I have a Kobo that was kept unused in a similar state for a few years until I decide to build an SDK platform to develop and deploy apps on it. My Kobo does not support apps on its Linux platform.
I have been using it to read HN, as an RSS reader over my news and blog sources, generate audiobooks on topics I want to understand with ElevenLabs, Exa and OpenAI and listen via connecting its bluetooth to my speakers and even as a remote Claude Code & Codex approval sidekick.
It is amazing that a $100 device with a single core and 512mb RAM can do so much and run for so long.
Here is the open-sourced platform https://github.com/BandarLabs/Cobalt
There is also NickelMenu: https://pgaskin.net/NickelMenu/
NickelMenu is fantastic for adding custom buttons and some extra. We use it to display the Cobalt entry button on the stock Kobo interface.
This SDK provides more of an android/iOS type framework to use underlying hardware like bluetooth, wifi, battery and a bunch of UI components for creating complex apps with eink rendering, notifications, managed windows, OTA updates, a simulator, a sidekick mode for your apps and more.
> It is amazing that a $100 device with a single core and 512mb RAM can do so much and run for so long.
Not to sound like certain influencers but computers are pretty fast and the state of modern software is incredibly wasteful.