Glo, AuraH2O, GloHD,AuraONE, ClaraHD, Libra H2O; tolinoepos	For sideloading books, connect the Kobo to a PC and use calibre to send them to the device. Very simple. To get books wirelessly, you can use the built-on browser to visit a site and download them. Calibre can act as a server to allow the books to be downloaded from it.

03-18-2013, 03:15 AM	#13
Abiyasha Member Posts: 11 Karma: 472354 Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Bali, Indonesia Device: none	Hellow, @ xendula & @ davidfor : I have Calibre in my netbook and so far, I haven't really used it, but hope once I get my eReader, it will play an important role in my ereading experience Thanks a lot for your help guys, I guess, I will go with Kobo even though the customer service, somehow, has a minus point compared to Amazon, but we'll see. I guess, no eReader is perfect and hope Kobo will get a love from me This is a tricky thing actually but I hope I made a good choice

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03-18-2013, 10:16 AM	#14
danicca Addict Posts: 268 Karma: 517736 Join Date: Oct 2012 Device: kindle	If your friend is buying kobo from the store he can check it right away to see if there are obvious defects. The books you have are probably non DRM if you can read them on both tablet and netbook so you can probably just do copy paste via usb to kobo or you can copy them to sd card and pop it inside reader. There is no reason why you can't register on both amazon and kobo to check where it's cheaper.(or any other store for that matter). It probably wouldn't be amiss to find a case/cover for ereader. If you don't mind telling which kobo are you getting