The tech world stood up and took notice as Amazon announced plans to launch a $199 seven inch Android-based tablet device called the Kindle Fire. Now another company that makes eReaders, Kobo, has just announced its own seven inch Android-based tablet, the Kobo Vox. The price for this tablet is $199.99, which is 99 cents more than the Kindle Fire. Pre-orders have started and the device will begin shipping on October 28, about three weeks before Amazon is scheduled to ship its first Kindle Fire units.
A lot of the tech specs for the Kobo Vox compare well next to the Kindle Fire. A big exception is the processor. The Kobo Vox has just an 800 Mhz chip compared to the dual-core processor of the Kindle Fire. One big feature that the Kobo Vox has over the Kindle Fire is being able to add up to 32 GB of extra storage with an SD card. The Kindle Fire has no such option to add extra storage. The Kobo Vox also comes in a variety of colors (Hot Pink, Lime Green, Ice Blue, and Jet Black). Both devices have WiFi for its wireless support with no 3G options.
The Kobo Vox runs on what looks like a standard Android 2.3 operating system, compared to Amazon's device which uses its own user interface. The good news is that it can access most of the Android Market apps. It also comes with its own programs such as the Kobo eReading App. It not only serves as an eReader but also allows users to share their reading experiences with others and even to track how many books and pages you read along with how many pages you read on average per session.
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