back to article Kobo strikes new match against Kindle: The Aura HD e-reader

Kobo gathered the great and the good from publishing and distribution in London yesterday to launch its new high-res e-ink reader, the Aura HD. Michael Serbinis, Kobo CEO, said the company asked 10,000 book lovers for the features a perfect e-reader should have. While the Kobo Aura HD probably doesn't match all the survey …

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  1. Colin Miller

    32GB of books?

    Unless you read graphical novels or other image-heavy books, 4GB is around 3,000 books. Enough to last you 60 years at 1 book/week.

    1. quartzie

      Re: 32GB of books?

      When it comes to text books, one hardly needs higher resolution than the current Kindle offers.

      I'd imagine that Kobo's high resolution screen would impress manga/graphical novel readers in particular. Those do need the extra storage.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: 32GB of books?

        "When it comes to text books, one hardly needs higher resolution than the current Kindle offers."

        The current Kindle offers 1200dpi!? I had no idea.

        300dpi=draft mode. Under 300dpi=joke.

    2. Intractable Potsherd

      Re: 32GB of books?

      For me it isn't the size of the card ot will take, but the fact that there is cpapcity for one so I can keep my books on the SD card, and not the reader itself. Factory resets have cost me lots of time and effort when annotations were lost.

    3. launcap Silver badge
      Coat

      Re: 32GB of books?

      1 book/week?

      Try 1 book/day (or one every 2 days if it's a bigger book)

      Coat? Yes please - mine's the one with the baggy pockets from years of carrying books..

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Sorry Kobo, I would like a Kindle version please

    I already have a Kindle and quite a lot of books, so unless it can run a Kindle app I can't really justify it :) Are there any reasons why Amazon could not put a screen like this into a Kindle? I presume Kobo agreed to pony up a bit extra for being first but screens like this will be available to other OEMs soon?

    A Kindle HD Paperwhite would be a lovely upgrade, the screen on the current ones looks decidedly low-res now we're used to 1080p phones.

    1. FartingHippo
      Boffin

      Re: Sorry Kobo, I would like a Kindle version please

      Calibre (with the Kindle plugin) is your friend.

      Even if you haven't got a non-Kindle reader I'd highly recommend it. Who knows what future DRM debacle will render your lovely ebook collection unreadable otherwise.

      1. thomas newton
        Trollface

        Re: Sorry Kobo, I would like a Kindle version please

        especially with the drm-removal plugin installed.

        erm, allegedly.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Sorry Kobo, I would like a Kindle version please

      WOuld be good at £60 ish. 140 is too high.

    3. Irk

      Re: Sorry Kobo, I would like a Kindle version please

      Does read.amazon.com work on the Kobo? If so you should be fine with no conversion necessary.

    4. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Sorry Kobo, I would like a Kindle version please

      Chances are good the Kindle Fire would eventually get it, but probably not the Paperwhite, which Amazon is trying not to spend much money on. In fact they're a little consternated that the "regular" Kindle (the Paperwhite) continues to sell so well, vs. the expensive "media consumption device" they really want to push (the Fire). The return rates for Fire are still high, but the return rates for Paperwhite aren't.

  3. James 51

    @AC Use calibre to convert the books into epub.

    I like the high resolution (for an ereader) though it might be physically a little large. Colour and epub 3 support (in particular embedded audio object support) are what I would like to see. If my ereader died tomorrow this is probably what I would buy as a replacement. Will be interesting to see what Sony pull out of the bag. They are rumoured to be annocing the t3 soon.

  4. Frankee Llonnygog

    Big bezels

    Design tip -

    If you must have a big bezel, make it the same colour as the screen and flush with the edges of the screen

    Then get rid of the on-screen margins around the text - the bezel serves as the margin.

    Hey presto-bingo - 25%-ish more text onscreen

    1. joejack
      Thumb Up

      Re: Big bezels

      Yes. This. Oh, and give both bezels an up/down physical button, a la Nook. No one in their 10,000 reader survey asked for this?

      Aside: since there's no audio support, I guess the SD card is only useful for sideloading?

      1. Frankee Llonnygog

        Re: Big bezels

        Right - that's the ideal eBook design crowd-sourced. Now, would some bugger please build it?

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Big bezels

        The existing Kobo's (and other brands of readers) use an IR detection system so the bezel can't be flush, this method also removes the additional layer you would need in other touch systems that could reduce screen clarity.

        Personally I prefer not having a slim bezel as it's easier to hold the device without touching the screen accidentally, I also find that the black bezel gives more contrast and feel the screen looks better than with a white bezel, though that's just subjective most probably.

        1. Frankee Llonnygog

          Re: Big bezels

          Well, assuming you don't want the expense of a capacitative screen, or the clunkiness of resistive, you can replace IR detection with vibration sensing piezo transducers at the fours corners that triangulate (sic) the finger position.

          Note - I'm not suggesting a slim bezel, but rather a bezel that serves dual purpose as the page margin and blends almost imperceptibly with the page. It shouldn't be any less grippable than now.

  5. Ross K Silver badge
    Trollface

    Hi, I'm Eadon...

    ...and I heartily endorse this non-Windows product/service.

    No seriously. £30 dearer than the Kindle Paperwhite?

    If I was spunking that kind of money on an ereader, I think I'd spend a bit more and get a Kindle Fire HD... Cos that runs Android which is like totally linux, and everybody knows linux is for winners. There's a reason these things don't run M$ WINBLOWS, and that's because M1CR0SHAFT SUX at everything.*

    *This may or may not be how Eadon's thought processes work. Who knows? Or frankly, who cares?

    1. frank ly

      Re: Hi, I'm Eadon...

      I don't know who cares. Why ask me?

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Hi, I'm Eadon...

        You created this account just for that one joke, didn't you?

  6. Mikael Jansson

    PDF reflow support?

    How's the PDF reflow support? Previous Kobo ereaders haven't had proper reflow support. Might be a moot point with a high-res 6,8" screen, but I can still imagine it being quite useful.

    1. Charlie Clark Silver badge

      Re: PDF reflow support?

      Sony's still the best at PDF reflow but Kobo has by far the best controls for reading ebooks. Higher resolution and lighting do improve readability in subtle ways: it's not about cramming more onto the page but increasing contrast through higher definition of characters.

  7. AlanC

    Resolution is less important than screen size

    I owned and enjoyed a Kindle 3 (aka Kindle Keyboard) for a few years, then replaced it with a Paperwhite after managing to break it on a recent holiday (I stood on it!). The PW claims higher resolution than the K3, but I can honestly say that for me the higher screen resolution has made no difference to legibility or reading comfort. Both my kindles display(ed) text that is easy on the eye and comfortable to read, especially in good lighting.

    I have however always felt that the 6 inch display of the Kindle is just a bit too small. It's actually smaller than a page of a typical small paperback and my own opinion is that 7 inches would be perfect. The Kobo's 6.8 inches is therefore attractive.

    I won't be switching reader now, but if I were starting from scratch I might consider it for this reason.

    1. Neil Barnes Silver badge

      Re: Resolution is less important than screen size

      Yabbut... the current glo fits nicely in the back pocket of my jeans. The new size is a touch big for that... the bezel does seem proportionally larger than on the glo.

      I'll second the point made earlier about the touch screen not reaching the edge of the device; that would make it unmanageable. I *hate* touch sensitive things you can't actually pick up...

      1. launcap Silver badge
        Stop

        Re: Resolution is less important than screen size

        >Yabbut... the current glo fits nicely in the back pocket of my jeans. The new size is a touch big for that... the >bezel does seem proportionally larger than on the glo.

        Just out of interest - how many ereaders do you get through? Frankly, fairly fragile electronics like e-ink screens don't belong in jeans pockets of any type..

    2. Helldesk Dogsbody
      Thumb Up

      Re: Resolution is less important than screen size

      As pointed out by Neil Barnes both the current Kopbo Glo and Kindle Paperwhite are literally pocket sized - get the right case for each and they happily sit in an inside jacket pocket which is a must for me as I managed to do a similar amount of damage to my Kindle Keyboard which wouldn't fit in said pocket withh a case and consequently didn't bounce so well when I eventually dropped it on a concrete floor.

  8. RubberJohnny

    Yes hi def, more pixels per inch so we can have smaller text - great!

    Imagine if the print industry had access to such resolution, they could make tiny books!

    Oh wait.... the print industry does have more density, but they don't make tiny books because nobody wants them.

  9. Camilla Smythe

    Meh..

    By means of support he added how Kobo shares what it harvests about its customers with “a stream of data and analytics going back to the publisher so they can understand who the consumer is what they do and why they do it.” And you just thought you were buying a book.

    1. Neil Barnes Silver badge

      Re: Meh..

      Which is why I grow my own epubs.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Meh..

      it's an Android tablet, so spying on your reading habits is sort of built in. Or did you really think Google did that for the good of humanity? They don't even know what the word means (in their dictionary it reads "suckers").

  10. g00se
    Linux

    Rootable?

    Are they rootable? Is IT rootable? If so, (i suppose depending on connectivity) i'm sure that would massively increase the interest value for us geeks

  11. Neoc
    Thumb Down

    Great review...

    but it tells me very little about this new Kobo that I couldn't gather from the pictures, except for the weight and screen resolution.

    How about the files it supports? Obviously it does ePubs, but I also read manga on my Kobo Touch so does this new one support cbr/cbz/rar/zip formats? How does it handle PDFs? Can you add third-party plugins yet?

    To me, physical format is less important than the functions of the product - if it doesn't do what I want, then the physical format is irrelevant (which is why I have a Kobo Touch rather than a Kindle).

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Great review...

      It's likely that it runs the same firmware as the current Glo/touch models which has support for comic formats and you can add plugins, there was one for adding shelves support before it was officially added to the firmware. The mobileread Kobo forum is a good starting point if you want more info on plugins and comics reading

  12. Dana W

    Interesting, but my Kindle 3 with free web browsing is still fine 2+ years on, Its on its second battery, should it ever break I'll look into it.

    My questions are, are they offering a good hard case to protect the oh so fragile e-ink screen? And how is it with Side loading? ePubs support is a must.

    I think I have all of five DRMed books. But I keep everything in ePub as well as Mobi, Just in case.

  13. Chairo

    Privacy?

    By means of support he added how Kobo shares what it harvests about its customers with “a stream of data and analytics going back to the publisher so they can understand who the consumer is what they do and why they do it.”

    That sounds outright Googleish. Is there at least an opt-out from this "feature"? I for myself don't feel comfortable to have my reading habits tracked.

  14. Tringle

    Luckily for me my Kindle died exactly one month after the warranty ran out. Amazon were significantly less than helpful as I now live in a different country to the one the thing was bought in. They just weren't interested. So the next eReader is going to be Kobo. I think this one might be a little too expensive, but I shall have a fondle in the shop before I decide which one to buy.

  15. Matt Bridge-Wilkinson
    FAIL

    I've never looked at my (rather old) kindle and thought, ooh if only the screen was higher res... unless youre reading books full of photos or comics I can't see any added value in this. E-ink already looks like print, if I wanted to read books with graphical content I'd get a tablet.

    Is this like the camera manufacturers "megapixel" hikes just marketing? In that they don't mean so much in usefulness but to the average consumer more if always seen as better so they waste their money on the next upgrade anyway?

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