Kobo Nia takes on Amazon's entry-level Kindle with a sharper screen

(Image credit: Kobo)

Kobo is giving Amazon a lot of competition – the company's Clara HD can go toe-to-toe with the Kindle Paperwhite, while last year's Libra H2O is a more affordable alternative to the premium Kindle Oasis.

Now, Kobo is giving the entry-level ereader market a stab, announcing the new Nia to take on the basic Kindle. The Nia replaces the now-discontinued Kobo Aura, the company's former entry-level ereader, and shares some of the latter's key specs.

Like the Aura, the Kobo Nia features a 6-inch display with a screen resolution of 1024 x 758 pixels, which translates to 212 pixels per inch (ppi). That puts it ahead of the Kindle's 167ppi 6-inch display, giving Kobo an edge over its Amazon rival.

Light reading

The latest E Ink technology and a brand-new 1GHz processor means the Nia gets a massive performance boost over its predecessor. It also doubles up on internal storage with 8GB of space (as compared to the Aura's 4GB) that will hold a library of about 6,000 ebooks. In some markets, like in the US, the Kindle comes with just 4GB of internal storage (although in Australia it's only available in the 8GB flavor), which gives the Nia another edge over the Amazon alternative.

Kobo's patented ComfortLight technology has made its way to the Nia, offering a front-lit screen whose brightness can be adjusted by just swiping along the left edge of the device. There's also a 1,000mAh battery that, Kobo promises, will offer weeks of reading per charge.

All of Kobo's ereaders – the Nia included – come with baked-in OverDrive support, meaning users in Australia, Canada, the US, the UK, New Zealand, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore will be able to borrow ebooks from their local library – a great money-saving tool.

The Nia is also very portable, with similar dimensions to the Kindle and the Clara HD. It measures 112.4mm wide, 159.3mm long and has a thickness of 9.2 mm, and weighs just 172g.

The Kobo Nia is available now in select countries directly from the Kobo Store or from major retailers for $99.99 / £89.99 / AU$149.95. That's a little higher than the 10th-generation Kindle's price tag of $89.99 / £69.99 / AU$139, but you are getting a higher resolution screen.

Read more: Kobo Forma review

While she's happiest with a camera in her hand, Sharmishta's main priority is being TechRadar's APAC Managing Editor, looking after the day-to-day functioning of the Australian, New Zealand and Singapore editions of the site, steering everything from news and reviews to ecommerce content like deals and coupon codes. While she loves reviewing cameras and lenses when she can, she's also an avid reader and has become quite the expert on ereaders and E Ink writing tablets, having appeared on Singaporean radio to talk about these underrated devices. Other than her duties at TechRadar, she's also the Managing Editor of the Australian edition of Digital Camera World, and writes for Tom's Guide and T3.