first eReader out of frustration

[sydneyxx]

Hello everyone,

out of frustration with my present situation (documents spread between android phone and ipad, no easy sync, hard to export highlights...) , I am considering buying my first eReader as a central device for all my reading consumption (note: I read already the sticky topic).

I have thought about my use cases and related needs:
- mainly sideloaded epub (few books bought on Amazon), pdf at times, a plus would include articles sent from the web as well;
- highlighting and notes, exported without major bottlenecks (even leveraging third-party elements such as readwise...with the present mess, I'm ok with such services as long as it's doable);
- on the portable side of the dimension spectrum (and battery), or offering a reliable sync with at least android device;
- I'm ok with thinkering with calibre/apprenticealf/terminal commands, but I'd try to avoid a patchwork of half-way baked solutions that might be not consistent with time or content;

The whole idea sparkled from seeing the new Paperwhite and the kind of apparent integration Kindles offer...but being my first eReader and honestly missing a clear vision of the plethora of devices on the market and the elements beyond the hardware that might help me with the use cases above, I ask your kind help to understand and guide in my choice, if possible.

I thank you for your patience!

[DaleDe]

You may want to try our wiki to get an appreciation of eBook readers and technology.

Dale

[Joliet Jake]

I would recommend a Kobo.

Originally Posted by sydneyxx

Hello everyone,

out of frustration with my present situation (documents spread between android phone and ipad, no easy sync, hard to export highlights...) , I am considering buying my first eReader as a central device for all my reading consumption (note: I read already the sticky topic).

I have thought about my use cases and related needs:
- mainly sideloaded epub (few books bought on Amazon), pdf at times, a plus would include articles sent from the web as well;

Kobos are good for the first two (but, to be honest, there are no e-readers that are that good for PDFs). Kobo can handle HTML.

- highlighting and notes, exported without major bottlenecks (even leveraging third-party elements such as readwise...with the present mess, I'm ok with such services as long as it's doable);

Any modern e-reader can handle these. I almost never use this feature though, so I'm going off of what I have read. I suspect you will have a hard time copying them from other platforms.

- on the portable side of the dimension spectrum (and battery), or offering a reliable sync with at least android device;

Most e-reader manufacturers have e-readers from 6 to 7 inches in size, which are pretty portable. I don't know how to answer the sync question.

You will have trouble with all those different formats.

Note that any ebooks you purchased through the Apple Books app cannot be read using other apps because they are locked into Apple's ecosystem.

I've read that Google books are Epubs, and you use Adobe Digital Editions to DeDRM them. Once you have done that, you can transfer the Epub to Calibre. Yes this does involve messing with a lot of software, unfortunately.

[Pajamaman]

You're best bet might be a 10" Onyx, or a Likebook. It can handle all document types, and can also load many 3rd party apps. Considering all your needs, such a flexible device might be your best bet. I imagine it will be the best bet for syncing.

Certainly not a Kindle, which it terribly restricted. A Kobo is better, as you can install Koreader to install PDF.

Alternatively, if you don't mind reading on LCD, then a table might be your best bet.

Perhaps you will need to organize your documents on a PC, and then use a mobile device to read on.

[ottischwenk]

Originally Posted by Joliet Jake

but, to be honest, there are no e-readers that are that good for PDFs

I have no problems with my 10.x inch Android EInk devices from Boox or Likebook.

[Joliet Jake]

Originally Posted by ottischwenk

I have no problems with my 10.x inch Android EInk devices from Boox or Likebook.

Can you scroll across pages like on a computer?

[ottischwenk]

Originally Posted by Joliet Jake

Can you scroll across pages like on a computer?

It depends on the application used - if it can, then yes.
And of course of the text - if it has page layout, then scrolling makes little sense.
With an Android tablet you can choose them

[Renate]

I'm in favor of a using a desktop (of whatever flavor) as the "gold standard". That means syncing portable devices to/from. A truck ran over your portable device? No problem, buy a new device and sync it in under five minutes. Calibre is ok if you only deal in books, but you might want something that can do bidirectional syncing of any sort of files.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by Renate

I'm in favor of a using a desktop (of whatever flavor) as the "gold standard". That means syncing portable devices to/from. A truck ran over your portable device? No problem, buy a new device and sync it in under five minutes. Calibre is ok if you only deal in books, but you might want something that can do bidirectional syncing of any sort of files.

I think it's problematic finding something multi-platform for bidirectional sync for sideloaded EPUB. Calibre+Kobo work well together but I don't believe either would pair well with Android or iOS for sideloaded stuff.

I find PDFs are the easiest to deal with for highlights/annotations since I believe those are embedded into the document itself. I can annotate a PDF file on GoodReader, sync via Dropbox, and all my annotations show up on Adobe Reader on the PC. The reverse is fine, too. I'm sure there are also plenty of apps for Android that can handle PDF annotations well.

Honestly, only app I can think of that will do cross-platform annotations sync for non-PDF across e-reader, Android and iOS is the Kindle (for purchased ebooks or Send to Kindle/Kindle Cloud). Alas, no syncing with Kindle for PC.

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

Honestly, only app I can think of that will do cross-platform annotations sync for non-PDF across e-reader, Android and iOS is the Kindle (for purchased ebooks or Send to Kindle/Kindle Cloud). Alas, no syncing with Kindle for PC.

You can also sync annotations cross platform for Kobo ereaders and apps for books purchased from Kobo. I might have to try syncing to the Kobo desktop app though I use that once in a blue moon.

[Uncle Robin]

It's possible that KOReader's annotation and synching features might work for you? I use KOReader on my tablet for PDFs and on my Kobos for epubs, but haven't experiemented with the synching options yet.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by DNSB

You can also sync annotations cross platform for Kobo ereaders and apps for books purchased from Kobo. I might have to try syncing to the Kobo desktop app though I use that once in a blue moon.

Keyword being purchased.

For sideloads, Send to Kindle/Kindle Cloud is the only one I know of that can sync annotations across Android and iOS. I’ve tried FBReader but it seems it only syncs books via Google Drive, not annotations.