Kobo Sage · Guides
Page-turn buttons and gestures on the Kobo Sage
What every button press, tap and swipe does on the Sage, and which actions you can change in Settings.
The Sage is large enough that the buttons matter for one-handed reading. The buttons and the touch zones work together, and the only change most people make is reversing the buttons under Reading settings. The button-plus-edge-slide shortcut for brightness is worth remembering on a screen this size.
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Learn the default button behaviour
The two physical buttons sit on the wide bezel. Held in the right hand, the lower button turns the page forward and the upper button turns it back. The device senses which way you are holding it and keeps "forward" as the button nearer your thumb, so the buttons work in any orientation.
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Swap the buttons if forward and back feel wrong
Go to the home screen, open the menu, then Settings, then "Reading settings", and switch the page-turn buttons to the reversed layout. This is the setting most left-handed readers change, and it also helps if you prefer the top button for forward.
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Learn the tap zones
While reading, a tap on the right side of the screen turns the page forward, a tap on the left turns it back, and a tap in the centre opens the reading menu. The zones work alongside the buttons.
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Use swipes for chapter jumps and settings
Swipe left or right to turn pages. Swipe up from the bottom for the navigation bar and chapter list. Swipe down from the top for the brightness and warm-light sliders and the settings shortcut.
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Adjust brightness with a button-and-slide shortcut
Press and hold either page-turn button, then slide your thumb up or down the left edge of the screen to change the front-light brightness without opening a menu.
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Know the limit of the stock software
Kobo's software lets you reverse the buttons but not assign them to other actions. If you want fully configurable buttons and gestures, that is one of the reasons people install [KOReader](/devices/kobo/sage/koreader/).