Is the Sage Discontinued?

[enuddleyarbl]

I can find nothing about this, but is the Sage discontinued? Both the listing on the Kobo site and on Amazon have them as being out of stock. I'm hoping for a replacement 8" model for the Sage, but, again, can find nothing. Not even anything on the FCC site.

[salamanderjuice]

It's still in stock on the Kobo Canada website as well as indigo.ca and in store.

[issybird]

It could be a tariff issue.

[enuddleyarbl]

Since it is available in Canada, I was thinking the same thing. Bummer. I was hoping the out-of-stockness was an indication of a replacement device.

[Quoth]

In stock Amazon UK, DE and IE.
In stock Kobo UK and IE.

[enuddleyarbl]

Well, it's been 1-1/2 months since I started this thread and the Sage is still out of stock on the Kobo web site. Some random searching of the internet shows people noting it's been out of stock in the US since May. However, it looks like it's available from 3rd party sellers on Amazon and Walmart.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by enuddleyarbl

Well, it's been 1-1/2 months since I started this thread and the Sage is still out of stock on the Kobo web site. Some random searching of the internet shows people noting it's been out of stock in the US since May. However, it looks like it's available from 3rd party sellers on Amazon and Walmart.

The Sage is sold out in the US store but available in the UK store.

The Sage is available from the Kobo Store at Amazon US.

[enuddleyarbl]

The Sage is LISTED in the Kobo Store at Amazon US. But, clicking on the listing currently goes to a product page where the Sage is sold and shipped by Triplenet Pricing INC (part of the joy of buying from Amazon). And, they're selling it for $406.28 instead of the theoretical list price of $269.99 on the (out of stock) Kobo web page.

I don't follow the news, but it looks like a 145% tariff started on May 2, 2025 on these things. That pops the price up near that $406 price. But, if Kobo is still selling the Sage, why doesn't it show on the Kobo US site? And, if tariffs apply, why are their other ereaders still for sale at (I think) the old prices?

EDIT 1: I was wondering if the tariffs were added on to the Kobo list price during the checkout process from their site. But, I just stuck a Libra Colour into my cart and gave it my address: shipping was free and taxes were about $15. So, that's not what's going on.

EDIT 2: Also, on the Amazon page for the Sage, there's a Kobo eReader Comparison Chart. Except for the Sage, the prices there match what are on the Kobo site fairly closely. And, they're sold by either Kobo, itself, or Blue Proton (which, I think, is Kobo's official reseller/distributor in the US).

[MGlitch]

Not sure if it’s a new or limited time thing but the Sage cover on Kobos site has a pretty big sale right now.

Maybe they’re discontinued but other countries haven’t sold out of back stock yet

[DNSB]

As far as I can tell from checking the various Kobo national sites, the only one that shows the Sage as sold out is the US site. As mentioned, this might be due to the tariff situation. OTOH, the Canadian site shows the sleep cover as sold out but the power cover is in stock for the sleep cover's price.

[enuddleyarbl]

I started up a Chat on the Kobo site and got the following when I asked if the Sage had been discontinued (bold added by me):

Hi,
​
Thank you for contacting Rakuten Kobo.
We sincerely apologize if you have encountered any issues with your device. We truly appreciate your efforts in troubleshooting and trying to resolve the problem. Your satisfaction is our priority, and we're committed to getting this right for you.
Upon checking, Kobo Sage is one of our devices that had been discontinued. Rakuten Kobo is committed to providing the best possible reading experience, which means keeping up with the latest in eReader technology and up to date internet security protocols. As is common with consumer electronics, some of our earliest products have been discontinued and no longer connect or communicate with the Rakuten Kobo eReading platform. We have shifted our focus to the continued software innovation and a regular security update cadence for our current lineup of eReaders, as well as enhancements for future devices.
In this case, we will offer you a device discount code that you can use when purchasing a new device at a lower price. Let us know if you are interested and we can definitely generate a discount code for you.
Yasmine • Just now

EDIT: I asked if they had any plans for a new 8" ereader model, and got back a generic market-speak non-answer saying:

... At this time, we do not have any updates on upcoming releases. Our team is constantly working on improving our products and services, but we cannot confirm any new models at this moment....

[Sirtel]

I'm not sure it's true, despite what the CS rep said. Often they have no clue whatsoever.

[enuddleyarbl]

I was very surprised when she actually responded with that flat-out statement about the Sage being discontinued. I fully expected the kind of marketing-speak non-answer for that question that I got when I asked about a replacement model. I hope she doesn't get in trouble for saying that.

EDIT: OTOH, I was under the impression that the people in those chat sessions don't say anything that's not in their scripts. And, that answer actually reads like a script. So, maybe that's the official answer, but nobody's actually asked the question of them since they allowed it out.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

I'm not sure it's true, despite what the CS rep said. Often they have no clue whatsoever.

And if it's an AI, the answers are even less reliable.

CS only follows a script.

Edit:

Still on UK and EU stores.