Apple Accessories, now at StaplesKobo eReader Touch Edition (black)
Manufacturer: KOBO, Inc. Part number: N905-KBO-B
- More product information:
- Editors' review
- User reviews
- Specifications
- Product series
- Manufacturer info
- Bottom Line:
- Though the Kobo eReader Touch Edition doesn't quite measure up to the Nook Touch or the Kindle, it's a respectable and affordable touch-screen e-reader with a lot of pluses.
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CNET editors' review
Kobo eReader Touch Edition (black) price range: $120.52
- Reviewed by: David Carnoy
- Edited by: John Falcone
- Reviewed on: 06/16/2011
The good: The Kobo eReader Touch Edition is a compact, lightweight, and affordable e-ink e-reader with touch-screen navigation, built-in Wi-Fi, an expansion slot for additional memory, and good battery life (over one month with wireless off). Also, the Kobo e-book store is integrated into the device, and you get a basic Web browser.
The bad: The Kobo's user interface isn't as slick as that of the Nook Touch, and its performance and overall smoothness could be improved. It lacks audio support (no MP3, no audiobooks) and the ability to lend out titles to friends. The magazine and newspaper selection is lackluster.
The bottom line: Though the Kobo eReader Touch Edition doesn't quite measure up to the Nook Touch or the Kindle, it's a respectable and affordable touch-screen e-reader with a lot of pluses.
User reviews
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Great reader - love it!
by SmokeAndMirrors on October 2, 2011
Pros: - Touch screen
- Lightweight
- Open format
- Very responsive tech team
- Price pointCons: Nothing significant, but there's still niggling little issues. See below.
Summary: I landed on the Kobo Touch for basically 2 reasons. One was the touch screen, and the other was the open format and honesty of the company.
The touch screen ...Summary: I landed on the Kobo Touch for basically 2 reasons. One was the touch screen, and the other was the open format and honesty of the company.
The touch screen is did not disappoint. It makes it very easy to forget you're reading on a digital device, and just enjoy the experience. It feels far more natural to me that actual buttons. The little chicklet keys of the Kindle just never appealed to me (same reason I have a touchscreen smartphone, really).
The Kobo is also more open than its competition. The Kindle is a walled garden of propriety formating, and the Nook store won't even tell you what you're buying (they refuse to tell customers whether a book is DRM'ed). Sony and Apple force DRM on authors - they literally won't allow you to sell your own work openly.
As both a reader and a writer, this sort of stuff rubs under my skin. The Kobo is far more open. They do carry DRM'ed books, but they let authors choose and they disclose to customers. They also support the universal EPUB format.
The Kobo Touch is definitely not trying to be a multimedia device the way Kindle and Nook are. It's a reader, and that's where it puts all of its focus. As the CNET reviews mention, the KT, being a smaller underdog, isn't quite as polished.
But that said, there have been huge improvements since it was released. It now offers a variety of fonts (and you can add your own), font sizes, margins, and lets you change the full refresh rate from anything between "once every 6 pages" to "every page" (personally, I like it set to max, once every 6 pages - there's a bit of ghosting, but I like not seeing the full flash refresh all the time). The dictionary, bookmarking, and note applications are also improving. They have also recently gone international and now support a variety of languages. Oh, and also, your wifi still works abroad. The same can't be said of the Nook.
The tech team is very responsive and is constantly updating and adding features. I really appreciate that in a company. Bugs get fixed quickly and every update offers more functionality, while still maintaining its ethos of being a reader first and foremost.
But, the occasional bug still remains. I notice that on a couple of my EPUB's, the page numbers aren't correct. Rather, they're reduced but still congruous with how far through the book I am. This is not a big issue, just a weird one - but it is the "small company" effect.
I love the functionality of the Kobo Touch and I love how enthusiastic the company is about improving their product. And at the price point, you really can't go wrong. You can get a Kindle cheaper, if you want to be interrupted by ads while you're trying to read. But you won't get the freedom or the responsiveness you get here.5 out of 5 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Try use the Nook outside the USA...
by monsterwolfgang on July 8, 2011
Pros: Huge selection of books, millions in fact, in many formats in 100s of countries. Barnes and Noble does not have international rights. If you go to Canada, Europe, etc, you can continue to download books with the KOBO, and importantly local papers in thes
Cons: Still too early to tell
3 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Fantastic E-Reader
by Fred002 on June 10, 2011
Pros: Pearl Screen a noticeable improvement over 1st gen Kobo
Touch screen works wonderfully
New processor makes page turns faster
Web browser includedCons: nit-pick time...wish it had more fonts to choose from (not much of an issue really)
Summary: Bought the 1st gen kobo for my wife and was thinking about a cheap lcd tablet for e-reading for me when I saw this announced and pre-ordered right away. I ...
Summary: Bought the 1st gen kobo for my wife and was thinking about a cheap lcd tablet for e-reading for me when I saw this announced and pre-ordered right away. I had used hers and was happy but the new Pearl display is noticeably nicer to read (compared same pages side by side from "Under the Dome") and by going touch screen the size reduction is quite a bit for a device that wasn't all that big in the first place. If you've been waiting for the "right" e-reader to come along, it's here and it's called Kobo.
New firmware update allows you to change the page refresh rate, gives you 5 more fonts plus font sizing and also line and margin spacing adjustments as well, all this and built in sudoku now make the kobo the best choice for dedicated e-reading
Updated on Jun 30, 20112 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Bad experience all around with Kobo
by geezby7 on October 18, 2011
Pros: Good while it worked
Cons: Bad screen with known issues
Poor customer serviceSummary: I purchased the first Kobo reader and 1 year and two months later the screen went for no reason. Apparently, there are known issues with the ink technology screens (do ...
Summary: I purchased the first Kobo reader and 1 year and two months later the screen went for no reason. Apparently, there are known issues with the ink technology screens (do a little reasearch). There was no info available anywhere on how long I had for warranty. When I tried to see what could be done to fix it the customer service was horrible and told me that the warranty was out and that I'd have to buy another one. No thanks!
2 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
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The Kobo Touch is a great ereader with many features.
by AbrahamLama on December 30, 2011
Pros: -Expandable Memory
-Responsive Touch Screen
-Book Selection(International)
-Intuitive and simple Interface
-Ease of Customization
-Reading Life/Facebook Connectivity.Cons: -Lack of aftermarket accessories
-No audio supportSummary: The Kobo Touch is a great ereader that will meet the needs of anyone wanting to buy a good ereader. I agree with smoke and mirrors, but can't see ...
Summary: The Kobo Touch is a great ereader that will meet the needs of anyone wanting to buy a good ereader. I agree with smoke and mirrors, but can't see how the anyone could hate this great device.
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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This love doesn't last
by lolababy6 on November 9, 2011
Pros: Ease of use
ConvenientCons: HORRIBLE customer service
Indigo/Chapters will not stand behind product (As Kobo is a separate company, we are unable to provide technical assistance for your unit)
No options to get help or replacements
Screen has issuesSummary: Purchased in June - after 5 months of moderate to low use the screen stopped working. The bottom half and a strip on the left side are blank at all ...
Summary: Purchased in June - after 5 months of moderate to low use the screen stopped working. The bottom half and a strip on the left side are blank at all times. Will not reset or allow to move past the welcome screen. Created a case with the helpdesk who only work through email. Completed all requested information (photo and pop) and waited DAYS before getting anything more than the standard (in priority response) team email confirmation. Have called back and found myself sitting on hold for 40 mins, more than once. Never having enough time to wait them out and speak to someone live (after the first call). I have been in limbo for over a week with no options for resolution.
This is the worst service I have ever experienced. I say save your money and buy a product that the company supports and stands behind.1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Best bang for your buck
by Clarkent913 on September 15, 2011
Pros: Fast page turns
Contrast equal to the other big boys in the room (Kindle and Nook)
Quick response to the touch screen
Great selection in the Kobo storeCons: Not many, to be honest. I could have a thicker bezel, something more to hold onto when reading. That would be my only complaint.
Summary: I had jumped on the first Kobo bandwagan, when Gen 1 came out, and regretted it slightly. The page turns were slow and the screen didn't have as much ...
Summary: I had jumped on the first Kobo bandwagan, when Gen 1 came out, and regretted it slightly. The page turns were slow and the screen didn't have as much contrast as one would like. But when the Touch came out, I drooled over it at the store, playing with it I could see the pages turn faster and the touch screen worked remarkably well, contrast was on par with the Kindle and I was sold....again. I've had it for about a week now and so I feel comfortable saying that it's a great little ereader. I've used my iPad for reading and though it works I find I'm too distracted with the internet and angry birds being 'right there'. And since I go camping quite a bit, reading outside on an iPad is near impossible, the glare is too much. As opposed to the Gen 1 Kobo that I had owned I felt no buyers remorse here. I'm completely happy with the Kobo Touch.
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Good for its price, just don't get it for PDFs
by johnnybananas71 on May 23, 2012
Pros: Small
Great battery life
nicely designed deviceCons: Horrible at reading PDFs
Summary: I bought this e-reader for school, as most of the documents that I read are in PDF form. After all of my research, I decided that this was the best ...
Summary: I bought this e-reader for school, as most of the documents that I read are in PDF form. After all of my research, I decided that this was the best solution, because multiple reviews had mentioned that it was pretty good at reading PDFs. THIS IS NOT THE CASE!!!
Other than that fact, I'm pretty happy with the device. It's small, and highly portable. The battery life is absurd, I think I've only charged it twice since I've had it.
If you're looking for an e-reader for epub format books, get this. If you're looking for PDFs, get an iPad or something in that range, because this is not good for PDFs at all. -
Bad product. Bad customer service.
by Cavic01 on December 20, 2011
Pros: Light, handy format.
Cons: Touch screen responding inconsistently
Product stopped working after only two months of use.Summary: My two months old Kobo Touch froze completely. Not responding to anything, including soft and hard resets. Customer Care only got back to me after three calls and then asked ...
Summary: My two months old Kobo Touch froze completely. Not responding to anything, including soft and hard resets. Customer Care only got back to me after three calls and then asked me to send the reader to them for evaluation and pay for shipping and insurance myself. I don't think so. Anyone looking to buy a Kobo, Don't!
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Failed after a month of use. Kobo is not fixing it
by mullerpavel on November 22, 2011
Pros: Screen readable in sunlight. Long-lasting battery. Good form factor. Relatively inexpensive
Cons: Slow, touchscreen is unreliable (works sometimes only). The unit failed to boot after just over a month of use. Repeated attempts to get it serviced/replaced by Kobo have so far failed despite promises to the contrary.
Specifications
- Manufacturer: KOBO, Inc.
- Part number: N905-KBO-B
- Description: Easily connect via Wi-Fi or USB to access over 2.4 million books, newspapers and magazines from the Kobo store. Also borrow and read books from your local library. Take your eReader with you everywhere you go, and enjoy reading on a single charge.
General
- Packaged Quantity 1
- Product Type eBook reader
- Dimensions (W x D x H) 4.5 in x 0.4 in x 6.5 in
- Weight 7.1 oz
- Color Black
- Slot provided type [Dec 3, 2010 from CDS: Slot Provided] microSD
Display
- Type 6 in,
Monochrome E Ink - Touchscreen Yes
- Display type 6 in,
E Ink - Color Depth 4-bit (16 gray levels)
Processor
- Processor Freescale MX508
Memory
- Flash Memory 2 GB
- Supported Flash Memory Cards microSD,
microSDHC - Max Supported Capacity 32 GB
- Flash memory installed 2 GB
Communications
- Wireless Connectivity 802.11b/g/n
EBook Reader
- Supported Text Formats EPUB ,
HTML ,
PRC (Mobipocket) ,
PDF ,
CBR,
RTF ,
CBZ,
TXT - Supported Still Image Formats PNG,
TIFF,
JPEG,
BMP,
GIF - Features Expandable memory ,
Touch screen ,
Wi-Fi
Input Device
- Type Touch-screen
Expansion and Connectivity
- Expansion Slot(s) 1 x microSD
- Interfaces 1 x USB
Battery
- Run Time 1 month(s)
Dimensions & Weight
- Width 4.5 in
- Depth 0.4 in
- Height 6.5 in
Manufacturer Warranty
- Service & Support Details Limited warranty - 1 year
Product series
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Kobo eReader Touch Edition (blue)
Manufacturer: KOBO, Inc.
Specs: 6 in,
4.5 in x 0.4 in x 6.5 in,
7.1 oz -
Kobo eReader Touch Edition (black)
Manufacturer: KOBO, Inc.
Specs: Freescale MX508,
IEEE 802.11n,
IEEE 802.11b,
IEEE 802.11g,
6 in,
Monochrome E Ink,
4.5 in x 0.4 in x 6.5 in,
7.1 oz -
Kobo eReader Touch Edition (lavender)
Manufacturer: KOBO, Inc.
Specs: Freescale MX508,
IEEE 802.11n,
IEEE 802.11b,
IEEE 802.11g,
6 in Monochrome E Ink,
4.5 in x 0.4 in x 6.5 in,
6.5 oz
Manufacturer info
- Manufacturer profile
- Browse KOBO, Inc. products on Shopper.com
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- Manufacturer:KOBO, Inc.
- Address:
82 Peter Street, Toronto, Ontario M5V 2G5
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