do all ereaders die when the battery does?

[polly]

Originally Posted by tym

Before I purchased my first ebook reader, I kinda got the idea, once the battery dies, it will have to be replaced. You can only recharge them so many times. How many times that is, i simply don't know.

Modern lithium ion batteries, such as the major players use, will last for thousands of charging cycles. Even with periodically plugging it in to the computer to load content, it will take me years to hit that limit. My reader is much more likely to have a bad accident before that happens.

[lorenzoens]

Originally Posted by soondai

no they don't just die. some have user replaceable batteries (nook), others allow you to send it in (kindle, iPad). and others you can DIY unofficially.

you have hit in one of my big pet peeves. still can't believe 100 dollar devices are virtually considered disposable by their makers, and that we consumers accept it. I expect anything I pay $100 for to still work in 5 years, even if it is out of date.

Though there are ways to replace batteries on almost all of them, it is not cheap or easy for most and the assumption is you'll buy a new one

TOTALLY agree.
For the same reason (ultra consumerism religion), devices are being sold still being unready to hit the market, like beta or alphas.

--
on entourage edge I bought a replacemente battery, hope the device will last enough to see both batteries diyng!

[toddos]

Originally Posted by tym

While I could be wrong. It seems if you take apart almost any ebook reader to replace the battery it can mess them up. Of course not all the time. Kinda a hit and miss kinda thing. Like taking a gamble.

Only if you do it wrong. Screens are usually the most likely thing people will mess up. If you're just replacing a battery and you use quality replacement parts there's nothing that you should be able to break.

So the first investment I made was a program to read ebooks on my computer. It was 100 bucks, but its lifetime updates. Amazing program. Icebook reader pro. You can get a trial version and the only difference between paid and free is you get a pop up every 10 or 15 min reminding its shareware. It will even read the book to you and make audio books.

Why not Adobe Digital Editions (free), Nook for PC (free), Kindle for PC (free), MobiPocket Reader for PC (free), Kobo for PC (free), Sony for PC (free), Calibre (free), CoolReader (free), FBReader (free), etc? $100 is a lot to pay for ebook reading software when literally all of the competition is free (most of the store-based software like Nook and Kindle will allow you to read any of your non-store-purchased books just fine).

I looked through the features of Icebook and there was nothing compelling enough in there that would make it worth $100 for me. Perhaps you have different priorities, and it's a little late now. But I'm pointing this out in case others think that the only way to read ebooks on their PC is by shelling out $100.

[ucfgrad93]

Originally Posted by bhartman36

Has anyone here actually tried this? I could feel my warranty being voided half-way through the video, so I just wanted to make sure the clips on the Kindle weren't easily broken or something. (That's the fear I'd have with this. Everything else about it looks fairly basic.)

Here is an article of someone who actually did change the battery of his Kindle Keyboard.

http://www.geardiary.com/2012/03/06/...board-battery/

[ApK]

Originally Posted by speedlever

Here's the DIY battery replacement process for the K3.

Looks very easy. Easier than when I replaced the battery in my iPod 5G. The hardest part here is getting the case open with those little green plastic tools, which I take it is a knack....I destroyed my first set of those tools, and my second set is not looking to good...good thing they are cheap.
By the way, note the towel he has down on the work surface...don't forget that! When I refurbed my ipod, I stupidly replaced the old scratched screen cover with a new one first, then changed the battery without the towel...finished up with a brand new, freshly scratched screen cover! Grr!

Originally Posted by polly

Modern lithium ion batteries, such as the major players use, will last for thousands of charging cycles. Even with periodically plugging it in to the computer to load content, it will take me years to hit that limit. My reader is much more likely to have a bad accident before that happens.

Lithium ion batteries, if I have been informed correctly, start to break down from the moment they are manufactured, and have a limited life regardless of the number of charging cycles, which is why even the "new" cheap batteries you can find on ebay can be hit or miss if they are old stock.
Feel free to point me some authoritative data if I'm wrong.

ApK

[JWFeReaders]

No - in our case, the JWF eReaderPRO, you simply pop off the rear door and put in a replacement battery. The replacement battery is around £5/$5. Shouldn't need replacing for years anyway - but it does vary.

[Timoleon]

Originally Posted by bhartman36

Has anyone here actually tried this? I could feel my warranty being voided half-way through the video, so I just wanted to make sure the clips on the Kindle weren't easily broken or something. (That's the fear I'd have with this. Everything else about it looks fairly basic.)

This looks a lot easier than the battery replacement I did on my Sony PRS-505 a few years ago, also from Newpower99.com. The Sony is still running strong, although I gave it to a relative and now have the Kindle 3 (keyboard). I'm thinking about getting an extra battery from Newpower99.com, just because the charge on my Kindle is not lasting as long as it did a year and a half ago. Unless you're wearing a catcher's mitt while replacing the battery, you shouldn't have any problem. Just be gentle with the plastic tool pry-off thingy.

[The Terminator]

The Kobo WiFi and 1 both have battery's that can be replaced I think (I read that somewhere on this forum, I just don't remember) But the Kobo Touch can not.

[delphin]

I recently purchased a Galaxy Player 4 which I use (among other things) for both on-the-go eReading and listening to audio-books.

As I said in my short review of the Galaxy Player 4, one of the things that caused me to choose it over both the iPod and Galaxy Player 5 was the fact that the Galaxy Player 4 has a battery that is readily available at low cost and easily swappable (you just unsnap the rear cover and pop in the replacement like many cell phones).

On my Sony PRS-650 the battery is also available, though the replacement procedure involves partially disassembling the device.

Though battery replacement on the Sony 650 is a much bigger bother than my Galaxy Player (and my new Sony PRS-T1 is even worse because it requires soldering the battery leads instead of just plugging a small micro-connector), at least both batteries ARE at least technically user replaceable if you know what you are doing.

Though I would NOT have purchased either device if the battery was totally non-replaceable, the whole issue is somewhat less of a concern with an eInk device due to the lower number of battery cycles involved.

For example, with very active use, I rarely have to charge one of the Sony's more than once a week. Compare this to the Galaxy Player 4 which, due to the LCD screen, requires recharging the battery fully every day.

This means that, with a lithium-ion pack good for roughly 400 full charge-discharge cycles, a single battery pack would be good for only a little over a year on my Galaxy Player, but for more than 7 years on my Sony eInk devices.

Having my new Galaxy Player turn into iGarbage after only a little more than a year (like most Apple products with non-replaceable batteries) was not acceptable to me, but 7 years or more may well be the life of the product.

Sorry to detour into politics, but I think this is one case where a little 'over regulation' might actually be a good idea. The Governments in Europe and the U.S.A. should hit manufactures like Apple that irresponsibly manufacture land-fill-bait-products (like Apple's whole iTrash product line) with an up-front waste-disposable and carbon-use tax equal to 25% of the initial sale price on ANY product that does not include either a 5 year non-prorated free battery replacement guarantee, or alternately, provide for an easily replaceable, drop-in user replaceable battery. (like my Galaxy Player 4)

If they did that, my guess is that you would see drop-in replaceable batteries on ALL tablets and smart-phones within a few months.

[Andrew H.]

Originally Posted by delphin

[snip]

Having my new Galaxy Player turn into iGarbage after only a little more than a year (like most Apple products with non-replaceable batteries) was not acceptable to me, but 7 years or more may well be the life of the product.

Sorry, but this is complete nonsense. I still have two ipods from 2006 that are working well, and none of my iPhones had any battery issues after owning them for two years. You are, in fact, the only person I've ever heard make this particular complaint.

Sorry to detour into politics, but I think this is one case where a little 'over regulation' might actually be a good idea. The Governments in Europe and the U.S.A. should hit manufactures like Apple that irresponsibly manufacture land-fill-bait-products (like Apple's whole iTrash product line) with an up-front waste-disposable and carbon-use tax equal to 25% of the initial sale price on ANY product that does not include either a 5 year non-prorated free battery replacement guarantee, or alternately, provide for an easily replaceable, drop-in user replaceable battery. (like my Galaxy Player 4)

If they did that, my guess is that you would see drop-in replaceable batteries on ALL tablets and smart-phones within a few months.

First, this is a made up problem which seems to be motivated in part by some anti-Apple animus you have. (iTrash? Really?) Second, most consumers seem happy to accept the tradeoff of no user-replaceable battery in exchange for a smaller, sealed form factor. As there's a lively market in replacement battery kits, it doesn't seem like these devices are ending up in the trash because the battery died.

I'm happy that government isn't instituting some draconian tax whose only purpose would appear to be to vindicate your particular consumer choices.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by delphin

Sorry to detour into politics, but I think this is one case where a little 'over regulation' might actually be a good idea.

Discussion of Politics or Religion is only allowed in the (opt-in) Politics and Religion forum.

[jbcohen]

Friends of mine that have a kindle like I do tell me that its much more likely that you will die before your kindle battery does.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by jbcohen

Friends of mine that have a kindle like I do tell me that its much more likely that you will die before your kindle battery does.

My K3 was not holding holding a charge for more than a day or two by shortly after it's first year.

Called Amazon about it, and in two days I had a free replacement. I doubt the one I sent back is in a landfill. It's likely been checked out, had it's battery replaced, and is on a shelf somewhere awaiting sale as a refurb.

[speedlever]

My K3 is over a year old. My usage is sporadic lately. But I keep a record of when I charge it. So far this year it's been charged twice: Jan 12th and March 1st.

[delphin]

Originally Posted by Andrew H.

Sorry, but this is complete nonsense. I still have two ipods from 2006 that are working well, and none of my iPhones had any battery issues after owning them for two years. You are, in fact, the only person I've ever heard make this particular complaint.


First, this is a made up problem which seems to be motivated in part by some anti-Apple animus you have. (iTrash? Really?) Second, most consumers seem happy to accept the tradeoff of no user-replaceable battery in exchange for a smaller, sealed form factor. As there's a lively market in replacement battery kits, it doesn't seem like these devices are ending up in the trash because the battery died. . . .

I'm happy that government isn't instituting some draconian tax whose only purpose would appear to be to vindicate your particular consumer choices.

Don't get me wrong, I think it's just peachy that Apple now seems to know how to make MacBooks that won't catch fire, but you will please excuse me if I have to respectfully disagree, on some of your other points . . .

By 'iTrash' I was not implying that Apple's products are low-quality, but rather to their potential to end up in a landfill, because folks sometimes just aren't willing to deal with battery issues.

Let me give you a few real world examples -

A friend of mine was given an iPod by a relative (who had decided apparently that it was time for her to join the Apple pod-person collective) but due to some other issues with iTunes and her PC, the player sat unused in the box for several months before she was ready to use it, and by that time the internal battery was completely dead and would no longer hold a charge.

So far as I know that iPod is STILL setting in the back of her closet, where it will probably remain till it's so obsolete that it ends up in a landfill as iTrash (never having played a single song). YES I agree she has other options, YES I agree this is really dumb, but she is NOT dumb, she's one of the brightest people I know, it's just that these kinds of stupid battery issues tend to cause some folks to quickly become disenchanted with a new toy.

Another friends original iPhone battery started having problems after only a little over a year (less than a day standby, less than 30 minutes talk time) leaving him in a very difficult situation because his service commitment to ATT was two years, and in order to 'upgrade' to the newer iPhone he would have had to extend his contract yet again (which apparently was not something he was willing to do since he hated ATT). So he just bit the bullet and paid to have his iPhone's battery replaced. In fairness, this situation was by no means totally catastrophic since the battery problems could be resolved by sending in the phone for service and paying to have the battery replaced. Like most Apple issues; all you have to do is throw money at it. In this case he had to pay about three to four times what a normal cell phone replacement battery costs, and do without his phone for a week, but at least in this case he didn't get fed up enough to toss the phone in the garbage (which I guess counts as a victory of sorts. )

So far as your experence with your iPods goes . . .

I'm glad that your two iPods still work 'fine' though I must confess that I wonder what you define as fine, since I would expect ANY 5 year old device that is still using it's original lithium-ion battery to have lost half to two-thirds of it's battery run time (perhaps as much as three-quarters.) If so, they could still be 'fine' if your definition of fine is just getting through an album or two (for some folks it might be just getting through a song or two!).

Personally, I am a fan of Audio Books, which can run 15 to 20 hours or more, so I suspect that my definition of 'fine' might therefore be a little different than yours, and I like the fact that, for less than five bucks I can buy a battery that will restore my Galaxy Player 4 to 'like new' run times, and that I can install that battery in 30 seconds (without any 'special tools' or YouTube videos).