Canadian-based Kobo has started to release a number of new e-Readers every year, along with a growing tablet line. The Kobo Arc was released at the tail end of last year and saw modest success in Canada. This makes two different tablet computers they have released, and now they are trying new things with a 10-inch tablet that will be released in September.
The new Kobo tablet is currently codenamed Macallan and features a 10-inch full color touchscreen with a resolution of 2560×1600. The resolution is fairly amazing and blows the Nook HD, Kindle Fire HD 8.9 and the 10 inch Samsung Galaxy Tab out of the water. This will make magazines, games and movies look superb, although it will lose the portability factor a seven inch device brings to the table.
Resolution of course, isn’t everything. This is why there is a quad-core 1.8 GHZ processor underneath the hood and 2 GB of RAM. All other specs are unknown, as the name and hardware were unearthed in a public benchmarking website that has since been taken down.
Still, you can assume it will provide a solid audio experience due to Kobo’s partnership with True Vision Audio and maintain the Tapestries technology that was incorporated in the ARC tablet. Tapestries basically is Kobo’s UI that offers a unique directory and social media management. It also puts an emphasis on reading with the ability to buy eBooks.
Kobo currently has a new six inch e-Reader at the FCC and likely this device should be ready for evaluation in the next few weeks. The company trend has been to announce a new product line at the same time.
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.