PSA: Good e-Reader Fact-Check

It has come to my attention that there is still some doubt as to whether a certain blog has a reputation for being less than reliable with its reporting of “exclusive” hardware rumors.

In the interest of settling the issue once and for all, this blog post will be used to document the many, many, many times that Good e-Reader reported a rumor that did not come true.

This post aspires to be comprehensive but it is a work in progress, and more examples will be added over time. I would appreciate any help you can provide.

O O O

In November 2015 that blog claimed Amazon would release the Kindle Voyage 2 that month. Fact check: No such device was launched.

In September 2015 that blog claimed Amazon would release the Kindle Voyage 2 that month. Fact check: No such device was launched.

In February 2018, that blog copied another blogger’s story lamenting the lack of a Kobo mini, and four hours later claimed that Kobo was seriously considering releasing a Kobo mini 2. Fact check: No such device was launched.

In August 2017 that blog claimed Amazon was teasing Alexa on the KindleFact check: This claim is based on a statement that reads more like a “no comment” than a teasing yes, and no such device has been released.

In March 2014 that blog claimed the Paperwhite 3 would have a flexible screenFact check: Amazon didn’t mention it in the press release or on the product page.

In April 2018 that blog took a post where I asked readers whether they thought the Paperwhite 4 would have a color-changing “comfortlight” frontlight and spun it into a claim that the device would actually have one.  Fact check: The Paperwhite 4 did not have this frontlight when it launched in late 2018.

In 2016 that blog used my April Fools Day joke as the source for an exclusive story that Amazon was developing a Kindle with a Liquavista screenFact check: No such device was ever launched.

In April 2016 that blog claimed that Kobo would launch a new ereader by Mother’s Day. (This inspired a meme about that blog’s rumors over at MobileRead.) Fact check: It didn’t happen. Kobo’s new hardware didn’t even show up at the FCC that year until June, and they launched in August.

In April 2014 that blog claimed that Sony and Kobo were collaborating on a 6″ ereader with a flexible screen. Fact check: No such device was ever launched.

In May 2011 that blog claimed that Amazon would allow Epub on the Kindle. Fact check: This never happened.

Earlier today (24 December 2018) that blog copied another blogger’s speculation about whether Amazon will release another premium Kindle and reported that the Kindle Voyage 2 is going to be released in 2019. Fact check: No such device was launched.

In January 2019 that blog claimed Kobo would release an ereader with audiobook support on Mother’s DayFact check: It did not happen.

In October 2018 that blog declared that Sony was going to release a new 13.3″ Digital Paper in 2019. Fact check: No such device was launched.

On 19 February 2019 that blog claimed Amazon wold release a new basic Kindle and a new Kindle Voyage. Fact check: They guessed right 50% this time.

in November 2019 that claimed Sony would release a new 13.3″ Digital Paper in 2020. Fact check: Undetermined.

In August 2019 that blog claimed that Amazon would release a new Kindle Voyage in 2020. Fact check: Undetermined.

In February 2020 that blog claimed Kobo would launch a  device that is “half an e-reader and half something else”. Fact check: No such device was launched.

In February 2020 that blog claimed Pocketbook would launch “a new entry level e-reader, a new color e-reader and another mid-range device” in 2020. Fact check: Undetermined.

In July 2020 that blog claimed that B&N had stopped selling Android tablets. Fact check: B&N has denied this report, saying that they are merely out of stock.

Nate Hoffelder

View posts by Nate Hoffelder
Nate Hoffelder is the founder and editor of The Digital Reader. He has been blogging about indie authors since 2010 while learning new tech skills weekly. He fixes author sites, and shares what he learns on The Digital Reader's blog. In his spare time, he fosters dogs for A Forever Home, a local rescue group.

20 Comments

  1. Edward25 December, 2018

    True that. Been following both yours and their blogs and you tube videos for years. You comments are so true.

    Reply
  2. Yaron25 December, 2018

    Not that it seems like these claims had any substance to begin with, but to be fair the fact that a device wasn’t launched is not in any way suitable as a “fact check” on claims that such a device was seriously considered, or was in development for a time, or that two companies started to collaborate on it.

    Reply
  3. gbm25 December, 2018

    You should note on the one about EPUB that it is now Amazon’s preferred format for submissions.

    Reply
    1. Nate Hoffelder25 December, 2018

      “preferred”? I would not say that is true based on my experiences with KDP.

      In fact, I just checked and the FAQ says DOCX or KPF is preferred.
      https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/G200634390

      Reply
    2. Yaron25 December, 2018

      There’s no relation between format(s) for submissions, and formats supported by the device. These are very different things.
      The original article does also make the claim that ePub submission will be supported. But that’s not the claim being discussed here, which is the one that the devices will read ePubs directly, so without need for conversion to other formats.

      Reply
  4. Remus Octavian Mocanu25 December, 2018

    Really old, annoying and nasty your obsession with the (lack of) veracity of good ereader blog … I follow both blogs and find them both useful most pf tje time Despite « less-than-reliable » posts of one day or the other on goodereader.

    Wake up ! You live in the f. country of Trump, amd the more and more Putin’s world, but you bother to collect failed reports of a fellow blogger. Just find a more useful method to use your time !!!!

    Reply
    1. Nate Hoffelder25 December, 2018

      I love pissing off their fanbois. There is nothing more ridiculous than the fanboi of a con man.

      For the record, I have been ignoring that blog for the past several years. I only published this post because I felt that if I am going to take reporting about ereaders seriously then I needed to also report on rumors, including rumors from a source that is notoriously unreliable.

      Reply
      1. Vicente31 December, 2018

        Con man?

        Have they already been condemned?

        Reply
        1. QM4 January, 2019

          Oh, they are very certainly con men. For a long time, I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt, thinking that they were merely incompetent. However, the way they have handled their Indiegogo campaign leaves little room for doubt that they are con men.

          Much of the dirt on that campaign has been reported on Mobileread: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?p=3770614#post3770614

          Also, check out the comments section from this article on Teleread: https://teleread.org/2018/04/29/good-e-reader-selling-13-3-e-ink-tablet-while-crowdfunding-orders-wait/

          Reply
  5. Bill Smith26 December, 2018

    Don’t forget the assertion that Amazon is going to filter out independent authors from the Kindle store so readers can find the good books (an argument made many times because the owner simply doesn’t like independent authors … more a case of projection and wishful thinking than fact).

    He always forgets to add that Mexico is going to pay for it, too. 🙂

    Reply
    1. Nate Hoffelder26 December, 2018

      LOL

      Reply
  6. JS_F26 December, 2018

    Maybe you could add one thing. Good e-Reader quite often removes comments they don’t like in the blog and the shop page.

    Reply
  7. S. J. Pajonas27 December, 2018

    I refuse to go to that site or share stories from their site. The owner is a hack.

    Reply
  8. Woody28 December, 2018

    I’m in no way associated with Good e-reader, but I think doing an entire post on it is nothing short of insulting. They did some speculation mistakes (obviously) but going out of your way doing this post, underlining that you would keep it updated… that’s downright mean (unless you feel threatened by this blog and it’s all misinformation on your part).

    Either way it is either unnecessary or mean, or both.

    A regular reader of your blog.

    Reply
    1. Nate Hoffelder28 December, 2018

      This post is necessary because there are many blogs that will repeat that blog’s Fictions as actual news. For example, BookFrere (a Chinese blog) covered the recent Voyage 2 fiction. Last year ereader Italia fell for the Paoerwhite 4 comfortlight fiction. And in 2016 numerous bloggers including Ron Mertens fell for the Kindle Liquavista fiction.

      This post documents what anyone on MobileRead, KBoards, or the ereader subreddit will tell you, that that blog s reliably unreliable, and it gives those commenters a source they can point to to back up their arguments.

      This post is literally a public service.

      Reply
    2. QM4 January, 2019

      I believe it is necessary to keep information on such unscrupulous people in the public eye. Otherwise people will get taken in by their scams. I very nearly was taken in by their Indiegogo campaign. At first glance, their website looks credible. And they are based in a developed country with a reputation for generally respecting the rule of law.

      Fortunately, I did some searching before I parted with my money. It wasn’t pretty. And then I had a closer look at their website… But, if I hadn’t been a native English speaker, it might have been difficult to sift through the dirt on them. Certainly, a slot of people seem to have fallen for their deceptions in regard to their Indiegogo campaign.

      Just check out the information which has been preserved on Mobile read: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?p=3770614#post3770614

      And check out the comments section from this article on Teleread where even the author of the article seems to have unfortunately given Michael the benefit of the doubt: https://teleread.org/2018/04/29/good-e-reader-selling-13-3-e-ink-tablet-while-crowdfunding-orders-wait/

      Reply
  9. Tired1 January, 2019
    Reply
    1. Nate Hoffelder2 January, 2019

      The thing about that story is that something did happen to the basic Kindle that week. The spin was BS, but there was still an element of truth.

      Reply
  10. […] that Audible was “moving to an enhanced ebook format”. Unlike that blog’s “exclusive hardware leaks”, there was actually some truth to the Audible […]

    Reply
  11. […] a report from the blog known for its “exclusive” hardware stories that Barnes & Noble has stopped selling Android tablets. Their story implies that B&N has […]

    Reply

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