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I think the heartbeat is a very reassuring indication when properly implemented. As for user patience declining, I can only suggest one consult various studies made throughout the PC era regarding user's adaptability to faster processing and feeling they were waiting after ever shortening periods as PC software got quicker.
Sorts or indexing always were very slow, but people waited because they had to and because it was still so much faster than any other method available, today's user takes it for granted and is bothered if something takes between 5-10 seconds, especially if it doesn't always take that long.
User's adapt and expect more and more with each generation, despite the fact that the machine is usually just sitting there waiting on them 99.99999% of the time.
How this pertains to Kobo devices, in my mind, is that when the device is sitting there seemingly unresponsive and unchanging for whatever reason, especially coupled with the e-ink screen which could well continue to display the last image even if the processor or screen controller melted to slag, that we should have some routine providing an indication just to keep us from pushing buttons, "paperclipping" resets, dropping it from heights, driving it off cliffs, flying into it with an IED attached to our quadcopter drone, etc.
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