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This digital reader features 512MB internal memory for storing your favorite eBooks and a 7" LCD display for easy reading. Enjoy the 150 preloaded classics and built-in dictionary for looking up words at the touch of a button.
Q: What is the power supply for this ereader ?
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Customers value the color screen and ease of use of the product. However, some customers have expressed concerns about the battery life and software.
The vast majority of our reviews come from verified purchases. Reviews from customers may include My Best Buy members, employees, and Tech Insider Network members (as tagged). Select reviewers may receive discounted products, promotional considerations or entries into drawings for honest, helpful reviews.
I got two white Literati eReaders from somewhere else for less than what BB is currently selling the black versions for at $120. The black and white units I’ve told when I called the Literati help desk are same units underneath. If you read other people’s reviews it appears that BB was selling the black units on sale for $49.99. I missed that sale and lowest I saw BB sell them for was $99.99. They were only two white units so I bought both one for my wife and one for me. You could see one them was either returned/used, while the other was brand new. I would have passed on the used one but I didn’t think they would be getting more of them at their low selling price below $99.99 that BB had the black units on sale for at the time. It appeared that it was a close out of their left over XMAS sales stuff. During XMAS there was a lot of activity on eReaders and they always seemed to be more that $100 depending on the brand. I did later go back a few weeks later and they were now selling them $249.99 at retail value, which I think is way over priced for a Literati. I didn’t know much about eReaders in general or the Literati. Everyone I talked to said get a Kindle but they were in the $150 range and didn’t have color so the Literati seemed to be a good deal. I normally research before I buy, but I didn’t in this case. After I bought it then I researched them and found in general that most reviewers didn’t like them and basically said stay away from Literati eReaders. One thing I did learn is the depending on what eReader you buy you maybe tying yourself to a single book seller. Kindles are tied to Amazon, Nooks are tied to B & N and Literatis are tied to KoBo (Borders). The Android eReaders may allow you more flexibility in where you buy your ebooks and you might be able to get them from more than one site, but I would check it out first. I decided give it a try and searched on the internet for “free” ebooks. I found a lot, both in epub format and in PDF format. I already had a lot of documents in PDF format, so I thought the Literati would work well to read them. While you can read PDF documents, PDF format by nature really isn’t a good way to read them on the Literati to take advantage of the eReader capabilities. Now epub format is what I believe what the Literati and eReaders in general are designed to work well with. They format to fit within the screen size and you can adjust the text size easily. PDF’s on the other hand are good for large computer screens but don’t format well in the smaller screen sizes. With PDF’s, after you get the text to a readable size the document scrolls off the screen and you have to use the pad to move the document to read it. Not really what the eReader was designed for. Epub format documents are the way to go and that’s the format that Kobo and other sell their books in. I loaded up an 8 GB SD card with PDF documents I had, and by doing so I overloaded the Literati. The Literati’s memory, I guess keeps a database of the documents and there were too many documents to list for the memory it has. I maxed out the 210 MB (with ver 2.0 of the firmware update) it had available. I couldn’t add anymore PDF documents or ebooks. It left me no choice but to reset it to start over again using less PDF documents. However, the Literati, would not reset and clear the system using the built in function. Called the help desk both at Kobo and the equipment manufacturer and they were no help. The Literati was stuck saying it was full of documents that I didn’t want and couldn’t delete. I even tried deleting the files in the memory attached to a PC and there was an error when I tried to delete them. It wouldn’t allow any erasures. I was stuck and Literati’s support recommendation to return the unit and get another one. Since I didn’t think there was any more left where I originally bought it, that just meant I would return it and get my money back, but get no reader in return. I didn’t want to do that and I thought that there must be a way to restore the firmware again another way. Sure enough, on the internet I found how to restore your Literati. You need a “KoboRoot.tgz” firmware file and the firmware can be loaded from an SD Card by holding down “Q” while powering on. I tried it and it worked!! The Literati was now working again only back to firmware ver 1.9 which was the latest I could find. As soon as I restarted and had WIFI access, it automatically found that there was an update (2.0) and asked if I wanted to update, which I did. Everything is working again. They knock the Literati, because it doesn’t do more, like the Android models like Cruz and Pandigital. While the Android models have come down in price, and are more than an eReader, I think the Literati does its function well. It sized to fit comfortably in your hand and works well as an eReader for epub documents. If you don’t need all the other capabilities, which may or may not work well at anyway, and eReading is all you want to do, the Literati fits the bill. They only thing is I would wait for a sale to get the best deal.
Posted by Redevil06
Just bought the Literati for my wife who is an avid book reader. This review is based on the 1.9 Firmware update released 12/3/10. Pros: - Color screen is clear and bright - Fast (page turns, keyboard usage, configuration changes, etc.) - Page turn touch-sensitive controls - Reads ePubs (available through our local library) and PDF (including color); can convert many other formats with 3rd party application - Magazines are now implemented and look very good in color - Night reading mode and back-light display - Free cover--makes the unit easier to handle and is very secure - Free books - Easy to copy/transfer books to the Literati - Optimized as an ebook reader; if you are looking for a tablet PC--look elsewhere - Not a touchscreen (most we have tried leave a lot to be desired, including the Nook Color) - Rapid firmware updates adding new and improved functionality (my unit was manufactured late August and there have been at least 4 updates with another promised in January 2011 or thereabouts) Cons: - Smallish keyboard (manageable, just not ideal) - Tall; awkward to hold in one hand (cover makes it easy to use) - Not a touchscreen (would have been a nice feature so both a Pro and a Con) - Currently can't connect to other book stores--supposed to be addressed in the next firmware update - Support is very limited (website is bare bones); one of the main reasons I can't give the device 5 stars. Summary: If you want an eReader the Literati is designed to do just that. My wife and I looked at the Nook and Nook Color and she wanted a color eReader. The Nook Color touchscreen was hit or miss for her and there is currently no adjustment (as of late November) to improve sensitivity. I like the fact the Literati tries not to be too many things and with the latest updates is super stable and fast. The price is also very reasonable at $100.
Posted by Idahoproud
i received the literati for christmas but i got it early it work great for the first 2 days i had it on the thrid day i went to turn it on and it would not come back.on for the amount of time i got to use it it seemed to be a good product it was easy to use the screen is 7 in which was good it has wifi and downloads books or magazines all within about a minute it would be well worth your money if it didn't have this problem so if your looking to by an ereader your probably better over spending the extra money for a nook or kindle thats what i'm gonna do
Posted by tonya2700