Kobo Clara BW review: It’s great, but I don’t know why it exists

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If you want to buy one of the best e-readers, a strong option is the Kobo Clara, a mid-sized e-reader that comes in two distinct flavors. The first of which, the Kobo Clara Colour, I’ve reviewed previously, and found to be excellent. But what about the Clara BW, the monochrome-screened sibling of the colorful Colour? Thankfully, Kobo sent me both so I could put them to the test and find out.

Much of the Clara BW is identical to that of the Clara Colour, so I won’t be going into intimate detail like I did with the Colour. Refer back to that review if you’re interested to know the details on how it feels and how the software works. In this review, I’ll largely be covering the differences between the two devices, after briefly covering the identical areas. However, you’ll also find out why I’m hesitant to recommend the Clara BW after spending so much time with the Clara Colour.

Kobo Clara BW specs

The Kobo Clara BW is an excellent e-reader

The Kobo Clara BW isn’t the most exciting looking device out there, but it is a well crafted one.

It’s built from stout black plastic, and slipperiness aside, I love it. The heft is reassuring, and the recessed power button on the back is a triumph. There’s a USB-C port at the bottom which means it can share a charger with your phone. Like its stablemate, it’s repairable with guides and parts from iFixit. And like every e-reader, the weeks-long battery life means it won’t need charging all that much.  The small size means it’s portable in a way larger e-readers like the Kindle Paperwhite aren’t, and while it’s a little boring, you’ll forget all about its looks when you start digging into books.

The 6-inch display is clear and crisp, with a 300 pixels per inch (ppi) resolution that means even small details are easily legible. As a result, reading on this device is great. The night mode can kick in at a specific time, and filter out blue light, so you can settle down easier for bed. The audiobook experience is … basic. It works well, but those who like lots of options and ways to tweak their listening experience will probably find it a bit lacking. It will work fine for casual audiobook listeners though, and you can listen through a Bluetooth connection, whether that’s through wireless earbuds, headphones, or a Bluetooth speaker.

This is a great e-reader so far. But something was bugging me while I was using it. The more I used it, the more I realised I don’t quite understand why this e-reader exists.

It’s too similar to the Clara Colour

The Clara BW has a large shadow cast over it, and that shadow belongs to the Clara Colour.

The Clara BW is an excellent device. But so is its counterpart, the Clara Colour — and in a lot of ways, the BW is so good because the Color is too.

These two devices are identical. I don’t mean “so similar as to be identical”, I mean actually identical. Turn the screens off and place the two devices side-by-side and it’s impossible to tell the two apart. If it weren’t for the color screensaver on the Clara Colour I wouldn’t actually know which I was looking at. This won’t necessarily be an issue in most people’s lives, since you’re only likely to run into problems if you and someone you live with own one of each, but it does highlight the major issue I have with this e-reader; it’s too similar to the Clara Colour.

The BW’s looks are just the start. It’s exactly the same size, with exactly the same software, and the same look and feel. The Clara BW has a longer estimated battery time, likely because it doesn’t need to render power intensive color, and obviously, there’s a difference in display tech. I do prefer the Clara BW’s display. I had no issues with the Clara Colour’s screen, but the Clara BW somehow looks and feels better, despite the two of them having the same resolution and specs. Would I have noticed if I wasn’t using the two of them side-by-side and one after the other? Not at all, and this should not be a reason to prefer the BW by any means. And on the flip side of this preference is the BW’s 1.0 GHz processor, which is massively overshadowed by the Colour’s dual 2.0 GHz processor.

The Clara Colour overshadows the Clara BW — and so what? Is that really such a big deal? After all, the Kindle Colorsoft overshadows the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition, and they’re basically the same device. Why shouldn’t that be the same for the two Clara devices? The key is cost: The Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition is $200, while the Colorsoft is priced at $280. That’s an $80 gap between the two. The same cannot be said for the Clara Colour and the Clara BW, where the gap is just $20.

While this means the Clara Colour is a great deal, it casts some doubt on whether the Clara BW is too. While the Clara BW is an excellent e-reader, so is the Clara Colour, and the Colour comes with a more powerful processor and a color display, for just $20 more. It’s hard to see why anyone would pick the Clara BW. Only those who dislike color displays, or who really really want to save $20 should consider the Clara BW.

Should you buy the Kobo Clara BW?

No, you shouldn’t buy the Kobo Clara BW. Not because it’s a bad e-reader, but because it’s too close in price to the Kobo Clara Colour, which you should buy.

The Clara BW is a victim of the Colour’s success. There would absolutely be room for more than one Clara model in Kobo’s offerings, but when it’s being sold for $140, just $20 less than the Kobo Clara Colour? It’s hard to see who would forgo spending $20 in order to avoid having a stronger processor and a color display.

The Clara BW is an excellent e-reader, but when the price difference between it and the Clara Colour is so low, it’s impossible to recommend.

This would change dramatically if the Clara BW was available at a lower price. If it was $40 less, and cost $100, it would be a much more viable option and it would be much easier to justify the BW’s weaker processor and black and white display. But at this price? Absolutely not, buy the Kobo Clara Colour instead.