14 DAY TRIAL // The Kobo Aura luxury e-reader is only one of several products released by the Toronto-based company. The others are, perhaps unsurprisingly, three tablets, which we will now get into.
One of the new Android products is a high-end model bearing the name of Arc 10HD, while the other two are called Kobo Arc 7.
We'll get the Kobo Arc 7 ($150 / €150) ones out of the way first, since it is the type of product that will “introduce” buyers, so to speak, to the world of slates.
Measuring 7 inches, it has a display with a native resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels. It is a compact multimedia slate for reading and entertainment while on the move.
The hardware is driven by a 1.2 GHz quad-core MTK 8125 central processor, which is supported by 1 GB of RAM.
Secondly, the Kobo Arc 7HD ($200 / €200) is, like the other similarly named product, a 7-inch device, only its screen has a native resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels.
Again, 1 GB of RAM is included, but that's where the similarities end. This tablet has a stronger SoC (NVIDIA Tegra 3 1.7 GHz quad-core) and a front-facing 1.3 MP HD camera too.
Everything should be able to last for 8 hours on a single battery charge. Not bad, all things considered.
That leaves just the Kobo 10HD ($400 / €400), which, obviously, measures 10 inches in diagonal instead of 7 inches.
The HD in the name is a bit misleading though. Not because the screen isn't good enough, but because it exceeds the parameters of HD. Ergo, the resolution is of 2560 x 1600 pixels, when Full HD is 1920 x 1080/1200 pixels, like on the Arc 7HD. Not that we're complaining.
Other specifications include Bluetooth 4.0, WiFi 802.11, a 1.3 MP HD camera, dual stereo speakers, and Miracast connectivity (Wi-Fi streaming). The battery life is of 9.5 hours (over 10 days in reading/e-reader mode).