Kobo, a company committed to making its e-readers more sustainable, has taken notable steps in this direction. Firstly, the devices are partly made from recycled plastic, and they are also repairable.
It is now easier to repair the latest generation of Kobo e-readers:
If you buy one of these e-readers, theoretically, you will be able to find replacement parts to fix any components that no longer work.
Moreover, you can find repair guides on the iFixit website to do the repairs yourself:
- Changing the e-reader battery
- Replacing the screen
- Replacing the motherboard
- Fixing the power button
In addition to these guides, you will also find instructions on how to open, disassemble, and reassemble your e-reader to perform these repairs.
These are positive points for Kobo, demonstrating that it is possible to improve in terms of sustainability and the longevity of e-readers.
Since e-readers are generally robust devices, it will logically be possible to keep them even longer.
Furthermore, to my knowledge, other electronic devices like smartphones or tablets are not as easily repairable as these Kobo e-readers. This adds another favorable point for the Kobo brand.
I am unsure if making e-readers easy to repair is a compelling enough selling point to convince readers to choose Kobo. You are welcome to share your thoughts with me, if you know more about that.
In any case, this initiative might encourage other brands to consider this aspect as well and hopefully offer more easily repairable e-readers in the future.
Update: you can now buy Kobo space parts from iFixit, if you want to repair your Kobo e-reader yourself. You'll find new screens, motherboard, etc. here. More info on Kobo.com
