I’ve been a book reader for a long time, but never got into eBooks. I want to try it out next, but don’t want to use any privacy vilotating devices or software. So, those “10 best” lists I found while searching are out, all of the Amazon crap is out.

What’s left? What’s a good device to buy so I can self-host my own eBook library and get into eReading. I would prefer suggestions for devices which just read books and comics and such. I don’t need access to the app stores on it, I think.

Thanks for any ideas.

ETA: I have a Linux PC and an Android phone, if those things matter.

ETA2: Thank you all for these replies. You’ve given me a lot to think about and I appreciate the help!

LAST EDIT: Getting a Kobo Clara Color, 6" eInk dealie-bob! Thanks y’all. Don’t let this stop you from posting your suggestions still. Posts like these help many over time. Y’all rock!

  • CedarA64@lemm.eeEnglish
    2·
    2 days ago

    I bought an old Sony ereader on eBay a couple years ago but the battery is shot and apparently replacing it requires soldering?! I had been thinking about bringing it to a phone repair shop to get it fixed but now I think that is probably a no-go. Yesterday I researched how repairable the Kobo ereaders are and based on iFixit they seem pretty horrendous, even the newer Clara BW that has an OEM repair guide and official OEM parts available on iFixit (although it is marginally better than the old Aura HD). Now I am thinking I may just forego ereaders altogether. The repair situation with laptops, tablets and phones is bad enough nowadays. I don’t want anything to do with something even worse than that. I would get the PineNote but I am too poor to pay $400 for an ereader.

    I have just been using my old iPad (with the low contrast feature enabled for bedtime reading) but obviously that is not great for privacy so I would have to use another device for some books. I could use an old OnePlus that I have but it has an AMOLED display so it’s not great for reading but maybe I can mitigate that with the right software and configuration.

    I would just buy paper books but unfortunately that has its privacy issues as well, at least in my case. If one is in a shared living situation it can hard be to keep private what you are reading if other people are nosy. And even just buying paper books anonymously can be impossible if you cannot buy what you want to read with cash at a brick and mortar store. I have no idea how you anonymously order books online (and I am not talking about some dark web marketplace that accepts Monero and has 10 books). It is probably possible if you have enough money to throw at the problem, which I don’t.

  • z3rOR0ne@lemmy.ml
    291·
    5 days ago

    Kobo is the answer. It used to require some finicking to get it so you didn’t have to sign up with Walmart, but now that’s supposedly no longer an issue (I’ve had my Kobo for a long time). Install Calibre and the Kobo extension for Calibre. You now can borrow epubs from your local library, purchase them from your favorite online ebook store, or sail the high seas if you don’t give a fuck.

    • 0x0@programming.dev
      4·
      5 days ago

      …and then my Kobo Clara briked itself into a bootloop after i connected it to WiFi.
      Also beware how you buy ebooks from kobo’s store or you won’t be able to un-drm them (i.e. they get locked to the kobo).
      All in all they do tend to be nice hardware and my usual recommendation.

      • z3rOR0ne@lemmy.ml
        3·
        5 days ago

        Sorry to hear that. I’ll admit I don’t buy ebooks. Yoho yoho and all that. And yeah, I also never turn on wifi. Have you tried a hard reset?

        • 0x0@programming.dev
          5·
          5 days ago

          The problem with all hard resets is that the reset button’s either:
          a) at the lower back of the device
          b) under the cover

          Whereas mine seems to be c) these is none.

          At least they’ve partenered with iFixit, better late than never.

  • scoobford@lemmy.zip
    9·
    5 days ago

    I’m very surprised the top answer isn’t pocketbook. Their entire business model is reworking Chinese e ink tablets to make them GDPR compliant and privacy respecting. I’d recommend the pocketbook verse pro if you want a lit screen and USB C, but they have a cheaper model without those features.

    Here is a good spec comparison table for ereaders in general. I’d point out basically all e-readers have great battery life.

    https://ewritable.net/comparison-tables/comparison-table/

  • AnimalsDream@slrpnk.netEnglish
    3·
    4 days ago

    I’ve had an e-ink device, and read ebooks on a number of devices. Some notes:

    • If it’s a casual read and I can get the book in epub or mobi format, I might just have it on my phone and use Librera.

    • I did not like e-ink displays at all. The text itself doesn’t appear easier on the eyes to me, and if anything the jarring refreshes on each page turn make the overall experience even more straining. For this reason regular Android tablets have become my preferred way to read books.

    • For tablets I suggest one that is at least 10 inches. A lot of ebooks are still only available in pdf format, and I’ve found that anything smaller than a 10 inch display makes for bad pdf reading.

    • Following from all that, I would suggest the Pixel Tablet, because from a privacy perspective, you have the option to install GrapheneOS on it. From there you can get F-Droid, install any of those ebook apps, and now you have a reasonably secure and private ebook reader - and the best part is, because it’s a general purpose tablet, you’re not accumulating unnecessary single-purpose devices. You never know if the tablet might have other important uses down the line.

    • AnimalsDream@slrpnk.netEnglish
      2·
      4 days ago

      Or for other options you can checkout LineageOS. Filter by tablet to see which ones are supported, and that can help narrow choices of tablets that can be made privacy-respecting. Just make sure to use a version that does not have gapps on it. Once you use LineageOS’s site to find a supported tablet, you can go to the MicroG for LineageOS site to download the MicroG version of the OS. This comes with a set of alternatives to Google spyware so you can use your tablet completely free of Google.

  • Yingwu@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
    131·
    5 days ago

    Buy a Kobo, never connect it to WiFi. Or flash KOReader on it. Either way much better than the alternatives.

    • Oneser@lemm.ee
      3·
      5 days ago

      I have a Clara 2E. It was some time ago, so I cannot remember all the fine details, but I couldn’t get mine to start without some internet connection. I gave a throwaway email and allowed it to update before I switched off WiFi and could freely move books with Calibre.

      To it’s credit, in 3 years since purchase it has not asked for internet since switching it on the first time.

      • GlenRambo@jlai.luEnglish
        3·
        5 days ago

        Got a libre2 recently as a gift. My first ereader. I was able to plug it into the PC. Change a line of code and reboot.

        Thst made the email prompt go away.

        Then installed koreader and syncthing on it. I DL books on Android and it syncs over to Kobo. I can even read via koreader app on andrpid and it syncs progression.

  • iturnedintoanewt@lemm.ee
    81·
    5 days ago

    Just… Another kobo. I don’t actually use calibre though, i just get the books in epub format. Then when you hook the kobo to the PC, it shows as mass storage anyway. Just dump your files, and after ejected it does its cursory file scan, and it shows them properly listed in the device.

    Of course Calibre offers a lot more functionality, so if you want to have a proper library it might make sense to manage your books from there. I’m basically saying no conversion is needed a it natively reads epub.

    • Lantier@jlai.lu
      2·
      5 days ago

      I read your blog post. I was interested until I saw the price on the EU store :(

      • Domi@lemmy.secnd.me
        2·
        5 days ago

        I ordered from the global store and paid 530€. Still expensive of course and it comes without warranty but it is cheaper and in stock.

    • subiacOSB@lemmy.ml
      1·
      5 days ago

      You page loads up then it goes away. Not sure what’s up. Maybe it’s my ad blockers. Who knows.

      • Domi@lemmy.secnd.me
        1·
        5 days ago

        Which browser do you use? The only issue I’m aware of is that the videos don’t load on Firefox for Android.

  • catloaf@lemm.eeEnglish
    10·
    5 days ago

    I have an old Kindle Paperwhite. I put use Calibre and USB to manage the library, no Amazon connection necessary. Works great.

    • veroxii@aussie.zone
      1·
      5 days ago

      Yeah with ebook readers the actual device doesn’t really matter as long as you use calibre. I also use the same kindle and honestly I’m not even sure if it has wifi. Maybe. Probably. But it never gets used.

  • madjo@feddit.nl
    2·
    4 days ago

    I have a Boox Go Color, but most Boox ereaders are good devices. You can have a Calibre library self-hosted and use the Android app “Calibre sync” to access it on your ereader.

  • coffeetastesbadlikecoffee@sh.itjust.works
    2·
    4 days ago

    I really like my era. Pocketbook allows me to have the website of a local bookstore as the “shop” button on the home screen, so I can support them. It is comfortable to hold and the front light is pretty good.

    In the summer months when I don’t use the backlighting, I need to charge it every 2 weeks with very heavy reading or even 2 months with light reading (~20 mins a day)

  • eru@mouse.chitanda.moeEnglish
    7·
    5 days ago

    used kindle paperwhite, check firmware version to ensure jailbreak

    jailbreak, install koreader

    use calibre to manage library, source books from uh. the seas

    amazon devices have quite good screens for the price

    however, if you are reading comics, you should get a bigger screen probably a tablet, look into boox and meebook, both are android based

    i would not recommend color screens rn, they still have significantly lower contrast and resolution and refresh is slow af

  • utopiah@lemmy.ml
    2·
    4 days ago

    PineNote (Pine 64) or reMarkable (Pro if you have budget, 2 or even 1 otherwise)

    Both work on Linux proper, the reMarkable comes with Linux out of the box whereas PineNote comes with Android but one can install Linux on it.

    They are mostly to sketch but it is also good to read. You can pretty much use whatever you want on them, including developing your own software. I don’t know if they have Calibre clients because whats I do is… just scp my ePubs or PDFs on there.

    Here are my tinkering notes on both https://fabien.benetou.fr/Tools/Eink but feel free to ask any clarification.

    PS: the Bookeen Diva also does not require any software, namely you can plug it on Linux, it gets detected as a filesystem and you can copy DRM-free content on it. It’s a totally different form factor (much smaller so IMHO not great for comics) and I don’t think there is the same open-source community as the other 2.

    • utopiah@lemmy.ml
      2·
      4 days ago

      Also a good moment to clarify that DRM sucks, but as a user, or even a consumer, you don’t have to be worry of them (at least technically) because it’s trivial to remove. For example you can use this super convenient script https://pypi.org/project/DeGourou/ to straight up download content that should in theory be “just” for you. The online public library I use, namely https://www.lirtuel.be/ does offer ePub and PDF so I was overjoy… only to realize they meant with DRM. As I had already registered and was honestly pissed at them for not disclosing it from the start I tried DeGourou and… it just worked and is very convenient (you just give it the .acsm then it downloads and remove the DRM, so you get a proper file after). So… yeah, obviously don’t buy any DRM content if you don’t have to but if somehow you must, it’s not that big a deal technically speaking.