Pick between Kindle Voyage / KA1 / Kobo H20 / PB InkPad 2 ?

[Alanon]

Hello, all! Another newbie here seeking advice on what to buy.

First, let me say that I've been reading up on everything for about a week now, just long enough to know what I want versus what I truly need, but it's always good to hear opinions from those who actually have first-hand experience. I'll just describe my jumbled thoughts and hope that some of you would be able to extract my meaning and distil it into some fine advice.

The customs procedure and regulations in my country are an incredible hindrance, so I'm limited only by what I can order from here, to avoid disaster. Sadly, that means no live test, which I gather would solve a lot of my questions. Anyway, the choice falls on the Kobo Aura One, H20 1st Gen, Kindle Voyage and PocketBook InkPad2. In a strange twist of fate, the prices between them are almost identical, +-10 euros, with the Aura One being only 30 euros more expensive than the cheapest one. So price is not really an issue, which means that I get to nitpick, split hairs, and write an overly long post asking advice on a forum and whatnot.

What I'll probably not use: I'm not going to use the stores on any device, and I don't really need any fancy book transfer features, I'm perfectly content in doing it manually. No lending/DRM stuff needed, as I'm not in any of the supported countries. Also, not a lot of need for annotations, exporting, syncing, library maintenance, statistics. Dictionaries might be nice, but as I've already got my pc set up as I like it with GoldenDict, not too important. Also, I'll mostly be reading at home, so ultra portability/fit in my pocket is also not too big a deal. This is not to say that I scoff at the mentioned features, it's just that I'd much prefer that the reader has visual options and settings, since I like to tweak and setup and poke at things. I'm also not opposed to tweaking/installing/downgrading firmware, or get involved in any setup that would elevate the basic file performance.

Now, I'll either buy my books from what's locally accessible or - and here's part of the problem - use PDFs. I'm something of an occasional/amateurish book scanner, and when I transfer a book from paper to digital, I usually end up with a PDF/DjVu file, because OCR is finicky and extracting pure and clean text from a scanned/OCRed page is a problem for anyone except those with either exceptional skill or equipment. (Or maybe I just suck at it.) Anywho, as a result, I have basically three formats for the books I use - PDF, DjVu and epub, with a very few mobis and fb2. The PDFs I'll be using are mostly either high-quality modern text PDF documents (ie. digital downloads) or high-quality OCRed images. In both cases, they are ordinary books - no graphs, no formulae, and practically no illustrations apart from the front covers.

I've nothing against modern e-reader formats, and on principle, I wouldn't be against, say, converting epubs to mobi, I've just never done it before, and I'm not sure if I'd find the process comfortable, or if I would be bothered much by inconsistencies in the formatting (Is there such a thing when converting between formats? Can you tell a native mobi vs a converted one?). That's ultimately beside the point, as I expect I will find some of my PDF books in epub now that I have an actual reason to look, but many will still remain in PDF, so everything ends up turning around them.

Speaking of my preference for PDFs, I obviously have two concerns, one is space, and the other usability. As for space, I'm simply of the belief that with PDF's 8GB won't be enough, due to their varying sizes? There's also the moment when you remember a book you never thought you'd read again, and realising it's not there because you did triage and left it out because of memory real-estate that's a bit off-putting. Seems to me that an SD card would fix that. I could periodically switch out what I've read manually, and if I've found the otherwise perfect reader whose only flaw is the lack of expandable memory, I'll find a way to get over it. But for that, I'll need your help.

I am fully aware that PDF's are not the forte of E-Ink readers, but my eyes just can't endure tablet and phone screens. I'm not wearing glasses, and I'd like to keep it that way for as long as possible, hence my decision to buy a proper e-reader. I also know that I won't be able to find most of my books in digital formats. I'm not expecting PDF's to fly off the screen with speed, just not to be cringe-worthy and discouraging to use. I know that if I have to wait for 10-15 seconds between page turns, it will simply discourage me from using it. On the other hand, 1-4 seconds, like I've seen on some tests, seems acceptable. But that was all on modern pure-text PDFs and not scanned ones. Can anyone comment on the general performance of those?

From the tests I've read and seen, the Kindle has fine PDF performance, but I'm not sure if it offers anything significant that would be advantageous for my use? It has lacklustre customisation compared to these others, and a whole package of features that I won't be using, no SD card, no epub/DjVu support, and no way to make Kindle compatible with them using software adjustments. Which is a shame, as I like its overall design best.

If the reviews are to be trusted, both Kobos have abysmal PDF support, and I'm still wondering how they perform with KOReader with, say 40-50MB PDF files that are scanned and OCRed? From the tests I've seen, they have absolutely beautiful screens. The Aura One has the larger screen that's better for PDFs, but no SD card, while the H20 has it, so as I see it, the main issue between these two comes down to memory expandability? On the other hand, I've read some posts here that folks were not happy with the PDF handling in their daily use with KA1, and I seem to find folks at the forums claiming that the Aura H20 is actually better in many other respects, lighting, responsiveness, etc, but does that translate to easier reading of PDF files?

Then we have the InkPad 2. I see that it supports all my formats natively, and the couple of tests I've found that compare it to the H20 showed a fine performance of its basic software. On top of that, I can load different apps into it, if I'm not happy with the defaults. (By the way, has anyone tried that?) However, it seems that the screen is iffy, with strange lighting issues and conspicuously older Pearl tech. Is that true, or is it a matter of quality control? Of course, the screen differences are noticeable when compared to the Kobo H20, and when compared by trained eyes with previous experience with e-readers. But is the screen all that bad by itself, or only when compared to the arguably nicest screen that exists? Also, it doesn't seem to be getting, well, any love at all, certainly nowhere near the love for the Kobo's, which is a cause for concern. I can't really trust the Russian reviewers, as it is a homebrew product, so what I mostly see here is the potential for something that would fit, and the potential for disaster.

Then there's the contrast bag of worms, as I gather that this can vary greatly depending on the scan quality and OCR? I presume that larger screens would have an edge with scanned PDFs in general, where re-flow wouldn't help, and there'd be less processing involved and consequently less strain on the hardware? I could go on yapping forever, but based on what I've read so far, I'm leaning either towards the H20 or the InkPad 2. Ideally, you guys and gals will comment on the best performance attainable on these devices, and how that looks in your experience, especially for PDFs.

Wow, I've just typed this out and realised how long it is. A big thank you from me to whoever reaches the end of this!

[patrik]

I would strongly recommend you buy ABBYY Finereader and do your scanning to epub instead of pdfs. That will affect your reading much more than the choice between those devices, IMHO.

FWIW, I would choose the largest display (i.e. Aura ONE or Inkpad 2) since you read mostly at home.

[radius]

For this use, I would probably go Android tablet. Wide variety of screen sizes and high dpi resolutions available. Fast CPUs and fast display response make reading PDF far more convenient and comfortable. Lots of options with expandable memory (although declining over time). More convenient for sideloading. Typically have tough to scratch screens versus ereaders with their plastic top layers.

You can run many different reading apps so you can belong to as many or as few ebook ecosystems as you want.

The sole cons of the tablets are possibly higher cost, and the eye fatigue issue.

For ebooks readers, PDFs tend to have text that is too small (assuming the PDFs were generated for view on PC originally) unless you downloaded them from Feedbooks or somewhere similar. If the PDFs are actual scans then the size might be OK, especially if you briss them first to crop the margins. However, most ereaders concentrate on having long battery life so the CPU performance (and hence page zoom and flip times) are worse. For how much worse, you should look on Youtube and see if anybody has done a demonstration video.

Out of the choices you present:

KAO
H2O

I like the Auro One more. The slightly bigger screen works well and the overall industrial design appeals to me. Software is pretty much equal. I personally am almost never in a position to get an ereader wet so the water proofness isn't a large selling point to me. You should go on the Kobo area and see if the hardware niggles have been worked out yet.

Not as flexible as a full on Android tablet, but there is a good sized hacking community.


Kindle Voyage

I think the strongest argument for the Voyage (Amazon's book store and convenience buying from them) doesn't apply in your case. It does have the virtual page turn buttons but that makes the device large for the size of screen it has. I think a 6" screen is going to be a little small for you, depending on the exact makeup of your PDFs.

Much lighter than the Kobos. Depending on how you hold it while you read, and how long you read at one time, this could make a difference. But if you don't have a chance to compare them then probably won't be important to you.


Inkpad2

I have never seen an Inkbook, so I'll have to let a European member address this. I will say that from the photos it looks about iPad size and I think I would find that difficult to hold for long reading sessions.

[Dr. Drib]

A simple phrase should suffice:

"calibre is your friend."

[LucyOne]

If PDFs are important for you, you should get the Inkpad. Pocketbook has the best built-in PDF reader with margin crop, landscape rotation, reflow etc. You can also install Koreader.
The screen surely isn't the best, but you won't be comparing devices every day.

My Kindle Paperwhite cannot handle PDFs well, it always runs out of memory and closes the file.

[shalym]

Since you are mostly going to be reading PDFs, and you want an SD card, I would recommend the H2O, with KOreader installed for PDF handling.

Shari

[Cinisajoy]

You do not want the kindle Voyage.
You got it backwards on the kindles and kobos. Kobos with KOReader installed do much better than a non-jailbroken kindle.
At this time, you may get a kindle that can't be jailbroken. I wouldn't take the chance.

[Alanon]

Wow, lots of nice replies already!

I was on the fence with Voyage anyway, but I guess I can safely say that it wouldn't do much for me if the Kobo + KOReader combo beats it.

As far as the Inkpad vs Kobo goes, I guess that my main dilemma would be the screen quality vs software trade-off? From what I've read, I can also install KOReader for Pocketbook devices, so if push comes to shove and the original software proves to be inadequate, that might improve things? The few reviews I've seen seemed to praise PocketBooks' support of various formats and their overall package. However, I've read a few disappointed posts from folks that found the InkPad screen to be worse than the older KPW3, with poor contrast, and letters which got muddled after one or two page flips. Does InkPad have something like the bold feature on the Kobos, to make the letters darker or more prominent?

As far as the SD card issue goes, I'm honestly not sure. 8GB is still a lot of space, and it's not like I have only 100MB PDFs to use. I guess that a lot would depend on how willing I am to switch between books. I do have a bunch of CBRs and CBZs, but somehow I haven't even considered them. Now that I think of it, it would be a boon to be able to read them, but are comics at all readable even on an 8-inch screen? (Even on a monitor, I'm sort of partial to not scrolling or zooming in.) If not, then I guess that's just one reason less to stick to the notion an SD card. If expandable memory is all that's keeping me from a superior 8-inch screen and superior software, then I'll find a way around it.

It'd be awesome if any InkPad user could chime in, there's just so little reliable information. Basically, from what little that I have seen, there seems to be potential in the InkPad's software, but I have no idea if that potential is worth the obvious trade-offs.

[Tarana]

I really like the Voyage (and have one) so you can't go wrong on that. Light doesn't reflect off the screen which means you can read it anywhere including outside. It also has adaptable lighting. The SOLE reason I would get an Ipad is to read PDF. The reflection on the Ipad limits where you can read. I have no personal experience with the other two you mention.

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by Tarana

I really like the Voyage (and have one) so you can't go wrong on that. Light doesn't reflect off the screen which means you can read it anywhere including outside. It also has adaptable lighting. The SOLE reason I would get an Ipad is to read PDF. The reflection on the Ipad limits where you can read. I have no personal experience with the other two you mention.

Tarana,
He said inkpad not iPad. Though you are correct on the iPad being good for pdfs.

[TuxGirl]

Out of curiosity, why ocr'd PDFs over epub/mobi? I get sticking with PDF if you don't want to deal with OCR, but once you've done the OCR work, it seems silly (to me) to stick with PDF. What is the advantage of PDF at that point?

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by TuxGirl

Out of curiosity, why ocr'd PDFs over epub/mobi? I get sticking with PDF if you don't want to deal with OCR, but once you've done the OCR work, it seems silly (to me) to stick with PDF. What is the advantage of PDF at that point?

With where the OP is at, he may not have much choice in the format.
That could be why.

[JSWolf]

To be honest, none of the eInk Readers specified are going to be all that good for PDF. You are best off with an iPad or iPad Pro for PDF. I cannot in all honesty recommend any of the mentioned Readers for PDF.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by shalym

Since you are mostly going to be reading PDFs, and you want an SD card, I would recommend the H2O, with KOreader installed for PDF handling.

Shari

You have to remember when speaking about the H2O, you have to specify the original H2O or someone could end up buying the new H2O Edition 2. And currently, KOReader doesn't run on the new H2O Edition 2.

[Alanon]

Originally Posted by TuxGirl

Out of curiosity, why ocr'd PDFs over epub/mobi? I get sticking with PDF if you don't want to deal with OCR, but once you've done the OCR work, it seems silly (to me) to stick with PDF. What is the advantage of PDF at that point?

It's not really about advantages, but about necessity within my limited skills. I need and read a lot of scholarly books, so I'm pretty much used to buying anything I can get my hands on, so that I can use them comfortably during my research, in the comfort of my home, and under my terms. What I can't find to purchase in print (severely limited here, sadly) I have to borrow from public libraries. And that is a drag, with hunting down the one available example, having it shipped over to you from the other side of the country, only to have a week to do whatever it is you want. Some libraries do offer digital lending, but again, pdf is basically it. Most of it is either of worse quality than I can make at home, or insanely good quality that no one really needs. Go figure.

Now, the best I've drummed up so far is to use my camera and make as good pictures as I possibly can, then process the images through Scan Kromstator or Scan Tailor, which nets me readable and uniform, but still below average quality images as compared to what the pros are doing. Basically, I use OCR as a kind of search index, overlaying the scanned image text. That way, I'm able to actually read what I've scanned, and have search capabilities without compromising legibility.

Adobe seems to accomplish this nicely out of the box, and I can OCR a larger book in that fashion in a few hours. ABBYY, in the last version I tried awhile back, would have me go page by page correcting all the errors it had found while doing its pure text conversion. I don't know if it's something they've improved, or if I was doing something wrong, or what I'd have to do to not get that problem? I've always presumed that it's because I do not use a real scanner which would produce truly even images and proper letter separation.

I've got nothing against doing it in epub, in fact, I'd prefer it if it were not so time-consuming. Ultimately, I'm not going to publish the scans, I need them for me, and to read, and I just can't put in double the time formatting than the time needed to read the book, in order to make it perfect, that sort of defeats the purpose.

Originally Posted by JSWolf

You have to remember when speaking about the H2O, you have to specify the original H2O or someone could end up buying the new H2O Edition 2. And currently, KOReader doesn't run on the new H2O Edition 2.

The Edition 2 seems like a real downgrade to me. I've seen it available here along with the original, but I simply never even included it in my considerations, as it didn't seem much of an upgrade?

As far as PDF support is concerned, while I can agree that it's not ideal, what I really care about is reading comfort. For a more demanding use, I have no problem sitting at my PC reading from the monitor, as I've been able to set it up to be comfortable-ish for reading during longer periods of time, which is not something I can get with modern screens.

There's all manner of tablets available here, and I have been able to test those in-store myself. While they look nice and all, there's a piercing quality and colour intensity to them, especially the higher quality ones, that doesn't seem to go away with the screen brightness. I don't know if that makes sense? Heck, I've even tried my phone, and long before the small letters start bothering me, the screen lighting begins to.

So I figured, an E-Ink would give me some portability (ie. go to a chair or bed and sit and read), with the proper eye support. Now, I've just seen a little show-and-tell on Youtube with the Kobo Aura One and PDF and comics operation with KOReader installed. If that's consistent, I wouldn't mind that amount of speed trade-off for the ability to read for a long while.

Right now, I'm leaning towards the Kobo, simply because it seems that there is a lot of positive feedback all around the net, and because of the Carta technology. I really haven't seen or heard any useful hands-on experience with the InkPad 2 beyond a few videos. I realise the software is great, which is why I'm in a dilemma to begin with, but just how much lag/ghosting, etc. in overall operation stems from the Pearl screen is just something I've not been able to figure out.