Kobo Sage | eReader | 8” HD Glare Free Touchscreen |
Kobo Sage | eReader | 8” HD Glare Free Touchscreen | Waterproof | Adjustable Brightness and Color Temperature | Blue Light Reduction | Bluetooth | WiFi | 32GB of Storage | Carta E Ink Technology
 |  |  |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Screen size & type | 8” HD, flush E Ink Carta 1200 touchscreen | 7” HD E Ink Carta 1200 touchscreen | 10.3” E Ink Carta1200 touchscreen | 6” HD E Ink Carta touchscreen | 6” E Ink Carta touchscreen |
| Screen resolution | 300 PPI | 300 PPI | 227 PPI | 300 PPI | 212 PPI |
| Landscape mode | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | No | No |
| Page-turn buttons | ✓ | ✓ | No | No | No |
| Storage | 32GB | 32GB | 32GB | 8GB | 8GB |
| Dropbox support | ✓ | No | ✓ | No | No |
| Battery life | Weeks of battery life* | Weeks of battery life* | Weeks of battery life* | Weeks of battery life* | Weeks of battery life* |
| Waterproof | ✓ | ✓ | No | No | No |
| Light | ComfortLight PRO – adjust brightness and colour temperature for blue light reduction | ComfortLight PRO – adjust brightness and colour temperature for blue light reduction | ComfortLight – one colour light to adjust brightness | ComfortLight PRO – adjust brightness and colour temperature for blue light reduction | ComfortLight – one colour light to adjust brightness |
| Colour options | Black | Black, White | Midnight Blue | Black | Black |
| Dimensions: | 16.05 x 18.1 x 0.76 cm; 240 Grams |
| Model: | N778-KU-BK-K-EP |
| Batteries Included: | 1 Lithium Polymer batteries required. (included) |
| Manufacture: | Kobo |
| Dimensions: | 16.05 x 18.1 x 0.76 cm; 240 Grams |
| Origin: | United Kingdom |
First of all, my wife loves to read.
And I and I was dead set on getting her a nice reader. This one is absolutely perfect it’s compact. I als purchased a nice case to surprise her on her birthday and she absolutely loves it uses it all the time. Thank you
Venfo de otros e-Reader (Kindle y Pocketbook) y este me sorprendi gratamente. Velocidad del S.O, calidad de la pantalla y sobre todo la construccin. Se siente un producto muy firme y confiable.
Solo est al debe la duracin de la batera ya que con suerte aguanta una semana.
Por el precio del producto debera venir un cover de regalo.
I own different generations of Kindles (Oasis 7″, previous Oasis, Paperwhite) plus Boox Note 3 and the previous generation of the Kobo, the Forma (8″ like the Sage). I almost bought the Elipsa 2E, but I already had the Note 3. (I know it sounds wasteful, haven’t so many, but I was in search of the ideal reader.) I probably still haven’t found the perfect one, but the Sage is as close as I’ll get for now. It’s only downside is battery. I see the battery as acceptable, but I’m not a stickler for “must go 3 weeks without a charge.” I don’t see the big down plugging it in every few days. I ended up buying the power cover, which is really nice, but add too much weight. I’d rather charge more often.
The Sage is ideal, otherwise. I feel it’s just as premium as my Oasis (maybe more so, since I don’t care about Aluminum.) It’s nicely balanced for me, personally, and not heavy (slightly heavier than Oasis (but bigger screen) and slightly heavier than my Forma (but more evenly lit and crisper to read.) The Forma (previous gen) had only one downside, really, maybe two (uneven lighting along the edges and somewhat spongey buttons). The new Sage fixes both of those, is faster, and crisper as well, but it’s only downside is the battery won’t stretch as long. It’s okay, though, nothing to panic about. I see lots of reviews out there complaining, but unless you’re backpacking away from power, I don’t see the big deal about plugging it in every few days. I’d rather do that than have a few extra ounces of weight.
The reason why, I read one handed while I exercise, or walk, so a few ounces more wouldn’t be ideal. I’d rather charge more often. Some people asked why Kobo choose this size of battery, and I’m sure it was the tradeoff — less weight, but fewer days on a charge. A descent trade off in my opinion for my use case, anyway.
The pen works fine. I have my Note 3 for note taking, but actually, I find when I occassionally do notes (not too often) I’m more likely to do it on the Forma — just because it’s so small that I likely have it with me. The note 3 is bigger, so nicer for writing, but not for carrying. Certainly not for one-handed reading.
I view Sage as an “all rounder.” I can one-hand read, I can carry it easily anywhere (but not in a pocket, it’s slightly too big for that; in a bag no problem, or just in my hand) I can take notes, but if I want productivity, I’m going to use the Note 3 or my Ipad.
I debated 4 stars, only because of battery, but for my use case it’s really 5, since weeks of battery doesn’t matter to me, peraonlly.
By the way, I love my Kindles, too, and I use them all the time, but I like having an open device, rather than a closed ecosystem. I can bring any format on my Kobo and read it no problem, even pdfs. I can take notes on PDFs with the pen, which is great, too. If Kobo ever decided to close their book store, no problem, all the books are mine. They don’t depend on a single ecosystem.
So, yes, I do like the Kobo Sage a lot. I like their magnetic covers too, (both power and sleep cover are magnetic) since they pop on and off so easily. The sleep cover on the Kobo Sage combined weight is okay for one handed reading for me as well.
Il fatto di poter leggere in verticale ed in orizzontale fantastico.
I pulsanti per cambiare le pagine sono molto utili
le seul problme est que a prend un spcialiste pour configurer la liseuse pour emprunter des livres dans une bibliothque au Qubec …..en ce qui concerne le reste elle est “DE TOP”
je ne m’en passe plus pour lire les livres anciens comme recents. Amazon ne va pas aimer car c’est pas une kindle mais tant pis faut bien dire la verit c’est un produit TOP
Es ist ein sehr schner und guter eReader, wie alle Kobo.
Die Software finde ich sehr gut und ausgereift mit guter beraicht und sehr feinen Einstellungen des Schriftbildes. Unverstndlich ist aber fr mich, warum er so schwer gebaut wurde (im Vergleich zu Forma fast 60 g schwerer, die man schon merkt, wenn man das Buch in der Hand hlt) und warum man nicht einen strkeren Akku eingebaut hat, da man frmlich sieht, wie sich der Akku leert. Fr einen eReader ein no-go! Der Vorgnger Forma hatte auch erhebliche Akkuprobleme in der Anfangsphase. Fr mich ist das unverzeihliche Schlamperei seitens Kobo.
Ich habe ihn zurckgeschickt und meinen Forma behalten.
Nachtrag: Ich habe spter ein anderes Gert gekauft, dessen Akku viel besser hlt bzw. brauchbar ist. Vermutlich eine Streuung wie bei Forma
That said, the e-reader is great and syncs up with my public library
Estuve varios aos con un Kindle bsico de 6″ realmente nunca tuve una razn o inters en cambiarlo, ni por algn otro Kindle. Pero ltimamente me senta incmodo con el tamao de la pantalla, cada vez lea libros de ms de 400 pginas fsicas (que en digital y ms en una pantalla pequea se hacen ms) y se volva cansado el deslizar el dedo a cada rato, a partir de ah empece a entender por qu los botones en el Oasis son algo que a mucha gente le gusta. En fin, empece a tener esta sensacin y empez lo primero, empezar a investigar, ver reseas, buscar en YouTube y ms.
Cuando llegue al Sage, me encontr comentarios muy diversos, pero muchos negativos aunque todos eran por una nica cosa, la batera, as pues aqu les dejo mis datos despus de 3 meses con el dispositivo.
– La pantalla: Hermosa, no puedo decir ms. Las 8″ con 300 ppi hacen una experiencia bellsima al leer, son el tamao ms similar a una pagina fsica de papel. Los libros tienen la extensin de pginas similar a sus hermanos en fsico.
– Software: Vi algunas crticas con respecto a que su sistema operativo no es el mejor, en lo personal, no lo entiendo. Tengo compatibilidad con Dropbox (lo que me da 2 GB mas de memoria de los ya de por s maravillosos 32 GB internos), Pocket (puedo leer artculos que guarde en mi celular o laptop) y audiolibros. Adems si usas una aplicacin de gestin externa como Calibre para ordenar tus libros, este ofrece plugins de Kobo que pueden hacer que personalices tus archivos de maneras mucho ms ordenadas. Estoy encantado con el orden que tienen mis archivos y la velocidad de respuesta del aparato.
– Materiales: Definitivamente no son los mejores, si bien es un plstico premium, que se siente resistente al tacto, sigue siendo plstico, que pare el precio es algo que quiz Kobo debera de optar por modificar. An as, estn bien. Yo lo utilizo con una funda as que no me preocupa esto. Los botones de cambio de pgina que igual son de plastico, son rgidos por lo que si necesitas cierta fuerza en la presin para hacer los cambios, pero an as me resulta ms cmodo que deslizar el dedo a cada rato, por qu no lo haces cada tantos segundos, al leer ms palabras en pantalla por pgina.
– Batera: Ahora si, la batalla eterna entre los comentarios. Voy a decir una cosa: NO, DEFINITIVAMENTE LA BATERA NO ES EL FUERTE DE ESTE DISPOSITIVO. Pero, eso no quiere decir que sea algo tan negativo como lo hacen ver. En lo personal mis hbitos de lectura siempre han sido de 1 hora a 1 hora y media diario, con mi Kindle de 6″ y siguiendo estos hbitos, cargaba el dispositivo cada semana. Veo miles de comentarios de qu hay ereaders que duran semanas de carga completa pero me pregunto, sin criticar, realmente cada cuanto lo usan por qu como dije a m nunca me dur ms de una semana. Conozco personas que leen nicamente ciertos ratos al da, as que sin criticar, claro que si tus hbitos son unos 20 minutos al da, tu dispositivo durar semanas de batera.
Con este mis anlisis fueron los siguientes:
– Dispositivo con un 20% de brillo: 5 das leyendo al rededor de 1 hora – 1 hora y media
– Dispositivo con 20 % de brillo y usando en ocasiones un 20 % de reduccin de luz azul si se lee de noche: 4 das.
– Dispositivo con modo oscuro, 10% de brillo y 30% de reduccin de luz azul leyendo una hora por la noche: 5 das.
As que prcticamente una carga, normalmente te va a drenar unos 20-25% de batera leyendo hasta una hora y media, o una hora, dependiendo de eso.
As que gente, seamos honestos, si bien no es la mejor, nuestros celulares, los cargamos prcticamente diario y ah no vemos problema, as que si para ti, es una cuestin de estrs cargar algo cada pocos das, mejor no te metas aqu.
– Ergonoma: Quiz lo que ms sacrificas, el tamao es grande, puedo decir que es parecido al tamao del iPad Mini 6, por lo que ocupa mucho ms espacio que otros tamaos ms pequeos como 6″ y 7″ por lo que necesitas ms espacio. En lo personal nunca leo en otros lugares fuera de casa, ya que para eso, normalmente hago uso de audiolibros. Por lo que casi no soy de llevrmelo.
– Viajes: Si eres alguien que sale mucho de viaje, entonces mejor pinsatelo. Creo que es el punto ms dbil y que tambin a m no me agrada. Como la batera y su ergonoma son sus puntos ms flojos, al momento de salir de viaje, no resulta la mejor opcin. Pues dependiendo del tiempo que estars en terminales de avin, de autobs o en carretera, este podra no ser lo ms funcional. Hasta ahora solo lo he usado en un viaje de carretera donde no hubo mayor problema por qu duro 3 horas. Sin embargo, la segunda que fue un vuelo con conexin donde fcilmente me hice un total de 8 horas entre vuelos y aeropuertos, tuve que cargarlo en la sala de espera del segundo avin por que estaba muy baja.
En lo personal, lo considero una gran opcin para un lector en casa.
Para un lector ms ocasional o mucho uso por fuera y requiera de lo que est carece la opcin viable sera un Kobo Libra.
One last thing dropbox support is worth the extra few bucks for the Sage. Note taking as a need = Meh…. I read a book and I move on to the next book. Taking notes??? are ok but i’m not in school anymore. Chances are I wont read that book again to even see my notes. It’s nice to able take notes on your Sage to collect your thoughts or if your at a presentation. Amazon has the scribe now so its all really do you want the Amazon ecosystem or Kobo’s. All the best.
Il y a un malentendu sur le sens du mot reflet : je suppose qu’ils veulent dire qu’en plein soleil cet cran n’est pas satur par la lumire ambiante comme font les LCD.
C’est “comme du papier” … gris glac ! (Je n’allume pas ses LED).
Heureusement l’criture est d’un noir profond et en plus je peux paissir la police.
Tenue trs agrable quand mme.
Seul bmol d la taille, la liseuse est un peu lourde.
Really great. Super easy to use. Added bonus it has the touch screen it’s very easy to hold snd isn’t too heavy can take it everywhere with you. Has a good battery life too!
Touch screen: 8-inch glare-free touch screen makes reading very comfortable. The stylus doesn’t comes with the Kobo sage, but if purchased can be used like a pen and write on the Sage.
Audiobook: The books can be heard, not only read. This good as I can use this as story telling for my youn kids with a headphone connected to the Kobo.
USB C: Instead of the older USB format, the Kobo Sage has USB C connection. This is great as most of my devices have USB C connection and I can use the same charger for all devices. The power button is easier to use.
Battery: I fully charged it 3x like any other Li battery to get the best battery life. I’ve read 2 books (~18 hours of reading) since my last charge 2 weeks ago. I still have 31% left. I have the cover to make it sleep and have the backlight at low brightness and also with wifi on. It took me around 35 minutes to fully charge the Kobo Sage.
Thicker and Heavier compared to its predecessors.
Very well made product at a reasonable price. User friendly and light weight.
Just charging it will sent more inforamation when charged
works perfectly managing to get all my ebooks that I never managed to finish
I had a Kobo Aura one that lasted 5 years before dying, so 18 months ago I bought a Kindle Oasis (not cheap) to replace it.
After just over a year the corners have faded considerably in it, and so I swore I’d never buy another Kindle. The Sage is the device I should have bought the first time. Big screen, stylus support and Overdrive and supports much more ebook formats.
Having been a kindle girl for years I was interested to see what the difference would be when compared to this Kobo. What immediately impressed me was how thin this e-reader is, it immediately looks impressive. Of course, once you put it in a case (not supplied) it won’t be as thin but I still like knowing how sleek the e-reader is. The fact that you can use a stylus (not supplied) to make notes on what you’re reading is brilliant and makes it incredibly useful for students who can make their textbooks and so on, as they read. It’s a clever feature that is surprisingly useful and I can think of many who would have a good use for it. While this e-reader is certainly not cheap, it is impressive and the battery life is good too. I also really like that you can easily get library books onto the Kobo Sage.
Pretty nice little little reader, the big question is…. Is it worth upgrading if you are a life long kindle user? The answer is no. Its not connected to the amazon store so if you like to read old books you’ve bought before, you’ll find this a pain but if you don’t have a kindle library already this is a great little thing. the battery takes a hammering when you are pushing new books or audio to the device but once that’s all synced its lasts ages.
This has upgrades compared to the true kindle series, you can connect Bluetooth headphones and get it to play audio books. but also it retains the low battery eink display.
The device is clear to read and its light weight, all the things that made the first kindle such a success.
Great device.
I have been using a Kindle Paper white for some years now and have found it to be a good electronic reader, when this one came up I thought that it might work more seamlessly when changing pages and opening books as this is a more expensive option but I really haven’t noticed much of a difference.
That said, this eReader does have some nice features to it, the casing feels robust but is also lightweight with an easy to read screen in any lighting environment and has an easy to use interface using the touch screen or the two buttons on the front of the device.
Looking through the books available I couldn’t find any that were free as can be the case with the Kindle but the costing is reasonable and there’s a very good choice. The feature that I really like is that I could link it to my local library card and get books to read on this unit electronically the same way as if I went to the library and checked some books out.
On the back of this unit is the on/off button and when it is switched off it will show the cover of the currently opened book which is a nice touch. When I first received this, I plugged it in for charging which only took a couple of hours and I am still using it each night nearly four weeks later without having to recharge it so the battery seems to hold up very well. To turn this on, I pressed and held the button for a few seconds, there is then a small delay but following that the reader comes to life with a welcome menu ready for use. As previously said, this can be used with the touch screen using just your fingers or with the two buttons, both ways work well for changing the pages of a book but I do notice a delay and some screen flashing when opening a book and changing from an image like the cover to a text page, this can be a little disturbing when reading in the dark but it only lasts a split second then it’s back to reading.
Another terrific feature with this eReader is the addition of note books, I can set numerous different notebooks for work, play, diary, etc’ and name them so that I can go straight to the one I need, the problem with this function is that it requires a stylus to use it. I have tested this with my fingers and with various iPad styluses none of which would work so it seems as though only the purpose made stylus will work with this which is quite expensive compared to some others. The rest of the functions and the reading will all work without the need for a stylus so it is only the notebooks that will require the extra cost.
This is a very nice eReader but does still have a limited processor as can be noticed with the small delays and the screen flashes but on the whole it is a nice device to use and the screen has a wide and comfortable viewing angle. At the time of this review this is listed at 249.99 which seems a little expensive to me, especially being as it needs the further purchase of a stylus to get the full functional use from it but it is nice to use and with a very good battery life.
To be more specific, I would give this a 4.5/5.0.
So, the Kobo Sage! Not my first e-book reader but the first one made by Rakuten that I have tried so far. My impressions are pretty much positive! The Sage is a well-made, sturdy but light device, which is easy enough to hold and use with one hand despite the bigger screen. The display is excellent, with sharp rendering and a fabulous warm backlight that is perfect for reading in bed at night (possibly my favorite thing about it, to be honest). The UI is fairly responsive as far as e-book readers go with close to no ghosting when you turn a page. It has a browser that you can use – not necessarily the best thing ever, but I don’t spend much time browsing the Internet on my e-book readers and it will definitely serve you in a pinch. It also has cool features such as Dropbox syncing as well as Pocket support, both of which can be quite convenient. There is also a free library to download a few things from – for instance, a Spanish dictionary which offers the option to click through to learn definitions of words used in definitions (conceptually classy, am I right?). Something worth mentioning is that even though .pdfs can be easily converted into a format of your choice, should you be reluctant to do that this device is likely one of the best options available for that in this price range (particularly for A4 .pdfs viewed in landscape mode).
Now, the battery life is only okay. It will last at least two weeks in stand-by with some light reading here and there. But more intensive reading will probably kill the battery in a day, similarly to what you would get streaming movies on a tablet. This means that for heavy everyday use you would pretty much be charging it at the end of the day (maybe even sooner if you don’t take any breaks), which to me would be an okay price to pay for the great screen quality. But it also means this wouldn’t be the device to bring with you to a solitary weekend of reading in the woods without at least an external battery to keep you company – a dealbreaker for some, I imagine. To me, this means that I would be unlikely to completely give up my other e-book reader, at least at this point – but I would probably favor this one for reading at home. I haven’t tested the stylus yet, but what I can say is that for a device in this price range it would have made more sense to me for the stylus to be included with the reader.
Overall, the Sage seems pretty great! As to whether it outperforms other e-book readers, I feel like that is more down to personal preference than objective criteria, but it is certainly worth a try. I would likely recommend this to someone who wouldn’t be in some way dependent on it – despite the compelling possibility of taking notes for the additional price of the stylus, which actually isn’t a main draw for me at all.
Its a good reader. I have a 6″ reader and the battery on that lasts for weeks even when always connected to wi-fi. When I unpacked the new reader it was 50% charged. I vonnected to wi-fi for downloads and the charge was dropping by 4% per minute as it downloaded books and installed them. However, if you turn wi-fi off when not necessary the battery lasts reasonably well, but not as long as the smaller reader. Im happy with the reader.
However, since my boy sleeps with me, reading at night with the lights on was just a big no for me.
Then came the Kobo Sage reader to satisfy my late-night book reading desire.
The Kobo Sagereader came securely packed in a box that also opened like a book. The reader was kept inside on one side of the cardboard.
It’s sleek, stylish, waterproof, and has an ultra-slim ergonomic design. There were no instructions. Just charge and turn it on. However, detailed instructions were provided online that I managed to download and read and then set up my reader.
Setting up took me just a few minutes but it does take some time to get used to it.
First of all, the on/off button is at the back and I had to press it for about 5 seconds to turn the reader on /off.
I can hold it comfortably and turn pages easily with the page turn button.
To use all the features, a stylus is required which is not included.
It also has a notepad and Dropbox feature which I simply cannot use without the stylus.
Now I can read and download thousands of eBooks and audiobooks with just a click of a button. With an HD screen and a dark mode, I can read for hours without feeling any discomfort or pain in my eyes
A portrait and landscape mode gives me a comfortable and relaxing reading experience.
The screen has adjustable brightness and is non-glare and light on the eyes too.
Now whether I’m out with boring company, stuck in traffic, or just want some time to myself, my reader is always there to accompany me!
This is the first upgrade to my e-reader that I’ve made since I got my first one….. probably ten years ago. Boy have things progressed and improved since then. OK I expected the better battery life and larger memory, along with more control over text size, layout etc. I was very impressed that you can now also plug in a pair of headphones (or connect via bluetooth) and have your text read to you.
But what I absolutly love is that with this Kobo Sage you can make notes and underline passages, etc. That alone for is the key major improvement in the the useabilty and versatility with this e-reader over my old one. I also find this Kobo sage so much better to use outside. Regardless of how bright the day is the text is perfectly clear and readable. Its waterproof too which is great. I can now use it while sunning myself in the garden, on the beach and when on the train, just as I would with one of those oldy worldy book thingys. Anybody want to buy a first generation Kindle?
Je suis quelqu’un qui aime le haut-de-gamme et du coup je tape tout le temps dedans. J’en suis pas du. J’avais la Kobo forma Auparavant. Je peux vous dire que le changement bien que la prcdente tait dj une haut-de-gamme se voit largement. C’est plus fluide et avec un meilleur cran ce qui est apprciable.
J’ai dj essay Kindle et pocketbook. Je n’ai jamais t fan de Kindle d au format propritaire.
pocketbook est une trs bonne marque franaise. Mais malheureusement, depuis quelques annes ils ne font que dans du milieu ou entre de gamme. Il n’y a pas de vrai renouveau.
Le seul dfaut que je donne la Kobo par rapport pocketbook, c’est qu’on ne peut crer directement des dossiers via l’explorateur de Windows. Ils ne sont pas reconnu. Seule la marque pocketbook le propose. Du coup si tu veux crer des dossiers il faut le faire directement dans la liseuse et quand tu as plus de quatre cents livres cela peut prendre du temps et si tu changes de liseuse, il faut tout recommencer zro.
What I didn’t like: you can’t email documents or books to the device the way you would on a kindle – you have to connect the device to your laptop and transfer over which is a bit of a faff. Also, the on/off button takes at least 30 secs or more to engage so you have to hold it down to make sure you switch it off and on.
Overall I think it’s a great product and will be a major asset for reviewing and writing.
The touchscreen on the device is relatively accurate and it is easy to flip pages in books through either touch or the buttons. I like the feature of being able to change the brightness of the display mid-reading by sliding up and down on the left-hand side of the display. The range of brightnesses which the display can have is impressive too. The device is well-made and claims to be waterproof.
It is easy to load up PDFs and Kobo books onto it. It is worth noting that it is not possible to read kindle books on the device. You are able to use Google on the device if essential but this is not a selling feature of the device as it is not easy to do, but it is easy to access the Kobo store and buy books from there.
My main disappointment with this device considering the price tag is the exclusion of a pen. One of the main selling points of the device is the note-taking feature, and this can only be used by buying the 30 pen in addition to the eReader. I am yet to purchase the pen so can’t comment on its functionality.
Overall, a good eReader. I would say that the eReader is a bit overpriced, especially in comparison to a Kindle, but it does have the extra feature of optional note-taking.
Kobo Sage eReader
The Kobo Sage comes neatly and safely packaged in a custom made card case. The lid of the case holds some instructions in a small pocket and the charging lead is in a small compartment beneath the Kobo Sage. Charging the Kobo Sage is from a USB outlet although no charger is included with the unit.
Turning it on for the first time was the first puzzle, It says “press and hold the button” but not how long. I pressed and held the button on the back of the unit, I counted to five which seemed a perfectly reasonable time but nothing happened. I let go of the button and pressed it again, just once, and it sprang into life. The first time start-up had the usual – First time questions — after which it was ready to use.
I have had the Kobo Sage eReader for a couple of weeks it has taken me a while to get used to its foibles but I think I have the measure of it enough to give my honest opinion, good and bad points.
Now, having made use of it, I am a bit more familiar with starting the unit, it seems that holding the power button and counting to five will turn it on, it just has to go through its start-up process. Turning it off is the same, hold the button, count to five and it shuts down.
I downloaded a quick guide from the Kobo website which tells you how to get books and audiobooks for the device. And after playing with it for a short time I quickly realised that in order to use the Kobo Sage, a stylus was not just desirable but an absolute essential to be able to use many of the features of the device.
At the price, I thought the stylus should be included with the unit but I wanted to fully use it so I went for it. I put the Kobo Sage away in its box for a couple of days and ordered the stylus, I also ordered a glass screen protector because I know what a mess a stylus can make of an unprotected screen. Stylus 32.57 screen protector glass 7.50. Although I notice the stylus is now fifty quid.
As I have said, “Using The Kobo without a stylus is not really an option”, many of the features simply won’t work without it. A case in point is the notepad (which I began writing some of this review on) there is simply no way to input text other than with a stylus. I concluded the review on a computer because typing at a keyboard is so much faster.
The notepad feature can be quite handy for jotting down quick notes and sketches if I am away from my computer. There are two types of notes to choose from, Basic and Advanced. The Basic version allows you to write and draw on the screen with the stylus. You can choose different pen shapes and types and vary the width and shade of them, you finish with a rough drawn or written note that can be transferred (via DropBox) for use on a computer.
Advanced Notebook adds some nice features. The handwriting you enter can be converted to proper text that can later be edited on a computer. Two types of drawings can be made, one (Drawing) is just rough sketching as with Basic notebooks, the other called Diagram lets you sketch rough shapes and lines etc. to subsequently be converted into proper straight lines, curves, circles, triangles, rectangles etc. It’s not all 100% reliable but you have the erase button on the stylus if you need to redraw anything.
When using the notepad the palm rejection is okay while the stylus is on or near the screen but often, when least expected, it will suddenly scroll down or up to another page because it reacts to my hand being there.
OverDrive, is a scheme, run by the library service that you can sign up to. It allows you to borrow eBooks from libraries and download them to your Kobo Sage. Or at least that is the idea of OverDrive. I signed up for the service with my local library only to find that OverDrive didn’t seem to work there. So I signed up to the county library service which has a vast number of books to choose from. My problem is that they seem to put more emphasis on novels and the latest bestsellers, whereas I would prefer more technical or scientific. Not to say that they aren’t there just that they are more difficult to find.
Access to Kobo’s own library of books is fast and works every time the only trouble is that they don’t have that many books available, they are all paid for and none are the sort that I want.
One feature, that does seem very useful to me, is the Pocket App, it may be one redeeming feature. It allows me to download articles of interest to be read later and I have several on the Kobo Sage ready to look at when it suits me.
I did find, as do others, that the Kobo Sage would sometimes freeze for no apparent reason. While this is annoying, a re-boot or a reset will clear the frozen device to let you start again. Re-booting is just a matter of pressing the power button to switch the device off then on. I found out about resetting by Googling, you just hold down one of the page buttons and press the power button and hold for about ten seconds or so then switch it on again.
The firmware of the Kobo Sage can be updated in the settings as and when it becomes available and some bugs may still need to be ironed out before it is 100% reliable. However, it is a very competent device with strong selling points for all sorts of uses. Battery life seems to be a hitch for some people but it can still be used when charging and you can always take a power pack along with you if you need to use it for an extended period.
As I’ve always got my nose in a book (in any format) I thought this would be a shoe in for me. I have a fairly ancient kindle, one of the first models so it doesn’t do anything clever and this is several steps up in technology. But it means starting again as it’s not compatible with kindle formats, you need MOBI and a converter thingy as far as I can see. Plus you need the app for the Kobo store, a stylus (which costs a fair bit) and a case (ditto). However, it works with Dropbox, which I use a lot so once I’ve got the stylus, I can edit and change documents, which is quite an upscale for me.
This definitely takes some getting used to – the button on the back drives me mad (and I can see another reviewer feels the same way) and so far, as I’ve been setting things up, playing around, downloading, experimenting etc, it’s used battery like nobody’s business. I hope that will settle down as I don’t want to be charging it every couple of days.
I like the display, the “readability” of it and it’s comfortable to hold. However, at the current price, then adding another 80 odd for protective case and stylus (without the latter, it loses sooo much functionality) I’d have only given it 3 stars. As it settles down and I get more used to it, and it’ll last me years, in time I’d have boosted that to 4 stars. Amazon don’t do halves so I’ve rounded up to 4 already, but I still think this should either be a lot cheaper, or should include the stylus.
This is a perfect e reader got thousands of books on the app also comes with a stylus so can be drawn.on your own type of work very good battery life and nice and clear screen very good quality and excellent value for money 5stars
Easy to use and set up. Good battery life. Accurate touch screen. Good memory so can hold a decent amount of books. Good screen size perfect for any reading fa
This was so hard to get used to. I am normally a Lenovo tablet girl but thought i would try the Kobo with my Kobo account. It was a little tricky to start with because it kept asking for my ISP password. Once all set up it was easy to navigate and use it. The only downside is that you cant put other apps on it like you can a Kindle or normal tablet. It was very lightweight and definitely waterproof.
Takes time to turn on. Have to keep the on button pushed in for about 4 seconds, but once you get the hang of it, is very good substitute for the printed word. Especially if you like to read in bed before sleep. menu is very intuitive, extremely easy to use. Bonus is you can borrow library books, and make handwritten notes / sketches, (if you buy the stylus) it works well but is slow, and is not any good for art work, just basic diagrams. There is some ghosting, but quickly disappears. Overall extremely pleased with purchase, there are improvements to be made, however nothing to stop me from recommending highly.
At a quick review, the Sage does everything I want it to. Fantastic screen, adjusts between blue and orange lighting automatically, it feels sturdy and stable, well-made. The buttons and grip allow for me to use and read while doing all sorts of things, and the foldable cover is wonderful for propping up and looking at while occupied with both hands. The store is perfectly serviceable, though I’ve just been side-loading my existing ebooks through Calibre, which is an absolute breeze.
The big thing people ask about is battery life. There was a slight known issue with battery life, and I feel that it has been resolved to a very acceptable level. The overall battery capacity is a little less than desired, so I knocked a star off, but it should be wonderful for those who are simply using this as a reading device. Update the firmware, fully power cycle a couple of times, and I’m now getting several days of reading out of it, probably 3+ hours per day, before getting low. Keep bluetooth and wifi off unless needed, and you’ll be fine. My understanding is that annotations and writing will significantly reduce battery life, so please keep that in mind – I would not recommend this for writing.
Pros:
Ergonomic and high-quality feeling
Screen brightness and quality are very high
The side-grip is an absolute godsend, compared to normal ereader models. I love it just like the Oasis.
USB-C (yay)
Minor gripes:
Sometimes the screen rotation is a bit slow. I suspect the gyroscope is slightly lower quality, but it doesn’t take much beyond a firmer tilt to fix, so this is a non-issue for me.
The only other problem I’ve run into has only happened once, so I can’t yet say if it’s a problem or just a minor but that occurred, but the screen did stop responding once, along with the buttons, and I had to turn it off and on again to resolve.
Expensive
Ultimately, I’m quite happy with the purchase, and would happily buy another, assuming that this one stands the test of time.
Positives:
– Nice big screen, the backlight level is the same across the screen. There are no spots that are brighter/dimmer than others.
– Buttons are really nice to use. I thought I would mainly use the touchscreen but I’ve mainly used the buttons.
– Simple user interface makes finding books and notes an easy task.
– Screen transition can be very quick. One of the best typing experiences I’ve had on an e-Reader.
– Can easily transfer large libraries over.
Neutral (Things that do not bother me but might bother others):
– There are a number of settings for getting books exactly the way one wishes, but it is lacking in settings compared to some other e-Readers like the Onyx boox.
– Sometimes the page transitions can be slow especially during wake up and sleep, but pretty fast when going through books.
– The battery life wasn’t too bad at first (about 4% to 6% every hour). Fortunately, I decided to do a factory reset, since some were saying it helped, and this definitely helped me. I am now only draining anywhere from 1% to 3% per hour (WiFi, sync, and Bluetooth are off with brightness anywhere between 5% to 20%).
Negatives:
– I have had the user interface glitch up on me multiple times, but I only needed to put it to sleep and wake it and it fixed it. However, I have not had any problems yet after the update.
– Slightly heavier than what I was expecting. I didn’t think too much about it until I held it in one hand for about 45 minutes.
– Not a huge fan of the feel/plastic cover, but it does grip well in hand.
Overall, my favorite e-Reader and I hope it continues to get better with future updates.