A couple weeks ago I posted an article asking if Kobo will release any new ereaders this fall, and a surprising number of people are hoping for a new Kobo Mini.
This isn’t the first time this has come up either. When it comes to new Kobo releases, people have been asking for a new Kobo Mini going back several years, but so far Kobo has ignored those requests.
The Kobo Mini was released back in 2012. It was the first Kobo ereader to feature a 5-inch E Ink screen. Up until then, all Kobo ereaders had 6-inch screens.
Back in the day, the Kobo Mini sold for only $79, and then they dropped the price to $59 after a year. Sometimes it went on sale for $49. Not only was it a bargain, it was a nice mini-sized Kobo that easily fit into a pocket, and it was very lightweight and easy to hold at only 134 grams.
For some reason the Kobo Mini fell out of favor with Kobo. It was only on the market for about a year and a half before it was quietly discontinued, making it one of the shortest-lived Kobo models of all time.
Not only did Kobo discontinue it, it’s the only touchscreen model that Kobo has stopped supporting. They stopped issuing firmware updates for it a long time ago, despite older models still getting updates. You can install an update for a different model on the Kobo Mini and that’ll work, but Kobo stopped officially updating it ages ago.
Seeing how Kobo has treated the Kobo Mini since it was released, it seems like the most unlikely model to make a reappearance. For some reason the people at Kobo really seemed to dislike this particular model, even though customers really liked it. It was one of my favorite Kobo models so I don’t know what gives.
I would really like to see a Kobo Mini 2 hit the market with a frontlight and newer E Ink screen. It would be better than yet another basic 6-inch model like the Kobo Nia. How many 6-inch Kobo models do we need? There’s already been at least 10.
If they could also “mini” the bezels they’d really be onto something.
The question is, if people really liked it aka were buying it. Similarly people were very vocal about the need for iPhone Mini and then they praised Apple for releasing it. But in the end pretty much no one was buying it and it was the least selling model ever. I suppose Kobo Mini might be a similar case… It all comes to sales numbers. If it didn’t sell, they cancelled it.
I’m one of those people who have been begging for an updated Kobo Mini. I’ve managed to keep three of them going with duct tape, rubber bands, and new batteries. As Leo mentioned, a new Mini with smaller bezels would be great. There’s not much else out there that is as small, lightweight, and as easy to drop into the shirt pocket as the Mini.
As for the argument that the sales numbers didn’t justify continuing with the Mini, that may be the case, but that was over a decade ago. Times change and so do customer desires.
I’m on Kindle but I’d buy one just for reading Pocket articles not on my phone.
Boox Palma might be the new mini
Yeah, hate to say it, you can’t always go by survey data — sometimes you get this really vocal crowd that says they really wants something, but not enough people willing to buy it.
Mini stuff always gets lauded (and it would be nice to have a Kobe mini), but unfortunately I just think the market is just too small for mini-eReaders.
I get your point and you’re probably right, but I really don’t see how a 4-5″ device would be that much less desirable than a 6″ ereader. I think the biggest problem with smaller devices is there’s less of a profit margin because people expect them to be cheaper.
And because the majority of people asking for it expect to have it as a secondary ereader, so they aren’t willing to pay as much, while a basic Mini is going to cost as much as a Clara.
I had the Kobo Mini, I bought it second hand, which reduced the price significantly. I think many people discovered the advantages the same as me, by buying the heavily discounted ones or second hand. I don’t remember well, but I think the Mini was one of the few (if unique) readers that Kobo heavily discounted just to get rid of older stock, normally Kobo just reduce the price a little of its readers when there’s a new generation (ex, the actual price of the Kobo Forma, Kobo Libra 1st generation or Kobo Clara)
As for the Boox Palma another commenter mentioned, yes but no. The form factor is not “book like”, I have a Hisense 5, a phone with eink screen, and I do use it, but it’s not as comfortable as my old MIni.
I would probably buy a new generation of the Mini, I don’t need it, but if it’s under 200€ I would buy it because I’m going to use it (although I would prefer something with Android, there’s no Overdrive in my country, so for reading my library loans I need an Android app), but I consider myself an outlayer, not the usual public, so I don’t think there’s a market for it.
I used to love the Kobo Mini form-factor. I’d buy a small e-reader as a spare — just have it in my backpack always, but price would have to be in the around $50 range. You’re right I think that most people aren’t willing to spend as much for a secondary or spare e-reader.
I think one thing that unfortunately helped killed the real inexpensive e-readers is that back lighting became a big thing. For a secondary e-reader I just want something inexpensive, durable, and cheap (and for a secondary e-reader could care less about lighting).
I will someday pull the trigger on a big e-reader ((9 inch plus screens) with note taking capabilities — still a little too expensive. If they can get below $200 I think big e-readers with note taking will really take off.
I would love to see an a new mini, and would buy it.
I would definitely buy a Kobo Mini. It wouldn’t even have to have the front light.