It looks like Kobo has finally gotten their supply issues worked out with the Kobo Aura One.
Ever since it was first released last September Kobo has only had it available for short periods of time before selling out again.
For the past few months it’s been available off and on with “limited stock” each time.
But the “limited stock” designation has been dropped from the Aura One’s product page at Kobo, so hopefully it’s back in stock for good now.
The Aura One is currently the only ebook reader on the market with a 7.8-inch 300 ppi E Ink screen, and it’s also the only ereader that has a frontlight with adjustable color tone.
Given it’s uniqueness, I guess it shouldn’t be surprising that they’ve had trouble keeping up with demand.
The Kobo Aura Edition 2 was released at the same time, and it hasn’t been out of stock for one single day since it was released. It doesn’t have any unique features like the Aura One, and it’s kind of a downgrade from the previous model, the Kobo Glo HD, so that doesn’t help any.
It will be interesting to see what Kobo does with the upcoming 2nd gen Kobo Aura H2O that is expected to get released later this year. Will it have any unique features like the Aura One to help drive demand, or will it just be a retread of the 1st gen H2O with a few minor upgrades?
My guess is the new Kobo H2O will have the same flush bezel and slim and light design as the Aura one with the same 8gb of storage. Pretty much a carbon copy of the Aura One which is to say it’ll be beautiful except without the night light feature, the same 265ppi and smaller size. I assume it will probably be priced reasonably at around $199 CAD or $149 USD which is awesome and makes me glad I abandoned Amazon even more.
Nathan, between the two Aura One at $300 and the Onyx BOOX N96 ML 9.7″ at $369… which one would you prefer?
They are two completely different animals. The Aura One is more like $200 when ordered from Chapters.Indigo in Canada. It’s great for ebooks but terrible for everything else, whereas the Onyx is better suited for PDFs and a wider variety of content. There’s going to be another N96 pretty soon when they release the Carta version, as if 3 wasn’t enough.
Interesting… there are three models of the Onyx Boox according to a review on Amazon:
“Be aware that there are two models: N96 – with touch screen but without back light and N96ML – with back light but without touch screen. There is a third model N96CML – with back light and touch screen, but not sold on Amazon.com and I could not find any retailer in the US”
Very confusing
I think I’m gonna buy a second Kobo Aura One (as backup) because I’m very satisfied of the one I already have!
I have a question for current Aura One owners, especially the ladies. How easy is it to read on this larger device with only one hand? I have very small hands and the ability to use the device on handed is important to me as I frequently read while holding my youngest child as she watches videos. I really wish there was a brick and mortar store in the US that stocked the Aura One. It would make it easier to buy one if I could put my hands on one first.
It is very easy and lightweight to hold in one hand. I find it easier when you choose to have the advance page turn area the whole bottom part of the device.
I ain’t no lady but i’ll chime in. The Kobo Aura One is very light with weight distributed evenly across the device as it is a flat slab unlike the awkward design of the Oasis with it’s disproportionate weight. Because of this, it is easier to hold on one hand, even more so than my smaller Kobo Aura h2o. Just take the plunge, and Chapters indigo has outstanding customer service, really I couldn’t be more pleased. Not only will they refund your money if you’re not completely satisfied but they’ll even refund your shipping costs, just make sure you keep your receipt.
Because of the disproportionate weight and it’s only 131 g the Oasis is much easier to hold with one hand than any other device, especially when holding it that way over a longer period of time.
I do own both devices and prefer the KA1 over the Oasis, because of it’s better font choices and the larger screen, but when it comes to one hand reading the Oasis is without any doubt the much better choice.
I have the KA1 and the Oasis also and I prefer the KA1. To me – the KA1 with no cover is easy to hold and a so much superior device than the Oasis. Granted I do not remove the cover on the Oasis due to ‘seating’ issues when connecting it again. The page turn buttons are nice but after reading on the larger KA1 screen I find the Oasis – cramped – and usually will pick up the iPad Mini to continue reading my Kindle book. I really wish Amazon would open their eyes and see that a lot of people want a larger Kindle.
Thanks for the replies. I finally purchased an Aura One. It is scheduled to arrive on Wednesday 4/19. I have been working to get Calibre setup for the Aura One. So hopefully I can just load up the books I am reading and go….
Kobo must be updating their site. I can’t even seen a price when I went to look at the Aura One. And then I tried the others and no price. Anyone else having this issue?
Hello,
I preordered Aura One in October but Kobo delayed shipping and I cancelled the order. Right now I’m considering to give it a second try, but before that I have a question for people who already bought one.
I own Kindle DX, tried Voyage but it feels like a joke due to it’s size, and yes I don’t a problem holding GDX with one hand. My only concern is about Kobo Aura Once is the QUALITY and PERFORMANCE of ANNOTATING and DICTIONARY, as English is not my first language I use it a lot and using iPhone dictionary app alongside printed books doesn’t seem so compelling in my case (yet).
Right now I’m in Michigan state, 15 miles away from Canadian BestBuy where I could have tested the device by myself, but due to F1 visa I cannot cross the border :)))
Hoping for your response guys, if someone captures a video it would be absolutely perfect!
Thanks,
Giga