Timmo Posted January 14, 2012 Share Posted January 14, 2012 (edited) They look like a pretty decent alternative to the Kindle, just thought I'd share with you all. Contemplating buying one for my girlfriend. Has anyone here got one? Whats it like? http://www.currys.co...021806-pdt.html Edited January 14, 2012 by Timmo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ophelia Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 I don't have one but my friend does and is delighted with it. One advantage over the Kindle is I think that, with the Kobo, you can download books from participating libraries. You still have to 'return' the book but it's a great idea and one that I wish Kindle would take up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 My local library allows you to borrow books on the Kindle, so it has become more available than it used to be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ophelia Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 My local library allows you to borrow books on the Kindle, so it has become more available than it used to be. Are you in the USA, bobblybear? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidtye Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Can you only download books on Amazon to a Kindle? If you have a Sony eReader or the Kobo does this mean you can't use the Amazon bookstore? David J Tye Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Are you in the USA, bobblybear? Hi Ophelia - no I'm in the UK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaliepud Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Hi Ophelia - no I'm in the UK. How does that work BB? Do you need to be very techy to do it? :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ophelia Posted January 26, 2012 Share Posted January 26, 2012 Hi Ophelia - no I'm in the UK. Thanks, bobblybear. I knew that American Kindle users could downloadbooks from their libraries so it's great news that British libraries are going to follow suit! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ophelia Posted January 26, 2012 Share Posted January 26, 2012 Can you only download books on Amazon to a Kindle? If you have a Sony eReader or the Kobo does this mean you can't use the Amazon bookstore? David J Tye I'm not certain, David, but I believe that, because the format is different, you may be able to download books from the Amazon Kindle bookshop to another device but be unable to read them. Something to do with their being DRM protected, I think Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidtye Posted January 26, 2012 Share Posted January 26, 2012 Ah ok thanks for the reply Bookworm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted January 26, 2012 Share Posted January 26, 2012 How does that work BB? Do you need to be very techy to do it? :-) Hi - I have to admit I've never done it, but when I log onto my local library I can get a list of books available for download. Granted the selection is quite limited, but they are putting more and more on there. I know you have to have an account an PIN, which is presumably my library card number, and I'm guessing that the book gets automatically deleted 3 weeks after download. I will try this one day, but I haven't yet seen anything on there that I desperately like to read. Try visiting your local library's website - they may have more information on there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purple Poppy Posted February 3, 2012 Share Posted February 3, 2012 Its very confusing isn't it? I don't have a Kindle, but I download kindle books via Amazon of course to my computer or my phone (android) There's a special app you can get ...free. Works a treat. I like reading from my phone, but some people would find the screen too small and too bright. I have a sony e-reader and it accepts stuff that downloads to my computer, but you have to have the right manager (and drivers). I just downloaded something from kindle or kobo, can't remember which, but will get back to you on that. My friend has just bought a Kindle and is wondering why he didn't buy one before. I must admit I fancy a kobo or Kindle, as my sony is one of the early ones...but will have to wait a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaliepud Posted February 3, 2012 Share Posted February 3, 2012 Hi - I have to admit I've never done it, but when I log onto my local library I can get a list of books available for download. Granted the selection is quite limited, but they are putting more and more on there. I know you have to have an account an PIN, which is presumably my library card number, and I'm guessing that the book gets automatically deleted 3 weeks after download. I will try this one day, but I haven't yet seen anything on there that I desperately like to read. Try visiting your local library's website - they may have more information on there. Thanks BB, I just checked the website and they do e-book loans but not for the kindle at the mo. So, still undecided for the moment, though I do have the £89 Kindle on my Amazon wish list, in case someone generous happens to come across it nearer my birthday... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willoyd Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 Can you only download books on Amazon to a Kindle? If you mean 'Is the Kindle the only hardware that can read Amazon books?' then, as suggested above, the answer is no. Amazon have developed a variety of free apps for PCs, Windows phones, Android, Mac, iPhone and iPod, which means their books can be read on those. (These can be synchronised so that if you reach a point in a book on one gadget, all the others for which you have Kindle software will automatically be updated. I have Kindle for PC, Kindle for Android and my Kindle, and it works very well, when I'm on-line!) Other e-readers are more problematic, as they are not generally able to read the Kindle format (.azw, which is effectively .mobi format but with DRM added). I haven't checked, but the freebie books available on Amazon may not have DRM added, in which case they would be fairly easily converted to other formats and then read on other e-readers. There's a piece of software that can handle this called Calibre that has a good reputation. I gather that you might be able to obtain software to strip the DRM out of the Kindle files, but haven't tried this, and it would be rather dodgy legally (I think you'd be OK doing it, as long as you didn't then pass the files on to someone else, but could be wrong). If you mean 'Is the Kindle restricted to Amazon?', then, again, the answer is no. As long as the Kindle gets the file in the right format. Again, software like Calibre can convert non-DRM files to a format that Amazon is happy with, which is primarily .mobi (sometimes called Kindle format, although this should really be .azw), although it will read a variety of other formats which aren't however normally used for books (e.g. .txt, .pdf, .doc, .bmp, etc.). Some sites publish files in the correct format, e.g. Project Gutenberg. If you have a Sony eReader or the Kobo does this mean you can't use the Amazon bookstore? Generally, yes it does, as most books are DRM protected (although, as I said, you may be able to strip them of this), but, as I said, some of the freebies may come without the DRM, in which case they can be converted. Hope that helps (and that I got it all right - it is a minefield!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julie Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 Hi all As for the Kobo, I really don't know much at all about it and how it works regarding books. I DID have the Sony reader a few years ago,before I got my first Kindle. I thought it was neat in the beginning,but to load books onto it was a royal pain,compared to how easy you can put a book on a Kindle . My Sony would lock up and I would have to stick a little lin or some sharp small object in a tiny hole in the back to reset it . It wasalso sluggish after loading books, you might have quite a wait til you could use it. I got the Kindle 2 after that and was amazied at the difference and how easy it was to use . Our libraries here now have Kindle books to loan .The way it works is you sing in to your eMedia area ,then choose a book,put it in your checkout basket . Then it will just say Get Your Book --you click on that, it takes you straight to the Amazon page the book is on,you click the button on that page, and WA-La -- the book is your for 3 weeks . As faras putting books on the phones and other devices, I have no clue how to do any of that . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
risingdawn Posted January 21, 2013 Share Posted January 21, 2013 I have a Kobo Glo. It's got quite a lot of books on the Kobo store which you can log into onto your device or online. And sometimes they do some pretty good deals. It's generally quite good. Battery lasts for quite awhile and you can change the fonts, text and all that jazz. I certainly love it. And no, I don't think you can use the Kobo on Amazon. The Kobo ebooks use the Kobo ePub which is completely different. It's definitely worth getting. Great alternative to a Kindle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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