A question to the people who have both Kindle and Kobo

[Smartie]

When you buy books, how do you decide where to buy? If Kindle ebook is cheaper or vice visa ,that is easy decision. But in most case, the book price is same, so do you treat one as primary account ? If so,which one

[pdurrant]

I buy where it's cheaper. Without coupons, that's usually Amazon. With a good coupon, it's usually Kobo. If it was the same price, I'd probably buy at Kobo, since I suspect that most publishers generate ePubs first and Kindle(mobi/kf8) from the ePub, and it's easier to tweak ePubs.

[Smartie]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

I buy where it's cheaper. Without coupons, that's usually Amazon. With a good coupon, it's usually Kobo. If it was the same price, I'd probably buy at Kobo, since I suspect that most publishers generate ePubs first and Kindle(mobi/kf8) from the ePub, and it's easier to tweak ePubs.

Thanks. Good one. I prefer Kobo is because I found Kobo touch is easy to turn pages than Kindle 4 button. You have to hold certain way to press kindle button. But on the other hand, I feel Amazon will be here in next 20 years and I have concern whether Kobo can be here in next 20 years. Not sure whether they will be next Sony

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by Smartie

I prefer Kobo is because I found Kobo touch is easy to turn pages than Kindle 4 button.

I'm currently mostly reading on my nook glowlight. Apprentice Alf and calibre mean that I can read my books on whatever device I like, no matter where I buy it. (Well, apart from Apple's iBooks store.)

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by Smartie

But on the other hand, I feel Amazon will be here in next 20 years and I have concern whether Kobo can be here in next 20 years. Not sure whether they will be next Sony

I don't trust any of them to be around or even if they are to keep my books available forever. Getting rid of DRM and using Calibre to manage things, along with frequent backups, means I can use my books on any device and will have usable copies even if the stores go away.

[Synamon]

I do have both a Kindle and Kobo reader, but since I remove DRM and can easily convert formats with calibre all the ebooks can be put on either reader.

I mostly buy ebooks at Amazon because I like to get matching Whispersync for Voice audiobooks from Audible for a reduced price. With high percentage coupons I'll buy occasionally at Kobo. However, most of the books I read come from the library since I'm fortunate to have access to one with lots of ebooks/audiobooks.

[kristalana]

I'm fortunate enough that all the books I buy are couponable, so for me Kobo's always cheaper. For the times when Kobo doesn't have the book at all then I go Amazon. Like the others above, thanks to Calibre I read my books bought anywhere on my Kindle, and I have all my books stored safely no matter what happens to the stores.

[latepaul]

Check Kobo if I remember and see if it's coupon-able - usually isn't. Even if it is I spend time trying to find a working coupon, usually takes a few goes and may not end up being cheaper than Amazon. I'd say 90% of the time I end up buying from Amazon.

I also have a habit of checking Amazon's deals of the day/month etc and/or just browsing in a way that I don't with Kobo so I end up buying quite a few books that way.

[pidgeon92]

I either download books from the library, or buy them from Amazon (if they drop into my price threshold). I haven't purchased an ebook from Kobo in years.

[DrNefario]

I treat my kindle as my main device, purely because I had it first. I'll buy from amazon most of the time, and only go to kobo for the odd couponable book.

[owly]

I buy mostly from Google Play books though some times from Amazon if it's clearly cheaper. I almost only buy from Kobo when the books are heavily on sale.

[Gazella]

I buy all my books from Amazon. I bought only one ebook from Kobo and said never again.

[Dr. Drib]

I buy almost all my books from Amazon. They get hundreds of dollars a year from me.

Sometimes, however, there is an exception. For example, last month (?) Kobo had this very unusual 90% off. I had never seen this before. I took advantage of that and bought about 30-odd books.

If you make a mistake on a purchase with Kobo, however, it'll be like being caught in a Kafkaesque world of brightly-lit mirrors and revolving doors, of shadowed ebook bureaucrats with gleaming teeth and razor-sharp mustachios. The language they speak will, unfortunately, be one that does not exist anywhere on earth, except perhaps in the Halls of Kobo. You will never see them face-to-face either, but through the constantly shifting mirror-images that flicker to life and disappear. These constantly shifting forms will coalesce and then drift apart, an endless series of flickering images that can never be finalized as a person you can actually talk to and see. At least, that's been the experience of a few people here who've attempted to crawl through the barbed wire....

Amazon, on the other hand, will be as painless as removing an eyelash dangling from the tip of your nose. At least, that's been my experience.

Remember: Experiences DO vary, and yours may not correspond to the ones I have described.



Calibre is my good buddy. He's as close to me as a pair of newly-washed underwear.

[bgalbrecht]

I have had a couple of interactions with Kobo customer service. One of them was when I accidentally bought the PDF version of a computer science book instead of the ebook with a coupon. They don't show the version on the checkout page and I had been comparing both. They refunded my money, and when I asked them if I could get a substitute coupon, they gave me a 90% off coupon instead of the 55% (I think) coupon I had used. The other interactions were to my satisfaction also. I generally buy from the retailer which is cheapest. When Kobo has a contest going on and the book is coupon eligible, Kobo is usually much cheaper than Amazon.

[Gazella]

You're very lucky. This is very rare of Kobo.