Rakuten Kobo has today launched its first ever colour E-ink e-readers with the Kobo Libra Colour and Kobo Clara Colour.

They both use the E-Ink Kaleido 3 colour display that Kobo has optimised to offer a subtle colour palette to help retain the benefits of the E-Ink technology such as an extended battery life and the ability to easily view the display in daylight.  

Both eReaders offer the ability to store thousands of books with access to the Kobo.com bookstore, OverDrive to borrow library books, support for Google Drive and Dropbox access along with Bluetooth support to listen to audiobooks.  Both e-readers are fully IPX8 waterproof and can last for up to 1 hour in up to 2 metres of water.

The Kobo Libra Colour sports the 7-inch display which supports the Kobo Stylus 2 and is their most affordable stylus-enabled e-reader allowing the reader to use coloured handwriting, highlighting and more.  

Those who prefer the black and white reading at night can select the optional Dark Mode to reduce eye strain and allow your mind to relax and unwind in a good book.

“To build the most enriched reading experience for our customers, we worked tirelessly to optimise the Kaleido 3 display to ensure the best representation of colour. We introduced collimated front lighting technology to our 6” and 7” size eReaders to provide better colour performance, and have further engineered our software to automate the regulation of colours so they always look their best, no matter the content being displayed.”

Ramesh Mantha, SVP, Product, Rakuten Kobo.

Kobo has also announced an upgraded black and white e-reader, the Kobo Clara BW with an upgraded 6-inch E-Ink Carta 1300 display, improved processor and more storage.

With the new devices available in-store and online from April 30, pre-orders are available now.  The Kobo Libra Colour retails for $359.95 AUD, Kobo Clara Colour for $259.95 AUD, and Kobo Clara BW for $239.95 AUD at www.kobo.com/ereaders and select retailers. The Kobo Stylus 2 is available now and retails for $119.95.