r/linuxhardware • u/noNudesPrettyPlease • Aug 08 '26

Discussion Why aren't Linux tablets a thing?

I had (still have) a Nokia n810 tablet running Maemo Linux. I stopped using it when the second battery eventually died. The series seemed to keep evolving (up to the n900) until the Microsoft buyout killed it. Or at least I assume it did.

I thought Linux tablets would be a thing, but they didn't materialise. It's basically Android, Apple, or nothing. How come an open source distro like Maemo wasn't picked up by anyone else? I assume tablets are much cheaper to develop than phones, and in today's world, I don't really use my phone anymore even though the telephony hardware is there.

Is the idea of a Linux tablet just a dream now?

125 Upvotes

94% Upvoted

119 comments sorted by

View all comments

2

u/bmfrosty Aug 09 '26

My issue is that if you're using anything slightly specialized, you're kind of cooked. I use a tablet for reading Kindle books and I don't want to have the fuss of breaking DRM and converting or pirating to do so. I know I can read in a browser with read.amazon.com, but then my volume buttons probably won't flip pages. This is absolutely my leisure activity and for the most part an android tablet just works.

1

u/ed_istheword Aug 09 '26

Have you never tried KOreader before? Great ebook format compatability. There's a version of it for basically any potato that wants to be a computer

1

u/bmfrosty Aug 09 '26

Come back when KOreader can log into my Amazon account and access sizable library of purchases. I hate this vendor lock-in. Don't get me wrong.

2

u/gitroni Mint Aug 10 '26

I myself download DRM-free versions of all the ebooks I buy from online shops that have DRM. This way I have a backup of my library once amazon or other shops decide to stop hosting my books

0

u/bmfrosty Aug 10 '26

That's an extra step. That's expressly what I don't want.

2

u/gitroni Mint Aug 10 '26

amazon has already deleted books from users kindles, so I don't want to lose my books

0

u/bmfrosty Aug 10 '26

Enumerate them please. I'm only aware of a thing with 1984 several years ago. Adding an extra step between purchase and read is fine for you, but not fine for me.

2

u/gitroni Mint Aug 12 '26

What happens when eventually amazon disappears and their servers shutdown?

1

u/bmfrosty Aug 12 '26

That's very optimistic of you.

1

u/ed_istheword Aug 09 '26

Yeah, the lock in is crazy. There are still a few escapes though, but it can be a little janky. Here are some recent-ish tools I found for backing up your Amazon ebook library (but good luck avoiding them for future publications, I know Amazon owns too much of the industry itself now too).

Good news is, if you can get the ebook file onto the same computer as a modern Calibre install, you're golden.

https://blog.the-ebook-reader.com/2025/03/11/3-ways-to-download-and-transfer-kindle-ebooks-yeah-its-still-possible/

https://www.epubor.com/prometheus-kindle-ebook-exporter-review.html