Kobo has three e-readers in their current portfolio that they market all over the world. The Kobo Aura and Kobo Glo HD are two of the most notable and customers may be wondering, what is best for me? Today, we compare them against each other so you can get a sense on what they bring to the table.
The Kobo Aura features a six inch capacitive touchscreen display with a resolution of 1024 X 758 and 212 PPI. This device is employing older e-ink technology called Pearl, which result in a bit slower page turns. The one thing I find truly compelling with this e-reader is that the screen is flush with the bezel, much akin to your smartphone or tablet.
Underneath the hood is a Freescale i.MX507 1 GHZ processor and has 1 GB of RAM. There are 4 GB of internal memory, which can be enhanced via the Micro SD Card. The Glo HD currently does not have an SD card, which many people claim is very limiting.
The brand new Kobo Glo HD features a six inch e-ink Carta screen with a resolution of 1448×1072 and 300 PPI. It has the same front-lit display as the Kobo Aura H2O, so you will be able to read in low-light conditions or complete darkness.
I think the main reason Kobo rushed the Glo HD to the market was because of the overwhelming success of the premium Kindle Voyage. This Amazon branded device was released late last year and at the time had the best resolution and highest PPI in the world. It also carried a hefty price, retailing for $199 US vs the $129 of the Glo HD.
Underneath the hood is a 1 GHZ processor and 4 GB of internal storage. When you take the e-reader out of the box for the first time you only have 3.1 GB of memory, primarily because the OS takes up a fair amount of space.
Today we look at the overall e-reading experience and what these two devices bring to the table.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.