Last week Kobo revealed the Kobo Elipsa, their new 10.3-inch ereader and e-note that is getting released on June 24th.
Kobo uploaded a YouTube video giving a behind the scenes look at how the Kobo Elipsa is made and tested at the factory, and it’s pretty interesting.
For those concerned about the fragility of the glass-based screen, the flex test and drop test should help alleviate some anxiety (the screen is more durable than you’d expect).
It appears the Kobo Elipsa uses a dual battery setup with two 1200mAh batteries, similar to the Onyx Note Air, expect it has 3000mAh total, and Kobo isn’t bragging about it like Onyx is.
It looks like they put a screen protector on at the end as well. At least that’s something they’re doing at the factory instead of frustrating customers with by having them install it themselves (it’s impossible to get those things on without air bubbles).
It’s interesting to see how they put these types of devices together. Thanks to Kobo for sharing this video. The Kobo Elipsa pack is available to pre-order from Kobo’s website for $399.
Do you believe that fall is real and later the device have all its functionalities? How high have they dropped it?
Sadly (or not) I bought 3 days ago the Lilkebook Mimas in the Likebook Reader Store at Aliexpress for an extraordinary price 243€. There were 3 units refurbished and with a coupon I got it for 235€ ( 26 € discount and a surprinsingly expensive Aliexpress standard shippig for 18€).
I doubted because it has RAM 2GB, but your video comparing it to Alita convinced me.
Thanks.
That was really neat to watch. Your reporting and the videos out there keep tempting me to purchase when I keep telling myself I’m not 🙂
I’m really torn between this and the Onyx Note Air.
So am I.
For me the pros of the Elipsa are the Kobo integration (I have had kobo ereaders for close to a decade and therefore have many of their books so that’s handy for me, plus they are relatively open to sideloading books). The more limited system should result in a longer battery life (something which goodereader alludes to in their review). It’s lighter, includes a case (which is not only good for protecting the screen but provides a comfortable angle) which also holds the pen SECURELY. It will be available in local stores which also means it should be an easier process in the case you need to use the warranty (shipping all the way to China isn’t exactly cheap (and sometimes you even have to pay import fees again when you get your product back).
Pros for the Note Air are it has a more versatile system since it uses Android. It lets you do split screen which is great for translations (I am a translator so one of the things I do is compare the translation with the original text when done to see if I missed anything or screwed anything up). You can write on it using a keyboard which is nice because while I do like writing by hand, sometimes I like to type. Audio support (if you like audio books you can keep them with your ebooks on one device)..
I will personally most likely get the Kobo since it will be most likely sold locally. I am not in the US and Boox doesn’t ship here directly, that means that the Note Air would cost me $600 US on Amazon (unless I buy it NOW and have it shipped to my uncle’s hotel while he’s there on a trip). Plus it is unlikely that I would use many Android functions personally as I already have a Galaxy Tab S6 so I am mostly just interested in this for the battery life, outdoor legibility and as far as usage goes, reading and note taking/annotations.
But of course, it depends on your personal priorities and needs.
I really appreciated the video. One thing I was wondering about was robustness (especially after your link to Boox’s explanation as to how they made the Note Air.
I see that rather than making the case with metal they made a middle plane with metal (or at least it looks like it to me). This seems to have the advantage of providing even solid support to the screen while providing a place to attach the circuits, board, batteries on the back. It even has honeycomb structures in the empty spaces for added rigidity. With a glass backplane screen this is really important for longevity. Hopefully it’s a good solution. The pen precision test is also nice to see to verify quality.
I am curious as to two tests though. The first one where they basically put it inside a black electronic box and the one where a light is being shone on the middle plane. Any ideas?
Hopefully one of the tests is checking for frontlight uniformity. That’s one area Kobo’s quality control has really struggled with over the years.
I can’t belive the test on where the ereader is bent that way. I had an ereader with glass backpane and it was warn the minimum bend could break it. Is it possible now the properties of glass have changed? Have they discovered a new matter’s state XD?
P.S.: now I see flexible glass does exist. I wisht it has been integrated in my old Boox M92
I think impacts and twisting are more of an issue with glass. That’s why they aren’t doing a twist test like they did with the Kobo Forma with its Mobius screen. That would break it for sure.
I bought Mimas and thought you’ve compared to Alita, but not: you compared Boox Note Pro to Note 2.
I hope there will be mire or less the same differences.
If nothing this looks promising as competition to Onyx. Dropbox integration, notetaking… Not in my to-buy list since I have hundreds of books on Kindle store. I suppose they are not providing Kindle app ;). Apart form this there are a few reading application (Packt, Medium, some local apps) that are essential when choosing an e-reader. So far. Onyx is only choice but this might be the dawning of the age of big size e-inks.
Are Kobo e-readers, especially the Clara model, made with non-toxic materials?