Aluratek Color Ereader

[Gardenman]

Catlady

Have you found out yet how large the ALP enlarges the print in a book? That is one thing I have not been able to figure yet.

[Catlady]

I'm not sure exactly what you're asking. I have the Libre Color, not the Libre Pro; on it there are five sizes available for the fonts. They're designated normal, medium, large, extra large, and extra extra large, not by point size.

[Gardenman]

Sorry Catlady I ment your Libre color.

[tomereader]

Check out the review video from the first page of this thread http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0zzNwsV7B0 at about the three minute mark all 5 font sizes are shown, the pdf zoom wasn't,

it also shows the adjustable colors of font and background which would be the primary reason for me to buy this, getting the color contrast with a much better battery life than an android tablet

[evlucy]

I asked on site at Aluratek for potential retailers in Canada and they told me that Future shop and Best Buy would have this ereader in a few weeks - about mid to end of May.

[BoxOfSnoo]

Originally Posted by evlucy

I asked on site at Aluratek for potential retailers in Canada and they told me that Future shop and Best Buy would have this ereader in a few weeks - about mid to end of May.

I have seen the box in the glass case here in NS, but none of them was on display (I want to try my own PDFs on it to know if it's much better than my Libre Pro).

[fglaysher]

I just ordered an Aluratek Libre Touch eBook Reader with WiFi AEBK08FB
http://aluratek.com/libre-touch-eboo...ouchscreen-lcd

Does anyone know what kind of Operating System it has on it? Windows? Android or their own software? I wonder if an Android hack would work? android 3.0 / Honeycomb; 2.3.4 Gingerbread?

[binky]

fglaysher, everyone here is wondering the same things you are =).

For what it's worth, it seems to be a rebadged Gajah BK7005, which runs off Android. At the CES show it was apparently 1.5, no word on what version the retail units are shipping with but I'd say it's safe to guess 1.5.

If it's an Android device you can probably find a way to root it eventually, but keep in mind it's likely to have a 600MHz or weaker processor and not much in the way of RAM, so don't expect it to be blazingly fast with any tasks above basic level.

It's also a resistive touch screen, so a stylus or a pen with the cover on might be handy when using it.

Let us know when you get your hands on it, and what you find out. A detailed review would be appreciated. Personally I'm looking forward to the color e-inks that are due out, however, I doubt I'll be able to afford one until two years from now or so; unless of course someone wants to buy my Libre Pro off me for $70 or so heh.

[fglaysher]

Originally Posted by binky

fglaysher, everyone here is wondering the same things you are =).

... Let us know when you get your hands on it, and what you find out....

Got it today. It does have Android 1.5 - got lucky on that! Initially, I like it. The touch screen is a little tricky, so I am following your suggestion to use a stylus, though I threw away the plastic cover; maybe I shouldn't have.

I'm not sure the Android Menu icon at the top right is working. Usually when I click it nothing happens.

[binky]

Nice. Now we play the waiting game till some brave soul roots it. You might want to fire off an email to Aluratek Support and check the Aluratek site regularly to see if they push out a firmware update. Non functioning menu items would be a concern.

How do you find the page turns so far? Is it quick and responsive, or sluggish? Also I'm curious about the battery life.

[fglaysher]

Originally Posted by binky

Nice... How do you find the page turns so far? Is it quick and responsive, or sluggish? Also I'm curious about the battery life.

Actually, the menus are okay, now. It just took awhile to adjust, though they're a little tricky. It's best not to just tap but hold your finger on the screen, let it buzz, and then slide, for scrolling.

I'd like to customize the rss feed, instead of the default news at yahoo, but can't figure it out so far. Also, the main menus of My Books and My History are too cumbersome. I have probably over 4,000 books on a 16 gig card, sorted in folders, e.g., English Literature, etc., so I'm using the Explorer icon for finding and launching books. I'm sure I'll keep doing that. I'd like to just remove the default home screen to the Explorer, but doubt I'll be able to.

The battery seems fine. I'm happy with it so far. I gave it a full charge yesterday after receiving it and it's still on half a battery, with 4 to 5 hours of use. I haven't timed it, but I've used it a lot. Loading and configure has used a lot of juice too.

I'm happy with it so far. The screen is tricky, though.

[tomereader]

Hey fglaysher,

I was at the Aluratek site and while they had a pdf spec sheet and a pdf quick start guide I could not find a full manual.

So could find no information about my main concerns: can you adjust the background color and change the font color (not just to white text on black background) ?

[binky]

Thanks for the updates fglaysher. You might want to try using the app launcher and put a 3rd party e-book reader app on there. Something like Moon+ Reader or Aldiko.

I have Moon+ on my phone and it works brilliantly. Also allows you to change background color and all that jazz. Not sure how it works on 1.5, but there's a good chance you can find a older version of a app depending on what it is.

[fglaysher]

Originally Posted by tomereader

Hey fglaysher, I was at the Aluratek site and while they had a pdf spec sheet and a pdf quick start guide I could not find a full manual.

So could find no information about my main concerns: can you adjust the background color and change the font color (not just to white text on black background) ?

There might be a way to do it but looking quickly at the Setup menu and the Manual, I don't see it. For me, it's not a feature that I would use at all. I bought the device to read books on. Color text would be undesirable.

It will change the font to five different sizes, from very small to enormous. I'm sure I'll usually keep it on medium.

[fglaysher]

Originally Posted by binky

Thanks for the updates fglaysher. You might want to try using the app launcher and put a 3rd party e-book reader app on there. Something like Moon+ Reader or Aldiko.

I have Moon+ on my phone and it works brilliantly. Also allows you to change background color and all that jazz. Not sure how it works on 1.5, but there's a good chance you can find a older version of a app depending on what it is.

I have Google's Nexus S smartphone, made by Samsung, and prior to that a G1, so I've been using Android for a long time. I wasn't even aware that the Libre Touch had Android on it when I bought it, so I'm delighted! However, I've never manually installed a program. I wish it had a connect to the Marketplace so I could just automatically search, download, and install.
Maybe with time Aluratek will make that available. Their website might suggest it since it mentions something like "Applications, coming soon," whatever.

I have the Aldiko Pro on my Nexus S and would love to be able to use that too on Libre. Something to think about.

Thanks for mentioning the Moon+ which I just installed on my smartphone. I'll check it out!

Very happy with Libre Touch so far, though, again, the screen is tricky. Finger movements have to stick and drag, in a sense, not tap, to work more reliably, I'm finding. So far, a small adjustment, one that ought to be document in Aluratek's manual to help new users in my opinion, since I initially consider sending it back... until I start getting the hand of it.