I recently got a Sony prs 600 e reader from 2009. The battery is at the end of its life (It lasts about 3 days with heavy reading, and a couple weeks without reading). No backlight, no Wi-Fi, just an SD card that I can load epub files and small PDFs. The screen is slow and the contrast isn’t the best. The “touch screen” is the old resistive type where you really need to press with your nail or a stylus. Despite all those flaws, it’s fantastic. It’s just good enough for reading books.

I read with large text so I don’t even need to put on glasses, and it’s easier to read than an actual book. Combined with Anna’s archive, I’m reading more than I ever have before. No Wi-Fi nd slow screen make the experience feel closer to an actual book than a smartphone. It’s great to just have a device do one thing without distractions popping up every minute.

It’s all old technology, but it’s so rare to see anyone with an e-reader. Probably because they’re still expensive and designed to microtransact the fuck out of you.

So do you think there could be a simple open source e reader? I see pine64 is making the “pinenote”, but it’s still just the developer version, it’s expensive, doesn’t have an sd card, and looks like it’s trying to be a lot more than an reader. Maybe it’ll come down in cost, or they’ll release a simpler version? The biggest obstacle for making an e-reader seems to be the screen, so maybe the pinenote’s screen could become something of a standard.

Or maybe I’m overthinking it, because there’s already so many old Kindles and nooks out there that could be improved with a new battery and maybe new firmware too.

Thoughts?

  • ficolox@futurology.todayEnglish
    840·
    7 months ago

    Why is this website filled with unironic commies? Do you really want mass starvation so badly?

    • davel [he/him]@lemmy.mlEnglish
      392·
      7 months ago

      Yes, this is a communism diet site. It’s a weight loss program. Also we all share the same toothbrush and no iphone.

      Are you Captain America, just unfrozen from Red Scare propaganda? specter

    • BolexForSoup@kbin.social
      191·
      7 months ago

      I hope you’re not so scared of the commie boogie man that you refuse to read Marx. It’s not even that long and it’s an important historical work, regardless of whether or not you agree with any of it.

      I’ve read the Bible and i can assure you it bothered me more than the manifesto did. And it took a lot longer to read lol

    • z00s@lemmy.world
      61·
      7 months ago

      Nelson Mandela learned Afrikaans.

      If you’re not learning everything you can about your opponent, how do you expect to beat them?

      • Cowbee [he/him]@lemmy.ml
        5·
        7 months ago

        I get the spirit, but OP has already stated that they are a Communist. They are very much reading this to understand Marxism as a Marxist.

        Plus, trying to “beat” Marxists on a site developed by Marxist-Leninists along Communist principles is pretty funny.

    • 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒆𝒍@sopuli.xyz
      64·
      7 months ago

      You’re right, a lot of tankies on Lemmy, but I don’t understand what’s commie in open source concept, OP is right, e-readers are kinda expensive, composting to phones for example, being able to make an e-reader by yourself would be nice

      Ah, the book title, to each their own, I think calling people out because book they read is kinda stupid, it’s a small step from burning books

      • Faresh@lemmy.mlEnglish
        8·
        7 months ago

        (pretty sure they are talking about the scary book that is the Communist Manifesto, which is visible in the picture. I think it is about a ghost haunting Europe or something)

    • CableMonster@lemmy.ml
      311·
      7 months ago

      I think its mainly jealousy and lack of purpose. They think things are bad but they have never experienced countries that actually have it bad. The problem is that we are currently having the american cultural revolution and they might get what they want.

          • Cowbee [he/him]@lemmy.ml
            2·
            7 months ago

            It’s almost comforting seeing CableMonster around, like that one uncle. Consistently wrong and yet so tied to their own manufactured worldview.

    • Night Monkey@sh.itjust.works
      113·
      7 months ago

      It’s crazy. I’ve noticed the same thing.

      I’m surprised you had the courage to mention this in the comments. Most people ignored it. (As evidenced here)

      If the OP had a book written by Orange man on their e reader they would be roasted into oblivion