At the other end of the scale, large font sizes are bold and clear (great for those with impaired vision), although the small size of the screen does mean that longer words don’t fit on a single line. Out of interest I adjusted the text to the smallest possible size and was very impressed by how sharp and readable it was. Kobo Clara (left) and Kobo Glo (right) screens side-by-sideĪt my preferred letter-size setting (text size is highly adjustable) it felt just like reading from a page in a book. The text is crisp, and I mean print-like crisp. While the Glo was always easy to read, the ComfortLightPRO front-lit 300 ppi E-Ink display is a thing of beauty. The first (and most important) difference is in the screen quality. The main differences are on the inside and the key improvements in eReader technology were immediately evident. This is no bad thing – I was fond of the Glo’s form because it was lightweight and very comfortable to hold. The screen is the same size, the bezels are slightly smaller and the Clara HD is noticeably thinner (and a little lighter). The first thing I noticed about the Kobo Clara HD is how similar it looks to my old Kobo Glo. Unlike most disposable technology these days, the purchase of a Kobo is a long-term investment. Like the physical books it has replaced, the simplicity of the Kobo means there isn’t a whole lot that can go wrong and the slow pace of innovation in the eReader domain means there isn’t the incentive to continually upgrade. That is incredible longevity for a battery-powered mobile device! Sure, the battery doesn’t last as long as it used to, but at the same time I still don’t have to plug it in that regularly either. I haven’t needed to replace the Kobo because for eight years it has just worked. Some of these were upgraded because they were obsolete, some died horrible, premature deaths, some were changed because work changed systems and one mobile was bought because an absurd occurrence meant I was actually paid money to make the upgrade. Since the Glo entered our house, I have had six mobile phones, eight laptops, two desktop PCs and a couple of iPads. I now firmly sit in the “eReaders are great!” camp. The screen was easy to read for long periods of time, the weight was perfect and I found it easy to get lost in my books – just as I could with a physical book. Designed for the sole purpose of enjoyable reading, it was a revelation and I haven’t looked back. The Kobo Glo eReader had none of these problems. The screen is not tailored to reading, the light is wrong and the weight of the device quickly becomes noticeable. It’s not just me who feels that way – I am yet to meet a person who sings the praises of eBooks on a multi-purpose device. They seemed to be a do-it-all product, and my thoughts went something along the lines of “why would I want a product with as narrow a focus as an eReader?” Books could be read on tablets, after all.Įxcept, reading books on tablets, laptops or other mobile devices is just not a great experience. To provide a bit of context, it was 2013 and iPads (and other tablets) were still in their infancy. That Kobo product was the Glo, and it didn’t take me long to appreciate what eReaders have to offer. Once upon a time I was one of those people, but my first experience with a Kobo product (many years ago) quickly changed my mind. Some people love them, some people don’t, and many people don’t quite understand why they exist… at least until they use one. For more information, visit my disclosure statement.ĮReaders have been around for quite a while. Any thoughts expressed about Kobo products in this article are based on my own experiences with the devices. Disclosure: Rakuten Kobo provided Blog of Dad with the Kobo Clara HD for the purpose of review and ongoing use.
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