Those who thought tablets would kill the eBook reader market have had to eat their words over the last year or so. Not only are they still going strong, we are still treated to new innovations in the tech.

The Amazon Kindle Oasis came out earlier this year, with a new, super-light form factor and a battery charge cover, now Kobo is redefining the top-end of the eBook reader field, with an extraordinary, premium device.

Available from 30 August in Canada and rolling out to other regions throughout September (6 September for the UK and US), the Kobo Aura One has a mammoth 7.8-inch Carta E Ink touchscreen with a 1872 x 1404 pixel resolution (300ppi).

It is designed, therefore, to offer a reading area akin to a hardback book. You can have many more words on a page than with a conventional reader, so less page turns will be needed.

Regardless of the size though, the Aura One is still light. It is 230g so considerably lighter than an iPad mini.

Kobo also worked with a select group of its own customers to add other features, with a new ComfortLight Pro system being added for late night readers. It is a front-light technology that emits less blue-light than other devices, so is less likely to impact sleep.

In addition, light sensors detect the ambient surroundings and adjust the light to mimic the sun's natural progression. Users can also change the settings to suit their own personal taste. 

Like the Kobo Aura H2O from 2014, the Aura One is waterproof. It has IPX8 protection so can be used in the bath or on the beach without worries. It can actually be completely submerged thanks to coated protection inside and out. The ports do not even need covering.

OneDrive library support means you can borrow eBooks if you have a library card from one of the certified libraries. And there are more than five million titles available to buy from Kobo.com too.

The Kobo Auro One has 8GB of storage, 512MB of RAM and Wi-Fi connectivity. It'll be priced at £189.99 in the UK.

Kobo has also announced a refreshed version of the Kobo Aura.

The Kobo Aura Edition 2 has a 6-inch Carta E Ink touchscreen with a 1024 x 768 resolution (212ppi) and ComfortLight front-light system. There is 4GB of storage on-board and battery life lasts for up to two months.

It will be available from 6 September in many regions, including the UK and US. We're yet to find out UK pricing for this but it'll retail for $129.99 Canadian dollars in Canada (around £78 at the current exchange rate).