KA1 quick review

vxf · 09-21-2016, 09:56 PM

I have always looked for bigger screens (since selling my PRS950), so I couldn't wait. Finally got it yesterday. Quick first impression.

- The screen size is awesome.

- The screen size is awesome. It's so awesome, I had to say it twice.

- The night mode is so easy on the eyes, I don't ever want to read on a Kindle again. But I will. Because...

- Battery life sucks. Incredibly. I recharged twice yesterday. TWICE in one day! Sure, I was playing with the device, not regular use... but... TWICE in one day!

- Went to bed with the battery at 90%. Was empty when I woke up.

- When you turn the light down, the screen is a hue of rainbows, a magic trip in the world of LSD flashbacks. No, really, it's very... colorful. There are greens, purples, pinks, and oranges.

- The device is sluggish, in everything.

- The touch interface is very imprecise. Really struggling to hit footnotes.

- I love the reading stats.

- It's great to have flexibility with fonts, font sizes, etc. Much better than Kindle.

- The cover does not fit (sleepcover). Very loose on the right slide. I had the reader slide out when reading in bed.

- But the device feels great without a cover. Love the back. I can easily hold it with one hand, no problems there. It's actually lighter than I expected.

Mixed bag. Not enough to abandon the Amazon ecosystem. I am keeping it, because I am lazy. But I ordered an Oasis today, to replace my Voyage (which I gave away).

Just my 2cp.

Bookworm_Girl · 09-22-2016, 01:00 AM

My thoughts are very similar. I don't know if I have seen anyone else mention footnotes. I am super frustrated with footnotes and have felt several times that I wanted to throw my KA1 across the room! I like that they show up in pop-ups similar to my Kindles. However the touch interface is very imprecise. I currently am reading an Oxford edition of a classic that contains loads of annotated footnotes. There are some footnotes that I keep trying to view and I give up because no matter how much I try it just keeps turning the page. It deserves repeating - super frustrating!

Good luck with the Oasis! It has its pros and cons compared to the Voyage as well as the KA1.

gibletpie · 09-22-2016, 01:15 AM

I have found footnotes to be difficult to hit with epubs, but pretty easy to hit with kepubs. After converting everything to kepub, I have had no frustration. Speeds up page turns, too.

Also, there are workarounds for some of the battery issues, and a firmware fix on the way, perhaps Monday (according to another poster).

Poppaea · 09-22-2016, 01:25 AM

If you got a device with a rainbow screen they will exchange it as there is something wrong with your screen.

As for the battery issues, well, lots of people weren't impressed including me. And having a bad firmware was a bummer for me too, as it is the first time since I got my Aura in 04/2014 the firmware doesn't work for me as intended.

Footnotes and sluggishness go away when using kepubs, as others have said before.

But I have to admit, the screen seemed less responsive than my Aura to me too.

All in all, I am very happy with my Aura One, now I finally got the firmware patch right and hope it all will be happy ever after coming the 26th and the firmware update.

The screen is awesome! And you are right, one has to say it a couple of times: Awesome, awesome, awesome

MGlitch · 09-22-2016, 01:59 AM

There was a user who posted that Kobo told them an update is in the works for the 26th of Sept. that will resolve some issues.

Let's remember Kobo was releasing firmware updates on nearly a monthly basis for a good while. The 3.19 - 4.x firmware gap is the longest between firmware updates that I can remember. Maybe we'll get back to that sort of cycle now that the devices have launched and OD is aout and working*

*as far as Kobo can make it anyway, some libraries seem not to support it yet.

Bookworm_Girl · 09-22-2016, 02:16 AM

I am speaking of footnote frustration in kepubs. It's not sluggishness. It's that the screen seems imprecise as vxf put it. It does not respond to being touched and instead turns the page. It also depends on where the footnote is located. End of lines or bottom of the page is especially difficult to activate.

Poppaea · 09-22-2016, 04:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bookworm_Girl

I am speaking of footnote frustration in kepubs. It's not sluggishness. It's that the screen seems imprecise as vxf put it. It does not respond to being touched and instead turns the page. It also depends on where the footnote is located. End of lines or bottom of the page is especially difficult to activate.

Oh,sorry, my bad. Must go and check this out then. I have two books with lots of maps I can try it with. One is a history book and the other one about global politics. I so looked forward to reading them on a larger screen and would be m´bummed if it were a PITA.

franklekens · 09-24-2016, 03:18 AM

I can confirm the footnote bug.

aceflor · 09-24-2016, 03:45 AM

So can I..

Poppaea · 09-24-2016, 04:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aceflor

So can I..

Jepp, in the meantime I found out the pop-up doesn't work. Davidfor is looking into it already.

Thank goodness for our techy members! Without them we'd have to do with what is sold to us

davidfor · 09-24-2016, 08:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Poppaea

Jepp, in the meantime I found out the pop-up doesn't work. Davidfor is looking into it already.

The footnote thing I was looking at was whether the sideloaded kepubs and purchased kepubs were being treated differently. Or if it was something in the code of the books. I grabbed a purchased kepub that has footnotes and sideloaded it. The footnotes acted as links and didn't show the popup.

The conclusion is that Kobo are treating sideloaded and purchased kepubs differently for footnotes. There might be a way around it, but, I don't know how.

jackie_w · 09-24-2016, 08:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davidfor

The footnote thing I was looking at was whether the sideloaded kepubs and purchased kepubs were being treated differently. Or if it was something in the code of the books. I grabbed a purchased kepub that has footnotes and sideloaded it. The footnotes acted as links and didn't show the popup.

The conclusion is that Kobo are treating sideloaded and purchased kepubs differently for footnotes. There might be a way around it, but, I don't know how.

I have encouraging news on this front. I have found a way to make footnotes appear as pop-ups in my sideloaded kepubs on my Aura One using firmware 4.0.7523. All my source books are non-DRM epub 2 format.

I don't have time right now but I'll start a new thread later today to document what I did. It's possible that this may be a recurring problem with each new firmware so it's better to have all the experimentation details in one place.

aceflor · 09-24-2016, 09:14 AM

Thanks Jackie, that would be really great.

jackie_w · 09-24-2016, 01:42 PM

Follow up ...

For those following this thread who are lamenting the passing of their pop-up footnotes on sideloaded kepubs, I've created a new thread in the Kobo Developer's sub-forum detailing a step-by-step method that has (so far) worked for me.

09-21-2016, 09:56 PM	#1
vxf Guru Posts: 944 Karma: 1490348 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Norman, OK Device: Sony PRS 350, 900, 950; Kindles (ALL of them!); Kobo Aura One	KA1 quick review I have always looked for bigger screens (since selling my PRS950), so I couldn't wait. Finally got it yesterday. Quick first impression. - The screen size is awesome. - The screen size is awesome. It's so awesome, I had to say it twice. - The night mode is so easy on the eyes, I don't ever want to read on a Kindle again. But I will. Because... - Battery life sucks. Incredibly. I recharged twice yesterday. TWICE in one day! Sure, I was playing with the device, not regular use... but... TWICE in one day! - Went to bed with the battery at 90%. Was empty when I woke up. - When you turn the light down, the screen is a hue of rainbows, a magic trip in the world of LSD flashbacks. No, really, it's very... colorful. There are greens, purples, pinks, and oranges. - The device is sluggish, in everything. - The touch interface is very imprecise. Really struggling to hit footnotes. - I love the reading stats. - It's great to have flexibility with fonts, font sizes, etc. Much better than Kindle. - The cover does not fit (sleepcover). Very loose on the right slide. I had the reader slide out when reading in bed. - But the device feels great without a cover. Love the back. I can easily hold it with one hand, no problems there. It's actually lighter than I expected. Mixed bag. Not enough to abandon the Amazon ecosystem. I am keeping it, because I am lazy. But I ordered an Oasis today, to replace my Voyage (which I gave away). Just my 2cp.

09-22-2016, 01:59 AM	#5
MGlitch Wizard Posts: 2,855 Karma: 22003124 Join Date: Aug 2014 Device: Kobo Forma, Kobo Sage, Kobo Libra 2	There was a user who posted that Kobo told them an update is in the works for the 26th of Sept. that will resolve some issues. Let's remember Kobo was releasing firmware updates on nearly a monthly basis for a good while. The 3.19 - 4.x firmware gap is the longest between firmware updates that I can remember. Maybe we'll get back to that sort of cycle now that the devices have launched and OD is aout and working* as far as Kobo can make it anyway, some libraries seem not to support it yet. Last edited by MGlitch; 09-22-2016 at 02:06 AM.*

09-22-2016, 02:16 AM	#6
Bookworm_Girl E-reader Enthusiast Posts: 4,873 Karma: 36536965 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Southwest, USA Device: Kindle Oasis 3; Kobo Aura One; iPad Mini 5	I am speaking of footnote frustration in kepubs. It's not sluggishness. It's that the screen seems imprecise as vxf put it. It does not respond to being touched and instead turns the page. It also depends on where the footnote is located. End of lines or bottom of the page is especially difficult to activate. Last edited by Bookworm_Girl; 09-22-2016 at 02:21 AM.

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09-22-2016, 01:00 AM	#2
Bookworm_Girl E-reader Enthusiast Posts: 4,873 Karma: 36536965 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Southwest, USA Device: Kindle Oasis 3; Kobo Aura One; iPad Mini 5	My thoughts are very similar. I don't know if I have seen anyone else mention footnotes. I am super frustrated with footnotes and have felt several times that I wanted to throw my KA1 across the room! I like that they show up in pop-ups similar to my Kindles. However the touch interface is very imprecise. I currently am reading an Oxford edition of a classic that contains loads of annotated footnotes. There are some footnotes that I keep trying to view and I give up because no matter how much I try it just keeps turning the page. It deserves repeating - super frustrating! Good luck with the Oasis! It has its pros and cons compared to the Voyage as well as the KA1.

09-22-2016, 01:15 AM	#3
gibletpie Enthusiast Posts: 46 Karma: 107690 Join Date: May 2010 Device: Kindle Paperwhite 3, Kobo Aura One	I have found footnotes to be difficult to hit with epubs, but pretty easy to hit with kepubs. After converting everything to kepub, I have had no frustration. Speeds up page turns, too. Also, there are workarounds for some of the battery issues, and a firmware fix on the way, perhaps Monday (according to another poster).

09-22-2016, 01:25 AM	#4
Poppaea Lucifer's Bat Posts: 2,577 Karma: 20638583 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Earth/Berlin Device: Kobo Libra Colour	If you got a device with a rainbow screen they will exchange it as there is something wrong with your screen. As for the battery issues, well, lots of people weren't impressed including me. And having a bad firmware was a bummer for me too, as it is the first time since I got my Aura in 04/2014 the firmware doesn't work for me as intended. Footnotes and sluggishness go away when using kepubs, as others have said before. But I have to admit, the screen seemed less responsive than my Aura to me too. All in all, I am very happy with my Aura One, now I finally got the firmware patch right and hope it all will be happy ever after coming the 26th and the firmware update. The screen is awesome! And you are right, one has to say it a couple of times: Awesome, awesome, awesome

09-24-2016, 03:18 AM	#8
franklekens Addict Posts: 398 Karma: 3421956 Join Date: Sep 2009 Device: various Kobo's, Onyx Note2, Pocketbook 360, Kindle Keyboard	I can confirm the footnote bug.

09-24-2016, 03:45 AM	#9
aceflor Wizard Posts: 3,472 Karma: 48036360 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: where the sun lives, or so they say Device: Pocketbook Era, Pocketbook Inkpad 4, Kobo Libra 2, Kindle Scribe	So can I..

09-24-2016, 09:14 AM	#13
aceflor Wizard Posts: 3,472 Karma: 48036360 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: where the sun lives, or so they say Device: Pocketbook Era, Pocketbook Inkpad 4, Kobo Libra 2, Kindle Scribe	Thanks Jackie, that would be really great.

09-24-2016, 01:42 PM	#14
jackie_w Grand Sorcerer Posts: 6,251 Karma: 16539642 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: UK Device: ClaraHD, Forma, Libra2, Clara2E, LibraCol, PBTouchHD3	Follow up ... For those following this thread who are lamenting the passing of their pop-up footnotes on sideloaded kepubs, I've created a new thread in the Kobo Developer's sub-forum detailing a step-by-step method that has (so far) worked for me.

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