Paperwhite 5 or Libra 2?

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by Uncle Robin

I understand that everyone's choices are different but to say that a reader is superior in functionality yet return it because it would need charging every other day seems strange to me. 20 hours battery life would most likely be at least 2 days of usage, offering plenty of time for the device to charge while doing other things - like sleeping. No inconvenience, no lost reading time.

It's more than just the — "in back of your mind" — worry about charging. It's also the fact that batteries have a limited number of charging cycles. So you also worry about wearing out your reader (at least I do). I've still got Sony PRS-505s that hold a charge longer than my Clara (when not in use). But the best modern readers I have for battery life are the PocketBooks. My PB615 (Russian version without WiFi, bought "well used" now 5 years old) still holds a strong charge for months — as does my PocketBook Touch HD 3. Both the Sonys and PocketBooks turn completely off after a few hours, so that helps. But I think it's more than that — I think PocketBook makes battery life a higher priority than Kobo. When I saw the size of the battery of the (then) upcoming Sage and then looked at all its features I thought, "that thing is going to have terrible battery life." One of the main reasons I prefer a flip phone to a smartphone is that I can charge it and not worry about it for a week. It's also one reason why I like eInk eReaders more than tablets (one of several reasons).

For what it's worth. Sorry for rambling.

[graycyn]

Originally Posted by cgsmom

Kobo plus is not available in the US. I have noticed that some books are more expensive on Kobo than on Amazon. My library has most of my favorite authors books available on kindle. I like to sync with my phone for sideloaded content. To be honest, I have avoided owning a Kobo because of the way everyone talks about all of the customization. It sounds a little confusing. Kindle just works. My Nook is getting a little flaky and I will probably go back to Kindle. I just have to decide if the page turn buttons are worth as much to me as Amazon thinks they are.

You don't have to customize. I have in the past, but the few customizations I desired, have, over time, become part of the UI. Other than side-loading a couple favorite fonts, my Kobo is stock.

Kobo just works as well as Kindle just works.

Better, for my purposes. As in, with Kobo, I can easily go to left justification for side-loaded content when I read on a larger font at night. With Kindle, I'd have to a) convert the book to KFX, then b) connect the reader to the computer for transfer. With Kobo, a quick two taps accomplishes this ON THE DEVICE!

That all said, there's no sync to different devices for sideloaded content with Kobo. For that, Kindle reigns supreme.

[graycyn]

Originally Posted by Uncle Robin

Different priorities yes. I am just genuinely surprised that having to charge a reader once every 2-3 days would be a literal dealbreaker, ā flaw so serious as to outweigh all other advantages.

It's a good thing that battery life has never been my e-reader priority, because my original Nook WiFi rarely lasted me beyond 3-4 days.

As poor as that was, I've never had the weeks touted for e-reader battery life out of any reader. I'm ecstatic if I get a week and even that tends to be rare. Usually happens only if I'm particularly busy and NOT having the chance to read as normal.

My Sage burns through battery faster than my Nook ever did, but I sure love that Carta screen and the overall experience!

Of course, having the Forma to switch off to when Sage needs juice makes me a happy camper!

[graycyn]

I do get liking a good battery, mind you! I hauled out my Sony PRS-T2 just the other day. Hadn't charged it in a while, but turned it on, plenty of juice, loaded the epub I wanted to test on it, and remembered fondly why I loved my Sony readers. The T2 is the only one I kept, I hope it goes on for some years to come.

I was actually surprised at how lovely and crisp the text was. It didn't have the contrast of modern screens, but was still very nice. Pity Sony left e-readers.

[Uncle Robin]

Originally Posted by graycyn

You don't have to customize...

Kobo just works as well as Kindle just works.

SO MUCH THIS! I feel like going all Liam Neeson on the deep cover Amazon agents who have propagated the "Kobo's only for tinkerers" bakwaas.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by graycyn

I was actually surprised at how lovely and crisp the text was. It didn't have the contrast of modern screens, but was still very nice. Pity Sony left e-readers.

I like the way it renders fonts. More "vertical" than all other readers. I lucked out and found a PRS-T3. I'll keep that one, but most of the others are going to go away.

[mbrisco]

I’ve been reading and reading and reading on the Paperwhite 5 on KOReader, and it’s not dying. It just keeps going. I’m at 60+ hours of reading now, still 35% left. This is territory well beyond Amazon’s claimed battery life. For comparison, Libra 2 died at 23 hours.

Originally Posted by Uncle Robin

Different priorities yes. I am just genuinely surprised that having to charge a reader once every 2-3 days would be a literal dealbreaker, ā flaw so serious as to outweigh all other advantages.

The flaws of the Kindle aren’t severe enough to outweigh its insanely better efficiency. It’s still a nice 1200 display like the Libra 2, it’s just the stupid plastic layer that makes it look muddier. The Kindle is jailbroken so no software advantage. I feel I’ve made a bit of a Faustian choice going for the PW5. But Kobo’s crisp display comes at too high a cost for me. If the Kindle had like 150% of the Libra 2’s battery life, that’d be fine, but it’s at around 300%.

[meeera]

Originally Posted by mbrisco

I’ve been reading and reading and reading on the Paperwhite 5 on KOReader, and it’s not dying. It just keeps going. I’m at 60+ hours of reading now, still 35% left. This is territory well beyond Amazon’s claimed battery life. For comparison, Libra 2 died at 23 hours.

The flaws of the Kindle aren’t severe enough to outweigh its insanely better efficiency.

It's good that we all have our own choices. Since I'm not about to hike the Appalachian Trail, being able to read three hours a day for a week before plugging in is more than enough for me. The reading experience is king.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by meeera

It's good that we all have our own choices. Since I'm not about to hike the Appalachian Trail, being able to read three hours a day for a week before plugging in is more than enough for me. The reading experience is king.

If I can read 2-3 days (a few hours per day) on my readers, that'll be enough for me. The screen quality and ergonomics are far more important to me than long battery life. Well, of course I'm an urbanised indoor person. Someone who prefers to spend most of their time outside may well have different priorities.

[Uncle Robin]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

If I can read 2-3 days (a few hours per day) on my readers, that'll be enough for me. The screen quality and ergonomics are far more important to me than long battery life. Well, of course I'm an urbanised indoor person. Someone who prefers to spend most of their time outside may well have different priorities.

Like you I'm an indoor urbanite, but I do wonder how many people who prefer to spend their time outdoors spend most of that outdoor time reading. A friend of mine who is both a bibliophile and a librarian reads a lot and spends a lot of time time outdoors, but not at the same time. I would not be surprised if she was far from unusual in this.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by meeera

It's good that we all have our own choices. Since I'm not about to hike the Appalachian Trail, being able to read three hours a day for a week before plugging in is more than enough for me. The reading experience is king.

Solar charged power banks are good. Good for about 5 or 6 full charges even if not solar charged between times. The ones I have are like a fat smartphone in size and have LED lamp too for emergency use. Quite cheap and both makes I have can charge two devices by USB-A cables. One model has a USB-C too, though I've not checked if for in or out or both.

[shalym]

Originally Posted by Uncle Robin

Like you I'm an indoor urbanite, but I do wonder how many people who prefer to spend their time outdoors spend most of that outdoor time reading. A friend of mine who is both a bibliophile and a librarian reads a lot and spends a lot of time time outdoors, but not at the same time. I would not be surprised if she was far from unusual in this.

Camping for more than a week. Even if I spend the entire day hiking and playing outside, I still need to read myself to sleep every night. I've been doing it for over 50 years now, and if for some reason I can't, I sleep very poorly. It's how I leave behind all of the things that happened during the day and prepare myself for sleep.

An e-reader with a built in light that automatically turns itself off when I fall asleep uses much less battery than a flashlight. It also disturbs my bed/tent-mate much less.

There's also the fact that even while camping, I still need some down time during the day and I will spend an hour or two sitting around reading. I also read in the morning while everyone else eats breakfast.

All of this adds up to needing a reader with very good battery life...I would never take my Oasis on a camping trip, but I do take my voyage and my paperwhite. (yes...I do have multiple readers, and I always take at least 2 with me on vacation in case of emergency)

Shari

[shalym]

Originally Posted by Quoth

Solar charged power banks are good. Good for about 5 or 6 full charges even if not solar charged between times. The ones I have are like a fat smartphone in size and have LED lamp too for emergency use. Quite cheap and both makes I have can charge two devices by USB-A cables. One model has a USB-C too, though I've not checked if for in or out or both.

I do have one of these, and I use it for my phone (and my partner's) I guess I could use it for my reader, too, in a pinch. I would rather have a reader with a battery that lasts long enough, though.

Shari

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by shalym

Camping for more than a week. Even if I spend the entire day hiking and playing outside, I still need to read myself to sleep every night. I've been doing it for over 50 years now, and if for some reason I can't, I sleep very poorly. It's how I leave behind all of the things that happened during the day and prepare myself for sleep.

An e-reader with a built in light that automatically turns itself off when I fall asleep uses much less battery than a flashlight. It also disturbs my bed/tent-mate much less.

There's also the fact that even while camping, I still need some down time during the day and I will spend an hour or two sitting around reading. I also read in the morning while everyone else eats breakfast.

All of this adds up to needing a reader with very good battery life...I would never take my Oasis on a camping trip, but I do take my voyage and my paperwhite. (yes...I do have multiple readers, and I always take at least 2 with me on vacation in case of emergency)

Shari

Ah, well. I never go camping. In fact, I almost never spend a single night away from my home (I don't travel either). So any battery issues are mostly unimportant for me.

[John F]

Originally Posted by shalym

Camping for more than a week. Even if I spend the entire day hiking and playing outside, I still need to read myself to sleep every night. I've been doing it for over 50 years now, and if for some reason I can't, I sleep very poorly. It's how I leave behind all of the things that happened during the day and prepare myself for sleep.

An e-reader with a built in light that automatically turns itself off when I fall asleep uses much less battery than a flashlight. It also disturbs my bed/tent-mate much less.

There's also the fact that even while camping, I still need some down time during the day and I will spend an hour or two sitting around reading. I also read in the morning while everyone else eats breakfast.

All of this adds up to needing a reader with very good battery life...I would never take my Oasis on a camping trip, but I do take my voyage and my paperwhite. (yes...I do have multiple readers, and I always take at least 2 with me on vacation in case of emergency)

Shari

Inconceivable!