Kobo just introduced a smaller version of their special edition Kobo Aura HD, simply called the Kobo Aura. It’s a lot like last year’s Kobo Glo, which is going to remain on the market along with the Kobo Mini, but it comes with a new design and is being marketed more as a higher-end version of the Kobo Glo.
Like the Kobo Glo, the Kobo Aura has a frontlit 6-inch E Ink screen with a 1024×758 resolution. There’s one minor difference, though. The Kobo Aura is the first Kobo ebook reader to use a capacitive touchscreen instead of infrared like the Glo, Touch, Mini, and Aura HD before it. That’s not surprising considering E Ink now sells displays with frontlights and capacitive screens already equipped.
Other specs for the Kobo Aura are similar to the Aura HD. It has 4GB of internal memory and is powered by a 1GHz Freescale processor. There’s a microSD card slot for additional storage space, Wi-Fi, and battery life is estimated at around 2 months.
The Kobo Aura is slightly little thinner and lighter than the Glo (0.07 inches thinner and 0.4 ounces lighter), and the design is modeled more after the Aura HD with the angled back rather than the textured quilted pattern of previous Kobo ereaders.
Interestingly, Kobo says they’ve been working with E Ink to reduce how often the page needs to refresh, thus lessening the frequency of page refreshes on the Aura’s screen, but they are not using E Ink’s new upcoming screen tech that is supposed to be an upgrade from Pearl. According to E Ink, someone is going to be releasing an ebook reader this year with the new screens; Kobo isn’t it.
The new Kobo Aura is up for pre-order right now at Kobo.com. It is expected to start shipping on September 11th. Unfortunately you’ll have to pay a little more for it than the Glo. After much success with the Kobo Aura HD at a higher price, Kobo has decided to increase the price of the Aura by $20, making it $149 in the US and Canada.
Of course I ordered one for review so check back soon for more info. I also decided to try Kobo’s sleep cover this time too.
Having both an Aura HD and a Glo I don’t see much appeal to get this new smaller Aura. MY HD beats it in size and resolution and my Glo does pretty much the same that new Aura does.
So I won’t call this a catastrophe as I would the new Sony T3 but I can’t really call it a revolution either.
I have to wonder why they don’t delve a little more into 7″ devices for serious readers (not forgetting to fix the wasted space issue that is still there and kind of defeating the point of bigger screens) or start releasing color screens which are starting to become a bit overdue by now.
So I’ll turn my attention to the probably soon to be announced Kindle PW 2 …
There is no way I repeat no way that I would ever order online from Kobo again unless they have totally revamped their ordering sysytem. Hopefully if I decide to order a new device from the I will get froma brick and mortar store here in the states if possible.
This new Kobo Aura e-reader looks exciting to me but specs-wise, it seems too similar to the existing Paperwhite to me.
Regardless though, 2013 is shaping up to be quite the year for e-readers with Kobo, Barnes & Noble, & Amazon all releasing new devices.
I’m excited to get this new ereader. I have the kobo mini and have been waiting for an upgraded glo or smaller aura to compliment my mini for low light reading. The flat screen, instead of a raised bezel that catches lint, as well as the new touch screen is what I’ve been wanting in an e-reader. The Chapters website is also offering pre-orders, thank goodness! The kobo website is atrocious!
That’s great Greenbean unfortunately can’t order from Chapters here in the States. For some reason you can’t order electronics to deliver over the border.
I am a long time Cybook Odyssey user. This looks interesting but here’s my major question. Can any one tell me if the Aura will let me use folders for my eBook’s to organize them?
Basically it has the same software as other Kobos so folders are definitely not an option. They have user created shelves, or you can use Calibre to organize by tags.
What has been the bad experiences ordering from the with the Kobo website?
I ordered a mini when they were on sale this summer for $39. I had no problem completing the order, was notified by email and given a tracking number when the item shipped from Canada. It shipped in 3 days and arrived in 7 days via USPS – Toronto to Vermont, USA.
I would rate the service as good.
Hi Al Ordered both an Aura HD and a sleepcover on seperate occasions. Never received a email conform for either product at time of order and had to call in both times. My phone customer service experience was alright but should not have to have been made. not only one with no email confirm issue.
I’m not too familiar with this site’s policies so let me know if this is inappropriate to post. I figure we’re all fans of e-reading in general so why not.
Good E-Reader has a video unboxing of the Kobo Aura along with a written and video review if anyone hasn’t seen it yet.
http://goodereader.com/blog/electronic-readers/hands-on-with-the-new-kobo-aura
http://www.chapters.indigo.ca does ship to the US. Also I think the goodereader.com shop’s site also does preorders. With the kobo site, I’ve had two issues, first their credit card validation would not recognize my CVV number, I gave up on trying to order a cover for my mini, then while trying to order the aura, the credit card validation declined my card for no reason (I checked with the bank) yet still charged my account, I didn’t recieve an order confirmation and email and when I called I had to go through a run around to get the charge off my card since they still couldn’t get the order status changed.
Engadget has a review up for the Kobo Aura.
http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/05/kobo-aura-review/
Just received the aura from chapters (sent to US residence). So far I love it!