Kobo introduced today a new ebook reader, which is meant to compete with entry level Kindle models, Kobo Nia. It’s priced at $100, which means it’s $10 more than a Kindle. It brings twice as much storage and also doesn’t have annoying ads. Let’s check it out.
Kobo Nia has a higher resolution screen compared to the $90 Kindle. The e-reader packs a 6 inch E Ink Carta display with 1024 x 758 pixel resolution and 212 pixel per inch. There’s a frontlight with adjustable brightness and specs include 8 GB of storage, a 1000 mAh battery and a microUSB port. It offers WiFi 802.11 b/g/n. Of course there’s also the option of a Kobo Clara HD for $120 with a 300 ppi display and a frontlight with adjustable color temperature.
In the meantime, a lesser Kindle entry level model offers lockscreen ads, a 167 ppi display and 4 GB of storage. Nia doesn’t have audiobooks, so you have to settle for ebooks. Kobo also has the advantage of more formats supported than the Kindle: EPUB, MOBI, PDF, HTML, TXT and other formats like CBZ, CBR and image formats like JPEG, GIF, PNG and BMP. On the other hand, the Kobo Clara HD has a painted finish, which the Nia doesn’t. Of course there are plenty of options, like the Amazon Paperwhite, which has as much storage as Nia, offers a 300 ppi screen and also waterproofing. It’s $129 to be honest, but there are often sales, which make it as low as $84.
Kobo Nia is on sale from July 21st and preorders are already available.
