New Color Libra and Clara now advertised in US

[mgrimace]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Thank you for that. It fits in what others have said.

I prefer the light off if there is enough ambient light. So the LC would not do based on having to turn on the light just to get it as light as the L2.

It's just a bad idea to discontinue the L2 without having announced a replacement as the LC is not that replacement.

Of course, happy to help! And that’s very fair. From my perspective the LC and the L2 are very different devices that appeal to very different use-cases. To me, as a reader, being excited about having colour covers on the device is as valid as wanting the best possible text reading experience. However, for now those two goals are distinctly separate, and filled by two different models. They should both be valid options, and positioned as such.

[mgrimace]

Originally Posted by rashkae

I will add to this, if you are in light so bright that the device front light can no longer compensate, you should probably be looking at wearing uv blocking sunglasses rather than trying to read for more than few minutes.

Absolutely and great advice. I should clarify that I did a quick, subjective test outdoors to compare the two models side-by-side, but when actually reading outdoors folks should absolutely protect their eyes/vision.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by rashkae

I will add to this, if you are in light so bright that the device front light can no longer compensate, you should probably be looking at wearing uv blocking sunglasses rather than trying to read for more than few minutes.

When I read in summer daylight under my window (indoors, not in direct sunlight - in shade), I often have my Libra 2 at 80%, to get the screen white enough. So the Libra Colour would probably be too dark for me even with the light at 100%.

I don't like my eink screens gray - I want them to be whitish. So I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to get the Libra Colour white enough for my taste in certain conditions. To say nothing of the fact that I absolutely don't need or want color.

[mgrimace]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

When I read in summer daylight under my window (indoors, not in direct sunlight - in shade), I often have my Libra 2 at 80%, to get the screen white enough. So the Libra Colour would probably be too dark for me even with the light at 100%.

I don't like my eink screens gray - I want them to be whitish. So I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to get the Libra Colour white enough for my taste in certain conditions. To say nothing of the fact that I absolutely don't need or want color.

Ok, for what it’s worth I tried to recreate that here just now. I took them both to below a bright window and set L2 to 80% as the baseline. The LC maxed at 100% was comparable in brightness, but the L2 was whiter if that difference makes sense.

The LC I’d describe as having more of a warmer quality to the tone, whereas the L2 was a crisper truer whiter white. Both had natural light off.

In comparing ‘whiteness’ of the screen, I can say the L2 is definitely whiter than the LC with backlight on or off. In all honesty, the L2 is whiter than *any* reader I’ve ever used (various kindles, etc.).

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by mgrimace

Ok, for what it’s worth I tried to recreate that here just now. I took them both to below a bright window and set L2 to 80% as the baseline. The LC maxed at 100% was comparable in brightness, but the L2 was whiter if that difference makes sense.

The LC I’d describe as having more of a warmer quality to the tone, whereas the L2 was a crisper truer whiter white. Both had natural light off.

In comparing ‘whiteness’ of the screen, I can say the L2 is definitely whiter than the LC with backlight on or off. In all honesty, the L2 is whiter than *any* reader I’ve ever used (various kindles, etc.).

Thank you very much. That's exactly what I wanted to know.

[lensmann]

Having recently bought a Clara BW, I was somewhat surprised to see that the screen is noticeably less white than my Aura One. It is significantly sharper and the text is clearer, but the screen has a distinctly more greyish / greenish tinge than the Aura One. Has anyone else noticed this?

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by lensmann

Having recently bought a Clara BW, I was somewhat surprised to see that the screen is noticeably less white than my Aura One. It is significantly sharper and the text is clearer, but the screen has a distinctly more greyish / greenish tinge than the Aura One. Has anyone else noticed this?

Several of Kobo's recent models seem to have a greenish tinge, and it seems it's pure luck whether yours has it or not. Both my Libra 1 and my Sage were/are greenish; my Libra 2 is not. Others have reported that their Libra 2 is greenish, but not their Sage.

[khalleron]

All this 'the percentage is too high!' bluster reminds me of this lady I met once who was afraid the Earth would run out of oxygen 'because it's only 21% and that's not very much!'

Percentages are not numbers, they're fractions of numbers. You can't compare percentages unless you know what the base numbers are. Anyone have a light meter and can measure what 100% is on both devices? Because unless we know how many lumens each light source is, we have nothing to compare.

I can comfortably eat half an apple, but half a large pizza would make me sick.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by rashkae

A valid subjective opinion, even though, as far as I know, you have absolutely no standing to make it, (since you never used one of the devices in question.)

The "standing" is other people's comments, reviews and photos. You don't have to have personal experience to come to valid conclusions. Other people's experience is admissible.

I'm not in the market for a color eReader, but I was happy that those who do want color now have Kobo choices. I just don't think it's a good decision to drop what (I think) was the most popular Kobo model and only offer a color version. The two are not interchangeable, in my opinion.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by rashkae

But for all other comments made by you and others, (It's too dark, contrast is bad, it's impossible to be the same 300dpi because laws of physics, etc.) I will simply leave this screenshot that says more than words ever will, and the reader can be the judge. The person who took these shots took the time and effort to match fronts, page contents and adjusted front light levels so they look as close as possible.

(PS, why are jpg attachments allowed to be larger than png? should be the opposite, no?)

The poster may have taken a lot of time to match fonts, but he didn't do a good job of focusing on the screens. It appears that the focus was better on the Libra Colour. But they both need a "straight on" shot.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by khalleron

All this 'the percentage is too high!' bluster reminds me of this lady I met once who was afraid the Earth would run out of oxygen 'because it's only 21% and that's not very much!'

Percentages are not numbers, they're fractions of numbers. You can't compare percentages unless you know what the base numbers are. Anyone have a light meter and can measure what 100% is on both devices? Because unless we know how many lumens each light source is, we have nothing to compare.

I can comfortably eat half an apple, but half a large pizza would make me sick.

Of course we can compare. We can compare by our eyeballs. "30% on the Libra Colour is about as bright as 0 on the Libra 2" is clear enough for me. Is it scientific? Of course not. Is it exact? No. Is it subjective? Of course. Is it enough to make a decision to buy or not to buy? For many people, yes. I don't need an exact, scientific comparison to decide whether I want to buy a device or not. Other people's reviews, comparisons, photos and videos are usually enough.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

Of course we can compare. We can compare by our eyeballs. "30% on the Libra Colour is about as bright as 0 on the Libra 2" is clear enough for me. Is it scientific? Of course not. Is it exact? No. Is it subjective? Of course. Is it enough to make a decision to buy or not to buy? For many people, yes. I don't need an exact, scientific comparison to decide whether I want to buy a device or not. Other people's reviews, comparisons, photos and videos are usually enough.

I find having to have the light of the Libra Colour at 20-30% too high to have the light on in order to get the screen as bright as the Libra 2 with no light on. According to owners, the battery life is not as good as it is on the Libra 2 because of the high % the light is set to.

For me, the Libra Color will not do. If I needed to replace my Libra 2, I'd be stuck as Kobo has no BW 7" Reader.

[mgrimace]

As another point of data, I have returned my Colour for faulty page-turn buttons. My experience with Kobo support has been unexpectedly positive and they are replacing the device for me relatively painlessly.

I purchased it from a local store and not Kobo directly. However, the store is listed on Kobo as one of there 'where to buy Kobo' official shops.

Specifically, the problem is that the buttons only clicked on the 'inside' quarter of each button. Moving from inside to outside, each button goes from click, to mushy, to no physical movement at all. There's actually only a small 'clickable' portion of the button. In comparison my Libra 2 clicks nicely along the full range of the button wherever I press.

This brings me right back to my past experience with Kobo around the Aura One days with a total lottery of panels and a host of quality control issues (not to mention Forma after that). That being said, the replacement process so far has been easy. I've seen button quality as a complaint from others, and for what it's worth I've experienced it here myself.

[Sirtel]

The buttons on my Libra 2 only click on the outside part, not the inside. That's good enough for me, though.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

The buttons on my Libra 2 only click on the outside part, not the inside. That's good enough for me, though.

I have a solution for bad buttons. Get rid of the buttons.