Can't pass initial configuration!

[Simo311]

Hi! i have a Kobo N905C, but since few days it doesnt work anymore as it get stuck in initial configuration. it ask me for the language then to connect to internet and it goes back to asking me the language again...
i've tried removing the SD and perfom a clean install of the firmware with the appropiate image found here on this website, but it still have this issue.
i even tried to plug it to my pc but it does nothing, even with the official application.
what can i do to fix it?
thanks!

[Sirtel]

Buy a new ereader. What is it with people hanging on to ancient, 10-12 years old models as if their life depended on it?

[JSWolf]

I agree. It is time for a new Kobo Libra 2.

[Aleron Ives]

What does "does nothing" when plugged into the PC mean? If your PC can't even see the device anymore when you plug it in, then it's probably toast.

If you can see the filesystem when you plug it in, you could try editing the Kobo eReader.conf file and adding:

[ApplicationPreferences]
SideloadedMode=true

to the configuration. Safely eject and reboot the device, and this should bypass the initial setup. If your Kobo Touch still doesn't work after that, then you probably can't save it.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by Simo311

Hi! i have a Kobo N905C, but since few days it doesnt work anymore as it get stuck in initial configuration. it ask me for the language then to connect to internet and it goes back to asking me the language again...
i've tried removing the SD and perfom a clean install of the firmware with the appropiate image found here on this website, but it still have this issue.
i even tried to plug it to my pc but it does nothing, even with the official application.
what can i do to fix it?
thanks!

Its network certification is probably not new enough to connect to Kobo's servers. I had the same issue with a Kobo Mini I bought online. You're supposed to be able to use Kobo Reader to update these, but it just seems to hang.

My solution was to download the update, in your case for the Kobo Touch C, here...

https://pgaskin.net/KoboStuff/kobofirmware.html

Then tell your reader to set up with Kobo Reader and connect the USB cable from your reader to the computer. (You don't have to use Kobo Reader.) You can then move the unzipped update files to (I believe) the .kobo directory on you Kobo Touch, restart, it should update, and then follow the prompts – and you should then have access to the Internet via WiFi for your setup and syncing. (Double check for the correct directory, and note that .kobo has a leading period, which tells you it's a hidden folder. If you're using Windows you'll have to check "show hidden files/folders" in Windows explorer to see the directory.)

Good luck.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

Buy a new ereader. What is it with people hanging on to ancient, 10-12 years old models as if their life depended on it?

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I agree. It is time for a new Kobo Libra 2.

Even if I was in the market for a Libra 2 (I'm not) I would still want to get the Kobo Touch working.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by rcentros

Even if I was in the market for a Libra 2 (I'm not) I would still want to get the Kobo Touch working.

I understand the wish to have a working model of a unique device, no matter how old (Voyage, Kobo Mini, Oasis 1) or a device that's 5-6 years old. But a 10+ years old device that has no distinguishing feature newer devices don't also have (and usually better)? Nah, I don't get that, unless one is really living in extreme poverty.

I mean, almost no one totes a 12-year-old phone around. Most people I know upgrade their phones every couple of years (I usually do it in every 5 years or so), but they want to hang on to their 12-year-old ereader with teeth and nails... To my mind, it's just plain weird.

[JSWolf]

I know getting the old Kobo working is a challenge and you may like a challenge. But TBH, it is time for a new Kobo even if you manage to get the current one working.

[rashkae]

I really don't know what is in the water today that is causing everyone to pile in to taunt someone for using an older device. (One that is still supported and updated by Kobo, I might add, and not actually even obsolete yet.) It seems people are reverting to grade school all of a sudden.

That being said, if you connect the Kobo to a PC and it does not attach the drive, (you would normally see some kind of graphic on the kobo indicating it is attached to pc.) it is probably really broken, and would only be of use to someone wanting to practice circuit board repair as a hobby.

I think it would be worth trying charging it for 24 hours with a different cable and on a different computer, just to rule out other points of failure.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by rashkae

I really don't know what is in the water today that is causing everyone to pile in to taunt someone for using an older device. (One that is still supported and updated by Kobo, I might add, and not actually even obsolete yet.) It seems people are reverting to grade school all of a sudden.

A 11-12 years old device is not merely "older"; in the world of portable electronic devices, it means ancient. And unless it has something to offer that newer devices don't, I do find it funny that people are ready to do anything besides buying a newer device.

Funny because very, very few people are eager to fix their phones, tablets or laptops that are more than a decade old, but for some strange reason are far more reluctant to give up their 10+ years old ereaders. It would be understandable if ereaders were very expensive, but they're actually much cheaper than phones and computers. And yes, ereaders might not age quite so fast as many other gadgets, but they do age.

[John F]

If an old device was fine for reading before, and it did what you wanted/needed, and they don't see the need for new device, why buy a new device? I don't get it.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by John F

If an old device was fine for reading before, and it did what you wanted/needed, and they don't see the need for new device, why buy a new device? I don't get it.

Because the old device isn't working anymore. Why waste time and/or money (people buy replacement screens for their old ereaders and then they complain that the display is no longer working correctly) on fixing an ancient piece of tech?

I have never said that you should buy a new device when the old one is still working.

[slm]

I have a friend who has had a 3G flip phone with just a number keypad for most of her adult life. About a year or two ago, her carrier sent her a new smartphone (because they were cuttting off 3 g).

She was quite unhappy. The old one did what she wanted and she knew how to use it. The new would be able to much more, but she doesn't do any more than make and recieve phone calls. And she finds it at times very confusing just to do that, what with notifications and such interfering.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by slm

I have a friend who has had a 3G flip phone with just a number keypad for most of her adult life. About a year or two ago, her carrier sent her a new smartphone (because they were cuttting off 3 g).

She was quite unhappy. The old one did what she wanted and she knew how to use it. The new would be able to much more, but she doesn't do any more than make and recieve phone calls. And she finds it at times very confusing just to do that, what with notifications and such interfering.

Flip phones are still sold. No need to buy a smartphone if your old flip phone broke. Just buy a new flip phone.

The difference in user friendliness between a flip phone and a smartphone is vastly bigger than between different models of dedicated ereaders (Android eink tablets are the exception here).

[Aleron Ives]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

unless it has something to offer that newer devices don't, I do find it funny that people are ready to do anything besides buying a newer device.

The OP asked for help with a device that stopped working, which is not equivalent to being "ready to do anything besides buying a newer device". If you don't want to answer the OP's actual question, then don't reply to the thread. Yes, it's possible the device is dead, but the OP hasn't tried all the workarounds to revive it, yet.

There's a big difference between, "You could try X, Y, and Z, but it's possible that your device is dead, and you might have to replace it," and, "Why are you trying to fix such an old device? Just buy a new one!"