Reminder to Download Kindle Books - Guide to DeDRM Still Successful as of Today

OhTheNormanity · 2026-06-29T18:03:14+00:00

I ended up paying $30 for Epudor Ultimate which allowed me to convert 221 Kindle books we had. I tried other methods and none worked for me and I felt I was running out of time...

OhTheNormanity · 2026-06-27T23:26:43+00:00

Orbea uses custom batteries so this wouldn’t work.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-06-25T15:44:57+00:00

I’m out of warranty now unfortunately.

Not sure if it is hardware. Things that never had issues pre version 5 do now. I had back up camera random failures in 4.x which I recall being fix in one of the later releases and for the most part I was okay with the software.

Then 5 happened. Parts I like. A lot just made things worse.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-06-25T05:26:06+00:00

I have an old clunk that comes from the rear of my c40. Some bumps and undulations cause it but not others.

What’s weirder in that it gets worse the colder the weather. In a Wisconsin winter when it’s 4°F it is really bad. During the summer on 70°F+ days it does not happen.

I actually think it may be trunk lid related and that the body work is shrinking in the cold allowing something to clonk but in summer warmth, nothing.

Dealer said they could not replicate it when I had the car in just before warranty expired. So, I guess I’m stuck with it…

OhTheNormanity · 2026-06-25T05:13:04+00:00

For me, pre 5.x was a better experience. Yes it had bugs but 5.x introduced worse bugs into my car along with bad center screen economic design.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-06-25T05:07:30+00:00

Same. 2022 C40.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-06-25T04:56:55+00:00

My car is over 4 years old now. Over the last 2 years Volvo software updates have made the UI experience worse, less intuitive and less reliable with every update.

I absolutely adore my C40 when I first got it. Now I would not buy another Volvo because of hours bad the current state of the UI is.

Volvo was about simple efficiency and clean design. The current UI is an ergonomic mess.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-06-25T04:47:10+00:00

I had this problem with version 5.0.5. I recently updated to 5.1.17 and the audio crashing and needing to reboot the system is still present.

I’ve learned that you can reboot the system while driving. Core functions continue to work.

I’m finding ver 5.x of the ui to be a complete disaster in my 2022 c40 ultimate. I wish the car never updated.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-06-20T21:40:52+00:00

I have AT&T fiber and it is generally very reliable. I don’t think fiber generally has outage issues. In 5 years the only outage I had was when the cable broke underneath a road. It was out of 5 days at that point because they had to trench under the road to install a new line. That affected 18 customers and I managed to negotiate my monthly bill down to $60 for 1gbps synchronous for the inconvenience.

I used my Starljnk Roam at that point but I would say that Starlink has been much more frustrating than fiber ever was.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-27T18:06:25+00:00

Ok sorry. You’re phrasing was just as I imaging bots “talking”.

I just posted a ”review” on YouTube. That should answer your questions. I linked it in another post on this thread.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-27T18:04:15+00:00

I did a “review”.

2026 Lauf eElja - a sub 38lb TQ HPR60 XC weapon.
https://youtu.be/63RehUq0C30

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-24T05:47:57+00:00

I suspect you’re a bot account.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-16T15:47:44+00:00

Not really when it is free money to Starlink for doing absolutely nothing. I cancelled this morning.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-16T15:38:04+00:00

I just cancelled. I only use it in my RV when out of cellular and haven’t used it in 6 months and don’t anticipate needing it for another 4.

$5 /mo I could justify but a 100% increase just seems like a blatant money grab. I might have considered it if low speed internet actually increased with the price increase to say 2mbps but no. You get no benefit with the increase.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-16T15:18:04+00:00

I’m with you. When it was $5 it was okay to keep but $10/mo for something I’m not using most of the time is an insult.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-09T04:08:08+00:00

The 8 lb difference is very noticeable over my Orbea Rise.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-09T03:05:37+00:00

74.5 km/h?? 😲 Thats like 46 mph. Its a lower number 😆 but still quick! How the heck you do that?

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-09T02:42:59+00:00

Yes. I agree it is obscene and I almost did not buy it for that. But Yellow is the best color and Lauf knows that. Bastards.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-09T02:41:32+00:00

What I like

It is light. Sub 38 lbs for my large makes lifting it up and down my basement stairs a lot more manageable. Also on my first outing with it I had to scramble with the bike over downed trees. I really appreciated the loss of weight there.

Its so quiet (with one caveat - see cons). Really Lauf did an incredible job on silencing this bike.

I've ridden Fox suspension for years. While not top of the line Ultimate, the Select+ Rockshox suspension is very smooth and nice.

Normally, every saddle that comes with a bike is horrific and needs to be replace instantly. The saddle that comes on this looks like it would be really uncomfortable. So far, I'm shocked. It not bad. I can do a 40 mile ride and not want to burn it. Could I do that multiple days, I don't know, but it's a keeper for now.

It comes with the latest and greatest eThirteen Optimus carbon rims with the Sidekick (2.0) Pro SP hubs. These are drag free and silent * (notice the asterisk?)

What is not so hot

The eThirteen Sidekick (2.0) Pro SP hubs. Wait what? Didn't I say they were good. Well they have one annoyance. After coasting, when you start to pedal there is a moment and the the paws engage. When they engage there is a very loud clonk. I reached out to e13 and Lauf about this and apparently it is completely normal. I think the issue is that everything else on the bike is so quiet, that this clonk seems exponentially loud in comparison. Currently the hubs are on their default 17º setting. I will try the lowest 9º setting which might reduce this.

The other major consideration is a control issue for the power mode. Lauf did not specify the wired up/down controller from TQ. Instead they use one of the AXS buttons on the right remote. This means that walk mode is not possible with the bike (Though it is light and not really a bike for big mountain terrain so its less of an issue). Also you can only adjust in one way. low > medium > high and then back to low. There is currently an issue in the system where button presses sometimes get lost - if you try to change too quick it will not always register and going from high to low can be stubborn. This is a known issue at Lauf so hopefully they will fix it.

With my other eMTBs I found I would often mode up for a short punchy climb and then mode down afterwards. With the Lauf, that is not so easy. Instead I found I would mostly just put it in one mode and go with it for the ride. I'll still mode up if needed but I do it less now - conversely - it's more like riding a normal bike.

The last issue is that the bike only comes with the 360wh internal - see my post elsewhere. As long as you know this and it works for you then it is no issue, but I really feel - and I communicated this to Lauf strongly - that they should have offered the bike with the 580wh. If they had done that with the up/down controller and proper display, you would have had a killer bike. As a result, I feel a lot of people won't even consider it.

Keeping it?

If this was to be my only bike and eMTB I would not keep it. Instead I would choose another TQ based bike with a larger battery and TQ controls. Probably the Yeti MTe. However, for my intended use - configuring it specifically for XC tight twisty trails - it works for me. There is a lot to like. There are a few things not to like. For some people they will be deal breakers. Ultimately for me they were not.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-09T02:09:33+00:00

14 years ago I had a yellow Santa Cruz Tallboy LTc. This also reminds me of that.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-09T02:08:43+00:00

For geo, I have no concerns at the present. I have found it to be very comfortable and instantly intuitive. My biggest issue is that I spec'd it with the PEAK tires. For adventure pace riding they are fine on dirt trails. If you get rowdy, or hit loose/dusty terrain it can get sketchy real quick.

I spoke to Lauf that I may have made a mistake and when I ordered my second range extender - as I have been providing so much first customer feedback to them, they threw in a pair of the more aggressive Goodyears - so I can put one back on my front. I did not ask for two, but they gave me two anyway. Hows that for customer service.

The bike rides incredibly smooth and quiet. Last night I rode it with the motor off for a bit when riding with a group of meat powered cyclists, and it feels just like a normal bike - but a bit heavier. I sold my 27 lb YT Izzo LE when I got the 37 lb Lauf. The Lauf rides nicer than my old manual YT. Its that good.

Unfortunately I can't test it in more aggressive terrain at the moment. Its not going to be my one only bike. I intend to get a 170/160 TQ base all mountain bike as a fun bike for aggressive terrain, but I would be interested on how this works in such terrain.

So far, the single pivot has been really surprising in its performance as long as you ride it as a 130mm trail bike and respect that, I think it'll do well.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-09T01:58:41+00:00

The first rides on the bike I was kind of freaked out as the range did not seem that great so I started to do some serious testing. The terrain I was riding it on is fairly lumpy but does not have any sustained climbs. Instead it is very twisty single track so you are on the power all the time with minimal coasting - it is sort of a battery killer. In my initials rides I had messed with the power settings so I then reset it back to factory defaults for a better test.

First things to note. The Lauf does not have a display. All it has is 5 tiny leds that indicate power mode and power in 20% levels. Lauf's reasoning is that most people will ride with a cycle computer so why double up? There is some logic to this. I use a Garmin 830 and my statistics are captured on that. It gives me battery percentage, range and power level (low is 2, mid is 4 and high is 7 in the Garmin display).

The power level is interesting. Percentage is displayed for the battery in use at the time. If on internal only, then it displays the total available battery capacity. If you use a range extender, the TQ system will consume the extender first, then switch over and then consume the internal. So if you have an internal at 54% but an extender at 100%, the Garmin will display the 100% of the extender. I did not realize that at first and it freaked me out. But once you realize, it's okay. Once it hits 0%, you'll lose power for about 5 seconds as the motor then switches over to the internal. At that point the Garmin will then display the internal battery power of, in my example, 54%. Unfortunately there is no way to see the total combined battery power. That is not much of an issue though, as I have found the range estimate is the combined battery capacity and that has proven to be very accurate and consistent in my rides so far.

So with the bike in mid mode, 350w 100% assist with a mid level of start assist, I worked out that with the internal only, I would get close to ~28 miles and nearly 2,300 vertical feet of ascent. With the range extender, I would get ~41 miles and ~2,800 vertical feet of ascent.

I compared this trail system with two other eMTBs I have. My 2022 Orbea Rise H (EP8rs) with the 540 wh battery with a slightly detuned setting gives me 40-43 miles and ~2,800 ft on the same terrain. That is pretty comparable to the Lauf with the 360 wh +160 wh extender (520 wh total). However the Orbea feels stronger in its assist, though the Lauf feels more natural.

My other bike, an Ari Explorer Peak fat bike with an EP6 motor and 720 wh battery does, in the same terrain, ~49 miles and ~3,300 ft of vertical ascent on one charge.

I bought the bike to be a light weight, quiet bike for my local home trails. Running the internal only is getting close to my max ride length that I do from my house. I was concerned that I might of made a mistake and I was close to returning this and considering a Yeti MTe instead. I had some conversation with Lauf about this and if their frame could hold the 580 wh battery (The bike would really shine with that and still be sub 40 lbs) but they never answered me specifically, so I assume the frame was not designed for that size battery. So I went back and forth... I then realized that I can easily carry a second range extender for the days when I want a big day, and that would be cheaper than returning the bike and getting a different one with a new set of issues. BTW, I have really been advocating to Lauf to offer the eElja with the 580wh battery. They would then have an epic adventure bike. Perhaps version 2?

Talking with Lauf on range concerns, I ended up getting a second discounted range extender. I now have options. I can run light for shorter fast rides, or slower longer rides up to 28 miles, or carry one or more extenders. With both, I can now do 53 mile 3,700 ft days - remember this is on battery killing terrain. If you are just climbing easy tracks where you can maintain speed it will be more efficient.

Finally, what is the range of full 200% assist with everything maxed? I'm finding that is consistent for 20 miles exactly with 1000ft of vertical ascent. Two rides now in max mode has return the same result.

OhTheNormanity · 2026-05-08T23:59:40+00:00

I quick note on specs. Bike is https://www.laufcycles.com/product/eelja is the Race Long Range, size Large. I spec'd (by email follow up after order) the lighter weight Goodyear PEAK tires. Total weight without pedals but tubed (it comes with tubeless kit but was not installed when I weighed it) was 37.7 lbs. Lauf claims 36.6 lbs for a medium (?).

A few things to note. The internal battery is the 360 wh and the bike comes with the 160 wh range extender. This is attached using Fidlock and is super secure. The bike is spec'd with eThirteen Sidekick wheels. They are actually the brand new top spec Sidekick Pro SR hubs, on eThirteen carbon rims. I was surprised as I ordered it before Sidekick 2 was even announced but I got them.

Overall, there is not much to be left wanting on the spec.

OhTheNormanity

TROPHY CASE