Kobo Libra Colour eReader, 7” Color E Ink, Waterproof, White

Since I already have other types of e-reader, I didn't technically need another one. What prompted this purchase was: longer battery life of Kobo, lower price, small size, audio book capability, and the most important features of color e-ink and stylus that can be used to hand write notes. The text is not as sharp as my iPad, but it's adjustable for size and font, bright enough, and fine for me. The color, while not strictly necessary, is enjoyable and makes notes more fun. I even did some simple color sketching and mind maps with the Kobo notepad app. My ipad does most of the desired features better of course (plus has a zillion apps), but is too expensive and too large for me to just take it everywhere in my pocket, purse, or small backpack. (I am also getting tired of operating systems that nag me to be signed in all the time. ) Even better, I found that I really use the feature where I can connect the Kobo to my Macbook and side load PDF or text files, without having to use a proprietary system (yes, I know how to do this with ipads and kindle email). I expect to use this feature to personalize the material that I am able to quickly install on the Kobo, such as business data, teaching materials, etc. It won't replace my iPad, but sometimes what matters is the device that is actually with you, and ready to go. I wish the Kobo had more memory, or was able to install an external memory card, but I can live with that limitation. Buying books on the Kobo website is also easy, they have a pretty good sale section, a subscription service similar to Kindle unlimited, and some of their books are DRM-free.

EDIT: Previously, I mistakenly stated that this has no security, but it does in the form of a PIN. I've updated my review to reflect that, and bumped it up to 5 stars This is my first eReader so I have no comparison of performance compared to others. I'll list the cons first in case there are any deal-breakers for people, then they can stop reading and look for something else. Cons: -No SD/microSD slot -No NAS drive option -No headphone jack -Will get you addicted to reading Neutrals: -Looks like something from old Star Trek Pros: -Clear, readable text -Decent Colour -Readable in blinding sunlight -Super lightweight -Great battery life -Supports Google Drive, Overdrive & Dropbox -Probably won't shatter when you drop it Despite a few drawbacks, I still greatly enjoy this eReader. I don't foresee myself needing more than 32GB of storage for books, as I'm not an audio book guy (yet), and even so, I can transfer anything from my laptop to the Libra anyway. But still, I do have a NAS drive and microSD cards lying around, so being able to use those would've been a nice feature for peace of mind and feeling like I didn't overspend on tech stuff (lol). Maybe one day we'll get an OTA update that let's us use NAS drives. Now for the cool stuff! I wasn't completely sold on an eReader since I already have a tablet, but I decided to buy one anyway to see what the fuss is about, and I ultimately still love this thing. It's incredibly light and doesn't tire my hands like a tablet or a book, and being able to fit so many books onto something so small still wows me. Dang it, I just love technology! Syncing this with Google Drive just makes things even better. I've never dropped this thing but it looks a lot more durable than a glass phone, or even a tablet, and I'm confident it can survive a few drops. If you're someone who frequently drops stuff, I'd still buy a case for the aesthetic, if anything- this looks like it was designed by the same people who designed Star Trek Voyager computers. But maybe that's the case for all eReaders, no pun intended. Thanks to my allergies, I dislike going outside, but I did bother to test it in direct, blinding, sunburnable light and the brightness still makes things more than readable. If you're someone who likes to pretend they're a White Lotus character and reads on the beach with sunglasses and a wide-brimmed hat, this can be a part of your prop arsenal. Personally, I like to read in bed before I go to sleep and I haven't dropped it on my face yet. As far as colour is concerned, it doesn't look as nice as my tablet or phone, but maybe that's asking too much. Apparently, colour eReaders are a mindblowing new thing so it might wow you. I haven't fully converted and sub'd to their book shop, so I can't comment on the experience there; I still have my Kindle Unlimited sub still active and may also buy a Kindle to see how the experience compares. I do notice that the Kindle app on my tablet tries to sell me new books hardcore and is way more in my face than this shop's. Despite that, I might end up with two book subs since it's current_Year and everyone has 10 streaming subs anyway. Carrying around two eReaders is definitely not as physically demanding as carrying two thick books. If you have the expendable income, why not have the best of both worlds? In short, this Libra Colour is gas. I've reconnected to my nerdy childhood and I'm reading tonnes more thanks to it. For anyone who loves reading, this is an amazing experience with ridiculous battery life compared to a phone or tablet, and won't strain your eyes. 5 Ryan Reynolds'!

The best ereader I have ever owned! I love the buttons! I had an oasis for a long time till it went to heck. This is so much better! Lightweight! Comfortable in hand! You can rotate however ya want and it adjusts with you. Its only been a few weeks but battery life is fantastic! Even compared to the kindle colorsoft. Also the color is better on the kobo. I cant transfer my kindle books which totally sucks but not kobos fault. I havent even tried the notepad but heck thats a super bonus. This is the way to go for the ultimate ereader!!

The #1 thing I like about this is that it's not an Amazon product & there's no sign of Kindle Unlimited. When buying an ebook from Kobo you are still just purchasing a license. It is in their terms of sale. It is a decent size and lightweight. I have a Kindle Fire 7 generation 9. The Kobo is lighter and easier on the eyes. I like that it comes in white. The color is lovely. Very nice for book covers, illustrations, comics, etc. Yes - it does look washed out sometimes compared to a printed page or phone screen. Doesn't work so well for something like a quilting pattern book where you might want to see the colors more vividly (you could use the app on a phone or tablet for that). The screen brightness is decent. Battery lasts several days. I like having room on the side to hold the ereader, and the option of using the buttons. I also like where the power button is located. There is the option of audiobooks on the ereader, but no speaker, so you must use bluetooth to listen from the ereader. I really like the integration of dropbox & overdrive. Makes it so convenient to access books from multiple sources. I really like being able to see, within the store, if a book I'm interested in is available to borrow. You can't browse the library with Overdrive, though. Within the Kobo shopping experience there are places where you have the option to buy a book, but it doesn't show a price. That is a little annoying. There are a lot of things about this ereader to love & some things that could be a little better. It is a little expensive. I hope to get a lot of use out of it for a long time.

Without getting nasty about a certain near-monopoly ebook seller’s practices, I can’t really say why I switched. I’ll just say that I’ve had a Kobo account since Sony abandoned the U.S. market and they automatically transferred my library to Kobo. Since then, I have only rarely used it for reading, but I had their $10/month audiobook credit membership for a while, so, I have a good start on a library. The Libra Color is thoughtfully designed, inside and out. All the major components are replaceable, if necessary. The user interface is, by far, the most intuitive and organized one I’ve ever used (including ones I customized). I’m not generally a fan of color e-ink screens. There have been measurable improvements with each generation, but not as many noticeable improvements. Even the impressive jump from 100 to 150 PPI color, pales in comparison to black and white’s 300 PPI clarity. But, the Libra Color does a good job with optimizing its color screen. It provides a powerful backlight that really compensates for the dark screen’s low base contrast and they managed to un-muddy the colors. I think it looks pretty nice. The trade off is that the extra brightness uses a lot of power, and the device will need frequent charging. However, I’ve been binge reading like it’s my one job, and my battery is still going strong. I have to say the Overdrive Library integration is incredible. It’s so easy to search for a book and have the option to buy or borrow it (or place a hold). It’s just seamless from start to finish. And when a book expires, a preview of it lives on in your archive so you can organize it in a collection, re-borrow or buy it quickly and easily. I also appreciate that Kobo doesn’t bombard me with ads or marginally relevant recommendations as soon as I turn it on. The Home Screen is properly filled with sections showing: my most recently opened books, my newest acquisitions, a changing preview of a relevant collection or series, and links to my public library. When I want recommendations, the Discover tab is well-organized with personalized recommendations, my wish list, deals, and trends. The only problem I’ve encountered is with the Google Drive integration. My books kept disappearing. I’d redownload them and different ones would disappear. Then I tried to redownload them and the Kobo only displayed a partial directory listing. I gave up and copied them over USB. Problem solved. Someday, I might try to figure out what went wrong, but it’s not a priority. I have smallish hands and I find the Libra Color too big to comfortably use one-handed. I can do it, but it’s not effortless.

I love this thing! I was averaging 3 books a month prior, and now I’ve doubled my monthly reading with 6 a month! I also like this one because there are files you can download for cross word/ word search and color tracing. The size is great, easy to hold and not heavy when I lay on my side to read in bed. My first e-reader, but speed is great, I have no complaints, I love this thing!

Probably one of the best Kindle competitors on the market. As someone who doesn't want to give Amazon absolutely all of my information and money (even though I'm sure they still do somehow), all of my e-reader research led me to Kobo. The e-reader itself is great quality. Buttons are clicky, screen ppi is great, device isn't too heavy. It is a plastic device, and in my hands it was a little bit slippery, but that was fixed with a case I was going to put on it anyway. Its incredibly easy to use, whether you want to use the Kobo Store or just load your own ebooks. Has great integrations with multiple cloud solutions, like Google Drive, so loading new ebooks without a computer right in front of you is a breeze. Probably the biggest downside to this device is the color reproduction. It is actually surprisingly good, but color ereaders are never going to capture the same thing as an actual comic book or graphic novel in front of you. So I'm not going to take any stars off for this since it has more to do with the genre of color ereaders as opposed to this one in particular. The only big downside to going with a non-kindle device is the lack of the Kindle store. For better or for worse, Amazon has an absolute choke hold on most publishing rights to both ebooks and audio books. If you're a non-kindle user like me, Kindle just has so many more exclusives that its really hard to compete. With some know how (and an internet connection), you can get around that fairly easily, but for someone who doesn't want to sail the seas, depending on what you want out of an e-reader, a Kindle might be a better choice. That really pains me to admit it, but that's more a complaint towards Amazon that it is a review of this Kobo. Hopefully one day Amazon will be sued for anti trust and anti consumerism to fix this, but until then, the best way to fight them is by using our wallets. Yes I see the irony of this review literally being on Amazon after complaining about Amazon.

Purchase experience: First, please do not buy this product from Amazon, as it is not sold by / shipped by Amazon, but a third-party seller called Blue Proton, who have a $50 restocking fee if you return the product, even if you are an Amazon Prime member! Better to buy from Kobo directly!!!! It was a negative purchase experience for that reason because I needed to return one of them. Second, moving on the quality of the device: 1. Screen Quality: Since Kaleido 3 color e-ink screens are darker than a normal black and white e-ink screen, the truth is that it all depends on the implementation of the screen and how bright they can make it. Text looks as crisp as e-ink devices from the Carta HD e-ink screen days from 2010-2014. Colored highlights and pictures look fantastic, like an old school paper magazine from Highlights for Kids. 2. Screen Brightness: Kobo Libra Colour is brighter than a BOOX Tab mini C, butax brightness is slightly less brighter than the 2024 Kindle Colorsoft and 2024 BOOX Got Color 7. Without the light turned on , you cannot read the screen even in broad daylight unless you have good vision or turn on Dark Mode so that the white letters stand out on the black background. 3. Battery Life: it lasts about 10 days without charging with reading 30-60 minutes per day with wi-fi and Bluetooth off. Brightness between 10-100%, usually closer to 80%. Good enough for me because I mostly drag and drop by eBooks anyway over a USB cable. 4. Book Format: Unfortunately, Kobo also use a proprietary format for eBooks called KEPUB. Yes, you can read EPUBs on it, but your covers display wonky on the lock screen and in the library. This is a disappointment if you were excited to see your EPUB covers on the screensaver. You also lose out on granular font, margins and other adjustment settings when reading unless you convert to KEPUB. NOOK, PocketBook and BOOX still have the best EPUB reader experience out of the box. I don't understand why so many eReader companies are against embracing generic EPUB standards. 5. Size and Design: 7 inches is a great screen size for books and comics. The weight is heavier than the 10th Gen 2019 Kindle Oasis and BOOX Go Color 7, but the buttons give a satisfying click and are very reliable unlike the Kobo Sage. The soft touch material on the back helps with grip, as does the slight bend in the device. 6. Kobo Ecosystem: Kobo Plus and the easy access to OverDrive on the device without any other smartphone or computer required is great. However, you cannot put multiple library cards on the device without using work arounds found by random people on the internet. The best experience is still, shockingly, Amazon Kindle, if you have multiple library cards. Kobo Plus has more unique offerings than Kindle Unlimited, especially if you're into religion or non-fiction. 7. Durability: Kobo have designed the Kobo Libra Colour with user repairability in mind. You can purchase the parts from ifixit and easily repair it yourself. This is a great step in electronics sustainability and I hope Kobo continues this trend. 8. Note taking with a stylus: I don't really use this as there's no easy way to export my handwritten book annotations. The notebooks can be exported as a PDF from a computer browser, but again I want access to my book annotations, which sync to your Kobo account when taken on an OverDrive loan or a Kobo purchase, but cannot be exported off the device unlike Amazon Kindle Scribe. You can use third-party stylus from Renaisser etc.

Pasé de un Kindle Oasis ( descontinuado). Y me he adaptado muy bien a este lector. Adaptas la luz, más fría o más cálida. Lo del subrayado a colores es lindo. También compré el lapiz aunque no lo vi tan necesario porque no hago anotaciones y creo que si cambias el zoom de la página como que se pierde o cambia de lugar lo que anotaste. Tip: compra la funda original tipo “origami” para que puedas pararlo en una mesa etc. Gran lector :)

Está súper bonita llegó en buen estado y es súper práctica, pensé que era más grande pero el tamaño es perfecto 💯

Hola, se que se han quejado de que se ven los cuadritos o que no es muy brillante o demas comparado con otras marcas, pero si no comparamos y realmente leemos, no notaremos estos problemas, lo que me sorprendio es que es realmente delgado y comodo, lo ame.

Lo amo, ya llevo poco más de un año con él y a mí se me facilita más leer así que en libro, me gusta el ajuste de brillo y tonalidad para la noche. Es ligero, no pesa y me encanta. Se golpeó un poco y eso me pasa por no comprarle su funda desde un inicio, así que si lo compras, si o si cómprale una carcasa.

El kobo esta increíble y desde que lo tengo leo mucho más y el botón para cambiar de hoja es super cómodo. Lo único que si esta mal en mi opinión es que la mitad de sus funciones dependen de que les des más dinero: si quieres que mida tus lecturas con todas sus funciones los libros tienen que ser comprados de su tienda (o tener el formato para kobo) y las notas, los resaltados y las libretas solo funcionan si tienes una pluma de ellos. Aun así vale la pena y es mucho mejor opción qué otras tabletas para libros sin color.