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/lit/ - Literature

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8607360 No.8607360 [Reply] [Original]

I was thinking of finally getting over my autism and getting an e-reader.

What is the best simplistic e-reader that supports e-pub format? Are there any out there that are no frills and cheap without being tiny pocket things?

>> No.8607372

I have a tab 2 and it works well enough. Probably old enough now that you could pick up one pretty cheap too.

>> No.8607404

Lenovo Android tablets are pretty simple choices.

FBreader is an book reader program that can support changing the background and text color. So you can use that to reduce eyestrain.

I have heard that pocketbook touch ereaders have bad chargers. So you can need to use a different cord for those ones.

>> No.8607708

Get a kobo.

>> No.8607727

>>8607360
Kobo!

>> No.8607773

>>8607360
Kobo Glo HD

>> No.8607794

Fuck that shit.
With books, you only need a source of light. Plus, can you imagine The House Of Leaves on a tiny screen?

But OK.
Kindles are probably the best, lightest, and most comfy readers out there. But Kindle versions are sometimes garbled beyond recognition. Also, epub is not a native format so you'll need to use Calibre to convert your files beforehand.

>> No.8607830

>>8607773
/thread

I can't see a better choice at the moment.
(Though I don't have one myself, just basing this on specs and reviews.)

>> No.8607837

>>8607404
>tablets
No, just no.

>> No.8608054

>>8607794
>But Kindle versions are sometimes garbled beyond recognition
That's not kindle versions specifically, it's just any versions converted from pdf and not cleaned up afterwards. Epub have the exact same problem, in fact the Kobo store especially has a shameful amount of them, but I've seen them with amazon-generated covers too.
And epubs convert pretty much perfectly to mobi, + everybody who uses e-readers a lot will have calibre sooner or later, so if the equivalent kindle is considerably cheaper than other brands don't think twice because of the format lock.

>> No.8608073

>>8607360
kobo glo and kindle paperwhite are top of the line and will both steal your personal information if you connect them to the store. Both handle PDFs poorly, both run in formats that losslessly convert between each other (AZW3 and epub). I have heard from people who own both that the paperwhite runs a little smoother, but that it is barely noticeable.

>> No.8608087

>>8607360
Unless you plan on buying books just get an android tablet, download an ereader app, and connect dropbox.

Only way to handle PDFs.

>> No.8608089

>>8607794
>With books, you only need a source of light.
with e-readers you don't even need that

>> No.8608096

>>8607360
paperwhite definitely

>> No.8608100

dont listen to any of the retards recommending a tablet, you want something with an e ink screen so a kindle or a kobo.

>> No.8608115

>>8607360
Kobo Aura H2O, got a slightly larger screen than others, is relatively cheap, water resistant/"proof", microSD slot if you need a billion books all at once, more customizable than Kindle so you can get your typography and whatnot comfy.

>> No.8608155

>>8608115
>slightly larger screen than others

Which makes the device bigger and heavier.
6" screen is plenty for regular books.

>> No.8608248

>>8607360
From what I've gathered, e-readers are optimal if you're solely going to use them for reading and the files are specifically epubs. If you want to read pdf files you're better off getting a tablet.
I'm also on the hunt for a reader of some sort. Leaning towards a tablet since a lot of my school-related materials are in pdf.

>> No.8608372

>>8607794
there's literally nothing wrong with kindle + calibre

>> No.8608433
File: 356 KB, 592x800, pepe h20.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
8608433

>not going for the flagship underwater e-reader

>> No.8608587

>>8608087

>dropbox

you need dropbox for ipad but android can transfer the pdf directly

>> No.8608651

>>8608372
agreed. i was an ebook reader hipster for years (sony was the choice back then) but honestly... kindles are great. the battery life is better, the screens are better... fuck it and go mainstream (but make sure to install calibre)

>> No.8608665

I use a Kindle Paperwhite for all novels, and physical books for all reference material

The thing e-readers will forever be bad at is the ability to flip from a random location toward the back of the book to a random location toward the front, and vice-versa

>> No.8608677

It's hard to go wrong with the basic kindle and a properly set up calibre.

I personally prefer the basic model with no back light. I don't like the glare the paperwhite has. The basic kindle with a reading light is amazingly comfy.

>> No.8608678

Is there any good ereader that doesn't lock you into a certain DRM ecosystem?

>> No.8608697

>>8607360
Paperwhitefag here. Would definetly recommend a paperwhite. It has actively increased how much I read but it has some minor flaws. One of them is: You have to convert all of your files into mobi because kindle is bitchy about that. the upside is: using calibre you can do this easy as fuck and in bulk.

Personally I would also recommend some leather case thingy for it.

>> No.8608698

>>8608678
The problem is that the Kindle has really advanced, tech wise, beyond what else is generally available. Especially in the last few generations.

This is why Calibre is so important. Properly set up and with the appropriate plugins, it becomes a perfect way to convert and/or strip DRM.

>> No.8608705

If Amazon does the same thing they did last year, wait for Black Friday and their kindle paperwhite will be $79

>> No.8608715

>>8608698
How is the Kindle really advanced compared to the Kobo?

Do Kindles even have proper alignment yet?

>> No.8608738

Just get yourself one of those cheap 20 dollar Kindles. There's no point in spending lots of money when you don't know what you're looking for in an e-reader and they hold up pretty well. Don't worry about file formats, just download Calibre and pirate them books to hearts content.

>> No.8608766

Since this is an e-reader thread:

How do I turn a .cbz I made myself from a folder of .jpegs into a .pdf that actually works? I can make a .pdf, but it's buggy as hell and making an .epub of them looks awful.

I'm using winrar to archive everything as a .zip that I just rename to a .cbz. I use Calibre to convert the .cbz into a .pdf.

Also, anybody know how to compress the .pdf more? The .cbz with colour is about 200 mb and so is the bw .pdf.

>> No.8608834

>>8608678
I see this posted all the time by people who I assume dont have e-readers. The mere fact of using calibre means that DRM ecosystems are completely irrelevant, and even if every book was open source epub, I would still use calibre.

>>8608766
I would just use the comic archives, but if you really wanted to do that I would use a wordprocessor and mailmerge the images as jpegs after i mass convert them, then use calibre to process as a pdf. Or convert all the images to GIF and then use acrobat protable to merge into a pdf.

>> No.8608863

>>8608834
The .cbz doesn't work properly. That's probably the issue, any idea how I'd make a proper .cbz?

>> No.8608882

>>8607773
/THREAD
these will be hard to find too, since Kobo is going full jew this year by discontinuing the Glo HD and re-releasing the Aura at a more expensive price without the high DPI screen

>> No.8608885

>>8608863
I used to create large image books on pdf with a program called onmerge, but since you really want the cbz, i assume the problem you are facing is with image size. So I would use Irfran View to get a uniform file/compression size that any comic reader can handle do your own research I dont read comics and then just using winrar to create the archive and renaming it.

>>8608882
Kobo's policies regarding personal information are worse than amazons

>> No.8608886

I've never used a kindle or the like. Are there e-readers out there that allow me to make notes on them? I want to download some foreign/obscure books that I'll probably going to forget about before I get round to reading them. I'll only remember I downloaded a book on ___.

>> No.8608887

>>8608863

isn't it literally just a renamed .zip file? like you zip the folder with the files numbered by page and just change the extension?

>> No.8608891

>>8608886
The all let you make notes, but on Kindles at least it is an awkward process that involves highlighting with my fat fingers.

>>8608887
He is having problem with compression, the key to those kinds of archives and pdfs is to fix the image quality and size before you create the archive.

>> No.8608893

>>8608885
I use a Kindle Paperwhite 4(?), which is tiny so I need the clearest and largest image possible. The .cbz and the .pdf are only showing the first two images, which is strange since they all have the same file name plus the page number. I need the .pdf because it scales to my screen's aspect ratio.
>>8608887
Yes, but it seems I am doing something wrong. I am about to rename everything and see if that works.

I've also tried .cbr but the same issue occurred.
>>8608891
I'm having many problems.

>> No.8608901

>>8608893
>I use a Kindle Paperwhite

I am a champion of the kindle, but when i read comics i read on Ipad, i dont know if that will work too well with kindle. If you are using PDF to read on kindle, pirate acrobat portable, crop to the actual images when you open the archive so that there is no white, and save as a reduced size pdf after removing hidden data. Ive created pdfs of scans where ever page is an image of the page and i rarely get above 50mb

>> No.8608910

>>8608901
>crop the actual images
All ~3000 of them?

There's basically no white since they're good scans, it's just that there doesn't seem to be any actual compression happening when going from colour to bw, and Calibre doesn't seem to have an option to compress.

>> No.8608913

>>8608910
programs like briss, acrobat and IrfanView can be used to batch edit, as can photoshop. If i were you id pirate a portable photoshop, google how to batch edit to a filesize and type appropriate to reading cbr on a kindle (if it is even compatible and workable on a screen that size?) and then recreate the archive.

>> No.8608918

>>8608913
It's currently working, but is not actually displaying more than the first two images. It's not processing the two-page scans or something stupid like that.

>> No.8608938

>>8608918
Summary:
>just patch-renamed volume 1 into 01, 02, etc.
>used WinRAR to turn it into a .cbz
>imported the .cbz to Calibre, converted it to a .pdf with Calibre
>both the .cbz, which is converted to a .mobi, and the .pdf, only show the first two images (which are single-page scans)

Is there a way to batch-split all the scans?

>> No.8609063

Get a nook

>> No.8609116

How's the new kobo ereader? Anyone here own one?

>> No.8610061

i\ve been using a mixture of my paperwhite and physical books the past 2.5 years (3 in december), and i've been super pleased with the kindle. it's great for traveling and has a super long battery life. no complaints at all. ~~thanks calibre and libgen~~

>> No.8610332

>>8609116

also wondering, I just want a cheap epub reader with no extra shit that has nothing to do with reading books.

I don't even care if it doesn't have a backlight.

>> No.8610347

>>8607372
Came to say this. You can stick a custom rom on it and it's comfy as fuck. Not too heavy and decent battery life if you turn off the wifi and don't install bullshit such as facebook etc.

>> No.8610399

>>8610332
Anything with an e-ink screen is usually designed to be a distraction free reading experience, sometimes it might have goodreads integration or a chess app but you can easily just not log in to goodreads

>> No.8610400

>>8607360
Kobo glo, or any other kobo with a backlight is what you want.

>> No.8610521

>>8610399
kobo retroactively removed the chess app from its devices. i was pretty fucking mad; all i wanted was a chess device that would last for weeks on battery

>> No.8610573

I am reading almost exclusively on my phone (sometimes on my notebook too) since two years.
Ask me anything.

>> No.8610613

>>8607360
I use a paperwhite and calibre. Would recommend; battery-life is stellar, great display, and has enough storage (2gb).

>> No.8611304

>>8608248
Evven for pdf, e readers are vastly superiors.
My tablet is for comic books.

>> No.8611319

>>8607794
oh no! how will i ever read house of leaves! (eye roll)

>> No.8611336

>>8610521
Reasonable AI, too. I was mad, as well. Then I found this. http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=261305
http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?p=3156144#post3156144
I don't know if this will still work with the newer firmware, though. I haven't synced my Kobo since I found these threads.

>> No.8611570

>>8608096
>paperwhite definitely
i have one of these and paid the extra money not to have the ads.
then i boot up the pw and there on my homescreen are ads for books.

>amazone kindle not even twice

>> No.8611584

>>8608248
>If you want to read pdf files you're better off getting a tablet.
Personally I've got used to reading pdfs on my Kobo HD. Weird at first, and slow at page-turning, but so much easier on the eyes than a tablet screen that there's no comparison.

>> No.8611599

>>8611336
>>8610521
Every time you win against a computer in chess is because it let you.

>> No.8611653
File: 65 KB, 480x640, DSC00018.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
8611653

Kindle paperwhite is pretty great. No complains here.

>> No.8612522

>>8608433
That filename is triggering me
>h20
>20
>0