PCR Tech and IT retail, distribution and vendor news
Released just before Amazon’s new Kindle lineup, Kobo’s e-readers are available now from WHSmiths.
The Kobo Glo has an RRP of £99.99 and features ComfortLight technology, enabling users to read anytime – day or night. It has a 1GHz processor and a 6-inch e-ink XGA Pearl screen with 1024×758 resolution and 16-level grey scale.
The Glo has 2GB of storage with the option to expand to up to 32GB with a micro SD card, so plenty of room for all the books you’ll ever need.
The Kobo Mini has an RRP of £59.99 and a smaller 5-inch e-ink screen, making it ever so slightly more portable than the Glo, and pretty much smartphone size, which begs the question: Why would you want an ereader the same size as your phone?
Well, maybe because you can hold 1,000 eBooks, or maybe the Kobo Picks feature will draw in consumers. It brings readers personalised recommendations based on their feedback and preferences.
The Kobo Mini comes with a built-in dictionary, which works well with its Notes and Quotes functions – enabling the user to highlight text, type notes and share to Facebook and Twitter. So apart from making phone calls, it pretty much is a smartphone then…
As well as the UK, these two e-readers will also be available in Canada – there is currently no word on a US release.
The company has also stated that its 7-inch Android tablet, Kobo Arc, will be available from November.
So how will these ereaders stand up to the mighty Amazon Kindle? We won’t have to wait too long to find out as the online retailer’s new Kindle Fire range will be released in the UK in late October.
Want to receive up-to-the-minute tech news straight to your inbox? Then click here to sign up for the completely free PCR Daily Digest and Newsflash email services. You can also follow PCR on Twitter and Facebook.
