Kobo Announces Kobo Glo HD: The Highest Resolution eReader at the Lowest Price

Fall in love with eReading – exclusive to Kobo Glo HD, a toll-free Kobo Welcome concierge service will have readers enjoying their next great book within minutes

TORONTO, April 7, 2015 /CNW/ - Reading takes us on a journey of the imagination and is a great escape -- so say three out of four Canadians in a recent Kobo research study. More than half agree they would like it to be easier to read on the go, during life's real journeys.*

With that in mind, Kobo created and today launched a new eReader aimed at those who put reading at the centre of their lives – the Kobo Glo HD – which offers the highest resolution screen available on the market, at the lowest price. It's a light and ultimately portable way to carry an entire library of up to 3,000 eBooks. With a 300ppi screen that delivers the clearest print-on-paper experience, a low suggested retail price, easy registration, and a concierge service, the Kobo Glo HD is a great option for both print booklovers considering eReading and digital enthusiasts alike.

Kobo Glo HD will be available in black and will retail for $129.99 CAD/USD (MSRP)** online and in-store, starting May 1 in Canada, the US, Australia, and New Zealand; May 22 in France; June 1 in the UK, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, and Spain. Beginning tomorrow, customers can pre-order Kobo Glo HD at Kobo.com in Canada, as well as at select retailers in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and can pre-order as of April 24 in the US at Kobo.com.

Getting started is easy – people can browse, buy, and read their next great book in a matter of minutes. For those looking to get tips on embarking on their eReading journey, the toll-free Kobo Welcome concierge service***, exclusive to Kobo Glo HD, will provide customers with information on getting started, eBook recommendations based on their preferences, and great deals. With a world-class catalogue of more than 4.7 million titles at Kobo.com, ranging from romance to thrillers, biographies and memoirs to business books, non-fiction to literary fiction – Kobo has something for every Reader.

"Kobo Glo HD is the perfect device for the booklover who hasn't made the jump to digital. Our surveys show there is a huge contingent of avid readers who simply haven't tried digital because they love the print experience. We definitely agree there is a lot to love, but also know there are lots of occasions where eReading can actually be more convenient than reading on paper. With that, we know Kobo Glo HD is sure to please any type of reader with a print-on-paper-like screen resolution, highly portable design to carry an entire library while commuting, customizable font options, and instant access to millions of books any time of day," said Michael Tamblyn, President and Chief Content Officer, Kobo.

Kobo continues on its mission to create products, for both hardware and the user experience, to ensure the technology gets out of the way, removing barriers between readers and their favourite stories.

Kobo Glo HD offers the highest-resolution E Ink display currently available. At 300 ppi (1448 x 1072), the 6" Carta E Ink HD touchscreen offers the closest experience to print-on-paper, allowing booklovers to read with crisp clarity. With a built-in ComfortLight, readers will be able to read in the dark without disturbing others with bright bedside lamps. The device's 1GHz processor will ensure that page turns are swift, which means no delay while immersed in a great story. What's more, people will be able to read for days without needing to charge their eReader with a battery that lasts up to two months – based on 30 minutes of reading per day with both the ComfortLight and Wi Fi turned off.

"Kobo stands for readers, and our goal is to continually encourage people to read more, wherever they are," said Takahito Aiki, Chief Executive Officer, Kobo. "Making reading easier has always been central to our strategy, which is why we created eReaders allowing people to enjoy their favourite books in direct sunlight with anti-glare screens, at night without a lamp with front-lit displays, and with Kobo Aura H2O, in the bath or by the pool without worry of damaging the device if accidently dropped in water. With Kobo Glo HD, we now have a high-quality device at a low price point, which we know will be appealing to those wanting to start building their own digital libraries."

FALLING IN LOVE WITH EREADING IS EASY WITH KOBO GLO HD

Below are examples about how Kobo Glo HD can help:

• Carry an entire library in the palm of your hand – gone are the days of having to choose which book to take on vacation or on the daily commute: 4GB of storage means thousands of books on the go. Kobo Glo HD is also one of the lightest devices on the market, weighing 180g (about the same as a sushi roll) and measuring 157 x 115 x 9.2mm – easily portable in a purse or jacket pocket.
• Various font options allow for a highly-customized reading experience: With 11 font styles, 48 size options, as well as exclusive weight and sharpness settings, readers will be able to find exactly what is comfortable for them.
• With Kobo Glo HD, discovering new eBooks is made easy with on-device recommendations based on readers' activity and preferences. Reading Life also gives people the ability to take notes, highlight text, make bookmarks, and track stats to learn more about their own reading habits.

For more information, please visit www.kobo.com.

*This report is based on information and insights obtained from a survey conducted by Edelman's research arm, Edelman Berland, consisting of nine questions that were fielded to a representative sample of the general population. Demographics were inferred by initial screening questions. Approximately 6,000 respondents completed the survey from six different countries (Australia, Canada EN + FR, Italy, France, UK and the Netherlands), with approximately 1,000 respondents per country. For Australia: n=1000, UK: n=1000, France: n=1037, Netherlands: n=1002 and Italy: 1005. In the case of Canada, EN n=782 and FR n=228. Fieldwork was conducted from March 10th, 2015 to March 17th, 2015. The margin of error for the total sample is <3% at the 95% level of confidence.

**MSRP for Australia - $179.99 AUD; New Zealand - $219.99 NZD; UK - £109.99; EU - €129.99.

***Available 9AM-9PM local time, 7 days per week. Service supported in Canada, United States, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal.

About Rakuten Kobo Inc.
Rakuten Kobo Inc. is one of the world's fastest-growing eReading services offering more than 4.7 million eBooks and magazines to millions of customers in 190 countries.  Believing that consumers should have the freedom to read any book on any device, Kobo provides consumers with a choice when reading. Kobo offers an eReader for everyone with a wide variety of E Ink eReaders and Google-Certified Android tablets to suit any reader's style, including the award-winning Kobo Touch™, Kobo Mini, Kobo Glo, Kobo Aura, Kobo Aura HD, Kobo Aura H2O, Kobo Arc, Kobo Arc 7, Kobo Arc 7HD, and Kobo Arc 10HD. Along with the company's free top-ranking eReading apps for Apple®, BlackBerry®, Android®, and Windows®, Kobo ensures the next great read is just a page-turn away. Headquartered in Toronto and owned by Tokyo-based Rakuten, Kobo eReaders can be found in major retail chains around the world.

SOURCE Kobo Inc.

Image with caption: "The Kobo Glo HD offers the highest resolution on the market at the lowest price. Retailing for $129.99, Kobo's newest eReader boasts a 300ppi screen and can hold up to 3,000 eBooks, making the Glo HD a great option for all reading enthusiasts. Available online and in stores May 1. (CNW Group/Kobo Inc.)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20150407_C6092_PHOTO_EN_13969.jpg

Rene d'Entremont, Senior Manager, Public Relations, Rakuten Kobo Inc., 416-977-8737 x3587, [email protected]