Glowlight Plus 7.8 - worth a punt?

[revmike]

I bought one this past summer. I had always had sonys, the 505-battery died the fall of 2020, so I started using my T-2, but I decided that I wanted a bigger screen than a 6 inch, after turning 68, so after looking at the 7.8-inch screen offerings I decided to buy the Nook Glowlight Plus 3 and have been very pleased with it. I don't do anything but read with it and has never given me a problem, I sideload my books through windows explorer and the software does what I expect it to do.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by Pajamaman

If you to sideload books, I think you have to migrate to koreader, which allow you organize by folder. Otherwise, I guess you can just do a search. But I have always used sideloaded apps on the Nooks, to free them from default software. The NST and NST Glow were classics. Wolf must have got a lemon. Even the GL3 is a great device, once koreader is installed. What a screen.

I sideload and use the stock firmware.

I don't care how organized the library is, once you have gigs of books on there, search is the easiest way to find a specific book.

If I'm just browsing for a book, I like sortng by author and seeing through the library. But I rarely do that. I tend to know what I want to read next and use search to find it, whether I'm on a Nook or a Kobo.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

I sideload and use the stock firmware.

I don't care how organized the library is, once you have gigs of books on there, search is the easiest way to find a specific book.

If I'm just browsing for a book, I like sortng by author and seeing through the library. But I rarely do that. I tend to know what I want to read next and use search to find it, whether I'm on a Nook or a Kobo.

I'm the same way. I find it faster and easier to find my next read in Calibre on my PC than on any eink reader, no matter how well organized. Plus, organizing by folders is so last century. You can't have the same book in several different folders, but you can have it in several different collections, so you can browse by author, by genre or by whatever criteria you want.

[fathead]

Well, I received the Glowlight and was initially very pleased; the screen was, as expected, astonishingly good; it was comfortable to hold and not as heavy or bulky as I anticipated; UI was not great but not awful; the big fly in the ointment was battery life - woeful! I don't know whether I got a dud or this is factory standard but 3 days reading between charges just won't cut it for me.

I had hoped to to take advantage of the Android OS, maybe add Simple Ink Launcher and AlreaderX, but fairly quickly decided that more processes running would drain the battery even faster, so nixed that idea.

So back it goes ( fortunately the seller accepts returns) but I'm a bit bummed because oh! that screen! I had to keep checking that the light was turned off - the background was so white and the text was so sharp - how do Nook do that so well?

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by fathead

I had hoped to to take advantage of the Android OS, maybe add Simple Ink Launcher and AlreaderX, but fairly quickly decided that more processes running would drain the battery even faster, so nixed that idea.

So back it goes ( fortunately the seller accepts returns) but I'm a bit bummed because oh! that screen! I had to keep checking that the light was turned off - the background was so white and the text was so sharp - how do Nook do that so well?

Sorry to hear that. This is the first time I've heard of a serious battery problem on a Glowlight Plus. I think the Glowlight 3 has the best warm screen I've seen (and it's close to the Voyage for quality) and I think the Glowlight Plus uses the same technology.

[RWTS]

Originally Posted by fathead

Well, I received the Glowlight and was initially very pleased; the screen was, as expected, astonishingly good; it was comfortable to hold and not as heavy or bulky as I anticipated; UI was not great but not awful; the big fly in the ointment was battery life - woeful! I don't know whether I got a dud or this is factory standard but 3 days reading between charges just won't cut it for me.

If you don't mind my asking, how much were you reading on it a day? And did you have the light turned on?

For comparison, most of the novels I read tend to be in the 250-350 page range. I usually read a book in one evening, two at the most. I always have the light on and use a font size closer to the middle, which increases page turns. I charge my Nook about every four books. When I'm on a roll and knocking them out, I need to charge it every four days or so. But I don't read every night and I'm not someone who reads a few pages here and there throughout the day.

I began with a Simple Touch, moved to the GlowLight 3 and then upgraded to the GlowLight Plus. I've loved all three devices, but will say the Plus has the shortest battery life. My guess is the larger screen drains it quicker.

[ZodWallop]

Was wifi left on?

I have only used Nooks and Kobos and battery seems about the same between the two. On both, I leave wifi off on both and always read with some amount of lighting on.

Mine have all been 6" readers. Maybe the larger screen is more hungry, but even so e-ink only uses power to turn the page, so it doesn't seem like screen size alone is the trouble.

[fathead]

Ok, so it definitely sounds like this was defective - maybe a warehouse return or part of a bad batch?

I'm vigilant about keeping wifi off, rarely use the light, use a small size font and minimal margins, read for 4-6 hours per day ( but not as fast as RWTS!). Under those conditions, I'll get at least 10 days reading from the Pocketbook with the same size screen.

[RWTS]

Originally Posted by fathead

Ok, so it definitely sounds like this was defective - maybe a warehouse return or part of a bad batch?

I'm vigilant about keeping wifi off, rarely use the light, use a small size font and minimal margins, read for 4-6 hours per day ( but not as fast as RWTS!). Under those conditions, I'll get at least 10 days reading from the Pocketbook with the same size screen.

Ha! I don't read that fast. My primary interest lately has been short, fast detective novels. The type of book I can read over the course of one or two evenings. On nights I read, I'm probably using the Nook for 3-4 hours at a time. I usually charge it every four books or so, so your experience doesn't seem too far off from mine, except I always have the light turned on.

B&N states the charge lasts for up to 4 weeks, with 30 minutes of reading per day with 10% lighting and Wi-fi disabled. If my math is any good that is about 15 hours. Our experiences appear to be in line with those figures. Seems like the Nook's battery just isn't a fit for you. Sorry it didn't work out.

[HLS]

What is a punt?

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by HLS

What is a punt?

In context, I'm guessing it means something like "Is it worth a try?"

---

Looking it up, it appears that English slang for gambler can be "punter," so I guess, more accurately, it means, "Is it worth taking a chance?"

[JSWolf]

delete post

[bookyboy]

How is the GLP 7.8" when it's rooted and using KOReader?

Last time I had one was quite a while ago and it was so darned slow..

KOReader on it though seems like it might make a big difference?

[bookyboy]

Originally Posted by bookyboy

How is the GLP 7.8" when it's rooted and using KOReader?

Last time I had one was quite a while ago and it was so darned slow..

KOReader on it though seems like it might make a big difference?

An update to my own question here

The GLP 7.8" with KOReader isn't slow in the slightest..
Wow

A really nice experience actually - shocked how bad and bloated the default software is when you see what can be done with this hardware using KOReader.

[Shagbark]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

I recently sold my 7.8" Nook, as I prefer Kobos or even Kindles software-wise. But I had no issues with sideloading to the Nook. I used only Calibre for sideloading, though, and didn't use shelves/collections.

What directory on the Nook do you put the sideloaded books into?
My 7.8" Nook can't see any files (epub or PDF) that I transfer onto the Nook!