Why? I wrote about how to use a Kindle without tying it to Amazon. Kinda hard buying one anywhere else but from Amazon…

It's a shame indeed. Kobo used to sell their devices here, but they pulled out years ago. We also had a local bookseller that tried to face off Amazon, Saraiva, that released its own e-reader in ~2017, called Lev. (Probably a rebranded Chinese device; it was awful.) It didn't last. Right now, we have only Kindle devices for buying, and even that isn't complete — Kindle Scribe hasn't arrived yet.

Kindle Fire is a different beast: they run Android AOSP modified by Amazon and usually has low-end specs. I'd not recommend getting one anyway — tied to Amazon or otherwise.

Where did you get your Kobo?