Plato e-reader software

What hackers pick instead

• CrossPoint ReaderFree open-source firmware that flashes easily and formats books better than stock; critics cite weak Kindle sync, no backlight and a maker lock-down attempt.60recommend
• CrossInkFree open-source firmware for the Xteink X4 e-reader, praised for extra quality-of-life features and a solid reading experience over CrossPoint.8recommend
• FreeinkAn open ecosystem for developing firmware on e-ink e-readers, welcomed as a refreshing project that people hoped would gain traction. One critic says the firmware is too large for the devices discussed.5recommend

Every quote

The 19 most detailed of 22 comments. Each links to the original.

1. The device is also weirdly sluggish with the default Kobo software, and much faster in Plato.

   Recommends · May 2026 · in “Rust (and Slint) on a Jailbroken Kindle”

2. it's not much of a bother to relaunch koreader or Plato on the rare occasions that I have to

   Recommends · Jul 2026 · in “Freeink: Open Ecosystem for E-Readers”

3. I found the built in mupdf much more intuitive and elegant.

   Recommends · Jul 2026 · in “KOReader”

4. it has a really nice experience for reading PDFs

   Recommends · Jul 2026 · in “KOReader”

5. Love koreader and Plato. Great free software

   Recommends · Jul 2026 · in “KOReader”

6. Plato is better at handling huge PDF files

   Recommends · Apr 2026 · in “I'm never buying another Kindle, and neither should you”

7. I currently use Plato for its simplicity.

   Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “Quill OS: An open-source OS for Kobo's eReaders”

8. it's got a lot of bugs and design issues

   Mixed · Dec 2025 · in “Quill OS: An open-source OS for Kobo's eReaders”

9. KOReader and Plato are both popular

   Recommends · Jun 2026 · in “Your ePub Is Fine. Kobo Disagrees. Blame Adobe”

10. Love Plato- it's so performant!

    Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “Quill OS: An open-source OS for Kobo's eReaders”

11. I do think you can run arbitrary scripts through the program that manages alternative readers like Koreader or Plato.

    Mixed · Dec 2025 · in “Quill OS: An open-source OS for Kobo's eReaders”

12. Anything launched through NickelMenu like KOReader or Plato have to implement these on their own.

    Mixed · Aug 2026 · in “Kobo can run apps now”

13. They worked better than the original reader software for reading manga.

    Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “Let's put Tailscale on a jailbroken Kindle”

14. As much as I loved PLATO, it was a centralized / mainframe type system.

    Mixed · Sep 2026 · in “Lotus Notes and the dangers of starting from scratch”

15. Physics 107 at U of I in the 80's had all quizzes on the PLATO system.

    Recommends · Jun 2026 · in “Professor denounces mass AI fraud on an exam at Brown University”

16. I was too, so I used Claude to port Plato to my Paperwhite 3

    Recommends · Aug 2026 · in “Kobo can run apps now”

17. I'm in the Kobo ecosystem because of NickelMenu and Plato.

    Recommends · Aug 2026 · in “Kobo can run apps now”

18. PLATO, a world unto itself... it also ran on CDC hardware

    Recommends · Feb 2026 · in “Access to a Shared Unix Computer”

19. We improved the runtime and made it better!

    Recommends · May 2026 · in “Show HN: Platos – like Claude Managed Agents but open-source and self-hosted”