E-reader company Kobo unveiled a new lineup of Arc tablets, as well as its first digital-magazine store featuring content from major publishers, at an event Tuesday night in New York City.The new collection of devices, are scheduled to hit stores on Oct. 16, includes the Kobo Arc 10HD, two Kobo Arc 7 tablets running Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean) and the Kobo Aura with a 6-inch e-ink display.the Kobo Arc tablets are designed specifically for readers.
The Arc 10HD tablet ($399.99) packs a powerful punch. It comes with an NVIDIA Tegra 4 1.8GHz quad-core processor and 2GB of RAM. Along with a 10-inch, 2560 x 1600 high-definition display, the device features 1080p video playback. Other specs include a front-facing 1.3 MP HD camera, dual stereo speakers, Wi-Fi 802.11, Bluetooth 4.0 and Miracast connectivity support for Wi-Fi media streaming. While in reading mode, battery life can be stretched from 9.5 hours to 10 days.

Meanwhile, the 7-inch tablet ($199.99 for 16GB and $249.99 for 32GB) is also quite impressive. The device, which is only available in black, includes an NVIDIA Tegra 3 1.7GHz quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM, a 1920 x 1200 display and up to 1080p video playback. It also comes with a front-facing 1.3 MP HD camera and a battery that lasts up to eight hours.

The Kobo Arc 7 ($149.99) is billed as an e-reader for first timers or families. It touts a 1024 x 600 display, MTK 8125 1.2GHz quad-core processor and 1GB of RAM.

Following the success of its limited-edition Kobo Aura HD, the company introduced the new 6-inch Aura e-reader, which is thinner and lighter than the previous model. The front-lit device features a high-resolution (212 dpi) display, and comes in black and pink. It touts 4GB of storage — which can hold up to 3,000 books — and can be expanded up to 32GB with a microSD card. Kobo said the battery life will last up to two months.

The 6-inch Aura hits stores starting Sept. 16, will cost $149.99. For those in North America, Australia and New Zealand, it can be pre-ordered now via Kobo.com.


In addition to the lineup of tablets, Kobo is expanding its kids and teen e-book collection, and has launched a dedicated digital magazine store. Book categories include technology, science, fashion and business from publishers such as such as Conde Nast, Hearst and Bauer Publishing Group.

The online store will officially launch in North America starting next month, and can be accessed via Kobo's free e-reading apps for iOS and Android, which will debut internationally by the end of this year.

Kobo is also partnering with San Francisco-based startup Pocket to allow readers to send articles and webpages via their e-ink devices and apps, for offline reading at a later time.