Kobo Firmware Version 4.44

Current sub-version: 4.44 (newer Kobo tablets) and 4.38 (older Kobo tablets)

This page takes a deep dive into the firmware that is pre-installed on Kobo e-ink tablets to help potential customers decide if a Kobo has the software functionality that they need.

Please note that Kobo currently have two main forks to their firmware, and this review will cover them both because there is very little difference between them. The main version is for Kobo’s newer devices, such as the the Kobo Libra Color, and the other is used on their older devices.

Prior to September 2025, I did maintain two different firmware review pages for the two different versions above, but it became a bit of a strain because I was having to update two pages with exactly the same information. So, I decided to consolidate all the Kobo firmware together under the one page because (essentially) they are the same – but I will make a note of any major differences between them.

New in this version

• Added support for Kobo Remote (Kobo’s page-turning device)
• Added Bluetooth toggle button to the top status bar

Honestly, I’m a little disappointed with this firmware update because Kobo are so far behind their competitors with regards to their software, particularly their note-taking app, that it feels as though they’ve given up on it. And the only improvements that they could muster up were adding support for a new peripheral they’ve recently released, and adding a Bluetooth icon (which is directly related to the aforementioned peripheral).

In fact, Kobo haven’t released a meaningful improvement to their firmware in years – I’ve actually decide to drop my already low rating of the Kobo firmware a little lower because other brands have been advancing further ahead as Kobo stand relatively still.

Operating System

The first thing that struck me about the Kobo firmware was its structural clarity. The interface is arranged into five tabbed sections, represented by icons along the bottom edge of the display. It is not minimalist in the ascetic sense, but it is orderly. Everything has a designated place, even if that place is sometimes commercially motivated.

Home

The Home tab functions as a dashboard. It presents the books I am currently reading, a direct link to my full Kobo library, and a section of recommended titles. There are also prominent shortcuts to the Kobo bookstore and to Kobo Plus (Kobo’s subscription service, conceptually analogous to Kindle Unlimited).

What cannot be ignored is the commercial weighting of this screen. Nearly half of the visible real estate is dedicated to acquiring new material rather than engaging with what I already own. Depending on one’s temperament, this can feel either pragmatic or intrusive. Personally, I oscillate between mild irritation and indifference. It is not egregious advertising – there are no garish banners or aggressive pop-ups – but the commercial intent is ever-present.

My Books

The My Books tab is the substantive core of the system. This is where the device feels most purpose-driven.

Here, I can view the ebooks stored locally on the device and manipulate their presentation through a reasonably sophisticated set of filters and sorting parameters. Titles can be organised by author, by series, or by custom collections I create myself. The taxonomy is sufficiently granular to prevent a large library from devolving into chaos.

Selecting a title opens it within Kobo’s native reading application, which is deeply integrated and responsive. Navigation feels immediate; there is no perceptible delay that undermines immersion. I will discuss the reading experience itself later, but from a structural standpoint, this section does exactly what it should without superfluous ornamentation.

My Notebooks

The My Notebooks tab is dedicated to handwritten notebooks. All created notebooks are visible here, and they can be organised into hierarchical folders of my own design.

Sorting options are available, and creating a new notebook requires only a tap or two. The workflow is intuitive. Open an existing notebook, write, close it, and it returns to its designated folder.

The system is competent rather than revolutionary. It does not attempt to redefine digital note-taking, but it avoids obstructing it.

Discover

The Discover tab is the commercial counterpart to My Books. It is essentially the Kobo bookstore embedded within the firmware. From here I can purchase ebooks and audiobooks, subscribe to Kobo Plus, and access OverDrive integration for borrowing ebooks from public libraries.

The inclusion of library borrowing within the same environment as retail purchasing is genuinely useful. It prevents the ecosystem from feeling hermetically sealed. Still, this tab is unapologetically transactional. Its purpose is acquisition.

More

The final tab, More, is a miscellany of utilities and configuration options.

Here I can:

• View reading statistics.
• Access and configure apps and integrations.
• Modify system-wide settings.

It also contains several specific integrations:

• My Wishlist: a personal list of Kobo titles I may want to purchase later.
• My Dropbox: file transfer between the device and Dropbox.
• My Google Drive: file transfer between the device and Google Drive.
• My Articles: Instapaper integration for reading saved web articles.
• Beta Features: a web browser, large print mode, and My Words (a list of dictionary lookups).

The so-called beta features are curious. They have remained labelled as “beta” for several years without any visible evolution. Functionally, they work, but the persistent beta designation suggests either institutional caution or developmental stagnation.

There is also a well-constructed Help knowledge base embedded directly in the device. It is comprehensive without being labyrinthine – an understated but welcome inclusion, and perhaps one of the better support libraries I’ve encountered.

Top System Bar

Across all tabs runs a persistent top bar. From here I can:

• Adjust frontlight brightness and colour temperature.
• Configure Wi-Fi connections.
• Pair Bluetooth devices.
• Monitor battery level.
• Initiate sync for firmware and library updates.
• Perform searches.

The search function, somewhat perplexingly, applies to books but not notebooks. This omission feels arbitrary. If notebooks are positioned as a core feature, they should be searchable with the same immediacy as books.

Overall, the Kobo operating system is methodical and intelligible. It does not indulge in unnecessary flourish, nor does it exhibit the fragmented complexity of an Android-based device. Its principal compromise is commercial visibility: purchasing pathways are never far from view. Whether that is perceived as convenience or encroachment will depend entirely on the user.

Native note-taking software

When creating a notebook on a Kobo device, I am presented with two distinct options: Basic Notebooks and Advanced Notebooks. They differ so substantially in structure and philosophy that it makes sense to treat them separately.

Basic Notebooks

Basic Notebooks resemble the conventional page-based systems found on most e-ink tablets: a blank canvas, ready for immediate writing. Swiping left or right moves between pages. Tapping the arrow in the top-right corner summons toolbars at the top and bottom of the display.

Unfortunately, these toolbars occupy roughly a third of the screen. Given that they provide comparatively few options, this feels excessive. The bottom toolbar, in particular, consumes a disproportionate amount of space for what is essentially just a page navigation slider. On a device where screen real estate is already constrained, this design decision is difficult to defend.

Top Toolbar Functions

From left to right, the icons include:

• Close notebook
• Frontlight adjustment
• Pen selection
• Lasso select
• Eraser
• Undo
• Redo
• Search

An overflow menu (three dots) provides additional options:

• Change background/template (limited built-in templates; no support for custom templates)
• Clear page
• Delete page
• Refresh page
• Export

The absence of custom templates is disappointing. Many competing devices allow users to import personalised planners, manuscript paper, or specialised grids. Kobo’s selection is static and limited.

Pen Tools

There are five pen types:

• Ballpoint
• Fountain pen
• Calligraphy pen
• Brush
• Highlighter

The fountain, calligraphy, and brush pens support pressure sensitivity, but none support tilt sensitivity. There is also no pencil tool, a surprising omission given how ubiquitous that option is elsewhere.

Lasso and OCR

The lasso-select tool allows selection of handwritten content. Once selected, handwriting can be converted into text using local OCR. And here Kobo genuinely excels. The recognition accuracy is impressively high. Even my inconsistent, hurried handwriting was deciphered with notable reliability.

However, this is where the implementation becomes perplexing. While handwriting can be converted into text, there is no way to add typed text directly, nor can I edit converted text if the OCR makes an error. If a single word is misinterpreted, the only remedy is deletion and rewriting. This feels like an unfinished feature rather than a deliberate design constraint.

Selected handwriting can be resized, duplicated, and repositioned. The eraser can function either as an object eraser (removing whole strokes) or as a brush eraser (removing partial strokes), which behaves much like a physical eraser.

The search function scans handwritten content using OCR indexing. Again, it works remarkably well – it was able to retrieve words from my untidy script with surprising consistency.

Exporting Basic Notebooks

Exporting follows a structured sequence:

1. Choose current page or entire notebook (no option to export selected pages).
2. Choose destination: Computer, Dropbox, or Google Drive.
3. Choose format: PDF, PNG, or JPEG.

If exporting to “Computer,” the file is actually saved to the device’s Exported Notebooks folder, requiring a wired connection for retrieval. For full notebooks, PNG and JPEG formats are zipped.

Advanced Notebooks

Advanced Notebooks adopt an entirely different paradigm. Instead of discrete pages, there is a single, vertically scrolling, infinite canvas.

A toolbar at the top includes:

• Exit
• Orientation
• Frontlight
• Pen
• Eraser
• Undo
• Redo
• Search

Here, handwriting conversion operates differently. Double-tapping handwriting converts it into text inline. Once converted, the stylus can manipulate text using gesture-based editing. Foe example, underlining creates a heading and scribbling through text deletes it.

This interaction model feels modern and conceptually ambitious.

Block System

Advanced Notebooks allow insertion of specialised blocks:

• Drawing: a freehand drawing canvas.
• Diagram: shape/line/arrow recognition for clean flowcharts (double-tap to perfect shapes).
• Math Equation: write an equation, double-tap to convert into formatted notation; in some cases, it will solve the equation.
• Free Form: essentially the same as Drawing, but with a squared background.

Blocks stack vertically and can be rearranged or duplicated. The structure resembles a modular document editor rather than a traditional notebook.

Exporting Advanced Notebooks

Only entire notebooks can be exported – not individual blocks. Again, the notebook can be exported locally, or to Dropbox or Google Drive.

Three file formats are supported for exported notebooks:

• TXT exports only plain converted text.
• DOCX exports converted text and Drawing blocks.
• HTML exports the full notebook, including all block types.

The inconsistency between formats is frustrating.

Writing Experience and Performance

This is where the system falters most conspicuously.

Part of the limitation may be hardware-related – Kobo uses Active Pens rather than Wacom EMR technology – but the software also bears responsibility.

There is perceptible input lag. Strokes trail slightly behind the pen tip, which subtly disrupts the illusion of immediacy. When writing small characters, I occasionally experienced missed strokes entirely.

Screen refresh behaviour is also problematic. Frequent flashing occurs, particularly when using colour mark-making. Ghosting appears intermittently – for instance, I often observed the outline of the lasso tool lingering after use.

Performance degrades noticeably in stroke-dense notebooks. As a habitual stress test, I fill an entire page with dense black shading to check for dead pixels. On Kobo devices, unlike all competitors I have tested, performance deteriorates progressively as more ink accumulates on the page. Page turns slow. Responsiveness declines. Eventually, I find myself waiting more than writing.

Whether this stems from hardware constraints, software inefficiency, or a combination of both, the result is the same: a writing experience that feels compromised.

Overall Assessment

Kobo’s note-taking app contains genuinely impressive components. The handwriting recognition is accurate. The math conversion works surprisingly well. The diagram tool produces clean results with minimal effort. Conceptually, Advanced Notebooks are innovative.

However, execution undermines ambition.

The inability to manually edit converted text is a glaring oversight. The absence of custom templates limits flexibility. There is no thumbnail page overview in Basic Notebooks. Export options are rigid. And, most significantly, the writing latency and performance degradation make sustained note-taking uncomfortable.

Perhaps most concerning is stagnation. These shortcomings have persisted for years without meaningful refinement. Given that trajectory, substantial improvement in the near future seems improbable.

In candid terms, I would hesitate to use Kobo’s note-taking system as a primary productivity tool. For occasional annotations, it suffices. For serious, sustained work, nearly every competing brand currently offers a more polished and performant experience.

Native reading and annotation software

Kobo has been producing e-readers for well over a decade, and that accumulated experience is evident in its native reading application. It is not ostentatious. It does not overwhelm with esoteric toggles buried three menus deep. Instead, it presents a restrained, minimal interface that prioritises legibility and immediacy.

This is an application designed for people who primarily want to read, not endlessly configure.

File Support and Ecosystem Openness

Kobo devices support an expansive range of file formats – EPUB, PDF, CBZ/CBR (for comics), and others. Crucially, they also provide native support for Adobe ADE DRM-protected books. That seemingly technical detail has substantial practical consequences.

In essence, I am not confined to a single storefront. I can purchase ebooks from independent retailers that use Adobe DRM and load them directly onto the device without resorting to third-party applications. By contrast, the Amazon Kindle ecosystem largely restricts users to its own proprietary format and store, unless the file is DRM-free. Android-based e-ink devices can handle ADE content, but only through external apps.

This openness remains one of the defining strengths of the Kobo ecosystem.

In-Book Interface and Controls

Opening a book and tapping the centre of the screen summons two toolbars – one at the top, one at the bottom.

The top toolbar allows me to:

• Exit the book.
• Adjust pen type, thickness and colour for handwritten annotations.
• Switch orientation (portrait, landscape, or auto-rotate).
• Modify frontlight brightness and colour temperature.
• Adjust typography (font, size, line spacing, margins, justification).
• Configure reading settings.

The reading settings are sensibly comprehensive without becoming labyrinthine. I can choose how progress is displayed (pages, percentage, time remaining for each chapter and the whole book), configure physical button behaviour (where applicable), adjust refresh frequency, and enable dark mode.

Everything is accessible within a tap or two. There is no sense of hunting through convoluted hierarchies.

The bottom toolbar contains a navigation slider for rapid traversal through the book. It also provides access to the Table of Contents. Selecting a chapter transports me instantly to its beginning.

A secondary tab within the Table of Contents displays all annotations made in the book. Tapping an entry returns me to the precise location in question. It is a simple but effective organisational structure.

Annotations

Annotations on Kobo devices take several forms:

• Handwritten markups.
• Text highlights.
• Notes (text attached to highlights).
• Bookmarks.

Long-pressing a word initiates a dictionary lookup. The built-in English dictionary is genuinely excellent – comprehensive, clear, and fast. There are also options to search Wikipedia or Google, but these rely on the onboard web browser. Unfortunately, the browser is unreliable and poorly rendered. Pages frequently display incorrectly or fail to load properly. It is a vestigial inclusion rather than a dependable research tool.

Highlighting text is, by contrast, well executed. I long-press, drag the selection handles to the desired boundaries, and the highlight is created with minimal friction. On some competing devices, text selection is erratic and imprecise; here it is stable and predictable.

On colour models, highlights can be applied in yellow, red, blue, or green. Text notes can be attached to these highlights, though they are typed rather than handwritten.

One curious limitation is that highlights cannot span multiple pages on sideloaded files. With Kobo-purchased EPUBs, cross-page highlighting works; with externally loaded files, it does not. This inconsistency reveals a subtle but tangible bias towards content acquired directly from Kobo’s own store.

Exporting Annotations

While annotations are easy to create and browse within the book, extracting them is another matter.

There is no straightforward, device-native method to export highlights and notes. If the book was purchased from Kobo’s store, I can log into the Kobo website and export annotations there (sometimes). For sideloaded content, the process becomes technical: editing a configuration file and manually retrieving a TXT file from the “Exported Annotations” folder after connecting the device to a computer.

Even then, only text highlights and notes are exported – not handwritten markups.

This is one of the more conspicuous limitations of the software. Annotations are often created precisely because one intends to revisit, analyse, or synthesise them elsewhere. The friction involved in doing so feels antiquated.

Zoom and Layout Handling

Pinch-to-zoom behaves as expected. In EPUB and other reflowable text formats, it adjusts font size. In PDFs, it performs conventional zooming.

For straightforward, text-heavy PDFs, this is adequate. For complex, multi-column or graphically dense documents, navigation becomes less elegant. There are no advanced layout reflow tools or sophisticated cropping utilities built into the native app.

Overall Assessment

For casual reading, the Kobo native app is more than sufficient – in fact, its restraint is part of its appeal. The interface is lucid, stable, and unobtrusive. New users will find it unintimidating.

However, once one’s requirements become more exacting (e.g. advanced PDF manipulation, seamless annotation export, deeper document analysis, etc.) its limitations surface quickly.

Kobo deserves genuine commendation for supporting Adobe DRM and permitting purchases from external bookstores. That degree of ecosystem openness is rare. Yet there remains a discernible preferential treatment for books purchased directly through Kobo, particularly in areas such as cross-page highlighting and web-based annotation export.

It is an excellent reading tool – but it is first and foremost a Kobo reading tool.

Ecosystem

As mentioned earlier, one of Kobo’s most defensible strengths is its support for Adobe ADE DRM. Because of this, I am not contractually or technically bound to a single storefront. I can purchase ebooks from a wide range of independent retailers that use Adobe’s DRM system and read them natively on the device.

This stands in contrast to the Amazon Kindle ecosystem, which is effectively closed to externally purchased DRM-protected books. In principle, Kobo’s model is meaningfully more open.

The Practical Reality of ADE

However, theoretical openness and practical convenience are not the same thing.

If I purchase an ebook directly from the Kobo store, I can browse the integrated bookstore on the device itself, complete the transaction, and have the book downloaded instantly. The process is seamless.

If I purchase from a third-party bookstore using Adobe DRM, the process becomes conspicuously more laborious:

1. Download an ASCM licence file to a computer.
2. Install/open Adobe Digital Editions (ADE).
3. Import the ASCM file into ADE.
4. Connect the Kobo device via USB.
5. Authorise the device within ADE (if not already registered).
6. Transfer the ebook manually.

It works, and (after some familiarity and habituation) can be moderately quick to perform – but it feels antiquated. Compared to the immediacy of Kobo’s direct purchasing pipeline, the ADE route is procedural and cumbersome.

I’m not saying that the blame for this lies with Kobo – this is essentially a problem with the ADE DRM system, or lack of a better alternative.

Cloud Library Limitations

Only ebooks purchased from the Kobo store appear in the Kobo cloud library. These titles sync across devices, preserve reading position, and maintain highlights automatically.

Sideloaded or ADE-transferred books do not enjoy the same treatment. They remain local to the device unless manually copied elsewhere. Furthermore, as discussed earlier, certain features (such as cross-page highlighting and web-based annotation export) function more reliably with Kobo-purchased content.

So while Kobo’s ecosystem is technically open, there remains a subtle but persistent bias towards content acquired directly through its own storefront.

Kobo Books App

Kobo provides the Kobo Books app for both Android and iOS devices.

Through the app, I can:

• Access my Kobo cloud library.
• Read ebooks using Kobo’s built-in reading interface.
• Sync reading progress and highlights.
• Browse and purchase books from the Kobo store.
• Manage my wishlist.

Syncing works reliably – but again, only for books purchased from Kobo. Sideloaded content does not integrate into this cross-device experience.

The omission that stands out most glaringly is notebook access. There is no way to view Kobo notebooks within the mobile app. Given that note-taking is positioned as a core feature of Kobo’s stylus-enabled devices, this absence feels unjustifiable.

Notebook Access via Web

It is possible to log into the Kobo website through a desktop browser and view notebooks there. However, viewing is where the functionality largely ends. There is no option to export or download notebooks from the web interface.

If I want a notebook in a usable external format, I must export it directly from the Kobo device itself – either to Dropbox, Google Drive, or to local storage and then retrieve it manually via USB.

In other words, notebooks remain somewhat tethered to the device.

Dropbox, Google Drive, and Sideloading

If Dropbox or Google Drive integration is configured on the device, Kobo creates a dedicated folder. I can place DRM-free EPUBs or PDFs into that folder from another device, and can then download them onto my Kobo.

Alternatively, DRM-free files can be transferred directly via USB.

Other native software

Because Kobo devices run a proprietary operating system rather than Android, there is no facility to install third-party applications. What you see is what you get. There is no app store, no sideloading of APKs, and no opportunity to extend functionality beyond what Kobo itself permits.

That constraint inevitably limits versatility when compared to Android-based e-ink tablets. However, Kobo does include a small suite of native integrations that meaningfully enhance the experience for certain users.

OverDrive and Libby Integration

Kobo devices offer native support for OverDrive and Libby.

In practical terms, this means I can log in using my public library credentials and borrow ebooks directly on the device. Once borrowed, the books download wirelessly and behave much like store-bought titles, albeit with a time restriction imposed by the lending period.

For users who rely heavily on public libraries, this integration is not a trivial convenience, it is a substantial advantage. The process is direct, embedded, and does not require a separate device once configured.

Instapaper

Kobo devices also support Instapaper natively.

By linking a free Instapaper account and installing the browser extension on my computer, I can save web articles for later reading. These articles then sync to the Kobo and appear in the “My Articles” section.

This feature is particularly well suited to e-ink. Long-form journalism, essays, and research pieces benefit from the distraction-free environment. Reading saved articles on an e-ink screen is noticeably more comfortable than consuming them on a backlit phone or laptop display.

Previously, Kobo used Pocket for this function. After Pocket’s parent company, Mozilla, shut the service down in 2025, Kobo transitioned to Instapaper. The migration was pragmatic, and the functionality remains broadly similar.

Beta Web Browser

Within the Beta Features section, Kobo includes a basic web browser.

It is, quite frankly, abysmal.

Page rendering is inconsistent. Layouts frequently break. Navigation is sluggish. Complex sites are barely usable. Even simple lookups can become an exercise in patience. While it technically allows access to the broader web, in practice it feels vestigial 0 something included for completeness rather than competence.

I would not recommend relying on it for anything.

Overall Assessment

Kobo’s proprietary operating system lacks the extensibility of Android. There is no way to install alternative reading apps, advanced PDF tools, or productivity software. For users who value customisation and software diversity, this will feel restrictive.

However, the inclusion of OverDrive/Libby and Instapaper is genuinely valuable. For readers who borrow extensively from libraries or habitually save long-form articles, these integrations can materially improve the device’s utility.

In short, Kobo’s native app ecosystem is narrow but selectively well chosen. It prioritises reading-centric services over general-purpose functionality – and whether that is sufficient depends entirely on how one intends to use the device.

Final verdict

There is no elegant way to phrase this: as a note-taking device, I find Kobo markedly inferior to its principal competitors.

The writing experience is compromised. Latency is perceptible. Refresh behaviour is intrusive. Performance degrades under load. While there are flashes of competence (handwriting recognition is impressively accurate, and the mathematical notation conversion is genuinely clever) the broader implementation feels incomplete. Certain features are only partially realised; others are conspicuously absent. The inability to manually edit converted text is emblematic of this pattern: technically impressive, practically constrained.

For sustained, serious note-taking, I would not choose a Kobo device.

As a reading device, however, my assessment softens considerably.

Kobo devices are not saturated with superfluous features, and that restraint works in their favour. The interface is clean, minimal, and largely unobtrusive. The native reading app is refined through years of iteration. The built-in dictionary is excellent. OverDrive/Libby integration enables direct borrowing from public libraries, and Instapaper adds long-form web reading into the mix.

For straightforward, immersive reading, I’ve always found Kobo genuinely pleasurable to use.

But the moment I attempt anything more involved – exporting annotations, handling complex PDFs, or integrating notebooks into a broader workflow – the limitations surface. The ecosystem technically supports third-party bookstores via Adobe DRM, which makes it more open than the Kindle platform from Amazon. In practice, though, purchasing directly from Kobo is so much faster and simpler that alternative routes become cumbersome rather than liberating.

And the inability to access or export notebooks meaningfully through the Kobo mobile app remains a glaring omission.

For most people, I would not recommend a Kobo device, particularly not for note-taking. There are, in my view, more capable and better-executed alternatives available.

If your sole objective is clean, distraction-free reading – if you want a device that is intuitive, restrained, and designed primarily for consuming text rather than manipulating it – then Kobo may suit you very well. Basic reading on a Kobo is, frankly, delightful.

But for users who expect robust note-taking, sophisticated document handling, or seamless ecosystem integration, I would advise looking elsewhere.

Firmware overview

Reviews of Older Versions of Kobo Firmware

My rating	Firmware version	Tablets using this firmware
	4.44 (current version) Dec 2025	Kobo Libra Color Kobo Elipsa 2E Kobo Elipsa Kobo Sage
	4.43 Aug 2025
	4.42 May 2025
	4.41 Oct 2024
	4.38 Oct 2024
	4.40 Oct 2024