Kobo held a press event today entitled “Beyond the Book.” in which it announced three new variations of its popular Kobo Arc tablet and a new version of its eInk Kobo Aura. I hadn’t been expecting a refresh at this point as both their eInk readers (the Aura) and their tablet offerings (the Arc) were refreshed earlier this year. For me, the Kobo Aura seems very interesting. It retains the HD pixel density of the 6.7 inch Kobo Aura HD released earlier this year but reverts to the traditional 6 inch screen. It is priced at $150 as opposed to the original’s $169. I have placed my order – it took a while as the devices are newly up for preorder. The Aura will be delivered on the 11th of September. In addition to SD and HD 7 inch Kobo Arcs, the company is now offering a 10 inch tablet. The specs are higher on the new version. Check out http://goodereader.com/blog/ for full details. Personally, I won’t check out the tablet – I adore my Kindle Fire HD and see no need for another. Additionally, the company is also launching value added content with Beyond the Book, which will include links…
This evening when I went to download my latest Audible read to my Canadian Kindle Fire, I got a big surprise. A message popped up advising me that I could now listen to and shop for audiobooks natively from my Kindle Fire and that I should uninstall the Audible app. I did so and found that my audiobook played in a new, integrated player. I also noticed that individual Audible audiobooks now appear in my carousel and can be added individually to the Favourites drawer rather than just the Audible app itself. Being a Kindle, of course they’re trying to sell you things, and I see that when I view an audiobook in the carousel, I now get recommendations for other audiobooks. Searching the Kindle is now integrated with my Audible library. Searching for an audiobook will find it in your Audible library ready for downloading. It seems that they’re not quite there yet with the integration though. Audiobooks doesn’t appear in the top menu bar, and clicking on one of the audiobook recommendations doesn’t take you anywhere yet. Clicking on Shop still only shows three options available to Canadians: Books, Games and Apps. At this point Audible books are…
This evening when I went to download my latest Audible read to my Canadian Kindle Fire, I got a big surprise. A message popped up advising me that I could now listen to and shop for audiobooks natively from my Kindle Fire and that I should uninstall the Audible app. I did so and found that my audiobook played in a new, integrated player. I also noticed that individual Audible audiobooks now appear in my carousel and can be added individually to the Favourites drawer rather than just the Audible app itself. Being a Kindle, of course they’re trying to sell you things, and I see that when I view an audiobook in the carousel, I now get recommendations for other audiobooks. Searching the Kindle is now integrated with my Audible library. Searching for an audiobook will find it in your Audible library ready for downloading. It seems that they’re not quite there yet with the integration though. Audiobooks doesn’t appear in the top menu bar, and clicking on one of the audiobook recommendations doesn’t take you anywhere yet. Clicking on Shop still only shows three options available to Canadians: Books, Games and Apps. At this point Audible books are…
I have now had my Kobo Arc for several days now and this is my update to my initial impressions. My other tablets are a Kindle Fire an iPad 3 and a Nexus 7. I find the smaller form factors of the Nexus and the Kindle Fire very comfortable to use. As with my review of the Kindle Fire, I will discuss how the tasks I usually undertake on my iPad and now the Kindle Fire translate to the Kobo Arc. Generally I don’t use my tablets for work/production related activities. There are many apps I use on my iPhone to check a few quick things. Checking email I was able to import most of my personal accounts – two Yahoo emails, Gmail and a non standard account for my evelynne@scottishbookworminquebec.com email – with minimal hassle. I did have a problem with one of my Yahoo accounts, but I believe that to be a Yahoo problem rather than an Arc problem.I have not been able to access my work Exchange email, but i generally check that on my iPhone rather than my tablet anyway. Surfing the web I find surfing the web on the Kobo Arc noticeably faster than on the…
I have now had my Kobo Arc for several days now and this is my update to my initial impressions. My other tablets are a Kindle Fire an iPad 3 and a Nexus 7. I find the smaller form factors of the Nexus and the Kindle Fire very comfortable to use. As with my review of the Kindle Fire, I will discuss how the tasks I usually undertake on my iPad and now the Kindle Fire translate to the Kobo Arc. Generally I don’t use my tablets for work/production related activities. There are many apps I use on my iPhone to check a few quick things. Checking email I was able to import most of my personal accounts – two Yahoo emails, Gmail and a non standard account for my evelynne@scottishbookworminquebec.com email – with minimal hassle. I did have a problem with one of my Yahoo accounts, but I believe that to be a Yahoo problem rather than an Arc problem.I have not been able to access my work Exchange email, but i generally check that on my iPhone rather than my tablet anyway. Surfing the web I find surfing the web on the Kobo Arc noticeably faster than on the…
I have now had my Kobo Arc for several days now and this is my update to my initial impressions. My other tablets are a Kindle Fire an iPad 3 and a Nexus 7. I find the smaller form factors of the Nexus and the Kindle Fire very comfortable to use. As with my review of the Kindle Fire, I will discuss how the tasks I usually undertake on my iPad and now the Kindle Fire translate to the Kobo Arc. Generally I don’t use my tablets for work/production related activities. There are many apps I use on my iPhone to check a few quick things. Checking email I was able to import most of my personal accounts – two Yahoo emails, Gmail and a non standard account for my evelynne@canadianereader.com email – with minimal hassle. I did have a problem with one of my Yahoo accounts, but I believe that to be a Yahoo problem rather than an Arc problem.I have not been able to access my work Exchange email, but i generally check that on my iPhone rather than my tablet anyway. Surfing the web I find surfing the web on the Kobo Arc noticeably faster than on the…
Kobo is currently offering a special price on the Kobo Arc, so today I picked one up and have been playing around with it these last few hours. Here are my first impressions. The device seems solid and well made although it took a while to start up, because it had no battery left. Once I charged it up, it worked well. The setup was easy – I entered my Kobo username and password and my Google Play username and password to access the apps I’d previously bought. My Kindle, Kobo, Audible and GoodReads apps all downloaded easily and installed with no fuss. The Arc is a major step up from the Kobo Vox, which was underpowered, underdeveloped and underwhelming. The newer device is based on Android Jelly Bean with a Kobo skin. The skin is far more subtle than that on the Kindle Fire, which is unrecognisable as Android. With the Kobo Arc you have access to Google Now, Google Playstore and all the features of Android Jelly Bean. For me it seems a really great hybrid of ereader and fully fledged tablet. I can see real advantages to having all the features of Android available on an ereading…
Kobo is currently offering a special price on the Kobo Arc, so today I picked one up and have been playing around with it these last few hours. Here are my first impressions. The device seems solid and well made although it took a while to start up, because it had no battery left. Once I charged it up, it worked well. The setup was easy – I entered my Kobo username and password and my Google Play username and password to access the apps I’d previously bought. My Kindle, Kobo, Audible and GoodReads apps all downloaded easily and installed with no fuss. The Arc is a major step up from the Kobo Vox, which was underpowered, underdeveloped and underwhelming. The newer device is based on Android Jelly Bean with a Kobo skin. The skin is far more subtle than that on the Kindle Fire, which is unrecognisable as Android. With the Kobo Arc you have access to Google Now, Google Playstore and all the features of Android Jelly Bean. For me it seems a really great hybrid of ereader and fully fledged tablet. I can see real advantages to having all the features of Android available on an ereading…
I have now had my Kindle Fire fir several days now and this is my update to my initial impressions. Once I got over my disappointment in the lack of Audible integration for Canadians, I began to really enjoy the device. My other two tablets are an iPad 3 and a Nexus 7. I find the smaller form factors of the Nexus and the Kindle Fire very comfortable to use. Until now, my main tablet of choice has been my iPad 3. I use it around the house, and if I’m travelling I take it with me. However, I find it’s rather bulky to carry around, and I usually end up taking my Kindle Paperwhite too, as I really don’t enjoy reading books on the iPad. I really don’t use my Nexus very much at all. Perhaps the the best way to approach this review is to discuss how the tasks I usually undertake on my iPad translate to the Kindle Fire. I don’t use the iPad for work/production related activities. There are many apps I use on my iPhone to check a few quick things. Checking email I was able to import all my personal accounts – two Yahoo…
I have now had my Kindle Fire fir several days now and this is my update to my initial impressions. Once I got over my disappointment in the lack of Audible integration for Canadians, I began to really enjoy the device. My other two tablets are an iPad 3 and a Nexus 7. I find the smaller form factors of the Nexus and the Kindle Fire very comfortable to use. Until now, my main tablet of choice has been my iPad 3. I use it around the house, and if I’m travelling I take it with me. However, I find it’s rather bulky to carry around, and I usually end up taking my Kindle Paperwhite too, as I really don’t enjoy reading books on the iPad. I really don’t use my Nexus very much at all. Perhaps the the best way to approach this review is to discuss how the tasks I usually undertake on my iPad translate to the Kindle Fire. I don’t use the iPad for work/production related activities. There are many apps I use on my iPhone to check a few quick things. Checking email I was able to import all my personal accounts – two Yahoo…