The hotly anticipated Kobo Touch has arrived in stores and I thought I’d take a few minutes to give a brief review. I’ll compare it to the old Kobo and to the iPad, both of which I’ve used. The biggest concern I had with the new Kobo Touch was whether the page turn speed would improve. It turns out that I had nothing to worry about, it is much better.
Positives:
Improved page turn speed
Slimmer profile and good screen size vs. the old Kobo
It’s as small as a paperback novel but you can carry your whole library with you wherever you go.
Touch functionality to make it easier to use the dictionary.
Added the ability to highlight passages and store them for later use (which I find very useful).
New Kobo Life functionality including reading statistics.
Easy to read due to the e-ink technology. The iPad isn’t a great choice for reading outside because it is back lit.
Feels more like a book in your hand than the iPad does, especially if you buy one of the ‘book’ covers for it. When turned off, the screen defaults to the book cover–again, making it feel closer to carrying a book.
Easier to carry in your purse, or on a plane, than the iPad.
Has the ability to import books in other file types and to borrow books from libraries. Kindle just announced they are working to bring the library borrowing function to their e-reader, but they have not yet moved on allowing readers to import e-books they’ve purchased elsewhere.
Battery Life is phenomenal if you shut it off when you are not reading (vs. sleep mode). It takes a bit longer than I’d like to load the book when you turn the Kobo on, but it’s worth it in being able to go weeks between charges (depending on how much you read…I read about an hour a day, sometimes more). I’ve found this extremely convenient when traveling. On the other hand, my iPad needs to be charged on almost a daily basis–in fairness, I use it for more than just reading.
Negatives:
Fingerprints on the screen. This seems to be less noticeable on the iPad than the Kobo Touch. My guess is that it’s due to the Kobo not being back lit.
Single use gadget, unlike the iPad (I don’t consider this a negative, but some people would)
Only has a black and white screen. As a result, the iPad is, by far, the better choice for reading magazines in e-format.
Overall, the Kobo Touch is a significant improvement over it’s predeccessor and my preferred choice of an e-reader (e.g. when compared to Kindle, Sony, etc).
The choice to purchase an iPad over the Kobo Touch is really dependent on what you are looking for in a device. I’m a fan of single-purpose devices that do what they are supposed to do very well. That is the case with the Kobo Touch. However, if you are looking for something that will do more than just allow you to read books, and you don’t mind the higher price (iPad starts at $519 and goes up from there, Kobo Touch is $139) then the iPad may be for you.
If you haven’t seen it yet, Broadsheet press has posted a very cool video as part of a contest to win tickets to their fundraiser on June 30. How many Canadian authors can you pick out of the video?
Jessica Westhead, a writer and editor from Toronto, has been named the Writer in Residence for Open Book Toronto. Her work has been published in some of the most prestigious Canadian Literary magazines. Her collection of short stories titled “And Also Sharks” was published in 2011 by Cormorant Books.
She’s put together a great list called Jessica’s Writerly Items on the Open Book Toronto website that I recommend you check out. She shares great suggestions for books and links targeted to writers.
One of my favorite web finds recently is Sarah Selecky’s website. Canadian’s who follow the Giller Prize will already know that her collection of short stories “This Cake is for The Party” was shortlisted in 2011. I read the collection and loved it.
What I didn’t realize is that Sarah, like many other authors, is also a teacher. Her courses are specific to the short story format, if that is what interests you. They are reasonably priced vs. others that I’ve seen offered. Some are in class courses, but she does offer some of them by correspondence. She also provides great free content on her website. Sign up for her newsletter and you’ll receive an e-book called the Ten Biggest Mistakes Short Story Writers Make. She should know what makes a story work. She’s been a juror for the Journey Prize and for the Toronto Star Short Fiction contest. She’s read thousands of short stories and knows what makes one stand out from the rest. You’ll also get advance notification of upcoming courses via her newsletter. Her courses are small and often sell out, so this is an advantage.
I love her philosophy…write what you want to read. Who can argue with that?
I’m pretty excited that Kobo finally took my advice and are releasing a ‘touch’ version of the e-reading device. (Ok, so my email a month ago to Kobo asking for a faster processor, a touch screen and the ability to highlight passages and save them PROBABLY isn’t the inspiration for this device…they were PROBABLY already developing it, but I’m going to take the credit anyway ’cause that’s just the kind of girl I am.)
It arrives mid-June and my husband has already placed “dibs” on my current Kobo…so I guess I won’t be getting that $50 for it on eBay after all…
If you haven’t found it already, I highly recommend that you check out Ryeberg Curated Videos. It’s an online magazine that features essays written by artists, writers and thinkers. The critical point is that the essays on Ryeberg frame the content of videos chosen by the Curators as their starting point.
Random musings about writing fiction, reading fiction and living (in reality).
"The older we get, the more...you realize there's a whole range of things you will never do, of things and people you will never be. As life becomes more and more limiting, there is something wonderful about being able to get inside the skin of people unlike yourself." ~Lee Smith
