I turned my Kindle into my own personal newspaper

After using the TCL tablet for two months, I’ve come to the conclusion that my tablet doesn’t need a screen with smooth motion. I only read static content — still text.

This realization made me take a fresh look at a type of device I hadn’t even considered before, but which now seems perfect for my needs. I’m referring to Android tablets with E-Ink screens, manufactured by brands like Boox, Bigme, and Pocketbook.

The problem? They’re expensive. The smaller models, with 7–7.8-inch screens, start at prices four times higher than a basic Kindle. The one I wanted, the Boox Go 10.3, with a 10.3-inch screen, is even pricier. And it comes with an outdated version of Android, although I’ve been told that this isn’t a problem, unlike with the iPad. (Last week, Boox launched the second generation of the model, featuring Android 15 and a variant with a backlit screen. It’s likely to be even more expensive.)

Besides being expensive, I hate buying… things. That’s why I was happy when I realized I could use my Kindle — the very one that has never accessed the internet — to read articles, posts, and newsletters published on the web, without spending a single cent and with great quality.

It’s this setup — the result of a week of new brain connections (or many neurons fried over something almost insignificant) — that I’ll share with you.

Amazon’s e-readers only read unorthodox digital book formats, such as *.mobi and *.azw3. There is an official way to convert other, more popular formats to supported ones, such as “Send to Kindle.” My Kindle isn’t connected to the internet, which rules out that option.

Therefore, we’ll need Calibre, a great e-book manager, to convert files *.epub, the most common digital book standard, into a format the Kindle can understand.

After installing Calibre, the next step is to create a “book” from a collection of articles/links. Most services of this type, such as Instapaper and Wallabag, generate RSS feeds from the various filters they offer. At first, I thought about combining this feature with another one in Calibre called “Get News.” It’s an RSS/Atom feed client that fetches new posts and generates books on demand or on a predefined schedule.

I eventually adopted Readeck, which allowed me to set aside Calibre’s “Get News” feature. Readeck’s parser is excellent at extracting content from URLs. Readeck itself generates an e-book in *.epub from the listed articles. Calibre still needs to be present to convert the file to a format the Kindle understands. As a bonus, I take this opportunity to edit the book’s title and add a cover.

It’s been just over a week since I had this epiphany. I save links in Readeck throughout the day, and in the late afternoon, I generate my own edited newsletter. The E-Ink screen is less tiring on the eyes, especially without the backlight. The more sun, the more external light, the more readable the screen becomes.

The only (major) problem with this process is that it requires a computer because of Calibre. In this regard, Android tablets with E-Ink screens would be more practical. However, for those who already have a Kindle, it’s hard to justify a new device. Generating the book is a minimal effort in exchange for ~90% of what an Android tablet would provide.