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Kobo Re-Releases the Aura One With 32GB Storage

Kobo responded today to the launch of the new Kindle Oasis by releasing a new Aura One model.

Launched last August, the Aura One had a 7.8″ Carta E-ink screen, 8GB of storage, and cost $230.

The new model has the same screen, four times the storage, and a price tag of $279. It’s going to be available in late November or early December – but only in the US and Japan.

In comparison, the new Kindle Oasis has smaller but equally sharp screen (7″, 1680 x 1264) and 32GB storage.

Edit: I should also point out that the 32GB models cost the same – the $249 Oasis has 8GB of storage.

One device has a nifty one-handed design while the other has a variable colored frontlight, and both devices are waterproof – but run different software.

Which one would you buy?

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Comments


Carmen Webster Buxton October 30, 2017 um 1:05 pm

What I always tell people who ask about buying an ereader (as opposed to a tablet) is "Where do you plan to buy your ebooks?" If the answer is Amazon, get the Kindle. If it’s anywhere else, get the Kobo.

poiboy October 30, 2017 um 2:44 pm

and if you use free library book borrow.. get kobo.

Carmen Wesbter Buxton October 30, 2017 um 2:49 pm

I tell folks who want to borrow books to check with their library to see what is supported and ask how books are delivered. My library system works fine with my Kindle but not all of them do.


Javi October 30, 2017 um 2:53 pm

I read in my bed so I have bought the Kindle Oasis.
Those people who read in a table must should by Kobo Aura.

I think.


Steve H. October 30, 2017 um 3:14 pm

Totally agree. Overdrive in Maryland and Washington D.C. is easy to use.
Oasis coming tomorrow! Glad to see competition from Kobo though.


Ron October 30, 2017 um 3:29 pm

I bought the new oasis. Beacause a) I am already deep within the amazon eco system, b) the software (especially when it comes to PDF files) is way better than that of the Kobo, c) the 7.8″ display is just a bit too big. Seven inch is the sweet spot for me. When I really need a bigger screen, I take my Samsung tablet. And d) the amazon shopping experience is ten times better than that of the Kobo website.
I also own a Kobo ereader, and I actually like it, but in the end I would prefer the kindles over the Kobo if I had to choose.


Frank October 30, 2017 um 3:35 pm

Amazon is easy to use, so I use a Kindle to get ebooks. I just got a Paperwhite 3 about two years ago and it is still running strong. While another inch on the screen would be great to have, it will likely be a few years before I get another ereader. It will certainly have a bigger screen than the current 6-inch size.


Xavier Basora October 30, 2017 um 9:21 pm

No, because
a) It’s not available in Canada which sucks
b) I’m not a fan of ereaders and prefer a tablet with the apps
xavier


RL October 30, 2017 um 10:20 pm

The 32 GB should have been part of the original Kobo Aura One. I think Amazon caught them off guard a bit. If they could set it up to where one could sideload the Kindle App, many would not feel a need to buy the Kindle.


dodod October 31, 2017 um 5:24 am

I think Amazon dropped the ball with going for 7′ only. It really is still too small for comfortable pdf reading. Everything in the group of scientific work, is in small Garamond fonts, and no cropping is helping 7′, screen is simply too small. 7’8 is right there at the edge of readability, but it is there. It still need cropping, but it’s usable.


Ingo Lembcke, Hamburg, Germany, EU October 31, 2017 um 9:02 am

Cannot speak for the Kobo, it is not available here, but Kindle eInk readers and PDF? Sony T1 (and following T2, T3 probably) was way better. While they have done some work, there is still no 100% working way for reading columns – our german weeky "Der Spiegel" is only readable on eInk Kindle as they are now publishing a pobi (mobi)-version.
The "Spiegel"-PDF has more graphics (better quality) and it is slow on the current eInk devices.
Comics are even worse. For colour and Comics I use my iPad mini, but even that got slower lately – V 3, waiting for an update to V 5 with 256 GB memory, nowhere in sight, and also no word wether the mini gets killed.


Henry Wood October 31, 2017 um 11:43 am

I own a Kindle Paperwhite (collecting dust on a shelf), a Kindle Voyage (used infrequently), some kind of Boox model – I forget the number but it was a pure abortion – and a Kobo Aura one which has been my main reader for the past few months, mainly because of the larger screen size, though I also do really like the nightscreen lighting as I do a lot of reading in bed in the middle of the night (insomnia).

I have also given away older Kindles and even a Nook I once bought.

However, today I just received my new Kindle Oasis and as soon as I opened it, completed the set-up and downloaded a few books, I remembered why I do like the Kindle e-Readers so much:

They are *fast*
They are simple
They work (for me) without flinching or hiccups
They are *very fast*!

I repeat the speed issue because I have never been totally satisfied with that aspect of my Kobo Aura One. It has also taken many updates to finally sort out such things as getting Kobo’s own case/cover to work properly as regards re-opening where it was closed and spurious battery drainage. Now that it works OK and I have used virtually nothing else for some months, I suspect it will soon be joining the Paperwhite on the shelf. Though the larger screen and the *very* satisfactory lighting do make the Aura One enjoyable there is often frustration while reading: changing settings is slow; dictionary takes a while when compared to the Kindle’s look-up performance (all Kindle models) and there is also the problem of huge amounts of "wasted" screen at the bottom of most pages.

And getting back to *fast* – going into a book’s "Aa" reading settings on the Kindle, it is absolutely lightning fast when compared to the Aura One slowly chugging through each setting as I tap on it. Changing a font/size/boldness/line spacing/justification etc., on the Kindle happens instantaneously and if you don’t like what you see, another tap changes things again just as fast. This does not happen on the Aura One. It is slow and it is tedious and often I will live with a setting because I get fed up of waiting for the settings to change.

I’m in my 70’s and I think that I should now settle down and stop looking for "perfection" as I suspect this latest Kindle Oasis should see me through. I have thrown much good money after bad in my eternal quest starting many years ago with a Sony PRS [something] and it is now time to settle down with my new Kindle and start enjoying some of the 1000’s of books I have accumulated.

So many books – so little time! ;-/

Henry Wood October 31, 2017 um 1:21 pm

p.s. How could I forget?

(Sorry to reply to my own post … )

Last week I wanted to re-read a book that I already owned in paperback format. (I have great difficulty in handling "physical" books these days due to infirmities.) Indeed, one of the main reasons I started buying e-readers was that I could more capably handle any book of any size. Some "large" books I had bought used to stare down at me from the shelves around my home and they used to wonder,
"Why doesn’t he read me? He paid for me! Why doesn’t he use me?"

One in particular was a huge volume which had been presented to me by my sister one Christmas. It was the hardback edition of "The Kindly Ones" by Jonathan Littell and ran to almost 1,000 pages. It was beyond my physical capabilities to hold it for any length of time even though after I had read the first pages I was determined that somehow I would read this book.

Anyhoo, to return to last week – I wanted to re-read a book by Eric Newby, "The Last Grain Race", and being the skinflint that I am, I first went to Amazon who kindly reminded me that I had already bought a physical copy of this book umpteen years ago and then also listed a Kindle Edition costing £6.49 – hmmmm … £6.49 is a lot of money to an old gadgie like me who is never sure where his next bottle of Scotch might come from, so I went on an online shopping expidition.

There in Google Play Books was the exact same title, exact same price, *BUT* I had a coupon for a £3.00 discount from Google Play Books which I had never used. No brainer! £3.49 I had my book and downloaded it to my Samsung SM-T713 (8 inch) running Nougat 7.0 and I have to say I was *TRULY* impressed!

The Play Books app has all of the refinements of the Kobo Aura One, in particular, the soft nightlight screen which I enjoy reading with, *BUT* it goes even further. The book I mention had a few photos in the old physical edition that I bought years ago, yet this Google Books edition had many, many more interesting photos which only required a double tap on the photo to bring up a huge rendition of same in great detail. These photos alone made the purchase very worthwhile.

So, whilst I’ve never used Google Play Books before in my life, I really must check them when shopping for any future books.

Has anyone else used them, please, and with what results?

(Now that is the end of today’s short stories from me. I am now going to settle down with a glass of smoky Scotch and a book of sea stories, especially a book with good storm descriptions. [Highly recommended – "Typhoon" by Conrad!] )

Steady as she goes! ;-/


Henry Wood October 31, 2017 um 2:23 pm

p.p.s.

Oh dear, this is getting to be a habit …

However, I have just transferred a couple of books to my new Oasis, using Calibre by exporting files of a certain type (azw3) to disc then copying into my "Documents" folder on the new Oasis because Calibre does not yet support the new Oasis, though I am ceertain it very soon will.

Now, although I have been using my Kobo Aura One as my reader of choice for the past few months, almost *EVERY* time I have finished transfers etc., to my Kobo, then *always* carefully disconnecting the USB connection from my Windows 7 computer, then *almost" always a warning comes up next time I re-connect the Aura One: … " this device may have been disconnected improperly, do you want to run a scan on this device … "

I wondered if it was because I was using Calibre to "disconnect this device" but even when I avoided that route and used Windows disconnect, the warning still appeared next time I plujgged in the Aura One.

The first few times I said "OK", go Check, and no faults were found so I got sick of it and just clicked cancel after that. I am talking about this happening 9 times out of 10 with the Aura One and to me it is some fault somewhere in the Kobo software because it "NEVER, EVER, HAPPENS* with any other USB device that I use. I even have a piece of software called "USB Safely Remove", but whether I use that or close that and rely on Windows own "safe remove", this warning almost always appears concerning the Kobo Aura One and *ONLY* with the Kobo Aura One.

So again, why do these things happen on my Kobo Aura One reader but *NEVER, EVER!* on any Kindle I have ever connected to the same PC?

p.s. – I am not now, nor have ever been, employed in any way, shape or form by Amazon Kindle !!! ;-/


dodod October 31, 2017 um 7:50 pm

Yeah, I’m not using Kinde as main reading device right now, but it is true. Their software is the best. It turns on as soon as you press the button, dictionary is the best around, while also being the easiest to use. Only gripe there is that you can’t quickly turn from uk to us one.

As for that "this device may have been disconnected improperly" warning, simply ignore it. It could be that your software is blocking it on the other devices, but I really wouldn’t worry about it. I get it every single time when I connect most of my usb devices. And while I used to check the devices previously, I’ve ignored the message now for years, and I’ve never had a single problem. Just make sure that copying files via usb is complete before you unplug, and you shouldn’t have a problem. It’s a Windows thing. Notice that it says that it may have been disconnected improperly, not that it was in fact disconnected improperly. Again in my case it happens every time when I connect ether Kindle, Pocketbook, or my usb key to my pc, and I don’t use Calibre.


Kindle Oasis Update v5.9.2 Adds Audible Support, Hints at Dual-Core CPU | The Digital Reader October 31, 2017 um 9:51 pm

[…] comparison, the Kobo Aura One, which just got a storage bump yesterday, runs on a single-core i.MX6 […]


Ingo Lembcke, Hamburg November 1, 2017 um 6:10 am

"but I really wouldn’t worry about it. I get it every single time when I connect most of my usb devices. And while I used to check the devices previously, I’ve ignored the message now for years, and I’ve never had a single problem."

You are lucky then, but your advise is wrong. There is a reason for the message, the file-system on the device is still in use and may become corrupted, resulting ins lost files. A suggestion: quit all programs on the computer which may access the device, in the case of the OP Kobo and probably Calibre. Then try to eject the Kobo reader, and look if it happens. If it does not get ejected you should get a message that something is stil using it, may also be more specific which program is still using it. Quit that program also.
On Mac that program may also be Finder, restart the Finder.
On Windows it could be the Explorer, but I am not sure wether you can quit/restart that without additional tools.

Also, just to mention it, on the Mac I have lost data due to that error, and every time it was my fault for not ejecting the device – although it is correct a lot of times nothing bad happens most of the times the message pops up. Another reason for this happening is a lose USB-Port/connection. I still do not like all the different variants USB-a, b, 3 whatever, no locking in like with LAN-cable it is easily to move cable and disconnect it accidentally.
Now having trained myself to wait a few seconds and look for the disappearing icon of the USB-device, it does not happen very often that I get message mentioned.


Kobo Aura One 7.8 inch eReader Unveiled Fro $280 – Webz Site November 1, 2017 um 8:24 am

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Vju November 1, 2017 um 4:47 pm

Almost 50 USD more for 24 GB more storage space? They should at least have upgraded the CPU. The Aura ONE I had was really slow with images in PDFs. Barely even usable, I’d say. I didn’t use it too often, before the screen broke spontaneously. At that time, Kobo had just ceased to sell the device in my country and so it could not be replaced by the merchant. Even though I bought it for a rather good price, I was not too long unhappy about the mere refund. I should have trusted your review about its relative unfitness for PDF consumption. Too bad, that alternatives still didn’t arrive. Screen and coloured light were fine.


Kobo Aura One 7.8 inch eReader Unveiled Fro $280 | Gadgets & Tech News November 2, 2017 um 3:35 am

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