iPad Mini Usable with Calibre?

[enuddleyarbl]

Since no one seems to be making 8-inch e-readers any more, I'm grasping at straws, holding my nose, checking my wallet and wondering if Apple's iPad Mini might be usable as an e-reader. My first, big question is: can Calibre interact with the Mini like it can with real e-readers? Or, has Apple locked things down and done things their own way to such an extent that getting ebooks over from Calibre onto the Mini either won't work or is difficult?

[SuperComfySoft]

Basically you’re going to have to look for Apps with the functionality you require. I support some Calibre but currently only as a download from a Calibre server and no true syncing. Maybe I’ll do some deeper integration but there are other iOS apps which are much deeper with their Calibre integration.

There’s an Apple devices subforum which have some active apps. Don’t expect the bundled Apple Books app to cover your needs.

[enuddleyarbl]

If I can use Send to Device in Calibre to send the books to a Mini via USB, I'll be happy. But, one of the few threads I see here regarding an iPad Mini talks about USB communication not working. But, that thread is 6 years old and I don't find anything more up to date.

[theducks]

Does the Mini have a Browser?
Run the Calibre content server on your desktop and use the browser on the Mini and the 'download' button when viewing the books description 'page'

[BetterRed]

Using the IOS browser (Safari) is the fastest way I know to flatten my iPhone 8's battery.

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by BetterRed

Using the IOS browser (Safari) is the fastest way I know to flatten my iPhone 8's battery.

I take it that you seldom watch or record videos...

[BetterRed]

Originally Posted by DNSB

I take it that you seldom watch or record videos...

Correct… wouldn't know how

I loathe my iPhone, only have it because it can interop with my hearing aids, otherwise I'd bin it tomorrow.

BR

[Deskisamess]

If you're using the Kindle app on an iPad mini, you can use Send to Kindle easy enough using the email address assigned to the app and emailing out of Calibre.

The baked in book app on iDevices is horrid, on the occasion I have an epub I will use it but it's not my preference.

[kacir]

Originally Posted by enuddleyarbl

Since no one seems to be making 8-inch e-readers any more,

PocketBook does have a few models with 7.8" display and I am pretty sure that there are other manufacturers (Onyx boox, for example) that use those displays.

I have recently purchased PocketBook InkPad One a 10.3 inch e-ink reader that sells under 300 Euro here in Europe.

If the device, including iPad has an Internet browser it can use web interface to the Calibre on the local network.

There are many, many e-book reading apps for iPad and you can use any of those to read books you have in Calibre. Some apps support OPDS server and Calibre can function as an OPDS server. I have used this functionality to load a book to an e-book reading app on an iPad relatively recently when I wanted to see what it would be like to read on a 10" display. As a result I purchased PB InkPad One.

[enuddleyarbl]

The PocketBook InkPad 4 is the one I've found that seems to be closest to acceptable. But, it was introduced over 3 years ago and, from what I can see, has about half the performance of the Kobo Sage (which is something like 5 years old now and out of production, regardless of what Kobo says).

10-inch e-readers are just too big for me. Plus, I'm really sure the ol' spousal unit wouldn't be happy with it.

It looks like an iPad Mini might be workable, though I'd probably have to re-think my workflow. I'll keep it in mind.

[kacir]

Originally Posted by enuddleyarbl

The PocketBook InkPad 4 is the one I've found that seems to be closest to acceptable. But, it was introduced over 3 years ago and, from what I can see, has about half the performance of the Kobo Sage

Yes, PocketBooks are slow but KOReader users say that KOReader makes them faster. I personally can't judge that because the 10.3" InkPad One has a new 64bit Rockchip processor and seems to be faster than older units.

If you have an opportunity, make a full size print-out of the 10.3" unit, blue it to a piece of cardboard and try holding it. I thought that 10" reader was big, because I have been using 6" or smaller devices for two decades. After a few weeks of use it looks just the right size and all smaller devices seem to be too small ;-). I still use 6" e-ink reader as my out-of-house portable unit. 10.3" device is too big for me to take to the beach or traveling or to the doctor's waiting room.

I use Linux at home so I also installed KOReader to my PC and set the window to the size of 10.3" display to see what the real device would look like. It wasn't that big when viewed on a 24" monitor ;-).

Go and buy whatever device suits your needs the best. I just wanted to list the possibilities. I have friends that say the 10.3 unit is too big even after they had an opportunity to hold it in their hands, admire the gorgeous Mobius display and see the good typography (including things like proper kerning, ligatures and hanging punctuation) that KOReader provides.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Deskisamess

If you're using the Kindle app on an iPad mini, you can use Send to Kindle easy enough using the email address assigned to the app and emailing out of Calibre.

The baked in book app on iDevices is horrid, on the occasion I have an epub I will use it but it's not my preference.

The Kindle app is no better then Books. They are both unacceptable.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by kacir

PocketBook does have a few models with 7.8" display and I am pretty sure that there are other manufacturers (Onyx boox, for example) that use those displays.

I have recently purchased PocketBook InkPad One a 10.3 inch e-ink reader that sells under 300 Euro here in Europe.

If the device, including iPad has an Internet browser it can use web interface to the Calibre on the local network.

There are many, many e-book reading apps for iPad and you can use any of those to read books you have in Calibre. Some apps support OPDS server and Calibre can function as an OPDS server. I have used this functionality to load a book to an e-book reading app on an iPad relatively recently when I wanted to see what it would be like to read on a 10" display. As a result I purchased PB InkPad One.

I've used send to to access books on OneDrive to send some eBooks to a reading app. That works. I have a backup (which I need to update) of my working calibre library on OneDrive. That way I can access most books when I want. It;s good when I'm not at home or want to add to my iPhone or iPad. Doing it this way, I don't need to keep a lot of books on my iPhone or iPad as they'll be easily accessible.

[DJUNGELSKOG]

Originally Posted by enuddleyarbl

Since no one seems to be making 8-inch e-readers any more, I'm grasping at straws, holding my nose, checking my wallet and wondering if Apple's iPad Mini might be usable as an e-reader. My first, big question is: can Calibre interact with the Mini like it can with real e-readers? Or, has Apple locked things down and done things their own way to such an extent that getting ebooks over from Calibre onto the Mini either won't work or is difficult?

It's not a problem whatsoever!

1. Many apps support downloading books from calibre's OPDS catalog and some of them, like Maple Read, have bulk downloading.

2. You can connect your iPad Mini to your computer and use Calibre to push your books to your favourite app's Documents folder. It works on Linux as well!

I'm not aware of any apps that support wireless connection to Calibre the way Koreader does it.

Something to keep in mind: now is not a good time to buy an iPad Mini since Apple is going to release an updated version with a better screen soontm: https://www.macrumors.com/roundup/ipad-mini/ . So you'll have an option to get a newer model OR to get a much better deal on the existing model.