Launched in late May 2011, the Kobo Touch is the latest in the Kobo family of e-readers. Just 6.5 oz., the reader has a unique soft-quilted back in a choice of four colors. A touch-screen keypad teams with the touch control feature; with these you can tap or swipe to turn pages, highlight and zoom in or out for more convenient reading. The Kobo is designed with E Ink's Pearl Imaging Film that provides a greater text contrast to make your reading experience easier. Customize the Kobo with a choice of seven font styles with 17 size choices and adjustable margins, line spacing and justification. Using the "Reading Life" feature, keep track of your reading statistics such as the length of your reading session, the number of pages you have read and the percentage of books in your Kobo library you have finished.
The Kobo Wireless preceded the Touch, but is still available as of the date of publication. Slightly heavier than the Touch at 7.8 oz., the Wireless comes preloaded with 100 free classics. To navigate the device, use the raised button with navigational arrows and a home key in the middle or the four buttons on the side which take you to "Home," "Menu," "Shop" or "Back." Choose from three colors, all with the soft-quilted back. Two font styles in five different sizes are available.
The first Kobo eReader came on the market in Canada in May 2010; it began selling in the United States in June 2010. As of July 2011, the original model is no longer available. This prototype was quite basic; it had no wireless connectivity and had to be connected via USB cable or Bluetooth to your download source. CNET found that this original Kobo was "not a compelling deal" due to the "somewhat generic feel" and the connectivity issues.
As of the date of publication, the Kobo Touch was the lightest e-reader in the 6-inch class (the Sony Reader Pocket Edition is lighter, but has a 5-inch touch screen). All of the dedicated e-readers, such as the Nook, Kindle, Sony and Kobo, use the same E Ink Pearl screen. The Kobo is only available in the Wi-Fi version, whereas some of the other e-readers, such as Kindle and Sony, offer 3G service as well. The Kobo supports more file formats than the other e-readers, including EPUB, JPEG, MOBI, HTML and nine more.