Aura HD: New HD eBook reader from Kobo is easy on the eyes

You might not remember Kobo. They were the digital book partner of the now defunct Borders bookstore chain. Proving they still have some wind in their sails, they have created a high resolution eBook reader - the Aura HD. While no longer connected to Borders, the Kobo has a large book store with millions of titles.

The new Aura HD clearly for reading text - it's a black and white device, so it's not competing with the tablets and tablet / reader hybrids we're seeing from other manufacturers.

As a reader, there are some things you may love: a somewhat larger screent than many of the other black and white devices, 10 font choices, and most importantly the Aura screen resolution is 212 pixels per inch. Compare this to the resolution of 167 ppi for the SimpleTouch from Barnes and Noble's Nook, and it's a night and day difference on the eyes when reading.

While I love the higher resolution of this and several other HD devices such as the Kindle fire HD and Nook HD, as a digital book designer, this adds yet another device for testing. New font choices and new resolutions to check and validate. Despite this extra work, I'm pleased to see the push towards higher resolution reading devices that are designed primarily for books. As we work with dozens of digital reading devices, the evolution of the HD devices such as the Aura HD is making for a much better digital reading experience.