Kobo Libra2 impressions
I got a Kobo Libra2 earlier this year and it has dramatically increased how much fiction I read. Since I got it early this year, I’ve read five books and I’m working on another two. Over a decade ago I had a Kindle and it was great but when the device broke I didn’t replace it. I chose not to replace the device because I actively avoid purchasing from and supporting Amazon as much as possible. For a long time, I simply didn’t have an e-reader, but I had started itching to read more fiction.
When I came across the Kobo it seemed like a great fit. The Kobo looked to be pretty hackable and was relatively cheap so I got one and I haven’t been disappointed. Having a device with battery life that lasts in weeks is incredible and the e-ink display makes it easy for me to read without straining my eyes or getting distracted like I do with my iPad.
I love borrowing books from the library
Being able to easily borrow a book from the library through Libby has hugely expanded my choices in what to read. I love libraries and its so nice to be able to use the library even when I’m at home. So far, all the books I have read have come from the library and I plan to keep that as my primary use case for the Kobo.
Customizations
I wish I remember where I came across it, but I had read a blog post from someone with ADHD and Dyslexia on how they used their e-ink device so when I got my Kobo I went and did something similar. My modifications:
- Turn off reading progress header and footer
- Turn off showing the book progress bar
- Increase font size
- Increase line height
I’ve found these changes to make reading much easier for me. I don’t have to worry about how far along I am with the book and the larger font makes it so much easier to read and digest what is on the screen. I’ll probably keep tweaking the Kobo to fit my needs more, but so far those changes have been good enough for now.
Annoyances
Like any device, there are things that annoy me about the Kobo. Fortunately, most aren’t all that bad and can either be worked around or fixed outright.
DRM Strikes
Over the years I’ve purchased a few books from Barnes and Noble and when I had a Kindle, I purchased books from Amazon, too. I was hopeful that I would be able to find a way to transfer at least the Barnes and Noble books over to the Kobo. Unfortunately, DRM makes that impossible. From now on, I’ll be doing my best to purchase DRM-free books wherever possible. I really love the freedom I get from using an e-book, but DRM forcing me to essentially rent books instead of purchasing them is infuriating.
Kobo is overly aggressive in trying to get me to buy from them
The software on my Kobo is overly aggressive when trying to get me to purchase books from the Kobo store. Whenever I check out a book from Libby, the Kobo software also will download a “sample” from the Kobo store. That alone is frustrating, but the Kobo software also doesn’t differentiate on where the book came from, instead, I have what looks like two copies of the book! I haven’t fixed this yet, but I do plan on dealing with this one way or another.
Reading for fun
I love reading, but for the most part, I have read technical books and blogs. And while I love reading those types of books and blogs, I felt like I was missing out on some of the joys of reading. Now that I’ve been using the Libra2 for a while now, I see that I was right. Reading fiction books has been incredibly enjoyable and I’m looking forward to reading more.