
Break out the bunting, there’s a new e-reader in town. Kobo have announced that they’ll be taking on Amazon’s Kindle, Barnes & Noble’s nook and the eventually-linked-to-Borders Spring Design Alex with their own dedicated device, the Kobo eReader. Great, aside from the fact that they’ve apparently just recycled a four-year-old Netronix ebook reader with a bright new case.
The Kobo device – which will be sold “for a limited time” at $149 – measures 0.1-inches thick and weighs 200g. It has a 6-inch E Ink display, 5 selectable font sizes and a 4-way D-pad for navigation, and Kobo have given it a quilted vinyl back-cover for more comfortable carrying. Onboard storage is 1GB – plus there’s an SD card slot – and the battery is good for up to 8,000 page turns.
There’s no WiFi or 3G, unlike its rivals, but the Kobo eReader gets Bluetooth for short-range cable-free synchronising with “select smartphones”; alternatively you can use the included USB cord. It’ll read ePUB and PDF documents, and be able to open content bought from Kobo’s online catalog of around 2m titles.
While we’re not especially excited about this particular hardware, Kobo are pushing their eReader application which should make it easier for third-party manufacturers to make compatible devices. While the own-brand reader only has Bluetooth, the software supports WiFi and 3G, as well as both E Ink and LCD displays. Expect the Kobo eReader to go on sale come May in Canada, followed by a US launch in Borders this summer.
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