Kobo Elipsa 2E Evaluate: Write on the Cash

At a look

Knowledgeable’s Score

Professionals

• Nice note-taking options 
• Glorious E Ink show 
• Spectacular efficiency 
• OverDrive and Pocket integration

Cons

• No waterproofing 
• Some software program bugs
• Audiobook choice extra restricted than Amazon’s

Our Verdict

Merely put, the Elipsa 2E is the perfect eReader you should purchase for note-taking. The {hardware} is just like the Kindle Scribe, however the software program expertise is on one other stage. 

Value When Reviewed

$399.99

Finest Costs Immediately: Kobo Elipsa 2E

With most tech, there’s a wealth of alternative and loads of prime picks. For others, with eReaders being the working example right here, one or two corporations dominate.

Kobo’s Elipsa 2E is a note-taking eReader that has its sights set on the Kindle Scribe. Amazon’s machine wasn’t launched till after the unique Elipsa went on sale, however the 2E and Scribe have lots in widespread – together with their costs. 

The Scribe acquired combined opinions, so is the upgraded Elipsa 2E the go-to eReader with stylus assist? The brief reply is a convincing sure, though it doesn’t get the whole lot proper. 

Design

• Light-weight, premium construct
• No water-resistance
• Stylus included. Sleep cowl bought individually

The Elipsa 2E is the most important eReader Kobo makes by far, however the further show space is critical for notetaking. A ten.3in display guidelines out any risk of one-handed use, however that’s not what this machine is meant for. 

It retains the identical design language as different Kobos, with a plastic exterior surrounding the E Ink show. The again of the Elipsa 2E has a singular textured coating, which provides loads of grip and appears good besides. However like most eReaders, there’s just one color – black – and it’d be good to see different choices. 

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

Kobo additionally has its eye on the surroundings with the Elipsa 2E. It claims 85% of the outside plastic has been recycled, together with 10% that may’ve in any other case ended up within the oceans. That is nice to see, and hopefully the corporate can proceed to progress on this space sooner or later. 

Deciding in opposition to aluminium or glass additionally helps preserve the Elipsa 2E comparatively skinny and light-weight. At 7.5mm and 390g, it’s straightforward to take virtually anyplace with you, though you gained’t wish to get it moist. In contrast to another Kobos, there’s no water-resistance right here and it’s an actual disgrace. 

I used to be involved a couple of light-weight plastic construct feeling low-cost, however Kobo has managed to keep away from that. The Elipsa 2E feels slick and premium, and may final for a few years of use. 

That sturdiness might be improved by pairing the machine with Kobo’s personal SleepCover (an additional $69.99/£69.99). Because the title suggests, it routinely places the Elipsa 2E to sleep when closed, offering all-important safety for the show. 

Attaching the machine to the quilt is a bit fiddly, however works nicely when you get used to it. There’s a devoted slot for the Kobo Stylus 2 (extra on that later), nevertheless it doesn’t double as a stand for hands-free use. You’ll additionally must make do with none safety for the again of the machine, so it’s removed from an important buy. 

The USB-C charging port is situated on the bottom-right aspect, slightly below the textured energy button. However apart from the Kobo emblem on the back and front, the Elipsa 2E has a really minimalist design.

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

Show

• Spectacular 10.3in E Ink show
• Nice visibility due to matte coating
• Adjustable heat mild

The Elipsa 2E expertise is centred round that 10.3in show. It’s one of many largest E Ink gadgets you should purchase, together with comparable dimension choices from Amazon, ReMarkable and Huawei. 

Particularly, it’s an E Ink Carta 1200 panel, with a decision of 1404×1872 pixels. That’s similar to the unique Elipsa, though its 227 pixels per inch (ppi) is decrease than the Kindle Scribe’s 300ppi. 

However does that imply the standard of the show right here isn’t as much as scratch? Completely not. Every little thing nonetheless seems to be extraordinarily clear and crisp, with a dynamic distinction between mild and darkish colors. It may not be greatest in school, however the Elipsa 2E has a wonderful E Ink show that may serve you nicely. 

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

The matte end has two clear advantages. Firstly, it limits the build-up of fingerprint smudges and different marks. Regardless of a big aspect bezel for holding the machine, there aren’t any bodily web page flip buttons, so that you’ll must faucet the display typically. 

It additionally means the Elipsa 2E is simple to make use of in shiny environments. Even in direct daylight, you’ll nonetheless have the ability to comfortably learn what’s on the display. An auto-brightness function makes it attainable, though its main function is for studying at nighttime. 

E Ink shows are already simpler on the eyes than LCD or OLED panels, however you additionally get an adjustable heat mild right here. This shifts from white mild to hotter orange and yellow tones to minimise sleep disruption, and you can even set a bedtime for it to activate routinely. The function works very nicely. 

Studying expertise

• Nice in most conditions
• Not best to be used whereas travelling
• Works nicely in portrait or panorama mode

When you’ve ever learn something on a Kobo earlier than, you’ll be acquainted with the interface on the Elipsa 2E. It’s merely a bigger model of the corporate’s different eReaders, which itself is similar to the Kindle. 

The larger display doesn’t make it an excellent alternative if you happen to wish to learn whereas mendacity down in mattress or travelling, nevertheless it’s nice in most different eventualities. That features if you happen to merely favor to have the ability to see extra content material on the display or wish to enhance the textual content dimension with out always turning the web page. 

Whereas designed for use in portrait orientation (like an actual e book), the Elipsa 2E is surprisingly good in panorama mode. There aren’t any formatting points and it’s nonetheless comfy to carry for lengthy intervals. When you typically learn comics or PDFs, it’s an excellent choice to have. 

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

And there are many methods to tweak the textual content you see on display. Select from a variety of main and supplementary fonts, then fine-tune the scale, line spacing, margins and justification to your liking. The default is ok for most individuals, nevertheless it’s value experimenting with this to discover a setting you want greatest. 

Writing expertise

• Kobo Stylus 2 within the field
• Create notebooks or annotate straight onto books
• Could be exported by way of cable or Dropbox

However the Elipsa 2E’s killer function is its pen assist. The Kobo Stylus 2 is included within the field, and it feels nice for writing or annotating. You might discover some occasional delays earlier than the display registers enter, however on the whole, latency is minimal. 

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

The design of the Stylus 2 is in line with many different digital pens, so it’s comfy to carry and feels pure to make use of. Don’t count on a pen-on-paper-like expertise, although – the dearth of strain sensitivity makes it very apparent that it is a digital display. As a substitute, there are 5 completely different shades to select from, to simulate that strain, however you need to choose these manually. 

Charging is by way of USB-C, however battery life isn’t a priority in any respect. Regardless of not charging when magnetically connected to the machine, you’re taking a look at a number of months earlier than needing to plug within the stylus. Pairing with the Elipsa 2E can be completely seamless, because it doesn’t depend on Bluetooth. 

Holding down the bodily button on the aspect of the stylus prompts highlighter mode, permitting you to rapidly choose textual content or sections of a doc. It’s additionally nice to see that the highest of the stylus now doubles as an eraser. 

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

There are two foremost varieties of notebooks you’ll be able to create: a primary one freed from any restrictions, or a sophisticated model which incorporates further options comparable to changing handwriting into textual content. The latter works nicely more often than not, and makes it straightforward to look via your notes for one thing particular. 

Notes have to be exported manually (as a PDF, PNG or JPEG), both by bodily connecting a USB cable or – extra conveniently – by connecting your Dropbox account. With the ability to immediately entry them throughout all of your gadgets is a good function, particularly with 2GB of storage on Dropbox’s free plan. 

These get saved to a particular folder inside Dropbox, that means you’ll be able to edit or add any recordsdata to that folder and so they’ll routinely seem on the Elipsa 2E. However you’ll be able to nonetheless create folders and organise them direct from the machine itself. 

In contrast to the Kindle Scribe’s sticky notice method, Kobo additionally enables you to annotate straight onto any e book or doc. This feels a lot extra pure, particularly when mixed with the highlighter and eraser options.  

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

Impressively, this extends to rented library eBooks, the place notes will nonetheless be there if you happen to borrow once more sooner or later or determine to purchase it. With the ability to scribble notes on something is the massive motive to purchase the Elipsa 2E over some other eReader on the market. 

Specs & efficiency

• 2GHz processor and 1GB of RAM
• Efficiency surprisingly wonderful
• No mobile possibility

Efficiency is the facet of the Elipsa 2E that’s shocked me probably the most. I wasn’t anticipating a lot from a 2GHz processor and simply 1GB of RAM, however because it seems, that’s lots for an eReader. 

Nice efficiency on eReaders is not at all assured, however the Kobo Elipsa 2E is quick and responsive by eReader requirements, whether or not you’re navigating the shop, taking part in audiobooks or just turning pages in a e book. The character of E Ink shows means there’ll at all times be some hesitation whereas the display refreshes, nevertheless it by no means takes greater than a few seconds. 

Supplied you may have a stable web connection, all content material will show and obtain rapidly. However there’s no possibility for mobile connectivity (comparable to 3G or 4G), so that you’ll want Wi-Fi.  

The one mannequin of the Elipsa 2E options 32GB of non-expandable storage. This can be lots for most individuals, and also you’ll solely run near capability if you happen to obtain numerous lengthy audiobooks.  

Software program & options

• Large vary of books obtainable
• Kobo Plus now obtainable in US and UK
• Glorious OverDrive and Pocket integration

The Elipsa 2E runs the identical software program you’ll discover on all Kobo eReaders. It interprets nicely to the bigger show right here, and stays the principle motive to purchase one over a Kindle. 

Let’s begin with the obvious function: studying books. Kobo has its personal eBook file format, nevertheless it natively helps virtually all main file sorts: EPUB, EPUB3, FlePub, PDF, MOBI, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, TIFF, TXT, HTML, RTF, CBZ, and CBR. 

CBZ and CBR are comedian e book codecs, each of which work very nicely on this bigger show. However you probably have any of the file sorts listed above, simply switch them from a pc utilizing the USB cable within the field – or sync them utilizing Dropbox.  

Actually, the one foremost file kind you gained’t have the ability to use is Amazon’s personal. When you’ve purchased numerous Kindle books beforehand, there’s no technique to learn them on the Elipsa 2E. It’s a manner of Amazon retaining folks loyal to Kindles and never switching to Kobo. 

However the number of eBooks obtainable on the Kobo Retailer is similar to Kindle. Every little thing I looked for was obtainable on each gadgets for the same value. New releases arrive at roughly the identical time. 

Nevertheless, you don’t essentially must purchase eBooks. The Elipsa 2E has integration with OverDrive, that means you’ll be able to join a free native library card and borrow books – similar to you’ll for the bodily variations. 

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

Not each e book is obtainable utilizing this methodology, however I’m impressed with the choice which can be. My native library isn’t notably massive, though even the wait occasions for standard books (often 4-6 weeks) aren’t dangerous in any respect. 

Most libraries allow you to borrow books for 7, 14 or 21 days. If nobody else has requested the e book, you’ll be able to renew it and preserve studying. But when a maintain has been positioned, you’ll have to return on the waitlist. 

Even with some limitations, having the ability to borrow library books so seamlessly is a very wonderful function. The price of eBooks can mount up, so it is a nice different. 

Sadly, OverDrive doesn’t embody audiobooks. The number of these isn’t pretty much as good on the Kobo Retailer as Audible, and also you’re much less prone to have the creator narrate the e book than on Amazon’s service. Nevertheless, there may be the choice to import your individual audiobook recordsdata (as much as 200Mb per e book) in MP3 or M4A codecs, which is useful.

Anyron Copeman / Foundry

Each eBooks and audiobooks are included within the costly Kobo Plus subscription ($9.99/£11.99 per 30 days), however you’ll want to decide on one or the opposite on the cheaper plan ($7.99/£8.99). The service is now obtainable within the US and UK six years after first launching, and there are greater than 1.3 million eBooks and 100,000 audiobooks to select from. 

It’s basically Kobo’s reply to Kindle Limitless, that means you’ll be able to learn or take heed to as many of those as you’d like. The choice obtainable is recurrently up to date, however you gained’t discover most of the hottest titles – at the least initially. Consequently, it’s greatest for avid readers, particularly those that are keen to attempt new authors or genres. 

One other helpful function is integration with Pocket, the favored “learn it later” app obtainable on all of your gadgets. After connecting your free account, any articles you’ve saved there’ll routinely be obtainable to learn on the Elipsa 2E. Except the article depends on pictures or movies, it’s an effective way to learn them – particularly as they assist annotations.

Normally, the software program expertise feels slick and intuitive, however that’s not at all times the case. I bumped into a few bugs throughout testing, together with a one the place the Wi-Fi connection saved dropping. However points like these might be fastened with updates, and all different options work as supposed. 

Battery life

• 2400mAh battery
• Round two weeks of battery life
• Sluggish charging, no adapter in field

As anticipated, battery life on the Elipsa 2E is great.  

The 2400mAh cell is giant by eReader requirements, and means it could possibly technically reside as much as Kobo’s claims of “weeks of battery life on a single cost”. Nevertheless, that’s solely actually attainable if you happen to flip off Wi-Fi, preserve brightness low and restrict notetaking. 

To get probably the most out of the Elipsa 2E, you gained’t wish to do any of these issues. Subsequently, a extra reasonable determine is round two weeks between full costs. That’s nonetheless very spectacular, although – battery life is one thing you gained’t want to fret about on the Elipsa 2E.  

The Elipsa 2E costs by way of USB-C, however solely the cable is included within the field. Charging is comparatively gradual, however will get the job accomplished if you happen to’re not in a rush. 

Value & availability

At launch, the Kobo Elipsa 2E prices $399.99/£349.99 for 32GB of storage – the one mannequin obtainable. You should buy it from the Kobo web site within the US and UK. 

That feels like lots, nevertheless it’s solely barely dearer than the most cost effective Kindle Scribe ($339.99/£329.99). The equal 32GB model of Amazon’s eReader will set you again $389.99/£379.99. 

The Elipsa 2E contains the Kobo Stylus 2 within the field, however the firm’s SleepCover will set you again an additional $69.99/£69.99. 

You may’t actually evaluate it to most conventional eReaders, however the ReMarkable 2 (from $279/£279) and Huawei MatePad Paper (€499, approx. $530/£420) are additionally value contemplating. 

Verdict

The Kobo Elipsa 2E is a superb eReader that’s nice for each studying and note-taking. 

A crisp 10.3in E Ink show is among the many highlights, and it combines with nice efficiency for a wonderful consumer expertise. 

But it surely’s the software program that elevates the Elipsa 2E above its rivals. You may annotate straight onto any e book by way of the included stylus, make amends for internet articles saved to Pocket and even borrow eBooks out of your native library.  

Nevertheless, the audiobook choice isn’t fairly as spectacular, and there are some software program bugs. You’ll additionally must make do with none waterproofing. 

Nonetheless, until you’re deep within the Kindle ecosystem, that is the note-taking eReader to purchase. 

Specs

• 10.3in, 1404×1872 (300ppi) e-ink show 
• 2GHz processor 
• USB-C charging 
• Wi-Fi 
• Bluetooth 
• 32GB storage 
• 2400mAh battery 
• Kobo Retailer 
• 7.5mm thick 
• 390g