Libra Colour | eReader | 7” Glare-Free Colour E Ink Kaleido™ 3 Display | Dark Mode Option | Audiobooks | Waterproof | White

I've been using the Kobo Libra Color for 3 months now. I had previously used Kindle Paperwhite and its predecessors for many years. I had a few reasons for buying the Libra Color. One was that I really wanted to have some color capability, even knowing the limitations (IE they are more like pastels than bright vivid colors). Another factor was the Kindles I had been using up to that point had 6" screens, which was just a little too small. Next I wanted some physical buttons. The older Kindles I used had buttons (but not my most recent ones), and really missed that. Finally, an additional factor was the device being more open and allowing more customization and sideloading of software, etc. I have to say, the Kobo is just about perfect in every way. The extra space on the side to hold the device makes the ergonomics vastly better. I swapped the button mapping (by default, the top button is previous page, the bottom button is next page), because my thumb naturally rests on the top button when holding it, so it makes the most sense to me to use that button to go to the next page. When I get tired of holding it with one hand and want to switch sides, the device automatically flips the display around as soon as I rotate it. That can include reading landscape as well, but I typically read it portrait. The backlight is great, and the ability to control the backlight level by swiping up or down the leftmost side of the display is fantastic. On my Kindle, in daytime, I would put the backlight at 1 so that if I next turned it on in the dark I could see enough to operate the settings menu and navigate to turn the backlight on. With the Libra Color that isn't even a concern - just swipe upwards on the very left side of the screen and the backlight comes on to whatever level I choose. The fact that the device is much more open (from a software and control perspective) makes me feel better that I'm not being watched by Big Brother in everything I do. I normally do not purchase ebooks from Amazon, so not having that walled garden and marketplace is not a concern for me. The 7" screen is a surprisingly large upgrade from the 6" I was using on the Kindles. One wouldn't think that adding a single inch to the screen would make much difference, but IMO it makes all the difference in the world. I feel the aspect ratio and size is perfect, and I don't want anything bigger or anything smaller. It hits the sweet spot. Doing some math, the Libra Color's 7" display has 35% more area than a 6" Kindle, which makes a big difference. As far as processing and handling media, I threw a 500 MB 200 page PDF of a full color comic at it, wondering how fast it could load it, change pages, etc, and it is remarkably fast. My screenshot is of a page of that comic in landscape mode. It's PDF reading ability is very good. Assuming you aren't zoomed in, then hitting the Forwards / Backwards button on a PDF in landscape mode will scroll up or down the page until you reach the top or bottom (depending on if you're going forwards or backwards) and then go to the next or previous page. So it works just like you would expect when reading a PDF landscape. There's not a whole lot more to say. The ergonomics are great (VERY thin and light, the wider side with a little flair to hold it is great), the battery life is extremely long, the performance is very good and the updates are quick and the UI is responsive. The features of the software are very good as well. The color is good but expect more like pastels than very bright vivid colors - that's pretty much the nature of eink technology at this point. One downside, which is addressable by installing third party software and setting some stuff up online, is if you want a unified reading experience (like being able to read on your phone, iPad, Libra Color, etc) and sync your reading progress across them all, you won't get it out of the box like you will with Kindle. You will have to use a different reader besides the one built in, which requires a little more effort and technical prowess to pull off.

December 2025: I have only had this thing for about one week so take my review with a grain of salt. I ABSOLUTELY love it! I think it is one of THE best purchases I've ever made. I did a lot of research on this device before I bought it (not so much on other e-readers) and I found that all the features that this thing had to offer was something I absolutely wanted! As you can see I've already added over 500 books to my reader and it still has 18.5GB still available for content! And I added a lot of manga volumes so I'm very happy there's still a lot of space left! (FYI, total storage is 32GB) I even added Sudoku books, coloring books, and crossword puzzles on this device in hopes of using it instead of bringing my Sudoku out to places since it can be written on, to be honest I don't know how well these types of books will work as I don't have a pen yet to test out the writing feature but I imagine that it'll work just fine. The only thing that might not work as well as I hope MIGHT be the coloring feature, as this isn't a coloring device it's a "mark up and annotate" device, but I figure I like to just fiddle around sometimes while I'm out and about and I don't need something perfect to color, I just need to keep my hands busy. And if the coloring doesn't work as I planned I bet the puzzles and Sudoku will work just fine for times I don't necessarily want to read. But I have hundreds of regular books and manga's I can read if all else fails! So I'm not worried! I wanted an e-reader so I don't spend so much time on my phone doom-scrolling. I also thought this might save the wallet and physical space in the long run as I won't be buying as many books and having to store them since this device connects to my local library and I can check out books! There's a couple things I don't like about this reader, when I imported my e-books all the covers were all sorts of different sizes, and it drove me absolutely nuts, so I stuck my books in Calibre and had all the covers sized as 1072x1448, if you have Calibre get the "resize cover" plugin and select all your books and set it to this size and it'll automatically set all your covers to this size and that way it'll fit perfectly on your screen and also make all the covers the same size when you are browsing your library. As for the battery life, I really need to let it drain the majority of the way down and then charge it again to actually start seeing how accurate this device is in terms of how long it'll last. Because this device is so new to me and I'm just so excited I think the device's battery drain is a bit more at the moment, for example, I've only read on it for a total of 8.5 hours and I charged it pretty much completely yesterday but the total reading time was in the span of the last few days except this morning it's already at 75% so I think I've just been doing a lot of fiddling around with it to make the battery drain. haha. So I'll update battery later. I love the physical buttons on this device and the fact that it also is a touch screen. It gives me multiple ways to turn the page. I mainly use the buttons as I'm more comfortable with those than touching the screen, I do a lot of reading in the bed and the buttons are great for lazy page turning, I just position my hand on a button and get comfortable and it works perfectly. I love the size of this thing, it's not too big and not too small either, and I can zoom in or out on books, it also remembers the zoom for each book, for example, if I zoom up really close to my Sudoku puzzle and then go to a regular book it won't be super zoomed up, which I really appreciate this small detail! Because that would be super annoying to zoom back and forth from book to book. I will come on here and update my review when I get a pen and tell you how well it works on my stuff. UPDATE (still December 2025): I got the Metapen M1 and have been using it with my Kobo, I love writing on it but the only thing I don't like is the palm action, I have switched it to "swipe to turn page" and also turned off "pinch to zoom" and my palm still reacts to the screen which is very annoying but other than that the pen with the device is great! As you can see in my images I do Sudoku on it when I don't want to read. I also have coloring books on there, just take picture of your coloring book pages and stick it in a document, I use Canva at 1072x1448 document size and then export the document as a PDF and stick it on the eReader. As you can see I colored very little of the coloring page, it is great but I don't see myself doing too much coloring as I don't have that much time on my hands but have it on there JUST IN CASE I am bored, haha. I've even added habit, gratitude journals just to help me keep track of things since I plan on carrying this device with me EVERYWHERE I go. It's almost like my new phone without all the notifications and doom-scrolling social media stuff. After using the device for a bit longer I noticed it would be nice if they added just a LOCK all rotate feature, meaning they do have a lock rotate but it only locks orientation, like if I turn the device sideways it may not rotate but if I turn it completely upside down it will rotate, sometimes I don't want it to rotate AT ALL. Also, another cool feature would be to JUST have pen usage and turn off all touch controls and only use buttons to turn page and then using the pen to do stuff and if I want my touch controls back on then a button on the pen could pull up the menu and then I can just navigate to the "turn touch back on" type of thing....but I imagine this might be hard to do, I just hate my palm reaction so much, I do have one of those drawing gloves but the material still reacts to this screen so that didn't help much and I hate writing in a hovering position, my handwriting looks awful if I have to hover. But overall I still absolutely love this little e-reader and I hope it lasts me for MANY MANY years!

I've owned a Kindle Paperwhite for 11 years and decided to upgrade since the newer e-readers now have a more gentle backlight with less blue light. I bought both the new Paperwhite and the Kobo Libra Colour to compare side by side. The Paperwhite was hardly an upgrade from my 11 year old device--plus it is heavier, larger, and harder to hold. The Kobo is much more lightweight, comfortable, and ergonomic with the wide side bar and physical page turn buttons. I can easily and comfortably hold it with one hand. The user interface on the Kobo is also much cleaner and less in your face Amazon-store-junky. I can also access Libby directly from Kobo to easily check out library books. I love how you can change the screen brightness by just swiping up and down on the left of the screen instead of having to go into the menus. As for the downsides, I wish the screen was a tad brighter since I almost always have to have at least 15-20% brightness turned on. The color is also a nice touch but I wouldn't say it's vibrant. Overall, I find reading on the Kobo a lot more comfortable and natural than on the Kindle. I would probably only return to the Kindle if they brought back the Oasis and cleaned up their user interface.

Versatile E-Reader with Color and Flexible Display Options I’ve been using the Kobo Libra Color for several weeks now, and I’m thoroughly impressed by its combination of features, ergonomics, and vibrant display. Here are the highlights: • Fun Color Screen: The full-color display brings book covers to life, especially in graphic novels and cookbooks. It’s great without sacrificing battery life. • Multiple View Modes: I love being able to toggle between list view, grid view, and detailed covers—depending on whether I’m quickly browsing or savoring each title’s artwork. • Customizable Reading Settings: From font choices and margins to background shading and line spacing, you can tailor the reading experience precisely to your preferences. • Comfortable Form Factor: The ergonomic page-turn buttons on both sides make one-handed reading effortless, and the edge-lighting remains gentle on the eyes, day or night. • Lightweight & Natural Feel: At just 192 g (6.77oz), the Libra Color is light. Its slightly textured back feels natural in hand, reducing fatigue during long reading sessions. • Optional Pen & Handwriting Conversion: With the optional Kobo Stylus, you can jot notes or mark up pages freehand—and have your handwriting automatically converted into typed text. It turns your reader into a true digital notebook. • Protective Covers Available: There are many stylish covers to choose from for added protection—just keep in mind that a cover will add some extra weight and bulk. • Library Organization: Sorting by author, title, or “Most Recent” works seamlessly, and the Collections feature makes it easy to group books by theme or genre. Suggestions for Improvement: • Always-On Clock Option: It would be fantastic to have a setting that permanently displays the current time in the corner of the screen—especially for those of us who read in short bursts throughout the day. • Series Ordering Feature: Currently, adding books to a series can feel a bit convoluted. A simpler, more intuitive way to flag and auto-sort series entries would make keeping track of trilogies or multi-book sagas much easier. Overall, the Kobo Libra Color strikes an excellent balance between cutting-edge features and user-friendly design. Whether you’re a casual reader or a bibliophile with a diverse collection, this reader delivers performance and flexibility that rival much more expensive models. Highly recommended!

This is the first dedicated ereader I've bought and I love it! As a voracious reader, I started only using ebooks because my place was small. I used the Kindle app on my phone and tablet. I didn't think an ereader was needed. With Amazon changing its policy on ebooks, I really didn't want to have much to do with Kindle. I bought the Kobo Libra Colour. It arrived last Tuesday. I liked the buttons that change pages, but what sold me was the stylus. I wanted to write in the notes section to keep a journal. I found out I love having a dedicated ereader! My phone and tablet always sent me notifications interrupting my reading. I'd stop reading to answer the notifications. I don't do that with the Kobo. I love the e-ink! It's easy to read. I love the screen. You can easily adjust the brightness, the colors are beautiful and easy on the eyes. I like the size; I always thought my 8 inch tablet was the perfect size for reading books, but this is better. Plus, it fits easily in either hand. It seems durable; the buttons work great as does the pen I bought I got a Metapen for half the price. Although I haven't had it a full week, I'm keeping it and will recommend it to anyone!

I bought this to replace my old Kindle Oasis, when Kindle announced there would be no more physical buttons. Physical buttons are just nicer to use, and are required if you are wearing gloves. But it's also nice that it's easy to side load my ebook library, by just connecting to my laptop with a USB C cable. The screen is great, and the resolution is high enough that maps are usually usable. While the colors are dull, they are surprisingly helpful, and most illustrations "work". The user interface is very intuitive -- I used to poke around to find how to change the font size, this is just a two-finger stretch, like most screens. The brightness control is also intuitive. I like that you can organize books, although it would be nice to have more on-device search and sort functionality. Once or twice it has crashed and I had to re-import all my books, but the interface made that easy. I've also had trouble taking out library books that I had to wait for, but my guess is that that's because my Kindle is still my primary library app, and something gets confused.

The screen looks good and the Kobo works nice at first. I was reading and navigating with it just fine. I would have highly recommended this product. However, over the course of a year I had only read about 3 books on it...maybe 12 hours or so of reading time, I hadn't used the thing in months when I went to use it 1 day. I opened it and the screen flashed foe a second and then died. I figured the battery was dead since it had been so long. I plugged it in and charged it, however, no matter how long I hold the power button or how many times I've tried, the ereader has never turned on again. Its a completely dead machine with no signs of life. No flickers, no anything. I tried taking it out of the magnetic case that I had it in since the screen is supposed to auto wake when you open the cover...figured just get it away and back to its natural state. It didn't work, nothing has...its a pretty expensive item to die after so little use and way out of return time and warranty. I wanted to go with the KOBO because i don't like proprietary brands that corner the market and can charge whatever they like. I know that the KOBO works with libraries and free markets a lot more than the kindle...honestly, just go with the kindle. The overall selection is better and it's easier to find what you want for it as well as the hardware quality being much better. Will be buying a kindle next time, I have to put a do not buy recommendation on this one.

good but too expensive, it doesn't come with anything. add to your price a case, a stylus, a travel bag and a charger for it. it's very slow and sometimes it gets stuck on sleeping mode and won't turn on.

Il Kobo Clara Colour è stato una sorpresa: devo dire che, dopo averlo provato a fondo, ha superato le mie aspettative, rivelandosi un compagno di lettura eccezionale sotto diversi aspetti. Un Software che Fa la Differenza: Il vero cuore pulsante del Kobo Clara Colour è il suo software, che si distingue nettamente dalla concorrenza. Riconoscimento della Scrittura Eccellente: Una delle funzioni che mi ha più colpito è l'incredibile precisione nel riconoscimento della scrittura. Prendere appunti a mano, evidenziare passaggi o disegnare schizzi è un'esperienza fluida e intuitiva, quasi come scrivere su carta. La latenza è praticamente inesistente e la resa grafica è fedele, rendendo questa funzione non un semplice extra, ma un valore aggiunto concreto per lo studio o la lettura analitica. Interfaccia Organizzata e Intuitiva: L'interfaccia utente è un modello di chiarezza e funzionalità. Navigare tra i menu, gestire la libreria o accedere alle impostazioni è un gioco da ragazzi. Ogni elemento è dove ti aspetti che sia, e la logica di organizzazione dei contenuti è impeccabile, permettendoti di trovare rapidamente ciò che cerchi senza distrazioni. Ergonomia e Materiali di Qualità: Fin dal primo contatto, il Kobo Clara Colour trasmette una sensazione di solidità e cura nei dettagli. I materiali utilizzati sono estremamente piacevoli al tatto, conferendo al dispositivo un aspetto premium che si sposa perfettamente con l'ergonomia studiata. È leggero ma robusto, facile da tenere in mano per lunghe sessioni di lettura senza affaticamento. La parte posteriore testurizzata offre un'ottima presa, scongiurando scivolamenti accidentali. Il design compatto e bilanciato contribuisce a un'esperienza d'uso estremamente confortevole, rendendolo l'ideale per la lettura in mobilità o comodamente seduti sul divano. Libertà nell'Approccio ai Contenuti: Uno degli aspetti più apprezzabili del Kobo Clara Colour è la sua filosofia aperta per quanto riguarda l'approvvigionamento dei contenuti. Niente Ecosistemi Chiusi: Non si è costretti a un unico store o formato proprietario. Questa libertà è un enorme vantaggio, permettendoti di caricare facilmente eBook, fumetti o altri documenti da diverse fonti, senza preoccuparti di compatibilità o DRM restrittivi (ove non presenti per legge). Questo apre un mondo di possibilità, ampliando a dismisura la tua libreria digitale. Oltre le Aspettative: Cosa Rende il Kobo Clara Colour Unico Oltre agli aspetti già menzionati, ci sono altri dettagli che arricchiscono l'esperienza d'uso e confermano il Kobo Clara Colour come un eReader di punta. Il Colore: La resa del colore, pur non essendo brillante come un tablet, è sorprendente per un e-ink. Le illustrazioni di fumetti, le copertine dei libri o i grafici in PDF prendono vita con sfumature delicate ma ben distinguibili, aggiungendo una nuova dimensione alla lettura senza compromettere il comfort visivo. Batteria a Lunga Durata: La durata della batteria è eccezionale, una caratteristica fondamentale per un eReader. Puoi portarlo con te per giorni, anche settimane, senza la preoccupazione di doverlo ricaricare frequentemente, il che lo rende perfetto per viaggi o lunghe sessioni di lettura. Resistenza all'Acqua: La certificazione di resistenza all'acqua aggiunge un ulteriore livello di tranquillità. Leggere a bordo piscina, in vasca da bagno o in spiaggia non è più un problema, liberandoti dalla preoccupazione di schizzi accidentali. In sintesi, il Kobo Clara Colour è un eReader che non si limita a promettere, ma mantiene le sue promesse, offrendo un'esperienza di lettura superiore. La combinazione di un software intelligente, un design curato, materiali di qualità e la libertà nell'accesso ai contenuti lo rende uno strumento indispensabile per ogni appassionato lettore. È un investimento che vale la pena fare per chi cerca un dispositivo affidabile, versatile e veramente appagante.

È il mio primo eReader. Perché ho preso proprio questo? Perché: - Volevo uno schermo a colori (occasionalmente mi piace anche leggere qualche fumetto). - Volevo il supporto penna (occasionalmente al lavoro prendo appunti su carta, spero di portarmi dietro questo risparmiandomi il blocco note fisico). - Volevo un oggetto piccolo, leggero, di cui quasi non mi accorgessi di portarmi dietro. - Volevo farmi coccolare dal software, che in questo Kobo è abbastanza ben fatto, veloce, reattivo, con integrazioni interessanti (Dropbox e Google Drive) per inserire file senza dover collegare cavi e cavetti ai PC per passarmi i file: ha il Wi-Fi, si mette il PDF nella cartella di Google Drive e lui vede il file e può scaricarlo ed aprirlo senza alcun problema. - Volevo una gestione intelligente dell'illuminazione del pannello (regolazione automatica della tonalità dello schermo e altre chicche che non vi distruggono le retine), per massimizzare il tempo di lettura. Ha dei difetti? Sì, non è perfetto. - Lo schermo, essendo a colori, è un filo "scuro"; a meno che non sia colpito direttamente da una luce forte avrete sempre la tentazione di accendere l'illuminazione frontale. - La batteria non è eclatante: con Wi-Fi e Bluetooth spenti, la prima carica mi è durata una quindicina di giorni nei quali ho letto circa un migliaio di pagine (un romanzo da 700 e un altro libro da circa 250 pagine). Questo è a causa della retroilluminazione che, per l'appunto, avrete sempre la tentazione di tenere accesa, riducendo di conseguenza la durata della batteria. - A colori dimezza la risoluzione; è un "non problema" in quanto la risoluzione è comunque sufficiente a leggere le linee di dialogo dei fumetti, ma ad alcuni, magari con una vista non proprio perfetta, potrebbe dare fastidio. - Non chiedetegli di fare altro che non sia leggere libri, PDF o prendere appunti: il software è ben fatto ma minimale, il dispositivo non ha un browser (ha un browser ma è sperimentale e non supporta quasi nessuno standard moderno per la visualizzazione delle pagine). Per quello che deve fare sono super soddisfatto.

So far works perfectly. Very customisable and user friendly. Amazing battery life

Très contente de mon achat, la barre sur le coté permet une bonne prise en main, l’utilisation est assez instinctive, l’écran ne fatigue pas les yeux surtout le soir. Je recommande je ne regrette vraiment pas mon achat

Thanks Geekbite for the wonderful service, not to mention well taking care of new Kobo e reader users with essential accessories to start off my reading journey! Will buy again!