Kobo eReaders Pre-Orders Open at Borders

By Geoff Duncan May 7, 2010

The ereader marketplace continues to get more complicated: Kobo has announced that its EInk-based Kobo eReader is now available for pre-order through Borders.com for $149.99—and that units will ship in time to arrive for Father’s Day, June 20.

“At $149.99 the Kobo eReader is roughly $100 less than the other eReading devices out there, so it provides a great way to start eReading without breaking the bank,” said Kobo CEO Michael Serbinis, in a statement. “We couldn’t be happier about partnering with a brand like Borders which shares our commitment to technological innovation, high quality, and customer value.”

The Kobo ereader sports a 6-inch EInk display, 1 GB of onboard memory (that’s good for about 1,000 books), a quilted back panel for comfortable reading, Bluetooth connectivity, and claims a battery life of up to two weeks. The eReader will come pre-loaded with 100 classic books along with the Borders eBook application, enabling users to tap into more than a million titles from the Borders eBook catalog.

The Kobo eReader is just one part of Kobo’s overall ebook strategy: Kobo also has apps out for the iPhone, iPad, Blackberry, Android devices, and Palm’s webOS, along with a developer program to help third parties build Kobo into their devices.

The device supports ePub, PDF, and Adobe DRM ebook formats. However, compared to the competition, the Kobo eReader lacks Wi-Fi or mobile connectivity, and has no integrated Web or communications tools—which even the venerable Kindle just picked up in a software update. However, for a company looking to develop its own eBook ecosystem, an affordable just-the-basics EInk reader is certainly a smart move.

Topics

Emerging Tech

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…

Outdoors

The best portable power stations

EcoFlow DELTA 2 on table at campsite for quick charging.

Affordable and efficient portable power is a necessity these days, keeping our electronic devices operational while on the go. But there are literally dozens of options to choose from, making it abundantly difficult to decide which mobile charging solution is best for you. We've sorted through countless portable power options and came up with six of the best portable power stations to keep your smartphones, tablets, laptops, and other gadgets functioning while living off the grid.
The best overall: Jackery Explorer 1000

Jackery has been a mainstay in the portable power market for several years, and today, the company continues to set the standard. With three AC outlets, two USB-A, and two USB-C plugs, you'll have plenty of options for keeping your gadgets charged.

Emerging Tech

CES 2023: HD Hyundai’s Avikus is an A.I. for autonomous boat and marine navigation

Demonstration of NeuBoat level 2 autonomous navigation system at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show

This content was produced in partnership with HD Hyundai.
Autonomous vehicle navigation technology is certainly nothing new and has been in the works for the better part of a decade at this point. But one of the most common forms we see and hear about is the type used to control steering in road-based vehicles. That's not the only place where technology can make a huge difference. Autonomous driving systems can offer incredible benefits to boats and marine vehicles, too, which is precisely why HD Hyundai has unveiled its Avikus AI technology -- for marine and watercraft vehicles.

More recently, HD Hyundai participated in the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, to demo its NeuBoat level 2 autonomous navigation system for recreational boats. The name mashes together the words "neuron" and "boat" and is quite fitting since the Avikus' A.I. navigation tech is a core component of the solution, it will handle self-recognition, real-time decisions, and controls when on the water. Of course, there are a lot of things happening behind the scenes with HD Hyundai's autonomous navigation solution, which we'll dive into below -- HD Hyundai will also be introducing more about the tech at CES 2023.

Computing

This AI cloned my voice using just three minutes of audio

acapela group voice cloning ad

There's a scene in Mission Impossible 3 that you might recall. In it, our hero Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) tackles the movie's villain, holds him at gunpoint, and forces him to read a bizarre series of sentences aloud.

"The pleasure of Busby's company is what I most enjoy," he reluctantly reads. "He put a tack on Miss Yancy's chair, and she called him a horrible boy. At the end of the month, he was flinging two kittens across the width of the room ..."