this post was submitted on 25 Oct 2025
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I'm a huge fan of this idea. Having a light clamshell device for reading means the formatting would be (should be, might be) closer to that of a physical book. With most books I don't think that matters, but there are tons where the author plays with page formatting & typography and it rarely comes off well in a single-screen ereader.
Additionally - clamshell means built-in screen protection. I've never liked those stick-on 3rd party screen protector sheets, and a clamshell design is going to do a better job of protecting the screen anyway. Something like this you can snap it closed and chuck it in a bag without worrying.
I just checked the weight: it's 300g which is a little heavier than my Kobo with case (273g) and a ~400 page paperback (213g). That's lighter than I expected given that it's basically two readers stuck together including two batteries.
However, I think the kind of media that would benefit from the original page layout would also need a higher resolution, and perhaps colour.
Indeed. Resolution will probably need to be higher in that regard. For books (not comics or art books), color should not be that important.
That being said, the issue of (not) owning and (not) controlling our ebooks is the reason why I stopped reading & purchasing them a few years ago (despite being heavy into those since the early 00s). So, I'm very much interested in that project :)
Dunno about that; there's plenty of options to own and control your ebooks:
Some books are available without DRM (e.g. some on Kobo.com) or you can strip the DRM, and then keep them on your own storage. You can file and manage metadata with calibre and you can make them available to download using calibre-web.
A stock Kindle will allow adding books via USB or Amazon's by-email service. A rooted Kindle will let you install Koreader which can talk to calibre-web. A Kobo or many (most?) other ereaders will let you do these things without needing to jump through hoops.
Thx for sharing the links. I know about DRM-free ebooks and about Calibre (and about removing DRM if needed) but one still needs a device to read an ebook (a device one doesn't fully own or control) or do it on a computer which is not a comparable experience as reading it on a device.
Didn't they recently removed that ability?, as well as the ability to sideload mobi file format?
Moving back (forward?) to paper books is a decision I made after years being almost exclusively an ebook reader. It was not quick and I'm pretty confident it would not be the right choice for everybody. It's just what works best for me, considering my requirements and expectations.
For years, I kept an old Kindle without Internet access so I was sure Amazon could never force update its firmware. But I want more control (legally) on the books I own and I want reading to remain a simple activity (not something one needs to tweak and fight against). A paper book I can read it without having to root it, jailbreak it or even install anything. I need no device beside the glasses I already own. And I'm not tracked while I'm reading it, which is a huge win for me. Sure, it's heavier and less portable, there is no syncing, and it wastes more space in my home but I'm fine with that: I learned to not hoard too many books at home and I only need to carry one at a time, and I don't need sync (I take all my notes on index cards).
I don't keep up with Kindle news any more, but I just sent a book from Calibre over USB the same as before, and mobi was their own proprietary format* so good riddance to that (epub is the standard format outside the Amazon world).
* that they bought from someone else
When I still lived in the UK I preferred physical books and I still have three crates of them in a lockup. After looking at a screen all day at work, reading paper was a balm for my eyes and my brain.
I only bought a Kindle when I moved to a different country since it was far cheaper than shipping the books.
Not to sound like a Kobo ad, but I feel like I am the customer and not the product with my Kobo - I can install software, and even SSH into it as root, and I'm not tracked. Of course, that could change, unlike with good ol' books, and books also never run out of battery or get scratches on every page (the Kobo's screen is far from scratch resistant).
Books are horrible in the beginning and the end one side is to think and it's awkward to hold.
Given your instance (lemmynsfw), I'm gonna assume that it's because you need to hold the book with one hand ;)
/jk I also prefer the one page format of e-books, although I understand that 2 pages can be good for comic books/manga
As the great french philosopher Wayne gretzky says "Takes one to know one". Quick wit edgy humor! holy shit im honored thanks for the laugh.