Kindle Scribe vs Kobo Elipsa

2024. Kindle Scribe adds new annotation features



Amazon has released a software update 5.17.2 for the first Kindle Scribe that introduces the new software features they’re promoting for the Scribe 2. It includes the capability to write notes directly on ebooks. You can write notes anywhere on the page and it will automatically reformat the page to wrap the text around your handwritten annotations. The sticky note option is still present as well to place handwritten notes outside of the page. If you don’t want to write directly over the text, you can also use the writing toolbar to add a blank section of space, which Amazon calls Canvas, to the page for writing notes between lines of text. They also made it possible to transform freehand highlights into neat, straightened highlights and you can now use underlines instead of highlights if that’s your preference. New enhancements were also added to the Notebook app, including an AI feature that can summarize your notes and help refine your writing.


2024. New Kindle Scribe includes AI-powered notebook



The all-new Kindle Scribe 2024 merges all the advantages of Kindle with a robust note-taking gadget. It will feature mostly the same software interface existing Scribe users are familiar with but with a few notable differences. The new integrated AI-powered notebook (English-only) enables you to quickly summarize pages and notes into precise bullet points in a handwritten-style font that can be shared from the notebook section. You can also enhance your notes in a handwritten-style font so they’re clear while preserving the appearance and feel of handwriting. You can jot your thoughts directly into the book when inspiration strikes. Your note becomes part of the page and the book’s text dynamically adjusts around it—whether you increase the font size, modify the font style, or alter the book layout, the note remains visible precisely where you want it, so you never lose any meaning or context. The new stylus feels like a real pen and the new soft-tip eraser feels just like a pencil.


2023. Kobo releases new update focused on note-taking



Kobo has just flung a firmware update into the digital ether, primarily aimed at the Kobo Elipsa, and it’s brimming with enough note-taking wizardry to make even a Vogon poet consider trading in their quill. Among the glittering additions are new templates for notes—because who doesn’t need musical sheets or calligraphy pages at the drop of a stylus? The update also unveils the sorcery of searchable handwritten notes within a Notebook, while in Basic Notebooks, users can indulge in the delightful illusion of geometry as their wobbly circles and squares morph into perfect shapes with a simple hold of the pen. Enter the Lasso feature, a tool of such power it allows you to lasso, delete, resize, or transmogrify your scrawl into tidy typed text. Notebooks are now ripe for organizing into folders, and with the Notebook Backup feature, they can float securely in the Kobo Cloud, ready for retrieval at kobo.com/notebooks. Advanced Notebooks, not to be outdone, now boast adjustable line spacing and a highlight function via the stylus button, because precision is paramount. Finally, a brightness icon has been added for Notebooks, ensuring your screen glows with just the right amount of radiance to match your literary aspirations.


2023. Kindle Scribe can now convert handwritten notes to text



In a move that would probably make intergalactic hitchhikers chuckle, the folks at Amazon have given the Kindle Scribe a firmware update that’s as practical as a towel, but with fewer laundering requirements. The headline feature? This update now lets users magically transform their scribbled notes into actual text, allowing them to export notebooks with a simple flick of the proverbial digital wrist. Users can now select options like “Convert to text and quick send” or “Convert to text and email” directly from the Share menu, beaming those hastily scrawled thoughts into neat, readable .txt files. With the latter option, up to five dear friends, indifferent colleagues, or even perhaps confused strangers can be gifted with your freshly edited prose via email. And just when you thought you couldn’t be more spoiled, the update also brings along a lasso select tool, which works across notebooks, sticky notes, and PDFs (uploaded by that slightly ominous “Send to Kindle” feature). To round it all off, they've boosted PDF reading powers and made even more books scribble-ready, because who wouldn’t want to make existential notes in the margins of The Restaurant at the End of the Universe?


2023. Kindle Scribe's notebook gets web-interface



Amazon, in a display of quietly understated technological flair, has unveiled a new feature that lets you peek at your Notebooks from the Kindle Scribe on the Web. Like a well-trained butler, your Notebooks materialize on the webpage with a synchronizing wave of the Kindle’s digital wand, sparing you the indignity of extra effort. There they sit, organized in folders and subfolders, complete with notes, all primly waiting for you to scroll through with the mouse wheel or nudge along with the onscreen arrows. At the top right, there’s a curious little sync button, looking very pleased with itself, and a toggle switch to let you choose between list and grid views, which is as exciting as toggles get. Strangely, the newest Notebooks shuffle to the bottom of the pile, perhaps in some obscure rebellion against the Scribe’s top-heavy preferences. Sorting options might join the party later—perhaps. Editing or reorganizing your notes, alas, remains a distant dream. Forget about right-clicking to snag them as images, but you might coax them into becoming an HTML or PDF file. However, this functionality is as reliable as a towel in a gale-force wind, which is to say, not very.


2023. Kindle Scribe now allows to send word documents to Kindle



Amazon recently unveiled numerous new features for its Amazon Kindle Scribe e-note, including the ability to Send to Kindle from Microsoft Word. This function allows users to send documents straight to their Kindle library and read and review them on any Kindle device. However, the feature is particularly useful on the Kindle Scribe, as it allows customers to add annotations directly to the documents. The update means that Microsoft 365 users with a personal, school, or work account can now utilize the Send to Kindle function in Microsoft Word on the desktop app. Those with free Microsoft accounts can access the feature through Word on the web. While Mac users will need to wait for a timeline to be released for Send to Kindle's compatibility with Word for Mac.


2023. Kobo Elipsa 2e adds some useful PDF features



The clever chaps at Kobo have rolled out a firmware update for their positively splendid Kobo Elipsa 2e e-reader, a device so advanced it practically reads the books to itself for you. This update comes with enhancements to the PDF experience, allowing it to perform a miraculous feat: remembering where you last zoomed and wandered about on a PDF, as if the device itself were mildly psychic. The Kobo store now zips along at an almost alarming pace, letting you browse with the mere tap of your screen’s lower extremities. Kobo, ever the patron saint of bookish delight, has also sprinkled their magic on the book discovery process, making it more streamlined and quite impressively clever. Not stopping there, the update ushers in support for a veritable Babel of languages, from Arabic to Tamil, automatically summoning just the right fonts as though by incantation. Altogether, it’s a resounding demonstration of Kobo’s knack for making their e-readers feel just a little too good to be true.


2023. Kobo unveiled 2-generation Elipsa 2E e-note and e-reader



Kobo has announced their second-generation Elipsa 2E 10.3-inch e-note and e-reader. Compared to the previous model, it is 45% faster. Illumination has improved the front-light display with the brand-new Confortlight Pro lighting system, which is brighter. The Kobo Pen has been redesigned; it now has an eraser at the top and a single button on the side to do highlights; the pen nib is better to write with since it is 25% lighter. Your notes can now be saved to the Kobo Cloud and viewed on the Kobo website, allowing users to view content and email it to themselves or a 3rd party. Finally, the retail packaging and case are almost 100% recycled and the device itself is 80% and uses ocean-bound plastic.


2022. Kindle Scribe brings writing to Amazon’s popular e-reader



For the first time since the original Kindle was launched in late 2007, Amazon has introduced the ability to write directly on the device with a stylus. The new model, called Kindle Scribe, is priced at $340. This is a significant new feature for the product, though a few companies, such as Remarkable and Sony with their DPT-CP1 and DPT-RP1 models, have already pioneered this functionality. The device comes with its own stylus, which magnetically attaches to the side—similar to many tablets. The stylus does not require charging and uses EMR (electro-magnetic resistance), which means other styli may also work with the Scribe, though the company advises against this, stating that their stylus is specifically calibrated for use with the Kindle.


2021. Kobo Elipsa adds Audiobooks support



In a move that would likely make even the most jaded Vogon technophile raise an eyebrow (though perhaps not for long), Kobo has unleashed a new software update for their fleet of electronic book-handlers, spanning models both as ancient as the idea of breakfast and as shiny-new as the latest intergalactic fads. The headliner of this cosmic tweakery is none other than audiobook support for the 10.3-inch Kobo Elipsa—yes, that very device you’ve been pondering since its June arrival, possibly with a furrowed brow. Now, three of Kobo’s star performers, including the Libra 2 and the Sage, are happily nodding along to audiobooks. As for how updates arrive, it's a process best described as a slow and mysterious journey through hyperspace: they’ll drop into your device like an unexpected hitchhiker during a sync, but beware—it may take weeks of galactic waiting as the updates mosey along in phases.


2021. Kobo released Elipsa - 10.3 inch e-note and e-reader



Kobo is launching a new 10.3-inch e-reader and digital notepad device called the Kobo Elipsa. Priced at $399, it includes a sleepcover and a stylus. Kobo is promoting it more as a notepad than an e-reader, though it serves both functions. You can annotate eBooks and PDFs and it features a new note-taking app that supports importing and exporting to Dropbox. Notably, it seems to not use a Wacom touchscreen like many other digital notepads, which likely helps in keeping the cost lower. Kobo will be up against several established competitors in the e-note market, such as Sony, Onyx Boox, Boyue, Remarkable, Supernote and various Chinese brands like Hanvon and Bigme. The Kobo Elipsa’s competitive edge will be its Linux-based operating system, allowing it to operate with a quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM and a smaller battery.