Opinions on the Kobo WiFi from a Kindle 3 owner

twowheels · 03-19-2011, 11:24 PM

I remember seeing the original Kobo and thinking that it looked like cheap crap. That really colored my opinion of the Kobo from then out. Today I was in Border's (one that isn't closing) and played with their display model of the new black wi-fi Kobo and I have to say that I'm VERY impressed. I'm actually very upset that I bought my daughter a cheaper LCD based reader shortly before the price drop -- had I known I wouldn't have bought her a Christmas present and made her wait. :-)

The device feels good in the hand... I did miss the left and right big page turn buttons, but using the pad wasn't too bad. The side navigation buttons felt a little bit out of place for getting to menus and whatnot, but I could learn to get used to that quickly. The fonts looked very nice, much better than I expected, and at least in the store's lighting I couldn't say that the screen was much worse than the Pearl screen on my K3, although I didn't have mine with me to compare side by side. Overall, for $99 it's a very tempting little device. I really liked the header & footer display -- it felt cleaner than the Kindle's and I liked how they displayed progress, though it was lacking overall progress. The book covers in the navigation page were a nice touch, which the K3 is missing, and it's neat how the screensaver image is the cover of the book that you last read.

If I didn't already have my K3 the decision would be very difficult for me (I like saving money), and I'm still kicking myself for that LCD based reader I bought my daughter that she's not very happy with. I almost just bought it on the spot to give to her. :-) If it were $< 70 like some of the closing stores are selling them for I probably would have bought it.

sabredog · 03-20-2011, 09:00 PM

Thanks for the review.

Been using my Kobo now for nearly 10 months with no real issues.

pagansoul · 03-21-2011, 07:47 AM

With Borders closing in most of Georgia I was able to get the WiFi Kobo for $60. It is no way as good as my Kindle3 but for the price (60% off) and the ability to load Library books I figure I can't go wrong. I think the Kobo looks good and reads well but it's slower and less responsive than the Kindle.

03-19-2011, 11:24 PM	#1
twowheels Wizard Posts: 1,790 Karma: 13412766 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: Kobo Clara HD, iPad Pro 10", iPhone 15 Pro	Opinions on the Kobo WiFi from a Kindle 3 owner I remember seeing the original Kobo and thinking that it looked like cheap crap. That really colored my opinion of the Kobo from then out. Today I was in Border's (one that isn't closing) and played with their display model of the new black wi-fi Kobo and I have to say that I'm VERY impressed. I'm actually very upset that I bought my daughter a cheaper LCD based reader shortly before the price drop -- had I known I wouldn't have bought her a Christmas present and made her wait. :-) The device feels good in the hand... I did miss the left and right big page turn buttons, but using the pad wasn't too bad. The side navigation buttons felt a little bit out of place for getting to menus and whatnot, but I could learn to get used to that quickly. The fonts looked very nice, much better than I expected, and at least in the store's lighting I couldn't say that the screen was much worse than the Pearl screen on my K3, although I didn't have mine with me to compare side by side. Overall, for $99 it's a very tempting little device. I really liked the header & footer display -- it felt cleaner than the Kindle's and I liked how they displayed progress, though it was lacking overall progress. The book covers in the navigation page were a nice touch, which the K3 is missing, and it's neat how the screensaver image is the cover of the book that you last read. If I didn't already have my K3 the decision would be very difficult for me (I like saving money), and I'm still kicking myself for that LCD based reader I bought my daughter that she's not very happy with. I almost just bought it on the spot to give to her. :-) If it were $< 70 like some of the closing stores are selling them for I probably would have bought it.

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03-20-2011, 09:00 PM	#2
sabredog Geographically Restricted Posts: 2,629 Karma: 14933353 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Perth, Australia Device: Sony PRS-T3, Kindle Voyage, iPad Air2, Nexus7v2	Thanks for the review. Been using my Kobo now for nearly 10 months with no real issues.

03-21-2011, 07:47 AM	#3
pagansoul Fanatic Posts: 509 Karma: 1098204 Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Earth Device: iPhone5, iPad Gen3, Kobo, Kindle Fire, Kobo Vox. Samsung Galaxy Tab 7	With Borders closing in most of Georgia I was able to get the WiFi Kobo for $60. It is no way as good as my Kindle3 but for the price (60% off) and the ability to load Library books I figure I can't go wrong. I think the Kobo looks good and reads well but it's slower and less responsive than the Kindle.

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