| The current e-reader product line from Kobo consist of the Aura, H2O and Glow HD. Word has it that there is a second generation Mini on the way, but it will likely be released within six months. The Kobo H2O was released late last year and is the first waterproof e-reader. It has a 6.8 inch screen, so it breaks the standard 6 inch convention. Whereas the Kobo Glo HD is only six inches, but has amazing resolution and high PPI. What are the core differences between these two devices? These two readers actually have a fair bit in common when it comes down to the specs on paper. The Kobo Aura H2O features a 6.8 inch e-ink Carta touchscreen display with a resolution of 1430×1080 and 265 PPI. One of the drawbacks is that it uses Infrared technology, which means you cannot pinch and zoom. This model does have an SD card, that is actually hidden from view when you close the waterproof flap on the bottom. Meanwhile the Kobo Glo HD features a six inch e-ink Carta screen with a resolution of 1448×1072 and 300 PPI. This device has capacitive touch, which will allow you to pinch and zoom PDF documents, which is very useful. Unlike the H2O, this model does not have an SD card, likely due to cost down on manufacturing costs and encourage people to not sideload in their own content. On a software level, these two are exactly the same. They both have a dynamic home screen that responds to common tasks and functions you access. Additionally, there is little to no change on the fonts and reading experience. If you are torn between these two devices in our video, we demonstrate how they perform head to head.
Kobo H2O vs Kobo Glo HD – Full Comparison is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Friday, April 10, 2015
Kobo H2O vs Kobo Glo HD – Full Comparison
Kobo Glo HD VS Amazon Kindle Voyage
| Amazon released their Kindle Voyage e-reader late in 2014 and was critically acclaimed. Many journalists said it was the best Kindle ever made, primarily due to the 1430 x 1080 resolution and 300 PPI. Six months later Kobo announced their second generation Glo, the Glo HD. Today we compare two of the best e-readers on the market to give you a sense on the overall performance. Sure on paper they basically have the same specs, but hardware isn’t everything. We look at the e-reading experience and also how both units handle PDF files. After watching this video you will gain an understanding the primary differences between the Amazon and Kobo ecosystem. The two companies approach the UI and software experiences in vastly different ways.
Kobo Glo HD VS Amazon Kindle Voyage is a post from: Good e-Reader |
The Kobo Glo HD is a Serious Threat to Kindle, But Kobo Is Not
| If Kobo operated with the same ruthless killer instinct as Amazon, the new Kobo Glo HD could be a major game-changer in the ebook reader industry. The Glo HD is essentially an updated, better version of the Kindle Paperwhite, and it sells in the same price range. What’s more, the Glo HD took the best […] |
BookBreeze Delivers Free Fantasy and Science Fiction eBooks via Email
| A reader recently sent in a tip about a service called BookBreeze that delivers free science fiction and fantasy ebooks to your inbox each week. BookBreeze is basically a promotion service with the goal of connecting readers and writers of speculative fiction together for the benefit of both. Writers get a place to show off […] |
Reviewing House of Echoes by Brandon Duffy
| My husband and I often daydream about selling all of our possessions and buying a little cabin in the middle of the woods in Vermont or upstate New York. We could read books all day and listen to music; he could write and I could knit scarves and no one would bother us. Well, after reading House of Echoes, upstate New York is off the fantasy list. Brandon Duffy scared me. And I loved every second of it. Ben Tierney inherits a small plot of land in the town of Swannhaven (upstate New York) from his Grandmother. With grandiose visons of a new start and a second chance at life, he decides to move his wife, Caroline, and two children, eight year old Charlie and a little baby nicknamed Bub, away from the hustle and bustle of their life in New York City. The young couple purchases a decrepit yet magnificent centuries-old manor in Swannhaven with the intention of renovating it into a charming Bed and Breakfast. But almost as soon as they arrive in this rather Podunk town, their fantasies begin turning into the worst nightmare they could imagine. The characters of Ben, Caroline, and Charlie are all immensely sympathetic. Ben genuinely wants to do what is best for his family but cannot seem to grasp anything beyond his own suppressed desires. Caroline is dealing with the loss of her job and a mean case of postpartum depression. And Charlie is a very introverted young boy who has trouble relating to other kids and takes his fantasy life too far into his own reality. My favorite character in the novel was the town of Swannhaven; rich with a bloody history, dauntless resolve, and lurid secrets. All of this woven together creates a stunning novel that you won't be able to put down. House of Echoes is a must-read for any and all horror fans. If you loved The Shining, this book is perfect for you. Fans of mystery and thriller novels will also love the 'whodunit' aspects of the novel and everyone will appreciate Duffy's wonderfully crafted prose. It's difficult to believe that this is Brandon Duffy's first novel – I'm profoundly anxious to see what he has in store for us next.
This title will be available to borrow from your library on April 14th but you can read a sample and then place a hold right now!
Rachel Kray is a Collection Development Analyst at OverDrive and will be sure to do her research before moving to a small town in the middle of nowhere.  |
LEGO spectrometers
| First-year Computer Science projects from Imperial College in London have been providing us with some really, really cool stuff for this blog over the last couple of years. Not to be outdone, the Chemistry faculty have hopped on board the Raspberry Pi bus as well – only they’re using LEGO too, which we calculate to be worth at least an extra eleven cool points. I do not recall my own bright college days being anything LIKE this. Students studying Chemistry are being set a challenge: they have to design and build and optimise a UV-Vis spectrometer using LEGO. They then have to refine the design and make it as sensitive as they can, using a number of samples, learning about instrumental limitations in the process. A Raspberry Pi collects the data – which means that the students have to learn how to use Linux and write some Python as part of the project. Dr Joshua Edel, who ran the project, says:
Some spectrometers sprouted tiny LEGO trees; one had flags representing the nationalities of everybody who’d worked on them attached. At least one was built in the shape of a Greek temple. The plan is to roll a simplified version of this project out to schools, teaching much younger kids that light is much more involved than the visible spectrum might have them believe. And that LEGO and Raspberry Pi make, as always, a beautiful partnership. |
State of Alabama Declares Harper Lee Competent to Publish
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That’s what an anonymous but concerned citizen was thinking when reporting famed author Nelle Harper Lee to state officials over a dubious decision to publish the long-hidden sequel to To Kill a Mockingbird, the highly controversial title Go Set a Watchman. Why the controversy? Because friends of the author and literary insiders alike don’t believe this is actually Lee’s decision. Lee’s long-time attorney Alice Lee–also the author’s sister, fifteen years older and reportedly more like a mother due to speculation about their mother’s mental illness–looked after the author’s interests until her retirement at the age of 100. Alice appointed another lawyer in her firm to take over as her sister’s attorney; about four months ago, Alice died at age 103 and the long-lost manuscript miraculously appeared. It’s that timing issue right there that instantly had Harper’s friends (Nelle’s friends, that is, as only those close to her actually call her by her first name) up in arms. By many accounts, Watchman was actually written first, even though it falls later in Scout Finch’s life; if the author had wanted this published, she had plenty of opportunity, a willing audience, and publishers who would have fought each other to death in the arena to get their hands on it. But an investigation into Lee’s mental state has now declared that the author is fully capable of making this decision and supports it wholeheartedly. Fans (like me) who’ve held off on pre-ordering Watchman out of respect for the author and this possibly unscrupulous situation can now rest assured that the author encourages the publication of this book and therefore aren’t taking advantage of an elderly woman by stomping on her privacy. This will hopefully put this matter to rest, as throughout the speculation two figures have been practically dragged through the mud. Critics have painted not only Lee’s attorney–Tonja Carter, a professional who was hand-picked by someone who loved Harper Lee possibly more than anyone else in the world–but also HarperCollins as being greedy charlatans who would take advantage of an elderly woman for their own gain. Hopefully this ruling will put that to rest, and we can all happily look forward to one of the most important events in publishing in the 21st century.
State of Alabama Declares Harper Lee Competent to Publish is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Race Against Your Friends With New Local Multi-Player Mode in Angry Birds Go!
| We’ve all heard that Rovio has been making a lot less money lately, so we can likely expect a lot of new things from their development team in the weeks and months to come. Their latest announcement is the addition of a new mode for Angry Birds Go! that will allow players to race against their friends using their own individual devices (though I should note that one vs. one play is the only choice currently enabled… true party play will be in place at a later date that will increase the number of potential participants). Everybody loves a good racing game, and (nearly) everybody loves Angry Birds… so improving Angry Birds Go! seems like a wise development investment. To take advantage of local multi-player functionality, you need only share the same Wi-Fi network connection as the friend you wish to beat (which I can assure you is entirely more satisfying than reigning supreme over the ‘computer‘)! If your version of the game hasn’t been updated yet, be patient –the upgrade is still propagating. If you haven’t installed the app yet, now is a great time to download Angry Birds Go! so you can start perfecting your strategy!
Race Against Your Friends With New Local Multi-Player Mode in Angry Birds Go! is a post from: Good e-Reader |
