Elipsa Note-taking freezing

[cpimentel]

Hi Community,

Since the last firmware update I'm having a really weird behavior on my Elipsa when note-taking, it does not matter if it is in a book or in a notebook.

Sometimes it just freezes and stops registering the stylus. The only thing it registers is the eraser and it marks a "ghost" little circle in the screen.

I can still interact with the UI which leaves ghosting everything.

It gets back to normal after a few seconds, but today in the middle of an idea, it froze and took around 30 seconds to get back to work.

Unfortunately, my experience with this device is nothing more than frustrating. I don't mind not having all the fancy features of a note-taking app, but the note-taking itself not working is really a bummer.

Because of these small bugs and annoyances, I never use my Elipsa to take notes during meetings or any important discussion.

Any idea? I've done a Factory Reset last week because of that nasty OverDrive login bug =\

[cpimentel]

Worth mention I've got in touch with Kobo Support last week after having to reset my device to give them feedback about the device, its software, and some ideas.

[ab78727]

This has happened to me for a while, which is why I mostly abandoned the Elipsa for note taking. The note taking on the latest firmware seemed better (less laggy) but then I got hit with a 30 sec no-response situation so I stopped.

[Quoth]

Maybe faulty. Never had an issue with my Elipsa or Sage except on Export having to be cancelled and redone (when it would not hang). That bug gone now in 4.37.x

Check nib is seated.

[Cedros]

I have what sounds like exactly the same problem with my Kobo Elipsa after installing the update. It freezes but if I wait a few seconds--or longer--eventually what I've written appears. Then it functions normally for a few minutes, then freezes again. Very irritating, and this wasn't happening before the update. There's a chance the stylus nib should be replaced, since this is the only one I've used so far.

[ab78727]

Originally Posted by Cedros

I have what sounds like exactly the same problem with my Kobo Elipsa after installing the update. It freezes but if I wait a few seconds--or longer--eventually what I've written appears. Then it functions normally for a few minutes, then freezes again. Very irritating, and this wasn't happening before the update. There's a chance the stylus nib should be replaced, since this is the only one I've used so far.

I've tried with the stock and aftermarket (renaisser rafael 520?) styluses and unfortunately it tends to happen regardless. It almost seems like a garbage-collection cycle or something in the software - I could be writing a long passage and suddenly the screen will stop accepting strokes; wait a bit (30s or so, after frantically trying to continue writing) and the same stylus then continues working again for quite a while until it happens. I've noticed it more with larger notebooks.

[Quoth]

Not seeing this on Elipsa or Sage. Mostly I use Advanced Notebook.

[luc0x61]

I confirm to have the same issue as @Cedros
I tried restarting the reader, but it keeps reappearing. Here's what happens:
- While writing I pause, then I return with the stylus on the device and write blindly: nothing appears
- Then I can either: a) wait a few seconds (if lucky), b) tap with fingers on the screen, c) pull down the menu; one of these actions awakes the device, and at a sudden, my blind write appears.

This is (with an euphemism) impractical.
The firmware is version 4.38.21908 dated 22/08/2023; I can't find a newer one

[luc0x61]

Note that I work on the go, without WiFi access: I don't know whether that brings in some freezing network timeout in any background task... It's anyway unacceptable

[Cootey]

I have a first gen Elipsa. I wish I had the same experience as Quoth, but unfortunately, I bump into a lag all the time with my advanced notebooks. I just assumed that I was writing too fast and overwhelming the buffer. I’ve just learned to write blind, then occasionally wait for the Elipsa to catch up.

Sometimes you can force a refresh of the page using the … at the top right. If the whole page freezes, I try to break through by first closing then reopening the protection cover (I’d use the power button, but I often map it for screen shots).

If it’s really bad, I exit out of the notebook, toggle the Home page, then go back into My Notebooks. If that doesn’t work, I power cycle the unit.

Notebooks are buggy, but there are ways around the bugs. It is impractical at times, though.

[Quoth]

I find the Sage better for notes than the Elipsa.

I rarely have the WiFi on on any ereader.


My 1st gen Elipsa is now redundant due to my TCL NxtPaper 11 and pen. Using Android Jota and the local Android 13 handwriting on Gboard option. Xodo free version for PDFs and annotation of them.

[PennyDred]

This still happens for my Elipsa too. Although it freezes less now than it did on previous firmware, it means I cannot use it to take notes for work. My wifi is almost always switched off, so I don't think that's the cause.

[readthinksurvive]

does anyone know if the kindle scribe has such freezing?

[Cootey]

Originally Posted by readthinksurvive

does anyone know if the kindle scribe has such freezing?

Yes. A simple search for "Kindle Scribe freezing" in a search engine brings up many issues where the Scribe freezes.


I've done a comparison between the Elipsa and the Sage and I can't see what in the specs makes for such a vastly different experience. They both have 32gb of internal storage; the Elipsa has twice as much RAM as the Sage; and their quad core 1.8 GHz CPU clock speed is the same. The ppl and resolution on the Elipsa is lower than the Sage's. Maybe the RAM or some other component on the motherboard on the Sage is faster, or the larger substrate on the Elipsa is the culprit.

The Elipsa 2E has a faster CPU than the Sage. Does anybody complain about writing lag with the Elipsa 2E?

Also, does anybody experience the lag with a third party stylus?

I've created two dozen or so notebooks on my Elipsa 1. Most of them are Advanced. But lagging plagues both types. It's diminished my joy of using the Elipsa as a note taking device. The process is too slow. When I work at home, I can afford 30 second freezes here and there, but I can't imagine what I'd do if the Elipsa froze during a meeting or class when I needed to jot down a thought.

It's a terrific eReader, though, for PDFs and manga.

[Quoth]

A 3rd party stylus makes no difference as long as it's compatible. The Elipsa (original) screen is slower with Nebo (Advanced Notes) maybe because it's bigger?
The Sage is better for notes than my original Elipsa, though the Sage has more pixels, they are smaller.
No difference with 2 x third party pens and original pen.

I've stopped using Sage for notes (only keyboard annotation) and use a TCL Nxtpaper 11 for handwriting now, it has real time preview in the Nebo advanced notebooks, which is nearly impossible on eink, so Kobo version of Nebo is cut down with also writing to text on PDFs missing.