Why to say NO to Kobo and Kindle (and a way to bypass the activation for Android)

So, I've been using my Mini for several weeks now, and I was looking for a better e-reading app. Several chat sessions with Kobo brought me here (excerpts from chat sessions):

...
Me: It is ridiculous that sign-in is required to read books. I don't even have an account!
Kobo: I am sorry about the inconvenience caused Mark, I will definitely forward the feedback for you and you can also leave the feedback on the web site as well. (Don't think that that feedback ever made it to Kobo)
Me: Why do you market your app without showing that users must get accounts and buy books from you?
Kobo: I am sorry but having an account is important to have your information secured and the account also gives you some form of ownership as one you purchase a book or add a free book to the account you can get access to the books on multiple devices once you sign in and you also limit person from gaining access to your account.
Me: I want to read offline ePUBs without an account, I could care less about syncing and security.
Kobo: I do understand your point but it is company police for an account to be created and we are not able to go beyond this the best you can do is to leave a feedback on the web site.
Me: Can't you send me a modified version that doesn't go to Kobo's website?
Kobo: We are not able to do that.
Me: Is there a manager I can speak to?
Kobo: I am sorry for you to speak with someone else you would have to call (Phone number removed) (Just for a manager I have to phone??)
Me: I do not want to phone. email or chat is fine.
Kobo: I am sorry but you would have to call in.
Me: This is terrible service from Kobo. Force me to make an account, then force me to buy e-books from you. Not impressed at all.
Me: Also, no easy way to contact management.
Kobo: This is company policy and for safety of our customer information as well. I am sorry you do not like the system but I am not able to resolve the issue for you.

That was a complete waste of time. Marek Gibek (the author of the original Android image) agrees with me.

"That's why I'm not using them. I don't like the cloud. I like to keep books in a safe place - like a hard drive or SD card :) It's cheaper, faster, safer." (Marek Gibek in response to an email)

But, Kobo does make a nice reader interface, and I have to give them credit. So, here is the happy medium.

A Kobo account that everyone can use for activating the Kobo app. Do not add any personal information or credit cards. This is purely for bypassing the restrictions. Only use it to add ePUBs.

Username: ereadforfree@kobohacker.com
Password: ereadingforall

 If you can, get Kobo app version 4.7 (it works for me on the Mini). I will also try to post a dump from the /data partition for the Kobo app (allowing it to work without Internet, as the app only needs Internet the first time). I'll eventually upload all referenced APKs to Google Drive so they can be accessed (but it will take time).  (Edit: I deactivated that account because of information sharing.)

If anyone has a way to get the original Tolino software in English on the Mini, please post a reply, as that interface is quite nice.

Making Android work more like, well, Android!

So, in my previous post, I mentioned making Android run on the Mini. However, on it's own, Android might seem a little boring, especially as Marek's built-in launcher is a bit feature-limited.

Luckily, I've collected a plethora of apps to bring you so you don't have to search on your own.

I should also point out that I am providing direct APKs, as this is Android 2.3, a deprecated version. But it still works for most apps. (At the moment, I'll link to APKPure till I get the real APKs up

First off, we've got ADW Launcher 1. Looks alot like Android 4.0.

Next, Holo Locker (search on apkpure). Choose the Enable Holo Locker and Enable Security Lock options. If you want, you can input a custom carrier in General Settings. This is a picture of Holo Locker on a (color!) Android phone (Credit: Google Images).



Next, you might want a better e-reader. I must admit that this is where I find myself at a bit of a loss. I tried to get the Kobo/Kindle apps but they seem to want an account. (Update: I've contacted them and they don't want to give me a modified version, but you can try the account I made here). You can try Aldiko, Bluefire Reader (search on APKPure, for Bluefire get the oldest possible version because it is the only one that supports Gingerbread). Please comment if you have better suggestions (no account required to comment).

Also comment and I'll add more apps to this list.

Commenting rules

Mark here again!

Just want to define the commenting rules, as I want this to be a child-safe blog.

• NO abusive or offensive language. Any comments with ANY language like that will be rejected and deleted.
• Please don't spam, or I'll have to shut the blog down :(

With those being said, feel free to comment anonymously. I will not use any information for personal benefit (except contacting you if required). I will not share your email with anyone.

I hope this will be an open, child-safe blog. So, send me feedback at yisrimark@gmail.com and I'll post more!

Android on Kobo Mini

Hi guys.

I've successfully run Android 2.3 Gingerbread on a Kobo Mini using the 2014 Touch image from Marek Gibek.

You need to patch the u-boot and kernel like this (quoting snowbody from MobileRead):

get hardware config from original kobo mini (sd card is mmcblk1)
dd if=/dev/mmcblk1 of=kobo_mini_hw_config.img skip=524272 bs=1 count=67

write hw-config to your kobo-image
dd if=kobo_mini_hw_config.img of=/dev/mmcblk1 seek=524272 bs=1

You can find the necessary files here: https://github.com/najnesnaj/kobo-mini-android
write U-boot
dd if=u-boot_mddr_256-E50610-K4X2G323PC.bin skip=2 of=/dev/mmcblk1 bs=512 seek=2

write kernel
dd if=uImage of=/dev/mmcblk1 bs=512 seek=2048

And to make the vfat partition mount properly on boot, change the vold.fstab sdcard line to point to mxsdhci.2 rather than what was there before.

I also installed some apps that make it look newer. You can find them here: http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=231681&page=28

I posted on the MobileRead form with attachments.

If you try this, let me know what you think, or if you have any suggestions.

Here's a picture (although this is of the Glo, they look very similar): (credit the-digital-reader.com)

Welcome!

Welcome to the Kobo Hacker blog.

This blog is currently empty... I hope to fill it with info on how to hack the Kobo.

In the meantime, you can email me at yisrimark@gmail.com and I'll add information you send me.

Mark