Selling a Kobo - what to do?

[dom123dom]

I'm sure this must have been asked before but I can't find an answer..

When you sell a Kobo do you need to unregister it like a Kindle or just log out of it?

Is there anything else that ties the device to you?

[Tokei]

Hi Dom,

You can do a factory reset through the settings menu. Don’t know by hard where exactly, but should be in device information? Anyway, that is supposed to erase your storage and settings, including your login.

Cheers

[rashkae]

Factory reset would be best. Logging out will clear the database, but as far as I know, it will not securely delete remnants of data on the memory card, so who knows what a curious new owner might dig up?

OTOH, considering how unimportant the data on the Kobo is, you might consider that a little paranoid.

[dom123dom]

Originally Posted by Tokei

Hi Dom,

You can do a factory reset through the settings menu. Don’t know by hard where exactly, but should be in device information? Anyway, that is supposed to erase your storage and settings, including your login.

Cheers

Thanks, they already paid for it so I'm a little hesitant to mess with it just in case it breaks

[dom123dom]

Originally Posted by rashkae

Factory reset would be best. Logging out will clear the database, but as far as I know, it will not securely delete remnants of data on the memory card, so who knows what a curious new owner might dig up?

OTOH, considering how unimportant the data on the Kobo is, you might consider that a little paranoid.

Thanks for the info, I don't think I will bother in that case, I have only sideloaded books on it and my kobo account has no books or payment info so even if they did get into it there's nothing of value there.

[dom123dom]

I'm quite surprised to find there doesn't seem to be any record of the S/N belonging to me on my account page like you get with a Kindle.

[bgalbrecht]

Performing a factory reset is simple and won't break anything, and it will reformat the partition where your sideloaded and/or downloaded files are. Logging out will leave any side-loaded files on your device.

[dom123dom]

Originally Posted by bgalbrecht

Performing a factory reset is simple and won't break anything, and it will reformat the partition where your sideloaded and/or downloaded files are. Logging out will leave any side-loaded files on your device.

Thanks. I deleted the books using the Kobo GUI and then removed the SD card to check from my PC, to my surprise the book folders were still there. I think the books were gone but the metadata was still there. I deleted the folders manually from my PC. I've sent it now but probably should have reset...

[teija]

I'm sure it will be fine - the buyer will probably do a factory reset anyway. I always do a factory reset when selling electronics, and make sure that any used items I buy are also started from factory. Makes if feel like "new" for the next person and creates less opportunity for strange glitches.

[Barbara1955]

100% of the e-books on my Kobo are Side Loaded. No Credit Card information on my Kobo account No Nothing..... I just De-Register. Which removes my wifi information personal information.... Collections vanish ALL e-books stay.

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by Barbara1955

100% of the e-books on my Kobo are Side Loaded. No Credit Card information on my Kobo account No Nothing..... I just De-Register. Which removes my wifi information personal information.... Collections vanish ALL e-books stay.

So when the person to whom you sold your old Kobo receives your old device, she also receives all your side-loaded ebooks? That must might be considered copyright violation by some small-minded people.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by DNSB

So when the person to whom you sold your old Kobo receives your old device, she also receives all your side-loaded ebooks? That must might be considered copyright violation by some small-minded people.

How's it small minded? DO NOT GIVE COPIES of books STILL in copyright, or Upload to the web. It absolutely is copyright violation. A civil not criminal violation in most countries, so no limit to fine, which is based on damages.

Obviously the damages are tiny with books left on an ereader compared with uploaded to the internet.

Few authors even earn a living wage.

I'm absolutely opposed to USA DMCA and DRM, I believe in right to convert for a different gadget or archive backup copies. However it's simply wrong to give away or sell unauthorised copies. I do think Copyright should be only be life +25 years, not the crazy 75 which only benefits Corporations.
Also copyright should revert to author if a title is out of print.

[BilboBaggins]

If you firstly de-register your reader from your Adobe, your Kobo and your Pocket accounts, and secondly perform a factory reset, you will have a "like-new" reader.
The person receiving the reader will have to register its accounts, so it will be like having bought a reader from a store...

[Barbara1955]

Few authors even earn a living wage.

I PAID for the books...No Author was cheated & I Never added onto the fair cost of the e-reader just cause I leave books on it.
example: Kobo Aura 6" ...comes with cover cord booklet box 14 gig sd card AND 4000 ebooks... price $50.. So How am I cheating authors?? NOT

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by Barbara1955

Few authors even earn a living wage.

How does giving away copies of their book help them? Are you guaranteeing that the person who purchases your used ereader would never, ever purchase any of the books you left on it?

Originally Posted by Barbara1955

I PAID for the books...No Author was cheated & I Never added onto the fair cost of the e-reader just cause I leave books on it.
example: Kobo Aura 6" ...comes with cover cord booklet box 14 gig sd card AND 4000 ebooks... price $50.. So How am I cheating authors?? NOT

Note: I am addressing copyrighted ebooks and not public domain/non-copyright content in this message.

And strictly speaking, you did not pay for the books. You paid for a license which allows you to read the books. Looking through several EULAs, phrases such as "solely for your personal, non-commercial use", "is intended only for such Customers’ personal and non-commercial use", and "sell, rent, lease, redistribute, broadcast, transmit, communicate, modify, sublicense, transfer, assign any Content to any third party including with regard to any downloads of Content ... except as specifically permitted and only in the exact manner provided".

It's rather hard to see any legal differences between your actions and those of a torrent site that makes copyrighted material available for the cost of reading some advertising.

Admittedly as someone who routinely removes DRM, format shifts and makes backup copies of my ebook collection, I am not really in a position to cast the first stone. OTOH, those actions are done for my sole benefit and do not involve a third party. Under Canadian law, I am not liable for statutory damages for removing DRM for my private purposes. Given that I purchased the ebook, the copyright holder has not lost any money and the monetary damages would be non-existent.