Kobo or Kindle 3

[Vivian]

My experience with Kobo customer support has been top-notch. They have always responded quickly and well. (Same for my cousin, who bought a Kobo.) Clearly, not everyone has that experience and I am coming to suspect that it's the country in which you reside that makes the difference. Perhaps in Canada the customer service is fast and good and in the US it's... not. Does that jibe with other people's experience?

I have to agree that putting the big blue button in the middle would have been much better than putting it to the right. I don't know what they were thinking. It's not just because I'm left handed. It's nice to shift hands sometimes, and then you have to hold it in some weird way in order to reach the button. Too bad they can't fix that with a firmware upgrade.

I like the new dictionary feature, but they've put a serious limitation on it--it only works with books bought at the Kobo store. It doesn't even work with the 100 preloaded books.

The main reason I didn't buy a Kindle was price. The price has come way down since then--probably because of the release of the Kobo--but I still wouldn't get one if it can't read epubs.

[ProfCrash]

I doubt Kobo is considered a serious threat to Amazon's business. The Kindle price dropped following the drop in price of the Nook. The DX price dropped shortly after the IPad was released.

The original Kobo was less expensive because it was lacking features and WiFi or WiFi/3G. The price of the Kobo rose to match the Kindle when it added the WiFi option.

[Pookeysgirl]

Originally Posted by Vivian

My experience with Kobo customer support has been top-notch. They have always responded quickly and well. (Same for my cousin, who bought a Kobo.) Clearly, not everyone has that experience and I am coming to suspect that it's the country in which you reside that makes the difference. Perhaps in Canada the customer service is fast and good and in the US it's... not. Does that jibe with other people's experience?

I have to agree that putting the big blue button in the middle would have been much better than putting it to the right. I don't know what they were thinking. It's not just because I'm left handed. It's nice to shift hands sometimes, and then you have to hold it in some weird way in order to reach the button. Too bad they can't fix that with a firmware upgrade.

I like the new dictionary feature, but they've put a serious limitation on it--it only works with books bought at the Kobo store. It doesn't even work with the 100 preloaded books.

The main reason I didn't buy a Kindle was price. The price has come way down since then--probably because of the release of the Kobo--but I still wouldn't get one if it can't read epubs.

I've had to go through Kobo's customer service a few times. The first time I got an automated response which didn't even address my issue and nothing after that. The second time that I can remember was when the last update was released and the girl I spoke to didn't even know the difference between the wi-fi and original Kobo. The third time was a request I sent in to get a refund on a book that wouldn't load onto my Kobo. Again I received an automated response saying they would get back to me shortly. That was over a month ago. Luckily I managed to get the book in question to work. I've found more support here on MR than I have through Kobo. I'm glad that you had a great experience with them, I wish I could say the same

At the same time, I do love my Kobo. It's simple to use and a good basic reader. My needs have changed, which isn't the Kobos fault.

As far as the price on the Kindle. I went to Amazon's website and ordered the K3 just to see how much I need to save to get one shipped here to Canada and it was the same price I paid for my Kobo...down to a difference of a dollar and change.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Bic

December issue of Consumer Reports rates e-readers (except for Sony, and Nook Color, not available at time of review). Kindle rated the highest with score of 72 (68 for WiFi model, 67 for DX) while Nook scores 56, BeBook 50, Alex 49, Kobo 40, Augen 40.

Sorry, but without rating Sony, the review is worthless. It would be like having Sony in the review and ignoring Amazon.

[Vivian]

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

I doubt Kobo is considered a serious threat to Amazon's business. The Kindle price dropped following the drop in price of the Nook. The DX price dropped shortly after the IPad was released.

The original Kobo was less expensive because it was lacking features and WiFi or WiFi/3G. The price of the Kobo rose to match the Kindle when it added the WiFi option.

Maybe the Nook came down in price because of the Kobo. Kobo was the first ereader to be that cheap (as far as I know) and after it came out, Nook and Kindle lowered in price. Coincidence? Hmmm.

The Kobo did not rise in price when Wi-Fi was introduced, not in Canada anyway. It was $149 when I bought it and it's $149 now. Unfair to us early adopters, I think. We should get some kind of compensation.

Pookiesgirl, I'm sorry to hear your experience with customer service has not been good. Are you in Canada?

I see that there is now a colour Nook. I wonder if that is colour e-Ink or is colour e-Ink still in development?

[ProfCrash]

Kobo was inexpensive because it didn't have WiFi and was missing other features that the Nook and Kindle had. When Kobo added WiFi its price matched that of the Kindle and Nook.

The Kobo in the US was $99 and went to $139 or $149 in the US when the WiFi version was released.

The Nook Color is a LCD screen not an e-ink screen.

[Pookeysgirl]

[QUOTE=Vivian;1320121]Pookiesgirl, I'm sorry to hear your experience with customer service has not been good. Are you in Canada?QUOTE]

Yep, I'm in Ontario...I'm not completely surprised by my experience and I did find other ways of resolving my issues so no real harm done

[dmacmart]

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

The Kobo in the US was $99 and went to $139 or $149 in the US when the WiFi version was released.

Not quite true - Kobo was $149 in the spring, then $129 on sale sometimes; and then discounted to $99 just after the new WiFi version was announced. The WiFi version was then priced at $149 when it came out last fall.

When it first came out, it was $149.99, announced in may for shipping in June in the US. This was much cheaper than the Kindle (2), Nook, and Sony 6" readers at the time.

Nook dropped its price on June 21, and Kindle followed suit with a K2 price drop. The K3 was subsequently released at $139 for the WiFi-only version.

I believe that Kobo prompted this new pricing in eReaders.

[ProfCrash]

Originally Posted by dmacmart

Not quite true - Kobo was $149 in the spring, then $129 on sale sometimes; and then discounted to $99 just after the new WiFi version was announced. The WiFi version was then priced at $149 when it came out last fall.

When it first came out, it was $149.99, announced in may for shipping in June in the US. This was much cheaper than the Kindle (2), Nook, and Sony 6" readers at the time.

Nook dropped its price on June 21, and Kindle followed suit with a K2 price drop. The K3 was subsequently released at $139 for the WiFi-only version.

I believe that Kobo prompted this new pricing in eReaders.

Cool enough. The first time I heard of the Kobo it was selling for $99 and was suppose to be the cheaper e-reader for folks who did not want to pay for a Nook of Kindle. I knew that Amazon followed the Nook on the price drop.

Thanks!

[Vivian]

Thanks for the info, dmacmart! Very detailed. Sounds to me like Kobo was the impetus behind Nook and Kindle's price drop.

[digiSara]

Originally Posted by Vivian

I have to agree that putting the big blue button in the middle would have been much better than putting it to the right. I don't know what they were thinking. It's not just because I'm left handed. It's nice to shift hands sometimes, and then you have to hold it in some weird way in order to reach the button. Too bad they can't fix that with a firmware upgrade.

I'm right-handed and oddly, I find it much more comfortable to hold with my left hand - I have found a position where is balances very comfortably. I must be the only one!

[Todayswheather]

But with the wifi Kobo currently selling for 100 this week.. is it really worth the extra 40-50 bucks to get the Kindle or Nook.. or Sony? I'll likely be using the reader for library books, novels/self-help type books, and the occasional textbook. Pdf support would be nice, but likely not crucial.

[ProfCrash]

Originally Posted by Todayswheather

But with the wifi Kobo currently selling for 100 this week.. is it really worth the extra 40-50 bucks to get the Kindle or Nook.. or Sony? I'll likely be using the reader for library books, novels/self-help type books, and the occasional textbook. Pdf support would be nice, but likely not crucial.

Only you can decide that. The Kindle and Nook offer more. You can highlight, bookmark, take notes, and read PDFs.

The Kobo is a nice bare bones device. If that is what you are looking for then go for it. If you want the other stuff, you will have to pay a bit more money for it.