New Kobo coming? Which?

[chrisridd]

Originally Posted by Calenorn

The website listings state "Colour Black" and "BW Black." Colour / BW screen and black bezel?

That's how I'd interpret it too.

[RowdyRuff]

Originally Posted by Quoth

The question is what does CK mean at the end of an SKU, if the listings are correct?
See https://sourceit.com.sg/search?type=product&q=Kobo

I searched generally and even the IR touch Aura H2O ends in EP, but the two Elipsa models end in BU. The Sage and Libra 2 end in EP.

e.g. SKU N250-KU-BK-K-EP Kobo Aura H20 Black

...

Does CK mean colour screen or something else?

[* There seems no rhyme or reason to the three digits.]

I'm thinking that CK refers to 'Colour-Kaleido', which to me suggests that Kobo maybe developing other (larger) readers with a different colour screen technology..

[chrisridd]

Originally Posted by DNSB

No. I've seen a couple of references to it as being higher contrast and speed compared to a Carta 1300 but not much else. The release data was suggested as Q1/Q2 2024.

edit: This was from reports on a Taiwanese tech show if I recall correctly.

Even finding a reference to the Carta 1300 displays is damn near impossible even on EInk's site. The one module that was available in their online store has now disappeared without even a Not available. All that seems to remain are claims scattered around the Internet that the Carta 1300 displays are 27% faster with 20% higher contrast than the Carta 1200 displays.

I think those claims are rehashes of an E-Ink press release - obviously not on their website because why would you - and I'm suspicious what they're comparing against. 27% faster than the OG Carta, perhaps, which just makes it incrementally better than Carta 1200.

[Quoth]

And the higher contrast was with integrated touch layers on the eink panel compared with unidentified separate touch panel. Probably a few percent is more realistic.
Marketing material claims unverified by 3rd party testing and not clearly identifying the comparison part are nearly worthless.

[DenS]

Does anyone have any idea when this will be announced? I'm thinking of buying a Kobo. My first Kobo.
I hope they don't leave the screen flush with the frame of the device, as that seems to make the screen more reflective.

[Quoth]

No. Sometime in 2024. There are three models probably coming this year:
N428
N365
N367

No-one really knows what they are.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by RowdyRuff

I'm thinking that CK refers to 'Colour-Kaleido', which to me suggests that Kobo maybe developing other (larger) readers with a different colour screen technology..

What other colour screen technology? Triton is too dark, though better colour saturation. It's a 3 stripe layout.
Kaleido has pastel shades to be not as terribly dark and a 2 by 2 layout, so resolution is half in both directions.
Qualcomm's Mirasol seems dead.
The C Y M subtractive cell ACEP is x10 too slow for an ereader.

The only other colour things are CRTs, Plasma, VFD (low resolution in every sense) OLED (really electroluminescent), real LEDs (x20 or more cost), LCD (mono with a colour filter) and QLED (LCD with red and green quantum dots, blue back light and no colour filter), DLP (projection) and laser with drum/mirrors like a copier turned into a superhero.

Existing model skus I've found:
N204-KBO-B Aura HD
N613-KBO-B Glo

N514-KU-BK-K-EP Aura
N236-KU-BK-K-EP Aura Edition 2 (Or is this a 2nd H2O?)
N250-KU-BK-K-EP Aura H20 Black (Original)
N437-KU-BK-K-EP Glo HD
N782-KU-BK-K-EP Forma
N306-KU-BK-K-EP Nia Black
N506-KU-OB-K-EP Clara 2E Deep Ocean Blue
N249-KU-BK-K-EP Clara HD Black
N418-KU-BK-K-EP Libra 2 Black
N418-KU-WH-K-EP Libra 2 White
N778-KU-BK-K-EP Sage Black (Original?)
N604-KU-BK-K-BU Elipsa
N605-KU-BK-K-BU Elipsa 2E

So if CK is Color Kaleido, what is EP, BU and B?
Note the Sage N778-KU-BK-K-EP is is similar to the Elipsa models using the same digitiser. The N418-KU-xx-K-EP Libra 2* models seem to have a digitiser (Sketch works with pen, but no noteboooks). The EP might be for Electrophoretic Display, which is what all the eink panels are (not 100% sure about (AECP). But the Elispa models end in BU and some in B.


[* The two letter code at xx so far is case/bezel colour]


I don't have SKUs for
N873 Libra H20
N867 Aura H2O Edition 2 (There are two versions).
N905 Touch (Oldest with FW support).
N905B Touch
N905C Touch
N709 Aura ONE
N587 Touch 2.0
N705 Mini
N416 Original
N647 Wireless
N47B Wireless
N778K Second version of Sage.


The digits after the initial N seem mostly random. Elipsa N604 and Elipsa 2 is N605, but the two Libra models are N873 (original) and N418 (version 2).

Six models have Aura in the name.

Four models have H2O in the name.
There is an original Aura H2O (N250 2014), then two later revised H2O both called edition 2 and different FW. One is N876 (2017). Then the original Libra (N873 2019) was actually the Libra H2O. The Libra 2 (N418) was released in 2021.

The ancient Kobo Wireless mysteriously is both an N647 and an N47B, so far as I can tell.

Is there any logic to Kobo names or part numbers? I think CK could mean anything. It could be Color Kaleido (which is superfluous as the only currently nearly viable colour eink is Kaleido and Kaleido screens are all colour).
I think 7″ and 6″ eink color are even more pointless than the larger ones, and color eink seems nearly pointless at any size. I'd hate to see Kobo make such a mistake.

See https://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/Kobo
Current and old FW https://pgaskin.net/KoboStuff/kobofirmware.html
Indentification https://help.kobo.com/hc/en-us/artic...or-Kobo-tablet
Wikipedia Kobo List with specs https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kobo_eReader


We'll know what they are when they are on sale

[futurekoboreader]

Originally Posted by Quoth

We'll know what they are when they are on sale

Perfect summary of this thread

[Uncle Robin]

If the new Kobos are all going to be colour devices, that'll save me some dosh

[lensmann]

Originally Posted by Quoth

Is there any logic to Kobo names or part numbers? I think CK could mean anything.

I'm betting on a tie-up with the rugby team of the Cook Islands (TLD: .ck). Or possibly a Calvin Klein-branded special edition.

Originally Posted by Quoth

I think 7″ and 6″ eink color are even more pointless than the larger ones, and color eink seems nearly pointless at any size.

Colour e-ink screens are useful if you work with files that have graphs, charts, or figures. Even the washed-out shades that Kaleido screens currently provide are quite serviceable for that use-case. Boox's marketing for its color e-readers has more images of business-style uses than it does of manga or comics, and I've been tempted to buy one myself just to stop having to reach for a computer everytime I come across a chart in a file I'm reading. But I agree that a colour e-ink screen that is 7" or smaller would have too low a resolution to be of much use.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by lensmann

I'm betting on a tie-up with the rugby team of the Cook Islands (TLD: .ck). Or possibly a Calvin Klein-branded special edition.


Colour e-ink screens are useful if you work with files that have graphs, charts, or figures. Even the washed-out shades that Kaleido screens currently provide are quite serviceable for that use-case.

But rubbish and far more expensive compared to a matt surface LCD tablet. The LCD Eye strain etc is purely due to combination of reflections on shiny screens and having it brighter than ambient. You can't use colour eink without the front light and the resolution is much poorer.
The color eink is a niche gimmick only good for comics that are like 1930s pulp quality.

The Boox website has unrealistic images.

[Pjama]

Originally Posted by Quoth

Existing model skus I've found:
N204-KBO-B Aura HD
N613-KBO-B Glo

N514-KU-BK-K-EP Aura
N236-KU-BK-K-EP Aura Edition 2 (Or is this a 2nd H2O?)
N250-KU-BK-K-EP Aura H20 Black (Original)
N437-KU-BK-K-EP Glo HD
N782-KU-BK-K-EP Forma
N306-KU-BK-K-EP Nia Black
N506-KU-OB-K-EP Clara 2E Deep Ocean Blue
N249-KU-BK-K-EP Clara HD Black
N418-KU-BK-K-EP Libra 2 Black
N418-KU-WH-K-EP Libra 2 White
N778-KU-BK-K-EP Sage Black (Original?)
N604-KU-BK-K-BU Elipsa
N605-KU-BK-K-BU Elipsa 2E

So if CK is Color Kaleido, what is EP, BU and B?
Note the Sage N778-KU-BK-K-EP is is similar to the Elipsa models using the same digitiser. The N418-KU-xx-K-EP Libra 2* models seem to have a digitiser (Sketch works with pen, but no noteboooks). The EP might be for Electrophoretic Display, which is what all the eink panels are (not 100% sure about (AECP). But the Elispa models end in BU and some in B.

Maybe EP = ePub? As in epub reader?
Or electronic paper?
Or ereader pocket (syntax doesn’t make sense in English but may in the origin country).

B in aura and glo might simply be book?

And BU = big unit

[Quoth]

Kobo is allegedly a deliberate anagram of booK.

Originally Posted by Pjama

Or ereader pocket (syntax doesn’t make sense in English but may in the origin country).

B in aura and glo might simply be book?

And BU = big unit

Kobo is Canadian, maybe originally owned by a book retailer, now owned by Rakuten of Japan. They also own Viber.

BU = Big Unit makes as much sense as anything.

[ottdmk]

Kobo was originally owned by Chapters-Indigo, but they spun it off into its own company. It was bought by Rakuten in 2012. It is still headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

[lensmann]

Originally Posted by Quoth

But rubbish and far more expensive compared to a matt surface LCD tablet. The LCD Eye strain etc is purely due to combination of reflections on shiny screens and having it brighter than ambient. You can't use colour eink without the front light and the resolution is much poorer.
The color eink is a niche gimmick only good for comics that are like 1930s pulp quality.

The Boox website has unrealistic images.

Thanks Quoth. My issues arise from looking into a light source. I can't really read for a long time unless the light source is behind rather than in front of me. Matt screens definitely help, but they don't fix the issue. I suspected the Boox promotional images were somewhat optimistic - this is largely why I haven't bought one. It looks like I'll be sticking to an older, tried-and-tested technology for now, namely, paper print-outs.