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Nobody really needs A remote control for a device you already hold or use at arm’s length? E-readers have saved us the risk of paper cuts and the burden of actually turning pages, but Kobo makes it easier with Launch a wireless remote control to turn pages. the kobo remote It may be indulgent and basic, but it’s all about maximizing comfort, and at the end of the night when I’m looking to cozy up with a good book, that’s exactly what I want.
Page turners have always felt too cumbersome and complicated to me. Maybe I’m not alone, because shortly after its launch last November, the $30 Kobo Remote quickly sold out and remained out of stock for months. It wasn’t until late January that I was finally able to purchase one, and while I think Kobo could have squeezed in more functionality, my wife and I embraced the remote easily.
At about 4 inches tall and about the size of a box of Juicy Fruit, the Kobo Remote is much smaller than I expected. It feels smaller in my large hand, but at the same time it’s large enough to hold and operate comfortably, and not to get lost in the bedsheets if it falls. The remote includes an optional wrist lanyard, which on more than one occasion prevented me from losing it when I fell asleep while reading.
There’s no rechargeable battery, but Kobo says the included AAA battery should last for several months. The remote will only connect to Bluetooth-enabled Kobo devices for audiobooks, but the pairing process is as painless as plugging in headphones. Once paired, the remote automatically reconnects when your Kobo wakes up, requiring just a second or two before it’s ready to go. If you want to connect it to a different e-reader, a button on the front edge of the remote manually activates pairing mode.
The remote has two click buttons. The larger page moves to the next page, while the smaller page flips to the back. It’s easy to tell them apart by touch — in addition to the size difference, one button is concave and the other is convex — but you can’t customize their functions. It would be nice to be able to press and hold any button to increase or decrease the screen brightness, or make adjustments to the font size. My wife, an avid audiobook consumer, was disappointed to find that she couldn’t use the remote’s buttons to adjust the volume or pause playback—they only moved forward or backward for 30 seconds at a time.
Is the Kobo A It must be Supplement for every Kobo user? Probably not, but we did find several scenarios where this was a welcome upgrade. My wife, who uses a Kobo on a bedside stand, can now read books while staying completely secluded under the covers. I prefer reading while lying on my side, and I can now prop my Kobo on my nightstand and turn pages without having to reach awkwardly.
The remote control also made reading on the treadmill easier. And for Kobo e-readers that lack buttons, they can make it easier to turn pages while wearing gloves on the go on cold mornings, or save your screen from greasy fingerprints while snacking. It’s an accessory that’s all about comfort, ease, and convenience, and these days I’ll be eating as much of all of that as I can get my hands on.
Photography by Andrew Leszewski/The Verge