Kobo eReader

Last updated

Kobo
Rakuten Kobo logo.svg
Kobo Aura.jpg
Kobo Aura, Kobo's former baseline e-reader
Manufacturer Kobo Inc.
Type e-Reader
Operating system Kobo firmware
PowerInternal li-ion rechargeable battery
Website www.kobo.com

The Kobo eReader is an e-reader produced by Toronto-based Kobo Inc (a subsidiary of Rakuten). The company's name is an anagram of "book". The original version was released in May 2010 and was marketed as a minimalist alternative to the more expensive e-book readers available at the time. Like most e-readers, the Kobo uses an electronic ink screen. [1] The Arc tablet series, released between 2011 and 2013, was based on LCD technology instead. [2]

Contents

E-ink devices

Current

Common attributes

All Kobo e-readers share a unique pagination system which gives users the option to either count and reference pages separately within each chapter, or in the book as a whole. Up until an update in January 2022, Kobo readers required connection to the Internet during the initial setup phase and did not work until they were connected to Kobo's servers; however, they now support "sideload mode", which allows the reader to be used without registering it to a Kobo account. [3] Kobo e-readers support viewing KEPUB (Kobo's proprietary ebook format based on the EPUB format), EPUB, Adobe PDF, plain text, HTML, and unprotected Mobipocket (MOBI, PRC) e-books. Some also support other formats, such as ZIM, unofficially.

Kobo Elipsa 2E

The Kobo Elipsa 2E was released on 19 April 2023. It has a 10.3-inch E-Ink display at 1404 x 1872 pixels with a density of 227 ppi, 32 GB of Rom, 2 GHz CPU, WiFi 802.11 ac/b/g/n, Bluetooth, USB-C, and an updated stylus. [4]

Kobo Clara BW

The Kobo Clara BW was released in April 2024. It is one of the first Kobo devices marketed as repairable, and the first with a Carta 1300 display. Its accessory covers are compatible with the Kobo Clara Colour.

Kobo Clara Colour

The Kobo Clara Colour was released in April 2024. It is also marketed as repairable, and has a color Kaleido 3 display. Its accessory covers are compatible with the Kobo Clara BW.

Kobo Libra Colour

The Kobo Libra Colour was released in April 2024. It is marketed as repairable, with a 7-inch Kaleido 3 display and support for the Kobo Stylus 2 in all applications.

Discontinued

Kobo eReader

Kobo Inc. announced its first e-reader on 24 March 2010, at the CTIA show. [5] The device was officially released on 1 May 2010. [6] It had expandable memory, holding an additional 4 GB via an SD slot and limited wireless connectivity via Bluetooth to select Blackberry wireless devices. It was available in black or white and came preloaded with 100 public domain books. [1] It was manufactured by Netronix Inc., [7] a Taiwan based company with factories in Taiwan and China. [8]

The pricing strategy of the original Kobo, at US$149, was to rival the Amazon Kindle, which was US$110 more expensive. [1] However, in June 2010, just after the Kobo was released, Amazon dropped the price of the Kindle to US$189. [9] Its pricing strategy in Australia was similarly aggressive where it was available for A$199, again A$100 less than the Kindle. [10] Borders Australia said that they hoped to sell high volumes of the Kobo to drive up sales at their e-content store. [10]

The original Kobo received a mediocre review from CNET, which said that, while the Kobo was compact, lightweight and affordable, the lack of Wi-Fi or 3G made it outdated, especially when there were similarly priced eReaders available with those features. [9]

In December 2010, the original Kobo's feature set was updated with a firmware update to more closely match the Wifi model. [11]

Kobo Wi-Fi

A new model with Wi-Fi capability was released on 15 October 2010. It included an improved processor, screen, and new colour choices (porcelain/metallic silver, porcelain/pearlized lilac, and onyx). The SD expansion had been improved to claim a capacity for up to 10,000 books with a 32 GB SD card. [12] Other improvements included a longer battery life and a built-in dictionary. [13]

Like the original model, the Wi-Fi model came pre-loaded with 100 public domain books. [12]

Kobo Touch

The Kobo Touch was released in June 2011. [14] It introduced an infrared 6-inch touchscreen interface. Other improvements compared to the Kobo Wi-Fi included an E Ink Pearl screen, a faster processor capable of PDF panning, 802.11n capability, and reduced size and weight. [15]

Kobo Glo

The Kobo Glo was an e-reader released on 6 September 2012. It was a front-lit, touch-based E Ink reader. [16] The Kobo Glo supported most ebook standards, including EPUB. It had a 6-inch touchscreen, 1024 × 768 resolution, 213  ppi, 6.53 oz, 2 GB of storage, and supported microSD. [17]

Kobo Mini

The Kobo Mini was smaller, at 5-inch, and lighter than standard ebook readers. It was released on 6 September 2012. It had 2 GB internal storage and Wi-Fi. The 5" E Ink Vizplex screen had a resolution of 800 x 600 with 200  ppi.

Kobo Aura HD

The Aura HD was a limited-edition device released on 25 April 2013. It had a 6.8-inch E Ink display, with a high resolution of 1440 × 1080 with 265 ppi. [18] It was 8.47 oz and had a microSD expansion slot. Other improvements compared to the Kobo Touch included a built-in "ComfortLight" LED light, a faster processor (1 GHz), twice the onboard storage (4 GB), and twice the battery life (estimated at two months).

Kobo Aura

The Kobo Aura is the baseline e-reader with a 6-inch E Ink ClarityScreen display with 1024 × 768 resolution, 16-level grey scale, and a built-in LED front-light. It has 4 GB storage, weighs 173 g (6.1 oz), has two months of battery life, a Freescale i.MX507 1 GHz processor, and a microSD expansion slot. [19] [20] It was released in September 2013. [2]

Kobo Aura H2O

The Aura H2O, released on 1 October 2014, was the second commercial waterproof e-reader. It had an upgraded version of the Aura HD's 6.8-inch E Ink Carta display with a resolution of 1440 × 1080 with 265 ppi. [21] While its screen was improved over the Aura HD, it contained the same processor, on-board storage, and software as the Aura HD, and had dust/waterproofing – certified to be immersed for up to 30 minutes in up to 1 meter of water with its port cover closed. [22]

Kobo Glo HD

The Kobo Glo HD, released on 1 May 2015, is an e-reader with an E Ink Carta screen and is the successor to 2012's Glo. It has 4gb of storage. It has a 6-inch screen in a resolution of 1448 × 1072, or 300 ppi, matching the resolution of the Kindle Voyage.

Kobo Touch 2.0

The Kobo Touch 2.0 was released on 8 September 2015, as an entry-level e-reader [23] with an E Ink Pearl 6-inch display with a resolution of 800×600 and 167 ppi. The exterior is similar in appearance to the Kobo Glo HD and it has a 1 GHz Freescale i.MX6 Solo Lite Processor and 4 GB of internal storage.

Kobo Aura One

The Kobo Aura One was released on 6 September 2016, and it is the first e-reader with a 7.8-inch E Ink Carta HD waterproof touchscreen display with a 300 ppi screen. [24] The Aura One weighs 252 grams and measures 195 by 138.5 by 6.9 mm. It has Wi-Fi, 8 GB internal storage, and 512 MB RAM. The Aura One is lit by nine white LEDs and eight RGB LEDs around the frame. The additional RGB LEDs allow the device to have a night reading mode that limits the blue light that comes from white LEDs. [25] The Aura One was the first Kobo eReader with built-in OverDrive support. [26]

Kobo Aura Edition 2

The Kobo Aura Edition 2 was released with the Kobo Aura One in September 2016 as "a refreshed version of a beloved classic". [27] It has a 6-inch E Ink Carta display with a resolution of 1024 × 768 at 212 ppi. The exterior styling is similar to the Kobo Aura One. Unlike the original Kobo Aura, there is no MicroSD slot. The specifications are otherwise similar to the original Kobo Aura.

Kobo Aura H2O Edition 2

The Kobo Aura H2O Edition 2 was released in May 2017. [28] It has a 6.8-inch E Ink HD Carta waterproof IPX8 display at 265 ppi. [29] Its LED light, called the "ComfortLight PRO", can automatically reduce blue-light exposure during the night to lower the screen's effect on sleep. [30]

Kobo Clara HD

The Clara HD was released on 5 June 2018. [31] It has a 6-inch, 300 ppi screen. [32]

Kobo Forma

The Kobo Forma was released in November 2018. It has an 8-inch, 300 ppi E-Ink display that can be held by right- and left-handed people, and it can be flipped horizontally. It has physical page up and page down buttons to flip pages. [33]

Kobo Libra H2O

Kobo Libra H2O was released on 15 September 2019. [34]

The Libra features a 7-inch E Ink Carta HD display with a resolution of 1,680 x 1,264 and 300 ppi. [35]

Kobo Nia

The Kobo Nia was released on 21 July 2020. It has a 6-inch E-Ink display at 1024 x 758 pixels, with a density of 212 ppi. [36]

Kobo Libra 2

The Libra 2 was released in October 2021.

The Kobo Sage and Kobo Libra 2 are the first Kobo ereaders to come with Bluetooth support; thus, audiobooks can be played from the e-reader with the use of an external Bluetooth speaker. The Kobo Libra 2 is upgraded with USB-C over the previous standard, Micro-USB. The Libra 2 features a 7-inch E-ink Carta 1200 display with 1680 x 1264 resolution and 300 ppi. It has 32 GB of storage. [37] [38]

Kobo Clara 2E

The Clara 2E was released in September 2022. It has a 6-inch E-Ink display with 1448 x 1072 resolution and 300 ppi, and the exterior is made with 85% recycled plastics. [39]

Chronological overview

Legend:  Unsupported  Discontinued  Current
ComponentDisplayInputStorageCPUConnectivityFeatures / NotesDimensionsWeightIntroductory priceReleasedBattery & RAM
ModelTypeSizeResolutionppiInternalExpandedMake and modelUSB +(US$)
Kobo eReader E-ink 6"800x600170 D-Pad 1 GB4 GB SDBluetooth$199May 2010
Kobo WiFiN289E-ink6"800x600170D-Pad1 GB32 GB SDFreescale i.MX335Wi-Fi184 × 120 × 10 mm (7.2 × 4.7 × 0.4 in)221 g (7.80 oz)$199October 2010
Kobo TouchN905[ BC]E-ink Pearl6"800x600170 Infrared touchscreen [40] 2 GB32 GB microSDFreescale i.MX507 800 MHzWi-FiFirst touchscreen.165 × 114 × 10 mm (6.5 × 4.5 × 0.4 in)200 g (7.05 oz)$129May 20111200mAh
Kobo GloN613E-ink Pearl6"1024x768213Infrared touchscreen [40] 2 GB (internal microSD) [41] 32 GB microSDFreescale i.MX507 1 GHzWi-FiFirst illuminated display.157 x 114 x 10 mm (6.2 x 4.5 x 0.4 in)185 g (6.5 oz)$129September 2012
Kobo MiniN705E-ink Pearl5"800x600200Infrared touchscreen [42] 2 GB (internal microSD) [43] 32 GB microSDFreescale i.MX507 800 MHzWi-Fi133 x 102 x 10 mm (5.2 × 4 x 0.4 in)134 g (4.73 oz)$79September 20121000mAh
Kobo Aura HDN204BE-ink Pearl6.8"1440x1080265Infrared touchscreen [40] 4 GB (internal microSD) [44] 32 GB microSDFreescale i.MX507 1 GHzWi-Fi175.7 x 128.3 x 11.7 mm (6.91 x 5.05 x 0.46 in)240 g (8.5 oz)$169April 20131500mAh
Kobo AuraN514E-ink Pearl6"1024x768213 Capacitive touchscreen [40] 4 GB32 GB microSDFreescale i.MX507 1 GHzWi-Fi150 x 114 x 8.1 mm (5.9 x 5.6 x 0.3 in)174 g (6.1 oz)$149August 20131500mAh
Kobo Aura H2ON250E-ink Carta6.8"1440x1080265Infrared touchscreen [40] 4 GB (internal microSD)32 GB microSDFreescale i.MX507 1 GHzWi-FiWaterproofed179 x 129 x 9.7 mm233 g (8.22 oz)$179October 20141400mAh / 512MB RAM
Kobo Glo HDN437E-ink Carta6"1448x1072300Infrared touchscreen [40] 4 GB (internal microSD) [45] NoFreescale SoloLite iMX.6 1 GHzWi-FiComfortLight157 x 114 x 10 mm (6.2 x 4.5 x 0.4 in)180 g (6.3 oz)$129May 2015
Kobo Touch 2.0N587E-ink Pearl6"800x600167Infrared touchscreen [40] 4 GBNoFreescale SoloLite iMX.6 1 GHzWi-Fi157 x 115 x 9.2 mm185g$61September 2015
Kobo Aura Edition 2N236E-ink Carta6"1024x768212Infrared touchscreen [46] 4 GBNoFreescale SoloLite iMX.6 1 GHzWi-Fi154.5 x 109 x 8.5 mm180g$119September 2016
Kobo Aura One [47] N709E-ink Carta7.8"1872x1404300Capacitive touchscreen [46] 8 GBNo Freescale SoloLite i.MX 6 1GHz Wi-FiWaterproofed,

ComfortLight PRO [48]

195.1 x 138.5 x 6.9 mm252 g$230September 2016512MB RAM
Kobo Aura H2O Edition 2N867E-ink Carta6.8"1440x1080265Capacitive touchscreen [46] 8 GB (soldered) [49] NoFreescale i.MX6 SLL 1 GHzWi-FiWaterproofed,

ComfortLight PRO

172 x 129 x 8.9 mm210g$180May 20171500mAh / 512MB
Kobo Clara HDN249E-ink Carta6"1448x1072300Capacitive touchscreen [46] 8 GB (internal microSD) [50] NoFreescale i.MX6 SLL 1 GHzWi-FiComfortLight PRO159.6 x 110 x 8.35 mm166g$119.99June 20181500mAh / 512MB
Kobo Forma [51] N782E-ink Mobius Carta8"1920x1440300Capacitive touchscreen/buttons [46] 8 GB or 32 GBNoFreescale i.MX6 SLL 1 GHzWi-FiWaterproofed, ComfortLight PRO, Flexible substrate160 x 177.7 x 8.5 mm197g$249.99October 20181200mAh / 512MB RAM
Kobo Libra H2O [34] [52] N873E-ink Carta7"1680x1264300Capacitive touchscreen/buttons8 GBNoFreescale i.MX6 SLL 1 GHzWi-FiWaterproofed, ComfortLight PRO144 x 159 x 5.0 - 7.8 mm192g$169.99September 20191200mAh / 512MB RAM
Kobo Nia [36] [53] N306E-ink Carta6"1024x758212Capacitive touchscreen8 GBNo Freescale i.MX 6 ULL 900MHz Wi-FiComfortLight112.4 x 159.3 x 9.2 mm172g$99.99July 20201000mAh / 256MB RAM
Kobo Elipsa [54] N604E-ink Carta 120010.3"1404x1872227Capacitive touchscreen/Pen32 GBNoAllwinner B300 Quad Core @ 1.8 GHzWi-Fi 802.11 ac/b/g/n, USB-C, Bluetooth (preview)ComfortLight193 x 227.5 x 7.6 mm383g$399.99June 20212400mAh / 1GB RAM
Kobo Libra 2 [55] N418E-ink Carta 12007"1680x1264300Capacitive touchscreen/buttons32 GB (internal microSD) [56] NoFreescale i.MX6 SLL 1 GHzWiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth® wireless technology, and USB-CWaterproof, ComfortLight Pro, Dark Mode, Audiobooks144.6 x 161.6 x 9 mm215g$179.99October 20211420mAh / 512MB
Kobo Sage [57] N778E-ink Carta 12008"1920x1440300Capacitive touchscreen/buttons/Pen compatible32 GBNoAllwinner B300 Quad Core @ 1.8 GHzWiFi 802.11 ac/b/g/n, Bluetooth® wireless technology, and USB-CWaterproof, ComfortLight Pro, Dark Mode, Dropbox support, Audiobooks160.5 x 181.4 x 7.6 mm240.8g$259.99October 20211200mAh
Kobo Clara 2E [39] N506E-ink Carta 12006"1448x1072300Capacitive touchscreen16 GB (internal microSD) [58] NoFreescale Solo Lite 1 GHzWiFi 802.11 ac/b/g/n, Bluetooth® wireless technology, and USB-CWaterproof, ComfortLight Pro, Dark Mode, Audiobooks112.05 x 159.02 x 8.66 mm171g$129.99September 20221500mAh / 512MB RAM
Kobo Elipsa 2E [4] N605E-ink Carta 120010.3"1404x1872227Capacitive touchscreen/Pen32 GBNoMediaTek MT8113 dual-core 2 GHzWiFi 802.11 ac/b/g/n (dual band), Bluetooth® wireless technology, and USB-CComfortLight PRO, Dark Mode, Audiobooks193 x 227 x 7.5 mm390g$399.99Mid 20232400mAh [59] / 1GB
Kobo Libra Colour [60] N428E-Ink Kaleido 37"1680x1264300 (B/W)

150 (Color)

Capacitive touchscreen/buttons/Pen32 GBNoMediaTek MT8113T dual-core ARM A53 2 GHzWiFi 802.11 ac/b/g/n (dual band), Bluetooth® wireless technology, and USB-CWaterproof, ComfortLight PRO, Dark Mode, Audiobooks144.6 x 161 x 8.3 mm199.5g$219.99April 20242050mAh / 1GB
Kobo Clara BW [61] N365E-Ink Carta 13006"1448x1072300Capacitive touchscreen16 GBNoMediaTek MT8113L ARM A53 1 GHzWiFi 802.11 ac/b/g/n, Bluetooth® wireless technology, and USB-CWaterproof, ComfortLight PRO, Dark Mode, Audiobooks112 x 160 x 9.2 mm174g$129.99April 20241500mAh / 512MB RAM
Kobo Clara Colour [62] N367E-Ink Kaleido 36"1448x1072300 (B/W) 150 (Color)Capacitive touchscreen16 GBNoMediaTek MT8113T dual-core ARM A53 2 GHzWiFi 802.11 ac/b/g/n, Bluetooth® wireless technology, and USB-CWaterproof, ComfortLight PRO, Dark Mode, Audiobooks112 x 160 x 9.2 mm174g$149.99April 20241500mAh / 512MB RAM

Market share

Global

Global e-book readers shipment in 2015 [63]
SellersPercent
Kobo
 
13.11%
Amazon
 
53.30%
PocketBook
 
9.02%

Canada

The Kobo e-reading platform was, as of January 2012, the best-selling in Canada. Research firm Ipsos-Reid estimating that Kobo e-readers represented 46% of the Canadian market. [64]

Market share of e-readers in Canada by Ipsos Reid at January 2012 [64]
SellersPercent
Kobo
 
46.0%
Amazon
 
24.0%
Sony
 
18.0%
Others
 
12.0%

France

As of spring 2012, Kobo had 50% of the market share in France. [65]

Other countries

In August 2013, Kobo was the second largest ebook retailer in Japan; further, Forbes estimated it at 3% of the market share in the United States. [66]

Selected subsidiaries

In October 2012, Kobo Inc. acquired the digital publishing platform Aquafadas to increase the content available on its e-reader devices. [67]

Software

The firmware updates from Kobo are unencrypted and a wide variety of patches can be applied to them to alter the built-in functionality. [68]

A few open source applications can be installed on Kobo eReaders. This includes KoReader. [69]

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">E Ink</span> Electronic paper manufactured by E Ink Corporation

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sony Reader</span> Line of e-book readers manufactured by Sony

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">E-reader</span> Device for reading e-books

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ebook Book-length publication in digital form

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kobo Touch</span>

The Kobo Touch is the third generation of the Kobo e-reader device designed by Kobo Inc. It was revealed on 23 May 2011 and was released in the U.S. on 10 June 2011 at a price of $129.99.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barnes & Noble Nook</span> Android-based tablet and e-reader

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kobo Glo</span>

The Kobo Glo is the fourth generation of Kobo eReader devices designed and marketed by Kobo Inc. It was revealed on 6 September 2012 and arrived at retail 14 October 2012 with a price of $129.99 USD/CAD. It is the successor to the popular Kobo Touch was introduced alongside the Kobo Mini and Kobo Arc. The Glo was succeeded in 2015 by the higher-resolution Glo HD, with 4GB built-in storage but no microSD removable storage.

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The Kobo Arc, a 7-inch tablet originally ran on Android Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0.4 and running on Android Jellybean 4.1, is manufactured by Kobo Inc. It was released in November 2012. The tablet has access to Google Play applications.

The Kobo Aura HD is a limited-edition Kobo eReader device designed and marketed by Kobo Inc. It was revealed 15 April 2013 and allowed for preorders the next day at a price of 169.99 USD/CAD. It arrived in stores in Canada and the United Kingdom on 25 April 2013. The marketing slogan of the Kobo Aura HD was "The eReader, reimagined." In October 2014 the Kobo Aura H2O was launched, it has a similar screen resolution to the Kobo Aura HD but has a waterproof coating. Kobo's CEO announced in March 2015 that the Kobo Aura HD was officially discontinued.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kobo Aura</span> E-book reader

The Kobo Aura is the fifth generation of E-book readers designed and marketed by Kobo Inc. It was revealed 27 August 2013 at Kobo's Beyond the Book Event in New York City, along with three new Kobo Arc devices. Available for pre-order the same day, it cost $149.99 USD/CAD.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Nowak, Peter (24 March 2010), "Indigo targets Amazon with Kobo e-reader", News, CA: CBC.
  2. 1 2 Haselton, Todd (28 September 2013). "Kobo Arc 7, Arc 10HD and Aura Hands-On". TechnoBuffalo. TechnoBuffalo LLC. Retrieved 4 June 2014.
  3. ↑ Kozlowski, Michael (22 January 2022). "Kobo unveils Sideload Mode to their e-readers". Good e-Reader. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  4. 1 2 "Kobo Elipsa 2E". Rakuten Kobo eReader Store. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
  5. ↑ Hamblen, Matt (25 March 2010), "Kobo announces $149 e-reader to be sold by Borders", Computerworld.
  6. ↑ "Homegrown Kobo hits the shelves", The Globe and Mail (review), 29 April 2010.
  7. ↑ "Kobo model N416", OET Exhibits List, FCC.
  8. ↑ About (company information), Netronix, archived from the original on 5 November 2011.
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  12. 1 2 "Features". Ereader. Kobo. Retrieved 17 January 2011.
  13. ↑ Pilato, Fabrizio (29 September 2010). "Kobo WiFi edition is cheaper, faster and sharper". Mobile Magazine. Retrieved 17 January 2011.
  14. ↑ Ridden, Paul (25 May 2011). "Kobo launches new e-Reader Touch edition". Gizmag. Retrieved 26 May 2011.
  15. ↑ "eReader Touch Specs". Books. Kobo. Retrieved 27 May 2011.
  16. ↑ "Welcome the New Kobo Family of Devices – An eReader for Everyone!". Toronto: Kobo. 6 September 2012. Archived from the original on 10 September 2012. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
  17. ↑ "Specs", Kobo Glo, Gdgt.
  18. ↑ "Kobo crams 1.5 million pixels into its 6.8" Aura HD e-reader". Ars Technica. 15 April 2013. Retrieved 16 April 2013.
  19. ↑ "Tech specs". Aura. Kobo.
  20. ↑ "Kobo's new tablets compete with Google's Nexuses on price, specs". Ars Technica. August 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2013.
  21. ↑ "Kobo crams 1.5 million pixels into its 6.8" Aura H2O e-reader". Ars Technica. April 2016. Retrieved 16 April 2013.
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