Kobo can run apps now

Hey, author here. NickelMenu is terrific and Cobalt uses it to show the menu item in the default Kobo menu. It's just that Cobalt and NickelMenu are not the same in terms of project goals.

I created this as I could not find anything existing that gives the capabilities I wanted. I read several things downloaded over web apart from books on my Mac and phone, which I would prefer to do on an eInk display. Search papers on arxiv and read them offline later, Substack, even spending a lot of time on chess puzzles, monitor my Claude/Codex remotely, generate explainer audiobooks and listen to them on my bluetooth speaker etc.

The longer battery and the display makes some use cases really shine and I wanted to create apps for my own Kobo and potentially helpful for others as well.

I haven’t had a chance to compare side by side, but people say that if you primarily read books/prose, the BW version is better because the screen is more crisp compared to the color version, which is still a bit blurry when you read books. That’s why I ordered BW. Did anyone compare these two side by side in real life for simple text?

but also note that a color e-reader will have significantly worse contrast than a black and white model, which negates the usefulness of the device to people like me.

What does the two-core CPU get you? I'm very satisfied with my BW with KOReader, haven't noticed any shortcomings but I only read books on it.

Also NickelHook, which adds the native hooks into the Nickel application. I used it for intercepting http calls previously

I also have the Clara BW and haven't done any modding on it but it's been on my todo list. Would you be willing to briefly describe issues you've run into with it?

Apparently the "Sage" (which is what I have currently) has a quad-core, but Kobo discontinued it. Sigh, too bad - this was my favourite to-date (needs a power-cover though...).

Are there any writing apps? Any way to connect a Bluetooth keyboard? (Or USB)

is claude the new sherlock?

You can already do that. Look into NickelMenu.

I see a recent merge for Elips 2E support, hopefully color gets tested soon

No, the whole point is the e-ink screen. Kindle has had a web browser since the very first version, and people have managed to read books on it just fine without distractions.

There's a contingent of enthusiasts who, once they find out a device runs Linux or can run Linux, seems determined to expose a terminal on it. I don't know why someone needs to SSH into their toaster, but damned if they're not gonna do it, just because they can.

Me personally, I just want a reliable toaster.

I went through a whole design phase with ChatGPT on the idea of using an old Kobo as a low-distraction TV remote for my dad. The idea is that it would interface with a computer media server thing, be more legible than a traditional remote, and not be an app on his phone that would immediately send him into his phone.

Ended up being more involved than the benefit it would bring, especially considering that these media server programs know how to interface with the traditional remote over HDMI (if you have the right graphics card or a dongle) and show the selection UI on screen like a smart TV.

Anyway, my response is "you don't necessarily have to complicate your e-reader, instead you have the option of making it not an e-reader."

Even if you want it for just books, there are benefits to installing things like KOReader (way better ebook reader than the default). This allows you to sync with Calibre, etc.

Years ago, it was practically a hobby of mine to go to my local Goodwill, and find an extremely cheap old used Kobo and find someone to donate it to. Now I'm thinking of getting old Kobos just for the eink display so I can run simple apps on it - while continuing to use my regular Kobo as an ereader.

Some people came for the compact package containing an eink screen, a moderately powered application board, and a reasonable amount of battery and storage. For some, it may be the perfect thin client.

In my personal experience, this can help in case the books are little technical and you have to switch to my laptop/mobile to get more information about the topic, which ends up consuming more time it should.

That's what I want from my e-reader device too. Yet being able to turn a $140 e-ink tablet into a general purpose tool is really neat.

My reaction was perhaps not as strongly felt as yours, but I agree that it discourages me from reading further when it's obvious I'm reading slop rather than something a human considered.

"These are photographs of the device, not simulator captures" is the kind of total throwaway verbiage that a human would never even pause to consider writing because it "clarifies" something that in the totality of context is beyond obvious. It makes the writing more fatiguing to read, and creates a terrible first impression for a project.

i could care less as long as it works and does what it describes

much prefer ai assisted development than someone who does it by hand, prone to errors and lacking in features.

You can do a lot of the same things with a jailbroken Kindle and KindleForge.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4ZliC82RtA

You can jailbreak your kindle and get similar functionality through KOReader plugins https://omer-faruq.github.io/appstore.koplugin/

Give Rakuten your money!

I'm not. I want my Kindle to do ONE job well, not turn into another multi-purpose device.

I don't know for who this is honestly

I mean I got a laptop, e ink laptop would be cool but this certainly isn't it and who needs a book with Claude code agent? You either read or you do what exactly with that linux pc on a book hardcover? Just grab your laptop like a normal civilized person

The Tolino Shine 5 is the same hardware. You can even install the kobo firmware.

I think so too. I wish all projects had a tag with amount of AI usage.

It's not that vibe coding is bad on its own, but it makes me worried about project's future (ease come, easy go).

Yes. Also from looking for device compatibility:

> Tested on one device: the Kobo Clara BW (N365, device code 391), firmware 4.45.23697. Every device write is gated on an exact match of framebuffer identity, geometry, device code, serial model prefix, firmware version and kernel release, so a different reader is refused rather than guessed at.

I can't stop reading "gated" on LLM output lately.

Anyways, I wish this worked on my Libra :<

Was it the "AI Command Center" app that gave it away? That could actually be pretty cool. Read a book on the deck with the vibemill running in the background.

Even the homepage copy is LLM output. Not necessarily a bad thing, but something to point out.

> Charge a Kobo Clara BW (N365) and connect it over USB. Other models are refused, not guessed at.

Isn't everything vibecoded ?

The only “Kobo” I know of is a game which was popular around 1993, a remake for X11/Unix of the old 1981 Bosconian arcade game. A recent active fork can still be installed on modern systems as “Kobo Deluxe”.