Kobo: E-readers can be repaired - manufacturer and iFixit offer instructions and spare parts

E-readers, like tablets, are relatively complex devices. They are compact and flat, and the batteries and displays are not always particularly easy to replace. To this end, Kobo is now cooperating with iFixit and providing detailed repair instructions for users of the Kobo Clara BW, the Kobo Clara Colour and the Kobo Libra Colour.

Kobo itself provides instructions that describe in great detail how to replace the display, battery, covers and even the mainboard. There are also instructions for diagnosing errors. The repairs are not always trivial and there is also a particularly difficult aspect in some cases: the e-readers come with a waterproof coating. Depending on the specific defect, this also has to be removed during repairs. The instructions explicitly state that removing the coating will not damage the device, but it will no longer be waterproof afterwards. Removing the coating is also complicated and time-consuming.

Overall, the repairs appear to be doable for careful, relatively well-equipped and not entirely inexperienced laypersons, but the three e-readers only receive a repair rating of 6 out of 10 points. The necessary spare parts are also available from iFixit and are original components. A battery costs between $40 and $45, while the Kobo Clara Color screen is priced at $90.