Kobo Nia is a new entry-level eBook reader that aims to compete head-to-head against the segment leader eReader, Amazon and their Kindle.
Priced at 99 dollars / euros, it costs 10 euros more than the Basic KindleBut it offers twice the storage, a higher resolution screen and does not include ads. Without ads, the Amazon model costs 10 euros more.
Kobo Nia has a screen Letter E Ink 6 inch diagonal, 1024 x 758 pixel resolution, anti-glare treatment, a density of 212 pixels per inch and a front light with adjustable brightness. Its dimensions are very contained, 112.4 mm wide x 159.3 mm long, with an area of 9.2 mm thick around the edges. Its weight remains at 172 grams.
It has 8 Gbytes of storage capacity, which according to the manufacturer allows you to save up to 6,000 eBooks. It also has Wi-Fi n wireless connectivity, a micro USB port and a 1,000 mAh battery that offers “several weeks” of autonomy.
“With each new device we design, the goal is simple: to improve reading in people’s lives. As pioneers in the digital reading space for over a decade, we have been driving and experiencing what is possible in an eReader at every step we have taken.“Explains Michael Tamblyn, CEO of Rakuten in the announcement Kobo.
Another issue to assess is the support to different formats. Amazon’s Kindle devices are designed for e-books in Amazon’s proprietary AZW format, but it also supports the older MOBI file format and PDF documents. Kobo, like most other companies in the space of eReaderIt supports EPUB, MOBI, PDF, HTML, TXT and other formats, including CBZ, CBR, and image formats like JPEG, GIF, PNG, and BMP.
Amazon is the dominant player in the ebook space and if you have ever bought content for Kindle you will probably be locked in its ecosystem unless you want to lose your old books or enter a gray area removing the DRM of electronic books. If you bet on this Kobo Nia (or other models outside of Amazon) you will have better support for various standards.
Kobo Nia, availability and price
The new reader is delivered in a black finish and has three covers in other colors, aquamarine, lemon yellow and black. In Spain, it can already be booked as a pre-order at Fnac.es and Kobo.com by 99 euros. The covers are sold separately for 19.99 euros.
The Kobo Nia will be available from July 21 with free shipping. You have more information and reservations on the official portal Rakuten kobo. A good ebook reader, basic, but inexpensive and alternative to Amazon Kindle.
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