Help me replace my 12 year old Kindle Paperwhite 1

sobo · 11-12-2025, 04:05 PM

Hello everyone here,

Until very recently, I used my venerable Kindle Paperwhite 1. It worked very well for my purposes, although I eyed more recent models. I did a little jailbreaking, mostly to load new fonts. Unfortunately, I recently lost it... Given that it is now missing in action, I am looking for a replacement (currently using a Pocketbook Lux lended by my library)

I am looking for an ereader that :

Allows for sideloading books
Has good typographic support, I like to read ebooks from Standard Ebooks and I want to enjoy the good typography
Allows for tinkering (installing alternative readers, changing fonts...)
Relatively small form factor (book sized, not laptop sized)
Good battery life
Snappy experience (I'm coming from PW1 so this should be easy) and good build quality
Has a protective cover (or can be bought separately)

I would rather not deal with :

Ads of any kind
The ereader not being happy about spending most of its life offline
In general, arbitrary restrictions about how I use my device (pushing updates on me...)
Android based ereaders

Nice features that I would be very happy to have are :

Simple distraction free interface
Physical buttons
Waterproof device
Being able to write with a stylus would be nice
Audio output (with bluetooth)
Warm light
Color (does this impact the usual reading experience ?)
Being able to disable updates while still being able to use the internet (I am ok with tinkering to achieve this goal)
Auto-rotate

I don't care that much about :

Being able to borrow books from my local library
The store bundled with the device
Price
Very high pixel density (I believe I do not care, the one of the PW1 seemed sufficient to me ?)
Google Drive or Dropbox integration (OPDS is a plus though)
Very big internal storage, I am ok with deleting books I have read
No SD card
Dark mode

My budget is quite flexible. I have been eyeing the Kobo Libra Colour, but I will take any recommandations you have. And thank you very much for reading this relatively long post

Sirtel · 11-12-2025, 04:32 PM

Kobo ereaders seem to have most of the features you want.

Dr. Drib · 11-13-2025, 07:14 AM

You need to collect a S*itload of opinions here on the idea of color.

It's a mixed lot, full of controversy.

My opinion: I don't like color.

Remember: Opinions differ on this topic.

JSWolf · 11-13-2025, 08:29 AM

IMHO, the color overlay is crap on eInk.

salamanderjuice · 11-13-2025, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

IMHO, the color overlay is crap on eInk.

IMHO, it's fine and you get used to the contrast difference after about 5 minutes once you stop comparing it directly to your B&W reader.

I think it's something you just need to look at in person somehow and decide if it's right for you. Don't listen to other people's opinions on it.

Quoth · 11-13-2025, 04:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by salamanderjuice

IMHO, it's fine and you get used to the contrast difference after about 5 minutes once you stop comparing it directly to your B&W reader.

I think it's something you just need to look at in person somehow and decide if it's right for you. Don't listen to other people's opinions on it.

I looked at the Boox and Pocketbook Kaleido in person. I'll stick to my 6", 7" & 8" mono eink for novels. The K3 is better for novels!

meeera · Today, 05:17 AM

If you want colour and buttons, and you're ok with the trade-off in contrast and happy to use the frontlight to compensate, it sounds like the Libra Colour is perfect for you. You _will_ have a certain person or two here yelling at you insistently that it is COMPLETELY UNUSABLE; be aware that that is not a universal opinion/experience.

If you don't want that contrast hit, you want a lovely BW display, and you're ok with a six inch device without buttons: Kobo Clara BW covers most of what you want.

JSWolf · Today, 07:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by meeera

If you want colour and buttons, and you're ok with the trade-off in contrast and happy to use the frontlight to compensate, it sounds like the Libra Colour is perfect for you. You _will_ have a certain person or two here yelling at you insistently that it is COMPLETELY UNUSABLE; be aware that that is not a universal opinion/experience.

If you don't want that contrast hit, you want a lovely BW display, and you're ok with a six inch device without buttons: Kobo Clara BW covers most of what you want.

A color Reader is not unable. Just not nearly as good as a BW model.

11-12-2025, 04:05 PM	#1
sobo Junior Member Posts: 1 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2025 Location: France Device: (Lost) Kindle PW1	Help me replace my 12 year old Kindle Paperwhite 1 Hello everyone here, Until very recently, I used my venerable Kindle Paperwhite 1. It worked very well for my purposes, although I eyed more recent models. I did a little jailbreaking, mostly to load new fonts. Unfortunately, I recently lost it... Given that it is now missing in action, I am looking for a replacement (currently using a Pocketbook Lux lended by my library) I am looking for an ereader that : Allows for sideloading books Has good typographic support, I like to read ebooks from Standard Ebooks and I want to enjoy the good typography Allows for tinkering (installing alternative readers, changing fonts...) Relatively small form factor (book sized, not laptop sized) Good battery life Snappy experience (I'm coming from PW1 so this should be easy) and good build quality Has a protective cover (or can be bought separately) I would rather not deal with : Ads of any kind The ereader not being happy about spending most of its life offline In general, arbitrary restrictions about how I use my device (pushing updates on me...) Android based ereaders Nice features that I would be very happy to have are : Simple distraction free interface Physical buttons Waterproof device Being able to write with a stylus would be nice Audio output (with bluetooth) Warm light Color (does this impact the usual reading experience ?) Being able to disable updates while still being able to use the internet (I am ok with tinkering to achieve this goal) Auto-rotate I don't care that much about : Being able to borrow books from my local library The store bundled with the device Price Very high pixel density (I believe I do not care, the one of the PW1 seemed sufficient to me ?) Google Drive or Dropbox integration (OPDS is a plus though) Very big internal storage, I am ok with deleting books I have read No SD card Dark mode My budget is quite flexible. I have been eyeing the Kobo Libra Colour, but I will take any recommandations you have. And thank you very much for reading this relatively long post

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11-12-2025, 04:32 PM	#2
Sirtel Grand Sorcerer Posts: 14,030 Karma: 243829945 Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Estonia Device: Kobo Sage & Libra 2	Kobo ereaders seem to have most of the features you want.

11-13-2025, 07:14 AM	#3
Dr. Drib Grand Sorcerer Posts: 45,643 Karma: 60184181 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Peru Device: KINDLE: Oasis 3, Scribe (1st), Matcha; KOBO: Libra 2, Libra Colour	You need to collect a S*itload of opinions here on the idea of color. It's a mixed lot, full of controversy. My opinion: I don't like color. Remember: Opinions differ on this topic.

11-13-2025, 08:29 AM	#4
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 80,903 Karma: 150249631 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	IMHO, the color overlay is crap on eInk.

Today, 05:17 AM	#7
meeera Grand Sorcerer Posts: 5,870 Karma: 68407974 Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Australia Device: Kobo Libra 2, iPadMini4, iPad4, MBP; support other Kobo/Kindles	If you want colour and buttons, and you're ok with the trade-off in contrast and happy to use the frontlight to compensate, it sounds like the Libra Colour is perfect for you. You _will_ have a certain person or two here yelling at you insistently that it is COMPLETELY UNUSABLE; be aware that that is not a universal opinion/experience. If you don't want that contrast hit, you want a lovely BW display, and you're ok with a six inch device without buttons: Kobo Clara BW covers most of what you want.

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