Icarus Illumina XL 8-inch E Ink eReader with Android 4.2

[ST-One]

Originally Posted by ernieh

I am showing the contents of a mail I sent to Icarus below. I can't believe that others have not had these problems but looking at the comments it seems very few have actually tried reading using the built in book reader software and are more interested in fiddling with the android features. I have also put a copy of this mail on the reader specific sub forum.


The Book (the built in ereader software/app) app on my recently received Illumina XL has quite a few serious problems, in fact so serious that if I was not able to download Aldiko on it and use that for reading books it would have been un-useable.
I will list the problems as far as I can assess them but please keep in mind that these problems only exist while using the built in Books firmware. So far when using the other features such as menus and other apps like Aldiko the reader works reasonably well.
1 When attempting to change pages often the font changes to its maximum or minimum size and the page does not turn.
2 When attempting to use the screen touch to do anything from going to menus or turn pages the touch is often completely unresponsive.
3 After fixing the font size the book is often not on the page I was reading but is a few pages forward on back.
4 Pinch gestures on the screen sometimes work, sometime don’t and sometimes have unintended results like menus opening or font going to biggest or smallest.
5 The power off button works to put the reader into sleep mode but almost never gives the shutdown message no matter how long or short the press is.
I do not suspect the hardware or the android portion of the software as these seem to work fine but as you can see the rest of the system urgently requires upgrading or replacing. It certainly looks like you rushed this product to market with insufficient software testing.
I cannot be the only person experiencing these problems so Please rush a fix as quickly as possible.
Regards
Graham Ernest Hardwick.
PS The ticket system on your site seems to be down, but this is probably not that sort of query anyway.
PPS I intend to post a copy of this mail on the eread forum.

Sent from Mail for Windows 10

Have you heard back from them?

[iatheia]

I did have a lot of similar issues, but they updated the operating system to fix most of them.

The last remaining issue is that the touchscreen sometimes hesitates to turn the page, even though the touch is registered, but on the next touch it is processing both commands. This happens only when wifi is off. When wifi is on, even if it doesn't connect, it is the smoothest reading experience imaginable. But this but is annoying enough that I have sent the device back to them to fix, since apparently they couldn't reproduce it themselves. We'll see if they would be able to make it workable. I don't know if my problem is an unique bug or common, though. I'm not giving up hope, but not holding my breath, either. If they can't fix it, I'll get something with buttons instead.

By the way, by the looks of it, this device is not meant to operate in sub-freezing temperatures, even if only barely. After a few minutes, the screen stops refreshing properly

[rkomar]

Originally Posted by iatheia

By the way, by the looks of it, this device is not meant to operate in sub-freezing temperatures, even if only barely. After a few minutes, the screen stops refreshing properly

LiPoly batteries don't work well in the cold, so I'm not surprised to hear that the reader has problems.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by rkomar

LiPoly batteries don't work well in the cold, so I'm not surprised to hear that the reader has problems.

No E-Ink screen likes the cold. I think the liquid in the microcapsules becomes more viscous, making screen changes slower and requiring more power.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

No E-Ink screen likes the cold. I think the liquid in the microcapsules becomes more viscous, making screen changes slower and requiring more power.

EInk do actually make a screen called the "Aurora" which can operate down to temperatures of -25C, but no reader uses it that I'm aware of (it's sold for applications like temperature displays in commercial freezers). Standard eInk screens quote an operating temperature range of 0 to 35C.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by rkomar

LiPoly batteries don't work well in the cold, so I'm not surprised to hear that the reader has problems.

It's certainly true that lithium batteries discharge more quickly in cold temperatures, but that doesn't affect the speed of page turns; just how many times you can turn the page on a battery charge.

[iatheia]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

No E-Ink screen likes the cold. I think the liquid in the microcapsules becomes more viscous, making screen changes slower and requiring more power.

Hmm... My old Kindle Keyboard worked in virtually any weather. Whether it was happy to do so is a different issue entirely, but it worked. Icarus gives up after a minute - after that it stops refreshing the screen entirely, and it ends up as a confusing blobby mess, at least until it warms up again.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by iatheia

Hmm... My old Kindle Keyboard worked in virtually any weather. Whether it was happy to do so is a different issue entirely, but it worked. Icarus gives up after a minute - after that it stops refreshing the screen entirely, and it ends up as a confusing blobby mess, at least until it warms up again.

What temperature are we talking about here? Below zero?

[ST-One]

Originally Posted by iatheia

I did have a lot of similar issues, but they updated the operating system to fix most of them.

That it did. Thank god.

[iatheia]

Originally Posted by HarryT

What temperature are we talking about here? Below zero?

Just barely below freezing. I think it was -2-3C outside at the time.

[HarryT]

Thanks. As I say, the operational temperature range for eInk screens is quoted (by eInk) as being 0-35C, so it's not too surprising that it would stop working.

[ernieh]

Originally Posted by iatheia

I did have a lot of similar issues, but they updated the operating system to fix most of them.

The last remaining issue is that the touchscreen sometimes hesitates to turn the page, even though the touch is registered, but on the next touch it is processing both commands. This happens only when wifi is off. When wifi is on, even if it doesn't connect, it is the smoothest reading experience imaginable. But this but is annoying enough that I have sent the device back to them to fix, since apparently they couldn't reproduce it themselves. We'll see if they would be able to make it workable. I don't know if my problem is an unique bug or common, though. I'm not giving up hope, but not holding my breath, either. If they can't fix it, I'll get something with buttons instead.

By the way, by the looks of it, this device is not meant to operate in sub-freezing temperatures, even if only barely. After a few minutes, the screen stops refreshing properly

When and how did they update the operating system, mine still has the original deeply flawed operating system

[ernieh]

Originally Posted by ST-One

Have you heard back from them?

Yes but nothing very useful. According to some other replies on this thread there is an updated operating system out but I don't see it on the site?

[ernieh]

Originally Posted by HarryT

What temperature are we talking about here? Below zero?

Don't know haw temperature got into the discussion but not my problem unless we are talking too hot! I am in South Africa and we were experiencing extreme heat wave conditions at the time I got my Illumina XL.

[iatheia]

Originally Posted by ernieh

When and how did they update the operating system, mine still has the original deeply flawed operating system.

Don't know haw temperature got into the discussion but not my problem unless we are talking too hot!

It's not on their website, you need to go to Settings, and then About Device or something like that. It will have a system update setting.

Not everything is about you, though. There are other issues that the device has that have nothing to do with the ones you listed.