Kobo Aura HD and Kobo Aura: Which is best?

Rizla · 09-19-2013, 11:56 AM

Which is the best of the two?

Things that interest me are
1) Stability of software.
2) Customization. The ability to add fonts and stuff like that. Things like that installing Linux also interest me, but only a bit. (See point about night-vision mode below)
3) Light. It must be good and low in a pitch-black room. (Ideally I'd also like night-vision mode i.e. white lettering on black background. I think the Kobo Glo had a hack for this.)
4) Case and its cost. I don't want to spend 60 bucks on a case.
5) Screen resolution. Is the HD screen better than the new screen?

I don't care about portability or size. The extra size would be fun, I guess, but it's not a priority. It's more about the screen, light and software (stability and customization).

I've seen the HD and was impressed. I've yet to see a Kobo Aura non-HD.

ottdmk · 09-19-2013, 01:33 PM

Well, the Aura is pretty new. Over on the Kobo forums people are just starting to get their hands on one.

1) I have found the Kobo Software to be fairly stable. There are a few bugs here and there, but nothing that particularly bothers me. Your mileage may vary. The Aura currently has a newer firmware then the Aura HD, but it's known that Kobo intends to run the same firmware on the Aura, Aura HD & Glo moving forward.

2) As far as font customization, Kobo is the world leader as far as I know. Installing new fonts is fairly simple; the only technical gotcha is that you have to name the font files according to the naming scheme Kobo expects. There are directions on the Kobo forum. All Kobos are equal in this respect.

3) Early reviews suggest that the lighting on the Aura is slightly better then the Aura HD... but the Aura HD was already considered best in class.

4) Can't help you here. Never researched cases.

5) The Aura HD's screen resolution blows the Aura (and everything else) out of the water. The Aura has an identical resolution to the Glo, Kindle Paperwhite (both versions), Sony T3, etc.

robko · 09-19-2013, 06:27 PM

Ditto what Ottdmk said.

In terms of deciding between them, screen size/resolution, weight (Aura HD is just a hair heavier than I'd ideally like), and IR vs capacitive touch are really the deciding factors based on your preferences.

Rizla · 09-20-2013, 07:33 AM

Thanks for the info. Yes, I was pretty surprised at how good the font system is on the Kobo. The nickel font is maybe the only font I've seen that is better than Caecilia. And yes, the HD screen is the best I've seen by far. and the lighting too! For me personally, it comes down to how much can I customise (like root), but I appreciate that's a minority concern. I will watch and see what the developer community comes up with.

robko · 09-20-2013, 02:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rizla

I will watch and see what the developer community comes up with.

Check out the developer subforum in the Kobo forum. I don't really frequent it, but there seems to be a lot of development happening. The hack developed should work on the Aura 6" as well at the older devices since they are essentially using the same base firmware (you don't need to wait for new development specifically for the new Aura).

ectoplasm · 09-22-2013, 10:50 PM

I can't comment on the new Aura, but regarding the HD, I find it is displacing my tablet, particularly for low light reading. I also think the high DPI helps with things like italics and curly quotes, giving them more definition. For what it's worth, I decided to order a second one as a backup

I wouldn't mind having an additional reader of the same type, only bigger.

09-19-2013, 11:56 AM	#1
Rizla Member Retired Posts: 3,183 Karma: 11721895 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: Nook STR (rooted) & Sony T2	Kobo Aura HD and Kobo Aura: Which is best? Which is the best of the two? Things that interest me are 1) Stability of software. 2) Customization. The ability to add fonts and stuff like that. Things like that installing Linux also interest me, but only a bit. (See point about night-vision mode below) 3) Light. It must be good and low in a pitch-black room. (Ideally I'd also like night-vision mode i.e. white lettering on black background. I think the Kobo Glo had a hack for this.) 4) Case and its cost. I don't want to spend 60 bucks on a case. 5) Screen resolution. Is the HD screen better than the new screen? I don't care about portability or size. The extra size would be fun, I guess, but it's not a priority. It's more about the screen, light and software (stability and customization). I've seen the HD and was impressed. I've yet to see a Kobo Aura non-HD.

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09-19-2013, 01:33 PM	#2
ottdmk Wizard Posts: 1,197 Karma: 3765734 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Device: Kobo Libra 2, Lenovo Tab M10 FHD Plus, Lenovo Tab M8 HD	Well, the Aura is pretty new. Over on the Kobo forums people are just starting to get their hands on one. 1) I have found the Kobo Software to be fairly stable. There are a few bugs here and there, but nothing that particularly bothers me. Your mileage may vary. The Aura currently has a newer firmware then the Aura HD, but it's known that Kobo intends to run the same firmware on the Aura, Aura HD & Glo moving forward. 2) As far as font customization, Kobo is the world leader as far as I know. Installing new fonts is fairly simple; the only technical gotcha is that you have to name the font files according to the naming scheme Kobo expects. There are directions on the Kobo forum. All Kobos are equal in this respect. 3) Early reviews suggest that the lighting on the Aura is slightly better then the Aura HD... but the Aura HD was already considered best in class. 4) Can't help you here. Never researched cases. 5) The Aura HD's screen resolution blows the Aura (and everything else) out of the water. The Aura has an identical resolution to the Glo, Kindle Paperwhite (both versions), Sony T3, etc.

09-19-2013, 06:27 PM	#3
robko Wizard Posts: 2,454 Karma: 5469320 Join Date: Jul 2010 Device: Kobo	Ditto what Ottdmk said. In terms of deciding between them, screen size/resolution, weight (Aura HD is just a hair heavier than I'd ideally like), and IR vs capacitive touch are really the deciding factors based on your preferences.

09-20-2013, 07:33 AM	#4
Rizla Member Retired Posts: 3,183 Karma: 11721895 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: Nook STR (rooted) & Sony T2	Thanks for the info. Yes, I was pretty surprised at how good the font system is on the Kobo. The nickel font is maybe the only font I've seen that is better than Caecilia. And yes, the HD screen is the best I've seen by far. and the lighting too! For me personally, it comes down to how much can I customise (like root), but I appreciate that's a minority concern. I will watch and see what the developer community comes up with.

09-22-2013, 10:50 PM	#6
ectoplasm Addict Posts: 255 Karma: 1151364 Join Date: Aug 2009 Device: Aura HD and H2O	I can't comment on the new Aura, but regarding the HD, I find it is displacing my tablet, particularly for low light reading. I also think the high DPI helps with things like italics and curly quotes, giving them more definition. For what it's worth, I decided to order a second one as a backup I wouldn't mind having an additional reader of the same type, only bigger.

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