Aura HD Aura HD - worth it now?

[Ksquared]

I had an ad appear in my browser for an Aura HD for $89. This is from Kobo.com and does not show as a refurbished reader, although another ad in my browser showed a refurbished HD for the same price. Both show free shipping. I don't know where Kobo came up with "New" stock.

I have an Aura 6", but wonder if it would be worthwhile to get the larger, HD reader at this price. I am not inclined to go for the H2O (old or new), and while the Aura One sounds great, it is way out of my price range.

So, is the resolution and size a huge difference? Are there other drawbacks with the HD that I will notice as a Aura 6" user? I have no problems with my Aura, and like the flush bezel, but I have nothing to compare it too. I have an HD sitting in my Kobo.com cart... I Just have to decide to push the button, or not.

[meeera]

These have been sitting on a shelf for over two years. I wouldn't buy one. The battery is likely to give out soon.

[Ksquared]

Thanks - I was tempted, but will resist!

[patrik]

I bought the Aura HD about the same week it was released (in the UK) and it has had heavy use and is still going strong. Sure, the battery doesn't keep as long as it did, but still way longer than I ever get the need to actually charge it (it charges enough whenever I connect it to have Calibre to play with it).

If you compare side-by-side with H20, you see a difference (the carta is better then pearl), but when you read it just works.

Which is a bummer... I really wanted to upgrade to H20 when it become available.

[meeera]

Originally Posted by patrik

I bought the Aura HD about the same week it was released (in the UK) and it has had heavy use and is still going strong. Sure, the battery doesn't keep as long as it did, but still way longer than I ever get the need to actually charge it (it charges enough whenever I connect it to have Calibre to play with it).

Your battery has been regularly charged, not sat on a shelf and ignored for two years (which is what we can only assume is the likely story of these bargain devices, given when they were discontinued and that they're not refurbs). Very different situations. We don't know what temperature these were stored at, when exactly they were manufactured, whether anyone has checked the batteries...

Even if well treated, though, I'd hesitate to buy a device of that age if I was an avid reader and wanted it to last for more than a year or two. My H2O is two and a half years old, has been charged regularly and well treated, and is definitely showing noticeable battery degradation.

[patrik]

Sure, you take a risk buying older stuff (even if I don't agree on your take on battery degradation).

All I'm saying is that I perceive the Aura HD to still be a really good e-reader. H20 (and many others) are better. Newer is usually safer and sometimes also "better". How much you want to pay for "better" is something personal and I think you do people a disservice scaring them off, IMHO.

[booklover6]

Originally Posted by patrik

Sure, you take a risk buying older stuff (even if I don't agree on your take on battery degradation).

All I'm saying is that I perceive the Aura HD to still be a really good e-reader. H20 (and many others) are better. Newer is usually safer and sometimes also "better". How much you want to pay for "better" is something personal and I think you do people a disservice scaring them off, IMHO.

I agree, and that's a great price, too. If one wants a larger reader, and can't afford the current models, the Aura HD is a great choice.

[meeera]

Originally Posted by patrik

Sure, you take a risk buying older stuff (even if I don't agree on your take on battery degradation).

You don't agree with battery self-discharge? The risks of leaving a discharged battery sitting for years? Temperature sensitivity in storage? Or something else?

I've worded my comments through this thread as "I wouldn't buy one" and "I would hesitate". Not exactly ordering people around and doing a "disservice". The OP asked for opinions on potential drawbacks - this is mine. If this device doesn't come with a robust warranty that explicitly includes a guarantee of a long battery life for a good amount of time into the future, I would not buy it. It's false economy.

I agree that the Aura HD had a great feature set when it was released in 2013.

[Ken Maltby]

@meera; What does your "Device:" list "support AuraHD,Kindle,KAura,Kglo" mean?

I recently posted where you can get a replacement battery for $15 shipping & handling included. (Come to think of it, it was in reply to one of your posts about the battery.) Just like the internal memory upgrade you may even be able to upgrade to a 4000mAh battery (given the data, including dimensions, shown on that site's battery listings)

If I could pick up an AuraHD for $89, I wouldn't hesitate.

Also; as I read using KOReader, my AuraHD has seen a great many improvements and added features over the time since its release. (And continues to do so.)

Luck;
Ken

[Cluey]

Originally Posted by meeera

These have been sitting on a shelf for over two years. I wouldn't buy one. The battery is likely to give out soon.

You can't make claims like, "The battery is likely to give out soon," without something to back it up.

Manufacturers take a conservative approach and specify the life of Li-ion in most consumer products as being between 300 and 500 discharge/charge cycles.

That quote is from this article from Battery University. If you read through the article you'll see that it might have lost up to 10% of it's brand new capacity by being stored for two years. The chart indicates 4% a year at 25C.

Something you'll also learn from reading that is how often you should charge your device. The battery will last longest if you use it until about 65% of its capacity and then charge it back up to 75% of its capacity.
I doubt many of us do that with our mobile devices, not just your Ereader but your phone/tablet/laptop or any other device you have using Lithium based batteries.

Personally I'd have no problem buying a device like that, even a manufacturer refurbished one if it had a warranty. The price saved by buying it at that price would cover the cost of replacing the battery.

From a World View level that is much better than letting it end up in land fill, unfortunately that seems to be the modern attitude to things which aren't the latest model. However unlike phones/tablets/laptops the performance of an Ereader isn't as important. They've become so popular because of the better reading experience, especially in direct sunlight, also battery life is much better than LCD based devices.

[davidfor]

Originally Posted by Cluey

You can't make claims like, "The battery is likely to give out soon," without something to back it up.

Yes, meeera can make a simple statement like that without backing it up. As long as when asked, they can back it up. And meeera did when asked. And as a simple rule, I would completely agree with it. And that is based on a thorough reading of the Battery University the last 15 years.

That quote is from this article from Battery University. If you read through the article you'll see that it might have lost up to 10% of it's brand new capacity by being stored for two years. The chart indicates 4% a year at 25C.

Something you'll also learn from reading that is how often you should charge your device. The battery will last longest if you use it until about 65% of its capacity and then charge it back up to 75% of its capacity.
I doubt many of us do that with our mobile devices, not just your Ereader but your phone/tablet/laptop or any other device you have using Lithium based batteries.

Personally I'd have no problem buying a device like that, even a manufacturer refurbished one if it had a warranty. The price saved by buying it at that price would cover the cost of replacing the battery.

From a World View level that is much better than letting it end up in land fill, unfortunately that seems to be the modern attitude to things which aren't the latest model. However unlike phones/tablets/laptops the performance of an Ereader isn't as important. They've become so popular because of the better reading experience, especially in direct sunlight, also battery life is much better than LCD based devices.

Yes, meeera can make a simple statement like that without backing it up. As long as when asked, they can back it up which meeera did when asked. And as a simple rule, I would completely agree with it. And that is based on a thorough reading of the page you pointed to.

Your statement of 4% life lost after one year is based on being stored at 40% charge and 25C. But, we don't know what charge it was stored at and what conditions. We also don't know if the self-discharge has dropped the charge level below the safe position. Two years could easily put at the unsafe point if the storage conditions were bad, or the initial point was low.

Saying buy the device and replace the battery to avoid waste is great. But, for most people, it isn't practical. I know how to open the device and find a replacement battery. Most people don't, have no desire to do so, and if they tried would end up with a broken device. They want to get the device, turn it on and use it.

The Battery University is a great site for all you ever wanted to know about batteries. But, the theory and practical use is such a different thing. The idea that the life of a battery can be extended by keeping the charge between 65% and 75% is great. But, it's completely impractical for nearly all use (I believe NASA do this in satellites). The idea that I can charge my laptop battery to 40%, take it out, seal it and store it at 0C and get a really long life out of it is also absurd. What's the use of having a battery last five or ten years if I don't use it? I came to the conclusion a long time ago that for Li-Ion batteries, to just use it. Anything I could really do to extend the overall life was impractical from the point of view of actually using it. For a laptop, I just say put it in, use as necessary, charge when you can. And basically the same for ereaders.

[meeera]

What davidfor said. I don't know of any electronic warehouses that are carefully climate-controlled at 15 degrees C (the optimal temperature), let alone those which open the devices every few months to top them up to the optimal charge for long term storage.

This device was discontinued over two years ago. Where have these bargain-basement devices been sitting all this time? Why is Kobo having a sale on them now? Were they found in some forgotten warehouse somewhere? Were they manufactured on the two-years-ago mark (which seems unlikely), or as many as three years or more ago? Without a battery warranty (or of course the ability to confidently change the battery), it's a gamble. I don't have that ability - I'm reasonably sure I'd break the display trying. If the OP does have that ability, then I'm sure they saw my reasoning (battery life concerns), and discarded it as not relevant to them.

[meeera]

Originally Posted by Ken Maltby

@meera; What does your "Device:" list "support AuraHD,Kindle,KAura,Kglo" mean?

Oh, that just means I'm the ereader support person for my extended family also - those are devices I've set up/used/supported. I should update them, my FiL broke his HD a little while back.

[Ksquared]

Thanks everyone for the great comments. I had not heard of Battery University; I will be doing some reading there.

The battery was a concern. As I noted, there were 2 ads, one said refurbished, one did not. Both show free shipping. I wondered if the refurb might be better as it might have a new battery.

I am a classic hesitater, so I don't know if I will pull the trigger. I do know I use my Aura 6" every day, charge it when it gets to about 50% and remain very happy with the reading and the battery life!

[MGlitch]

I wouldn't trust a refurb to have a new battery, typically they just make sure the hardware is in an acceptable (to them) condition.