That's why I avoided Kindle and picked a Kobo. Sure you can remove DRMs from the books you've bought. But at some point they could block you from doing that. They can change anything at anytime and there's nothing you can do about it.
this post was submitted on 14 Feb 2025
727 points (99.2% liked)
Technology
63082 readers
3600 users here now
This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
Our Rules
- Follow the lemmy.world rules.
- Only tech related content.
- Be excellent to each other!
- Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
- Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
- Politics threads may be removed.
- No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
- Only approved bots from the list below, to ask if your bot can be added please contact us.
- Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed
- Accounts 7 days and younger will have their posts automatically removed.
Approved Bots
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
That is no different than Kobo. Thus far, Rakuten have been pretty good about not caring more than the bare minimum. But there is nothing stopping them from doing the same bullshit with firmware updates to the kobos and drm updates to the store and apps.
I am finally migrating from kindle to kobo (tried kindle to boox last year and it was bad...) but I am under no illusions that I am just hoping one company is better than another. I mean, the other is Amazon so it is a pretty safe bet. But still.
Well there's a key difference, Kobo allows epub. I don't think they could legally remove it from devices already on the market?
load more comments
(3 replies)
load more comments
(4 replies)
load more comments
(1 replies)
Ugh, thanks for the warning. Time for me to download and de-drm all my old kindle books and never again buy anymore.
Try this python script: https://github.com/Jedi425/BulkKindleUSBDownloader
Source: https://social.wildeboer.net/@jwildeboer/114002221924654676
load more comments
(1 replies)
This is why you never connect your kindle to the internet. Calibre forever
load more comments
(7 replies)
I sure am glad I got a Kobo for myself for Xmas and ripped all my books to it. Guess I'll be recycling my Kindle for good.
I just got a Kobo color (don't recommend the color feature; no book is ever going to use it except the red-letter Bible and House of Leaves) and gifted the old Kindle to a friend. I e-reader is an awesome gift actually because for a lot of people it's something they would never evenly in years take a chance on, but that they would love it if they tried.
load more comments
(10 replies)
load more comments
(2 replies)
Its possible to buy DRM free ebooks from itch.io and it is where I get everything that I can.
Adding on to this that Barnes and Noble sells DRMed ePUB files that are relatively easy to strip DRM from using Calibre.
So if you can't find a book anywhere else, at least they don't use a proprietary format and still allow you to download your books using their PC software.
I was a semi-early adopter in the ebook space and I have refused to get onboard with the kindle ecosystem from the start. There's no reason for their proprietary format other than complete control over things they pretend to sell you. Amazon is also the Walmart of books and uses their position to browbeat publishers and authors into taking smaller cuts of sales.
One of my friends got a book published and I waited and waited for it to be available anywhere else. Eventually just bought what was probably a print on demand copy from Amazon because that's the only place his publisher sold books. I never buy physical books anymore but I'd rather do that than buy a kindle book.
load more comments
(4 replies)
resist.
Stop buying whatever it is that Amazon/Meta/Google/Etc sell. They will not stand for you. They will not respect you.
At some points, it may seem like they changed and that they are now good. They are not. They will never be. Resist them.
You know I am starting to think going to the library is a better idea than buying their products. You can literally just walk in.
load more comments
(3 replies)
The only surprising thing about this is that the functionality existed in the first place.
early models didn't have wifi, only usb or cellular from one provider or another--and those models' 3g connectivity was killed off years ago.
this will obsolete all the non-wifi kindles still in use.
load more comments
(4 replies)
load more comments
(5 replies)
This is what the class war looks like in nuts and bolts...
Most idiots are not even aware of the original tragedy of the commons so they are doomed to be degraded into owning nothing and being happy to pay monthly fee to exist without as much as an objection.
After all, a normie got nothing to hide!
Knew this would happen
I'm glad I started converting all my amazon books long ago. When I finally got a Kobo last month, there were no issues since the work was done.
If only there were some way to get books to read in a format where a billionaire's trillion dollar company can't gatekeep them.
Some sort of physical product, perhaps one made out of trees?
If only there was a library for geniuses where I can read in a format that billionaires aren't able to gatekeep what I read on my e-ink device.
Some sort of website, perhaps one on the internet?
load more comments
(3 replies)
I recommend actually listening to some authors.
The "gatekeeping" back in the days before ebooks was infinitely worse than it is now. These days? Basically anyone who can fill out a webform can publish a kindle book. And other stores aren't much harder. And those ebooks can be sold indefinitely.
Contrast that with needing to find a publisher who is willing to allocate some of their limited production time to you. And then hope that Borders et al are willing to put you on the shelf. And then realize that you are never getting another penny for that book because the first MMPB run ran out and you aren't getting a second because you didn't sell enough to justify it.
load more comments
(1 replies)
I rarely use my Paperwhite Signature since I like my Boox Nova 2 more. The Kindle is mostly just for the serial now to strip DRM via Calibre.
My wife recently joked that it’s my “Kindle Paperweight.” With this announcement it’s no longer a joke. I doubt I’ll buy anymore books from Amazon.
load more comments
(2 replies)
I'm quite glad that I never bought fully into Kindle/Nook/Kobo and instead went with an eInk Android tablet.
Kobo connected to calibre web is the ultimate freedom/privacy ereader
load more comments
(3 replies)
load more comments
(6 replies)
Makes it harder to pirate or share, so more profit with the benefit of censorship. They could make updates to material on the fly if they wanted. Assuming you need an Internet connection, no privacy and limits where you can read. It's hard because you can't avoid things like AWS but you can stop paying them directly. Sadly, even now, it's hard to convince people to give up on Amazon and similar corps.
I read somwhere how to solve this
1 - factory reset
2 - deactivate wifi for life
3 - upload books with calibre
This will wipe out any content you have, as i understand
I upload books with Calibre and never had to reset anything. It’s great.
load more comments
(1 replies)
load more comments
(2 replies)
I’m guessing audible will follow soon after.
The article literally says you will still be able to push books via Calibre etc, but won't be able to download books into Kindle from PC.
Example: If you don't have a WiFi at home, there is an option to connect Kindle via USB to your ethernet connected PC and download books from Amazon that way.
And this option is going away, as most people have WiFi.
Anywho, fuck Amazon (for other things, but not this one).
load more comments
(3 replies)
Thanks for the heads-up. I'm downloading all of mine and finally making a Calibre library.
This is why I almost never get any Digital Book. The only digital books I have are books that were free either originally or through a giveaway, or that were severely discounted and I already owned physically. That's also why I don't buy movies or TV series digitally. You're just renting these things, and you're only renting them when you have an internet connection.
load more comments
(1 replies)
I’m waiting for them to get rid of the send-to-kindle email thing to receive books from calibre. I’m surprised it has survived for this long. I’ve wanted to try out a kobo but can’t justify it cause my 10+ year old kindle still works perfectly fine for reading. But once they remove that feature or drop support for my device, it’s kobo time.
load more comments
(3 replies)
I noticed this feature wasn’t available for my Colorsoft and asked support about it. They assured me it would be added later. This is exactly what I expected to happen.
load more comments
(1 replies)