Kobo Wireless eReader Review and Giveaway – CLOSED

Let me start off this post by saying that I graduated college as an English major. It”s important to know ahead of time because it gives great insight into my love of books. If I could find a job where I was paid to read books all day, every day, I’d work overtime – no doubt about it. I love the stories in books. I love the symbolism in books. I love the weight of books and the feel of books. I love curling up under a blanket on a cold night and laying out on the beach flipping pages in books for hours on end. When eReaders first started appearing, I was intrigued but I’ve held true to my beloved books. Until now.

I recently received a Kobo eReader for review. It’s trying it’s best to come between me and my traditional books. And it’s working.

Why I Love My Kobo eReader:

One of my favorite features of the kobo is the size. Here’s a shot of the Kobo alongside my iPhone:

You can see that it’s even thinner than my iPhone in it’s case:

I love the size because it actually fits in my purse. This makes it  convenient to have it with me all the time and it’s easy to access when I find myself waiting at the doctor’s office or in the car line at school.

The other feature I like about the Kobo eReader is the easy navigation. The large directional pad on the bottom right can take you everywhere you want to go. You’ll see in the video below how easy it is to use this pad, there’s no having to tab all the way to the top or bottom to move around either which is so nice. The Home, Menu, Shop, and Back keys react quickly and are easy to use.

I also like the font on this eReader. It’s called eInk and it is as if it’s printed right on the screen. In fact, when it arrived, there was a plastic screen protector in place. I was sure the words I was reading were on the screen protector, but when I removed the plastic, the words remained. Amazing!

In talking about the screen and the eInk, I also have to mention that the screen is not backlit – which I like. After being on the computer all day, I’ve found other eReaders make me feel like I’ve never left my desk, as if I’m still staring at a computer monitor. The screen also has no glare, which is a must-have for easy reading.

Another unique aspect about the Kobo eReader is even when it’s off and in Sleep Mode – it still looks like it’s on. The cover page of the book you’re reading appears. You can see this in the photo below.

I think this is great because whenever I walk by the eReader, I see the title page staring at me and I immediately want to stop what I’m doing and jump back into my book. It’s like having a paperback on your nightstand constantly calling out to you.

It sounds funny, but another eReader I reviewed had a screen that just went blank when it turned off. I would look at it and not think a thing, or if I was climbing into bed at night ready to read a book – I’d look at that blank screen and decide I was too tired to wait for it to power up.

Speaking of powering up, another nice feature about the Kobo eReader is that it powers up quickly which is a must for me or I know I’ll never use it.

Charging the Kobo is easy too. The charging cord comes with an outlet attachment, so you can charge it on your computer through the USB or snap on the attachment and plug it into your wall. And a single charge lasts 2 weeks or about 10,000 page turns.

The Kobo Desktop Application allows you to select, purchase, and download books. Kobo also offers apps for smartphones and tablets so you can pick up reading where you left off on and browse for new books on all of your devices.

Shopping at Kobobooks.com is fun and easy. You can type titles, authors, or keywords into a search bar or you can browse through a huge list of categories. Just some of the categories include: New Releases, Free eBooks, Cheap Reads, Can’t Get It on iBooks, Not Just for Teens, Oprah’s Book Club, And The Oscar Goes To, Book Club Reads, Books with Bite, and much more! I find the lists fun to scroll through and love how they simplify the shopping process by making it easy to locate books of interest while at the same time introducing you to books you might not have heard of previously.

Also, I found the books to be reasonably priced and even found some good deals. Once I set-up my account, I received a code for 30% off my first purchase. While browsing the site, I also came across a another promotional offer running for 3 days that also offered 30% off using a code provided.

Armed with $20 and the two above discounts, I purchased:

• Water for Elephants
• The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
• The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook
• Kingdom Keepers: Disney After Dark (I thought this one would be fun for our Disney Social Media Moms Conference trip).

And I still have $3.50 left! I’m so excited I can hardly wait to start reading!

Between the 100 free classics including on the Kobo, the Kobobooks.com shop, and being able to borrow books from the library to read on the eReader, I’m never without something to read. And because it’s wireless, I can browse and buy books on the go.

Here’s a video of the Kobo eReader in action – take a look at the size, easy navigation, eInk feature, and how quickly it turns on and off.

I have to admit that after having and using the Kobo eReader for the last two weeks, I’m only holding onto my traditional books out of nostalgia. I’m now a happy eReader convert and while I know I’ll still pick up a paperback or hardcover every now and then, most of my reading will be done on the Kobo.

If you love to read and you’re in the market for an eReader, I highly recommend the Kobo – it’s size, convenience, and ease of use has actually allowed me to read even more than before. That makes me one happy book lover!

WIN IT!

One reader of 2 Wired 2 Tired will win a Kobo Wireless eReader – a $139 Value!

TO ENTER: Simply leave a comment below telling me you would like to win.

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Giveaway Rules: Giveaway ends Saturday, March 5th at 11:59 pm EST. Giveaway open to U.S. residents only. All entries must have a valid email in blog profile or leave email address in comments. Winner will be chosen by the WordPress Plugin “And The Winner Is….”. I will notify the winner by email. If the winner doesn’t respond in 48 hours, a new winner will be chosen. Winner will receive their prize directly from the company. Once winner is confirmed, this post will be updated with the winner’s name and winning entry.

This Giveaway Is Now Closed.

And The Winner Is…

Congratulations Sarah! You have email.

Thank you to everyone who entered and good luck next time!

The products were provided for review and giveaway. No compensation was received. The honest opinions are my own.