Why Does Kobo Advertise Discontinued Models on Their Homepage?

Kobo is one of the best alternatives to the Kindle platform when it comes to ebooks and dedicated ereaders, but sometimes it seems like Kobo is asleep at the wheel.

Not only does Kobo not offer a device that’s comparable to the Kindle Paperwhite (the most popular ereader model of all time) to entice would-be Amazon defectors, they can’t even properly advertise the models they currently sell.

Right up near the top of the homepage on Kobo’s website there’s a section that shows Kobo ereaders and accessories, but three of the six models shown aren’t available to purchase anymore because they’ve been phased out.

It’s been almost a year since the Libra 2 and Clara 2E were discontinued in favor of the Libra Colour and new Clara models, but yet Kobo continues to advertise them on their homepage despite the fact they aren’t available to purchase new anywhere, and haven’t been for a long time.

If you scroll through the list there are a bunch of other discontinued products as well. In fact, they’re still advertising a sleepcover for the Kobo Libra H2O, a model that was replaced by the Libra 2 in 2021. They haven’t sold those in years, and it’s not in stock now anyway, so why is it even on the list?

With Amazon continually finding new ways to anger Kindle customers and pushing them away to other platforms, you’d think Kobo would be doing more to win over former Kindle users that are looking for a more open, customer-friendly alternative, but Kobo just keeps doing what Kobo always does—nothing.

Someone suggested that Kobo should offer a trade-in program where people could get a discount on a Kobo ereader by trading in a Kindle. I thought was a great idea, but it will never happen. Kobo has never even offered trade-in discounts for their own models.

The best Kobo can offer is their typical $20 off sale on models they just increased the price on by $10, so even their sale prices are hard to get excited about.

Kobo appears to be content with the market share they currently hold. They seemingly put no effort into acquiring new customers, they don’t advertise the fact that their devices support Adobe DRM anywhere on the product pages, and they can’t even be bothered to update their website once a year to reflect their current lineup of ereaders. I just don’t get it.