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A great device fitting your stated "must haves" is this little-known device called the Amazon "Kindle" (without Amazon books). Between the available devices, t
by JeremyBanks 14y ago
A great device fitting your stated "must haves" is this little-known device called the Amazon "Kindle" (without Amazon books).
Between the available devices, they have e-paper displays that are comprable to other devices on the market, so you should be able to find what you want there. They can't lock you from the device or delete books you've loaded onto it yourself. It can read DRM-free books in MOBI format, and there are open-source programs available that can convert from any other format you'd like.
On the other hand: there is alternative firmware available, but I've never used it and can't attest to it's quality. And, unfortunately, the majority of the books Amazon sells are DRMed (AFAIK the decision is left up to the publisher but they almost always opt in), so that's not fantastic.
- hendi_ 14y ago> They can't lock you from the device or delete books you've loaded onto it yourself. Is this really true? Given that they can remotely wipe "bought" files how can I know that they can't remotely delete self-loaded files?
- lazerwalker 14y agoIt's less than ideal, but if you disable wireless connectivity and only load new books on via USB connection (it shows up as a generic USB volume) I'd imagine you're safe, as that should theoretically completely stop the device from calling home.
- thronemonkey 14y agoThis is exactly what I do. The device doesn't have the password to my wifi so it can't phone home. I have no need to connect it to the internet — I just transfer files from my computer over USB. Couldn't be happier with the setup.
- fumar 14y agoI have owned a Kindle since GEN 1. I have always added my own DRM free books. I would say %80 of my library is DRM free. I rarely turn the WIFI on. There are several pieces of software than can convert files into Kindle readable formats.
- nicholassmith 14y agoI'd imagine the remote delete is tied in with the DRM system, but don't quote me on that. Publishers would be pushing for remote delete of everything shady otherwise.
- lmm 14y agoIf you're only going to use DRM-free files why does it even matter? The capacity's only 3GB, you're not going to have data there that isn't backed up anywhere else. If you're really paranoid you can always load a custom firmware. The Kindle is popular enough that there's a very active scene around developing them (I believe the main one is called duodem?)
- smacktoward 14y agoThe question would be whether Amazon can go beyond deactivating individual titles and lock you out of or otherwise remotely disable the device itself. It would be a rude surprise to wake up one day and discover that your fancy e-reader has been turned into an expensive paperweight, even if you did have the ebook files backed up somewhere.
- johnrgrace 14y agoI'd guess they COULD do that, but it would be a horrible customer experence and I'd guess they would drop a few billion of market cap if they did that.