Kobo vs. Kindle: Which is the Best e-Book Reader?
Making the Choice
If you are planning to buy an e-Book reader and if you are stuck in choosing between Kobo and Kindle, you need some facts to help you. In this Kindle vs. Kobo battle for your hard-earned money, you have to consider several things to settle on a final choice. The factors to think about include the features you are looking for, the availability of e-Books in your region and, of course, the price. With the following information on hand, you can make an informed decision.
Features
Both devices are pretty much the same when it comes to hardware, as both e-Book readers feature the e-ink screens. In terms of reading experience, they are on equal footing. However, that is where the similarity ends.
First, the Kindle’s Wi-Fi version has a web browser built in while the Kobo Wi-Fi does not. This means you can leverage the Wi-Fi capability of the Kindle to browse the web instead of just using the wireless connection for downloading e-Books. The Kobo’s Wi-Fi connectivity is only good for acquiring new e-Books.
The Kindle also has audio capability, making it an audio player in addition to its e-Book viewing feature. It has speakers and a headphone jack. It even has a text to speech feature that lets you listen to e-Books if you are not in the mood to read them. It supports the MP3 audio format. The Kobo does not have this audio feature. In terms of e-Book format, the Kindle has a wider scope by supporting AZW, MOBI, PRC, PDF and TXT formats while the Kobo only supports the EPUB, TX and PDF formats. In this situation, the Kobo may seem to be the underdog but its ability to support the EPUB format actually gives it a wider scope of selection especially in terms of free e-Books. This is a very important consideration especially if you are a fan of downloading free e-Books. In the Kindle vs. Kobo battle in terms of features, the Kobo beats the Kindle, but only if you do not need audio payback and a web browsing capability.
e-Book Selection
Another important part of this debate is the range of selection for the devices. The Kindle offers you access to Amazon’s e-Book collection, while the Kobo offers the selection from the Kobo eBook Store. The selection you can get from Amazon varies depending on the country you are in. For example, you can get a significantly wider selection of books from Amazon if you are in the United States, but if you are in Canada, you have a wider selection of books from the Kobo store. However, the sheer number of e-Books available on either store can keep you satisfied even if you read several books a day.
Verdict
To end this comparison, let us look at their price tags. You can buy the Kobo eReader for $119.99, while the Kindle with Wi-Fi will cost you $139. Considering the Kindle offers more features, it has more bang for the buck for a $20 price difference. If you just need an e-Book reader for reading e-Books and nothing else, the Kobo is a good choice for its value. However, if you like to do more with your e-Book reader, you can consider the Kindle a much better choice and will not set you back much more at all.
