What's up with availability?

[mirage]

Originally Posted by rcentros

In the news section there's an article linked quoting someone at Kobo on the need to diversify vendors so not all manufacturing is from one region. So they're definitely having troubles getting the Kobos manufactured. Still, if Walmart sold the Kobo Clara, they should give more information than the one word, "Delayed." That's horrible customer service.

I hadn't seen that section before, so I found and read the thread you're probably referring to. Thanks for this. That's exactly the kind of information/speculation I was hoping to find. The link to aPublishing Perspectives interview, in which the Kobo CEO partially addresses the supply chain issues was worth reading, even if there wasn't a lot of detail. At least someone is saying something instead of just disappearing altogether. It does confirm pandemic related supply chain issues and the notion that they'll probably want to manufacture in more locations. That's been forecast for a lot of industries since the beginning of the pandemic.

Interesting that at least some of these third party vendors are buying up inventory via bots and scalping it. I wondered how they were operating. All the more reason to avoid them, at least for me.

[mirage]

Originally Posted by rcentros

I agree with you. This whole Walmart/Rakuten Kobo "partnership" seems to be strained. It seems like Walmart is usually the last to get in new stock. When Kobo has sales or introduces a new product. Walmart often delays the Kobo sale on their site (and then, often, keeps it going past the time Kobo returns to the normal price). It's like they're not on the same page. What's weird is that Walmart is the "go to" login for Kobo Books in the U.S. (like they're the official Kobo source in this country) but there doesn't seem to be any coordination between the two. I expected better when this partnership was announced. Maybe Kobo is simply selling more eReaders than they expected and Walmart is a big part of that – I guess that could be the positive spin.

I've got a feeling Walmart simply doesn't know when they'll get Kobo stock. So I wouldn't completely absolve Kobo in this.

Please excuse the double post. rcentros' subsequent posts to my earlier one came while I was posting the one above...

There was a time when I could buy Kobo devices at my neighborhood bookstore. I wish their arrangement for the US were other than through Walmart. The Publishing Perspectives story linked to in the News thread says that Kobo has 10,000 brick and mortar stores selling their devices pre-pandemic. That's probably world-wide and the Walmart stores alone must account for a significant chunk of that. I was thinking Kobo was too small to manage all this, given their distant second fiddle to Amazon status and their not exactly top tier website for the ereaders. But it appears that they're quite a bit bigger than I'd realized. They still have staff working from home. Since they've sold so well recently, I'd guess that most of the support people are working. Why they don't make those support folks more available to the public with more than the most cursory info is kind of strange to me, but my perspective and interest is different than theirs, of course. I'd think that being responsive to the public would help them a lot more than what they're doing now. But maybe they figure they don't need the help.

Maybe I'll order from Kobo or Indigo and forget about the great sale price from Walmart. If it ever shows up, I'll have two. Someone else in the house would use one of them. I'd have already bought a Poke 2 by now because of all this. But they're not available for a few more weeks or more, either.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by mirage

...There was a time when I could buy Kobo devices at my neighborhood bookstore. I wish their arrangement for the US were other than through Walmart. The Publishing Perspectives story linked to in the News thread says that Kobo has 10,000 brick and mortar stores selling their devices pre-pandemic. That's probably world-wide and the Walmart stores alone must account for a significant chunk of that. ...

As far as I know, Walmart no longer has any Kobos in their stores. Some stores did carry the Kobo Aura 2 for a while, but they cleared those out last December and I think that was the end of any in-store Kobo stock.

Rakuten, themselves (separate from Kobo), now has a presence in the U.S. where they sell Kobo products. It looks like their site is designed to compete directly against Amazon and Walmart. And, unlike Walmart, it looks like they have Claras in stock.

https://www.rakuten.com/shop/kobo/pr...iABEgIDFfD_BwE

The Kobo never went on sale at Rakuten, however.

[mirage]

Originally Posted by rcentros

As far as I know, Walmart no longer has any Kobos in their stores. Some stores did carry the Kobo Aura 2 for a while, but they cleared those out last December and I think that was the end of any in-store Kobo stock.

Rakuten, themselves (separate from Kobo), now has a presence in the U.S. where they sell Kobo products. It looks like their site is designed to compete directly against Amazon and Walmart. And, unlike Walmart, it looks like they have Claras in stock.

https://www.rakuten.com/shop/kobo/pr...iABEgIDFfD_BwE

The Kobo never went on sale at Rakuten, however.

I hadn't thought to look through Rakuten's site directly. The bad news—it's $10 more expensive than it is on the Kobo site and shipping is another $7 on top of that. ETA is between June 15-24 which makes me think it would be coming from Canada.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by mirage

I hadn't thought to look through Rakuten's site directly. The bad news—it's $10 more expensive than it is on the Kobo site and shipping is another $7 on top of that. ETA is between June 15-24 which makes me think it would be coming from Canada.

I didn't realize the price was different. I mostly brought it up because it seems Rakuten is in direct competition to Walmart's online business here. So it makes me question how strong the Walmart/Rakuten partnership really is. It seems like Walmart is always running out of Kobo stock while Kobo and Rakuten don't seem to run out.

[mirage]

Originally Posted by rcentros

I didn't realize the price was different. I mostly brought it up because it seems Rakuten is in direct competition to Walmart's online business here. So it makes me question how strong the Walmart/Rakuten partnership really is. It seems like Walmart is always running out of Kobo stock while Kobo and Rakuten don't seem to run out.

Interesting thought.

I notice that, as of today, the Forma and Libra H2O have reappeared on the Walmart site as being available for shipping on June 30 at the standard price. The third party vendors are listed as pricier alternatives instead of the only option. The Clara HD remains available only through third parties.

Does Walmart get a cut of Kobo book sales for accounts registered to devices bought through Walmart?

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by mirage

Does Walmart get a cut of Kobo book sales for accounts registered to devices bought through Walmart?

I assume they do. I don't think they would do it if they didn't. Unless Walmart thought this was a way to compete with Amazon?

[Paperbackstash]

Either way if you already paid for the product, Walmart as the vendor should be able to give you some kind of information about your order status - if it's backordered, they usually refund automatically if they don't know when it will be in. Sounds fishy.

[4691mls]

Originally Posted by rcentros

As far as I know, Walmart no longer has any Kobos in their stores. Some stores did carry the Kobo Aura 2 for a while, but they cleared those out last December and I think that was the end of any in-store Kobo stock.

I never found any Kobos listed as available in my local Walmarts. Seems like a lot of people here on Mobileread reported they never saw any in their local stores either.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by 4691mls

I never found any Kobos listed as available in my local Walmarts. Seems like a lot of people here on Mobileread reported they never saw any in their local stores either.

A couple stores in Texas had them when I was there and, when they went on clearance, I was able to find them at a local Walmart up here in Caldwell, Idaho. They went as low as $15 on clearance. My son has one. Also the OEM covers went on sale for $1, there were two of those, so both of us have one. My Kobo Aura 2, itself, came from Shop Goodwill (it's branded as Kobo / BOL).

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by mirage

• Is the Clara HD still being manufactured?

Yes. There's no indication that the Clara has been discontinued.

• If it is, when will it reappear in the US, which means when will Walmart, as the only true US vendor, have it again?

As the thread in the news section indicates, Kobo is having supply issues due to Coronavirus.

• Why does Walmart have US exclusivity? Or is there no exclusivity? But if there is none, why wouldn't Best Buy, BH Photo Video, Costco, et. al., carry these products?

Kobo used to be sold at Borders until they went belly up. After that, Kobo essentially withdrew from the US market.

Walmart thought they could compete with Amazon by selling Kobos and setting up their own ebookstore. Unfortunately, it appears that Walmart maybe didn't stand behind its commitment. Their efforts seem to be half-hearted.

• Why does Canada have ample inventory while the US doesn't?

As mentioned, Walmart never seemed as committed as they needed to be. They were always running out of the various models of Kobos at the best of times. Usually they would restock quickly. Since the outbreak, things are just worse.

For what it's worth, I ordered my Clara from Walmart. The order was placed on a Tuesday with guaranteed delivery of Thursday. I got it Wednesday instead.

I have a low opinion of Walmart in general, but my experience ordering a Kobo from them was painless and I'd do it again. Right now is just a bad time.

[4691mls]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

For what it's worth, I ordered my Clara from Walmart. The order was placed on a Tuesday with guaranteed delivery of Thursday. I got it Wednesday instead.

That was my experience also (pre-Covid).

[mirage]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

Yes. There's no indication that the Clara has been discontinued.

As the thread in the news section indicates, Kobo is having supply issues due to Coronavirus.

Kobo used to be sold at Borders until they went belly up. After that, Kobo essentially withdrew from the US market.

Walmart thought they could compete with Amazon by selling Kobos and setting up their own ebookstore. Unfortunately, it appears that Walmart maybe didn't stand behind its commitment. Their efforts seem to be half-hearted.

As mentioned, Walmart never seemed as committed as they needed to be. They were always running out of the various models of Kobos at the best of times. Usually they would restock quickly. Since the outbreak, things are just worse.

For what it's worth, I ordered my Clara from Walmart. The order was placed on a Tuesday with guaranteed delivery of Thursday. I got it Wednesday instead.

I have a low opinion of Walmart in general, but my experience ordering a Kobo from them was painless and I'd do it again. Right now is just a bad time.

Thanks for the comments. Reading through that News section thread was informative. Walmart vs. Amazon. That may be one of the few battles where I'm more inclined to pick Amazon.

Too bad things haven't gone well for Kobo in the US. Enough vendors carry multiple brands of electronics that it's sort of strange to me that none carry Kobo products. But there are obviously things going on between those vendors, Kobo, and Amazon that I'm not privy to.

Not knowing when I might see the Clara HD I ordered, I'm starting to consider a Libra H2O or just wait a few weeks and for an Onyx Boox Poke 2 if they're available again by then. The latter's disappearance is probably for similar reasons as that of the Kobo devices at Walmart. I could order the Libra today from Kobo or Indigo, though it would probably be close to a couple of weeks before it shows up. By then, the Libra's arrival at Walmart would be imminent. But no sale price like with my Clara order and avoiding Walmart makes the Canadian approach more appealing, even with the hassles of a potential return.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by mirage

Too bad things haven't gone well for Kobo in the US. Enough vendors carry multiple brands of electronics that it's sort of strange to me that none carry Kobo products. But there are obviously things going on between those vendors, Kobo, and Amazon that I'm not privy to.

Back in the day, ereaders were sold in Best Buy, Target and even Walmart. But when that was common, Kobo wasn't really participating in the US.

And now of course, the only one left is Nook, sold only at Barnes and Noble and Kindle, which I'm pretty sure is only stocked in Best Buy because of all of Amazon's other tech offerings.

Not knowing when I might see the Clara HD I ordered, I'm starting to consider a Libra H2O or just wait a few weeks and for an Onyx Boox Poke 2 if they're available again by then. The latter's disappearance is probably for similar reasons as that of the Kobo devices at Walmart. I could order the Libra today from Kobo or Indigo, though it would probably be close to a couple of weeks before it shows up. By then, the Libra's arrival at Walmart would be imminent. But no sale price like with my Clara order and avoiding Walmart makes the Canadian approach more appealing, even with the hassles of a potential return.

I don't know much about Onyx Boox.

On the Libra vs. Clara I feel your pain on trying to decide if you want it now or if you want to spend wisely.

[mirage]

Walmart US is once again listing the Clara HD at their standard pennies below $120 price with availability supposedly in a week.