Kobo Aura ONE Third Party Cover Thread

[Poppaea]

Originally Posted by Polarpenguin

Also KAO fell off a train table New Years Day, cover was open but shut it's self on the way down doing it's job protecting the screen.

Thank you for confirming!!

This is great news for me as I fall asleep reading quite often (and I suspect it will even get more frequent, the older I get) and now know it does protect my reader then.

[Poppaea]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

Thanks for taking the time to check this.

I've ordered the cover. At €17 including shipping it's a bit expensive for a China-cover, but that doesn't matter to me if it works as it should. I'll upgrade the Aura ONE, put it into this cover, and see if I'm happy with it for it to become my new full-time reader. If not, I'll sell it with the cover.

I'll give it one more go.

Selling the cover at half the price along with the reader, if it comes to that, actually gets me more money than sending it back.

Here is hope it all works out for you as like it to!

With the new firmware and a working cover I really love mine now. It is like reading a book now, only better

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by Poppaea

Here is hope it all works out for you as like it to!

With the new firmware and a working cover I really love mine now. It is like reading a book now, only better

We'll see. The cover should arrive somewhere this week. It was sent out yesterday. I've ordered the cover you linked, in black. So, if it doesn't work, I'll just blame you for it.

Spoiler:

[Katsunami]

Received the cover today. It doesn't work. The reader doesn't go to sleep. (It did with some of the other covers I've tried, but it was unreliable.)

It took me 15 minutes to get the reader to be recognized in Windows 10; I had to finally resort to USBDeview, a third party, unofficial utility, to remove the USB port assignments to the Kobo to get it to be recognized.

Kobo Desktop is impossible to work with on a high-DPI screen, by the way. It doesn't respect the scaling settings in Windows. After setting it up by clicking on the tiny buttons, it took some 20 minutes to download the firmware and five books from my (Dutch) Kobo account.

And in the end, it all comes to nothing. The cover doesn't work.

Conclusion: compared to a Kindle, setup is bothersome. Buying third party covers for an Aura ONE is hit and miss. Drinking a bottle of single malt whisky a week is cheaper than trying to find a cover (or a firmware) that make the sleep function work reliably.

I've tried five covers now, and all firmwares since the reader's release.

I've had enough of this. The cover will be returned when convenient, and I'll put the reader up for sale. I'll stick to my old 6 inch Kindle. Maybe I'll replace the four year old battery, so I'll have 8 weeks of battery life again.

[jackie_w]

@Katsunami,

That's unfortunate. I have the same model of cheap cover (different vendor) and mine works OK. Just a thought, I'm honestly not trying to be a smarta$$, but did you remember to make sure your Kobo settings sleepcover option was enabled, just in case you disabled it at some point due to battery drain?

Also when upgrading firmware I've found it's a lot less messing around if you sideload the fw rather than using Kobo Desktop. USBConnect - Drag - Drop - Disconnect - Done. Although it doesn't sound as if this advice will be much use to you in the future.

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by jackie_w

@Katsunami,

That's unfortunate. I have the same model of cheap cover (different vendor) and mine works OK. Just a thought, I'm honestly not trying to be a smarta$$, but did you remember to make sure your Kobo settings sleepcover option was enabled, just in case you disabled it at some point due to battery drain?

It is enabled.

Also when upgrading firmware I've found it's a lot less messing around if you sideload the fw rather than using Kobo Desktop. USBConnect - Drag - Drop - Disconnect - Done. Although it doesn't sound as if this advice will be much use to you in the future.

I know; but I had to do the setup anyway because I reset the reader a month ago as I was going to sell it. I only didn't because a new firmware was coming up.

I wonder why one cover works perfectly, while another doesn't work at all. Maybe they're very inaccurate with sleep magnet placement.

The one thing I could do to give the ONE yet ANOTHER chance by (re)ordering the Forefront case; the one with the ferrite sticker to prevent the reader from sleeping when the case is folded back. That case worked, but was unreliable. The firmware might have resolved this.

But it would be yet another expense with regard to shipment costs back and forth if it doesn't work.

I understand the Kobo cover is the only offically supported one, but I never ever had such problems getting a device to work correctly, even when using third party supplies.

[Poppaea]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

It is enabled.



I know; but I had to do the setup anyway because I reset the reader a month ago as I was going to sell it. I only didn't because a new firmware was coming up.

I wonder why one cover works perfectly, while another doesn't work at all. Maybe they're very inaccurate with sleep magnet placement.

The one thing I could do to give the ONE yet ANOTHER chance by (re)ordering the Forefront case; the one with the ferrite sticker to prevent the reader from sleeping when the case is folded back. That case worked, but was unreliable. The firmware might have resolved this.

But it would be yet another expense with regard to shipment costs back and forth if it doesn't work.

I understand the Kobo cover is the only offically supported one, but I never ever had such problems getting a device to work correctly, even when using third party supplies.

Oh, no!!!!!

Would you like to have my cover? I know it isn't black but it works. Just PM me your address and I'll ship it tomorrow.

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by Poppaea

Oh, no!!!!!

Would you like to have my cover? I know it isn't black but it works. Just PM me your address and I'll ship it tomorrow.

No, that is not necessary. I said I'd blame you if this cover didn't work, but I assume you understand that was only a joke It's not your fault there's apparently so much crap out there. No need to feel guilty if getting a good cover or not is merely a lottery.

Just be happy you have a working cover

[davidfor]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

I know; but I had to do the setup anyway because I reset the reader a month ago as I was going to sell it. I only didn't because a new firmware was coming up.

I wonder why one cover works perfectly, while another doesn't work at all. Maybe they're very inaccurate with sleep magnet placement.

That's the most likely reason. Or they forgot to put it in. Have you tested for it? And of course, this is not a fault of the device. It is a fault of the cover..

[Poppaea]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

No, that is not necessary. I said I'd blame you if this cover didn't work, but I assume you understand that was only a joke It's not your fault there's apparently so much crap out there. No need to feel guilty if getting a good cover or not is merely a lottery.

Just be happy you have a working cover

But I will get the Noreve one of these years, so I won't need it.

[Katsunami]

I've confirmed it's the cover (again) that is not working.

I took a magnetic screwdriver, and as soon as I get near the sleep magnet detector, which is about 2cm left and up from the lower right corner of the screen (so, in the text area), the KA1 goes to sleep. I don't even have to touch the screen.

Even more so, it goes to sleep *EVERY TIME*. It works even when I do stuff like waking the reader up by lifting the magnet and then lowering it again half through its wake-up cycle. The reader finishes the wake-up, and then goes back to sleep again.

In short: with the current 4.2.1180 firmware, the sleep function works reliably *IF* the cover has a magnet that is large enough and positioned correctly.

Now... am I going to take another gamble on ANOTHER third party cover, or should I go to a store in town which has the official cover in stock?

The €50 price tag of the original cover is quite high for what it is, but I can live with that if it works perfectly and reliably. The one thing I don't know is if I will like the possibly floppy lid due to the stand function.

Maybe I'll take the reader with me and see if I can put it into the cover in the store.

[maxxximilian]

I bought Forefront Origami cover and sleep function works perfectly:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/232132775903...%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

[Poppaea]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

Now... am I going to take another gamble on ANOTHER third party cover, or should I go to a store in town which has the official cover in stock?

The €50 price tag of the original cover is quite high for what it is, but I can live with that if it works perfectly and reliably. The one thing I don't know is if I will like the possibly floppy lid due to the stand function.

Maybe I'll take the reader with me and see if I can put it into the cover in the store.

Well, it actually isn't more expensive than all the experiments were.
And you should totally take the reader with you and test it. Btw, are you sure it will be floppy or are you just assuming it?

And I would so send you mine, if you'd just give me your address. And I promise not to show up on your doorstep to molest you.

[Katsunami]

Well... it looks like you bought the bright blue version. Sorry, but the dude can't abide.

I've tested the original cover in the store. It works. At least with firmware 4.2.8110, it's 100% reliable up until now. I've not been able to make it fail. With regard to floppyness: I assumed it would be floppy. It is.... bendable, but much more rigid than I thought. If you open the cover 180 degrees and then hold it at the corners on the spine side, it actually sticks straight out.

A few observations:
- The back of this cover is soft. Most Chinese covers are hard plastic.
- The reader slips into and out of the cover easily. Some Chinese ones take a lot of effort, especially in getting the reader out.
- The cover sticks to the reader, and stays closed when turned upside down. Most Chinese ones do this too.
- The cover actually sticks to the back as well, when folded over. None of the Chinese ones I've tried did this.
- The reader stays asleep, even if the lid is not perfectly straight on top of the screen. It's not possible to wake the reader up by moving the lid through its maximum amount of play. The sleep magnet in the cover is thus large enough.
- The stand function should have been left out. It requires brute force bending of the cover to get the reader to stand. I've not wanted to try this.
- Build quality isn't better or worse than the cheap Chinese covers; it's just different materials.

The one downfall of this cover is its idiotic €50 price tag. If it cost €25 or less, I'd highly recommend it over any third party cover, but now, it might be worth it to play the Chinese cover lottery once or twice. You might get lucky.

I wonder if the €12 Forefront case would have worked had I kept it. I've determined that I can't order it again, because Forefront actually doesn't make most of its cases. They buy from different manufacturers, then have their "Fc" logo stamped onto the case, and then they sell it. As you have seen with me buying the exact same cover that worked for you (only in black), its still a lottery if you stay with the same seller or even manufacturer.

I decided to go with the original cover because I've already lost 4x €6 (shipment of Chinese covers, could be returned for free), and €5 + €6.75 (shipping back and forth to Noreve). That's €35.75 down the drain with nothing to show for it.

Selling the reader for €175 or so would lose me another €50. Then I figured I could 'lose' (as in, not have) that €50 by getting the original cover, as I do like the KA1 hardware wise, because of the screen that's about the perfect size for me. Much bigger than 6 inch, but not so large as to become unwieldy.

[graycyn]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

Well... it looks like you bought the bright blue version. Sorry, but the dude can't abide.

I've tested the original cover in the store. It works. At least with firmware 4.2.8110, it's 100% reliable up until now. I've not been able to make it fail. With regard to floppyness: I assumed it would be floppy. It is.... bendable, but much more rigid than I thought. If you open the cover 180 degrees and then hold it at the corners on the spine side, it actually sticks straight out.

A few observations:
- The back of this cover is soft. Most Chinese covers are hard plastic.
- The reader slips into and out of the cover easily. Some Chinese ones take a lot of effort, especially in getting the reader out.
- The cover sticks to the reader, and stays closed when turned upside down. Most Chinese ones do this too.
- The cover actually sticks to the back as well, when folded over. None of the Chinese ones I've tried did this.
- The reader stays asleep, even if the lid is not perfectly straight on top of the screen. It's not possible to wake the reader up by moving the lid through its maximum amount of play. The sleep magnet in the cover is thus large enough.
- The stand function should have been left out. It requires brute force bending of the cover to get the reader to stand. I've not wanted to try this.
- Build quality isn't better or worse than the cheap Chinese covers; it's just different materials.

THANKS for these details on the original cover. I do plan to buy one once back in stock at either Kobo or Chapters/Indigo, so it's comforting to know it works as intended!

Fortunately, I have no interest in the stand aspect, I have several great 3Feet folding stands that I prefer anyway. I'd rather have my cover stay semi-rigid than do any brute force bending!

I agree, the price tag is high, but my original Kobo cover for the Aura HD is still looking great and going strong after 3 years, so I figure I'll get my money's worth. My Aura HD cover is ten times more pleasurable in use than the cheaper cover I got for my husband's Aura HD, which, after he abandoned it, I've been using to proofread scanned books.


Sent from my Pixel C using Tapatalk