Register Guidelines E-Books Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read

Go Back   MobileRead Forums > E-Book Readers > Kobo Reader

Notices

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old 10-16-2010, 11:16 AM   #1
jyl
Enthusiast
jyl began at the beginning.
 
Posts: 29
Karma: 10
Join Date: Jun 2010
Device: NOOK, JE200
how true is this article on kobo readers?

hi,

my OEM ebook reader got broken lately so i'm looking for a new one. I'm really considering Kobo reader, but i stumbled upon this article:

http://goodereader.com/blog/electron...s-of-problems/

i just want to know how true this article is, and if it's still worth it to buy a kobo reader?

thanks!
jyl is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-16-2010, 11:30 AM   #2
viviena
Evangelist
viviena ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.viviena ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.viviena ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.viviena ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.viviena ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.viviena ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.viviena ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.viviena ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.viviena ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.viviena ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.viviena ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Posts: 412
Karma: 520610
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Canberra, Australia
Device: Currently Kobo Clara HD and Aura One, iPad
It was very true earlier in the year, but the biggest issue, the font size problem, is fixed with firmware 1.4 -- all new units shouldn't have this problem.

As for the other problems mentioned in the article, I don't think any were to do with the device itself, but I do think sometimes the release of the ereader was poorly planned. It was marketed as a basic ereader with which anybody could get started, but the Kobo Desktop App at the time was problematic and caused frustration, especially for less techy users. The people selling this instore were often not that knowledgeable either.

Quote:
Not only do you have to download Kobo’s bug-ridden software platform, but you also need to install Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Digital Editions.
Adobe Digital Editions is standard software for all ereaders that support DRM-encyrpted EPUBs. You would probably need this software if you wanted to borrow library books with a Sony, Nook, or Kobo, for example, even though those ereaders often have software specific to their devices too.

Quote:
There are also other problems such as organizing your library with books you download from other sources, contributing to an ill-managed organization of your ebooks.
Not familiar with this one, to be honest, and I do have books from a lot of other sources than Kobo. Bad metadata, perhaps. Anybody?

So in the end, depending on who you ask, the Kobo still does have problems, just in my opinion not the ones mentioned in the article. Wait for the reviews on the new WiFi Kobo to come out.
viviena is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-16-2010, 11:48 AM   #3
HarryT
eBook Enthusiast
HarryT ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.HarryT ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.HarryT ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.HarryT ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.HarryT ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.HarryT ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.HarryT ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.HarryT ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.HarryT ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.HarryT ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.HarryT ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
HarryT's Avatar
 
Posts: 85,544
Karma: 93383043
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: UK
Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6
The Kobo does still have some major issues. If, for example, you read books with lots of hyperlinked endnotes (as many of my books have), the fact that the Kobo does not support hyperlinks within an ePub book will be a significant issue for you.

Given the comparative prices of the Kobo and the Kindle, it's difficult (in my mind) to justify buying a Kobo.
HarryT is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-16-2010, 12:28 PM   #4
taming
Trying for calm & polite
taming ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.taming ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.taming ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.taming ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.taming ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.taming ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.taming ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.taming ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.taming ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.taming ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.taming ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
taming's Avatar
 
Posts: 4,012
Karma: 9455193
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Mostly in Canada
Device: kobo original, WiFI, Touch, Glo, and Aura
Quote:
Originally Posted by HarryT View Post
Given the comparative prices of the Kobo and the Kindle, it's difficult (in my mind) to justify buying a Kobo.
For me, it's all about using ePUB and not getting locked into a specific device in the way Amazon does with Kindle, or Apple does with iBooks. Speaking only to how I read and what I want out of a reader, the question (for me) is if I am up for spending another $100 CAD for the six inch Sony. And my answer (to myself) is to wait for the update to the original Kobo reader, see what is up with the WiFi version, and then decide. Again, just for me, I can read almost all of the books I would choose to read electronically with no problems at all on my current Kobo with 1.4. The ones I can't are books I read for work. My employer isn't going to pay for digi versions and the ones I pay for myself I want in tree form so I can lend them to colleagues and students.

Everyone, ultimately, has to decide for themselves what features are a 'must have", a "nice to have', or an "I don't care'.
taming is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-16-2010, 06:41 PM   #5
farrioth
Enthusiast
farrioth began at the beginning.
 
Posts: 36
Karma: 12
Join Date: Aug 2010
Device: Kobo eReader
Quote:
Originally Posted by The Article
Many people who read ePub books on the Kobo are getting Font Size issues, where the font is so small it makes reading practically impossible. Sure the pre-loaded books look fine, but if you download books from any other site, forget easily loading them on your Kobo.
This was fixed in the 1.4 firmware update.

Quote:
Originally Posted by The Article
Many users are complaining about all the software and hoops they have to jump through to load different books on their e-reader, especially if you do not buy them from Kobo. Not only do you have to download Kobo’s bug-ridden software platform, but you also need to install Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Digital Editions.
I have no trouble loading other books (EPUBs or PDFs) on my Kobo without using any of the programs mentioned. It's just a case of copying them across. (The case may be different with DRM EPUBs, which I haven't used.)

Quote:
Originally Posted by The Article
There are also other problems such as organizing your library with books you download from other sources, contributing to an ill-managed organization of your ebooks.
I haven't encountered this.

Quote:
Originally Posted by The Article
Another problem that people encounter on their Kobo E-Reader is to remove books from the “I’m Reading” Section.
This is a known bug. Calibre can apparently manage the I'm Reading list, and a manual workaround also exists.
farrioth is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-16-2010, 07:49 PM   #6
CazMar
Book Geek
CazMar ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.CazMar ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.CazMar ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.CazMar ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.CazMar ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.CazMar ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.CazMar ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.CazMar ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.CazMar ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.CazMar ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.CazMar ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Posts: 596
Karma: 1499085
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Adelaide, Australia
Device: Kobo Touch, Asus MemPad 7" tablet, Nexus 5, Asus 10" tablet
Quote:
Originally Posted by taming View Post
For me, it's all about using ePUB and not getting locked into a specific device in the way Amazon does with Kindle, or Apple does with iBooks. Speaking only to how I read and what I want out of a reader, the question (for me) is if I am up for spending another $100 CAD for the six inch Sony. And my answer (to myself) is to wait for the update to the original Kobo reader, see what is up with the WiFi version, and then decide. Again, just for me, I can read almost all of the books I would choose to read electronically with no problems at all on my current Kobo with 1.4. The ones I can't are books I read for work. My employer isn't going to pay for digi versions and the ones I pay for myself I want in tree form so I can lend them to colleagues and students.

Everyone, ultimately, has to decide for themselves what features are a 'must have", a "nice to have', or an "I don't care'.
Yes, I really just wanted something to read on the bus/in bed/while I was waiting around and the Kobo does all those things. I have been trying out the conversion of some of my study material with a reasonable amount of success. I loathe devices that use "locked in" formats - won't buy an IPod or anything that behaves in that way. Over my working life I handled millions of dollars of other people's money without being tempted to steal any - so I don't see why a book or music publisher can't trust me to behave ethically!
CazMar is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Article on the Kobo from the head of Indigo PeterT Kobo Reader 28 05-28-2010 04:23 PM
Article: Kobo Has Grand Plans anurag News 2 02-16-2010 02:25 AM
Newspaper article re e-readers Treven News 9 11-24-2009 01:47 PM
Guardian article about e-book readers grimo1re News 11 07-30-2008 12:07 AM
German Article about E-Readers Tscherno News 1 09-04-2006 08:33 AM


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 01:17 AM.


MobileRead.com is a privately owned, operated and funded community.