Kindle vs Nook vs.....?

Started by drogulus, May 26, 2010, 02:07:31 PM

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drogulus


      I'm looking to get an eBook reader, and I'd like to know which one to get based on the experience of owners.

      So, which device is best in terms of ease of use, screen quality, battery life, reading comfort or any other measure of quality you may think relevant?

     
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Scarpia

#1
Quote from: drogulus on May 26, 2010, 02:07:31 PM
      I'm looking to get an eBook reader, and I'd like to know which one to get based on the experience of owners.

      So, which device is best in terms of ease of use, screen quality, battery life, reading comfort or any other measure of quality you may think relevant?

     

You forgot the Borders Kobo, which is only $150, with the same size screen as the Kindle and Nook.  Maybe this will pull the Kindle and Nook prices down.

http://www.borders.com/online/store/MediaView_koboereader?sc_eid2=bannerkobo-52410

I'm unlikely to get a Kindle, which locks you into Amazon.  (Even if you want to load a public domain file, you have to e-mail it to Amazon get it on a Kindle, if I understand correctly).   I'm also not likely to buy products that have restrictive digital rights management.  I've even read that people who had Kindle I weren't able to transfer their books to their Kindle II.  All four (Kindle, Nook, Kobo and Sony) have the same screen, as far as I know.  If I were to get one, it would be to read public domain material, and would probably get the Sony.

In any case, unless you need to read in direct sunlight, why not get an iPad?

drogulus

Quote from: Scarpia on May 26, 2010, 02:15:07 PM

In any case, unless you need to read in direct sunlight, why not get an iPad?


     The thread title indicates I include other unnamed options, because I don't know what they are.

     If the iPad isn't a better reader it's not for me, I think.

     
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KevinP

Quote from: Scarpia on May 26, 2010, 02:15:07 PM
I'm unlikely to get a Kindle, which locks you into Amazon.  (Even if you want to load a public domain file, you have to e-mail it to Amazon get it on a Kindle, if I understand correctly).   

No.You can put  .PDFs or whatever on the Kindle via a USB cable, just as you would upload to an .mp3 player. E-mailing is just one option. (So technically you have more ways to put files on it.)

Quote
In any case, unless you need to read in direct sunlight, why not get an iPad?
Because your eyes get tired from looking at the back-lit screen. After three decades of reading from computer, I'm amazed how easy the Kindle is on the eyes, and equally amazed that I never realized how tiring LCDs are.

Honestly don't understand why people are so crazy about these keyboardless laptops.


Scarpia

#4
Quote from: KevinP on May 26, 2010, 03:10:11 PMBecause your eyes get tired from looking at the back-lit screen. After three decades of reading from computer, I'm amazed how easy the Kindle is on the eyes, and equally amazed that I never realized how tiring LCDs are.

Honestly don't understand why people are so crazy about these keyboardless laptops.

Well, the Kindle is very different from a "keyboardless laptop."   If you are going to use it almost entirely for consuming content rather than creating content, eliminating the keyboard makes it a lot more compact and convenient.   The processor and operating system have been aggressively optimized to conserve battery life and give a fun feel.  The feeling of using an iPad is very different than using a laptop (at least based on playing with it in the Apple store).    And compared to the Kindle, it is colorful, has a fantasticly optimized web browser, and can run "Apps" (i.e., games).   

I haven't seen a Kindle, but I demo'd a Sony reader, the one with the identical screen.  Fun factor zero.  Kindle is a one-application gadget which allows you to read a book probably once before you somehow lose your digital rights.   I'd be willing to pay $50 for it.  I remember reading the Amazon was considering giving you one for free if you register for prime shipping deal.   I might go for that.

KevinP

#5
???

You can read the same book as many time as you want as you want on a Kindle. It's yours as long as you have a Kindle (in any form) to read it on. You can read them on other Kindles if you have more than one. You read a book on your hardware Kindle, continue reading it (automatirally starting at your last page) on your Kindle for PC, and finish reading it on your Kindle iPhone ap.

Please don't put such false information out there. It's perfectly fine if you don't know all the details, but just say so rather than post false assumptions to persaude droguls not to buy something you have never tried.

drogulus

Quote from: KevinP on May 26, 2010, 11:30:09 PM
???

You can read the same book as many time as you want as you want on a Kindle. It's yours as long as you have a Kindle (in any form) to read it on. You can read them on other Kindles if you have more than one. You read a book on your hardware Kindle, continue reading it (automatirally starting at your last page) on your Kindle for PC, and finish reading it on your Kindle iPhone ap.

Please don't put such false information out there. It's perfectly fine if you don't know all the details, but just say so rather than post false assumptions to persaude droguls not to buy something you have never tried.

     Yeah, stop......doing that.

     It seems all these devices have the same screen, and it's a good one for reading. I'm impressed by the fact that the B&N and the Borders readers will work with books from each other's sites and handle common file types. This leaves Kindle as the odd man out.
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Scarpia

Quote from: KevinP on May 26, 2010, 11:30:09 PM
???

You can read the same book as many time as you want as you want on a Kindle. It's yours as long as you have a Kindle (in any form) to read it on. You can read them on other Kindles if you have more than one. You read a book on your hardware Kindle, continue reading it (automatirally starting at your last page) on your Kindle for PC, and finish reading it on your Kindle iPhone ap.

Please don't put such false information out there. It's perfectly fine if you don't know all the details, but just say so rather than post false assumptions to persaude droguls not to buy something you have never tried.

I'm not suggesting that Kindle won't let me read the book twice.   If I read a book a second time, it is usually 10-20 years later, and I'm skeptical that after that time period I will still managed to retrieve a Kindle book.  I likely won't be able to read it without a Kindle, since Amazon doesn't use the most common industry standard format, but their own format.

KevinP

QuoteAmazon doesn't use the most common industry standard format, but their own format.

Here we go again. The Kindle is capable of reading multiple file formats, not just its own. These includes .MOBI, .PRC, .AZW, .TXT and .PDB. (I've not tried them all.) It also reads .PDF but the results are currently not that great because a .PDF is essentially a graphic, so the text can be too small and you can't control it as with other formats; however the next update has a zoom function for PDF files. Other formats such as .doc can be converted using freeware programs.

drogulus, I have a Kindle. I absolutely love it. I know what it can and cannot do. I use it daily, reading for hours, which I absolutely couldn't do with an LCD screen. I don't live in a Western country so I can't compare it to other models. (Had to have mine imported.) I'm sure you would be happy with one, the question is whether you would be happier with one of the others.

Scarpia

#9
Quote from: KevinP on May 27, 2010, 06:26:55 AM
These includes .MOBI, .PRC, .AZW, .TXT and .PDB. (I've not tried them all.)

Mobi was open until Amazon bought out the company.  But not epub, the one open source format?

Anyway, I don't have the thing so I can't comment on how nice it is, but I have looked into the matter and these are the reasons I don't have the thing and will never have it.


petrarch

#11
I have had the Kindle DX for a little over a year now and am extremely happy with it. It is larger than the regular Kindle, but you get more screen real estate, which means you can actually have a full page of text in a "natural" size on it (the screen's size is as big as a full book page) as opposed to having severe reflowing and a weird proportion between reading surface and font size. Reading PDFs is a breeze, and I usually rotate the device to get the full page width when reading technical books (again, an option I like to have text sized as close to the original as possible).

I have read tons of public domain stuff on it that I would have never read otherwise (I would have amassed too many books if I had gone out and bought a physical copy of each, and reading them on my laptop is a non-starter for the reasons everyone knows). As an example, just check http://manybooks.net, which contains most if not all of Project Gutenberg's library in a myriad of formats.

I don't feel locked to Amazon and the Kindle at all. In fact, 99% of the books I have there I have downloaded from the internet (from sites such as the one mentioned above) and the device acts like an external USB drive when it comes to copying files to (and from) it. I've also tried using the experimental web browser it comes with to download some of the books. It is slow, but usable, and it's nice to not have to use a computer to get content into it (it helps that wireless access through Whispernet is totally free in the USA). As others have pointed out, it reads a wide variety of formats, and Amazon's own is just one of them.

Battery life is very very good, at about 3 weeks on a full charge and daily use.

In terms of comfort, one interesting aspect is that you actually forget you are using an electronic device and the text just takes over. That, to me, is a sign that the device is completely unobstrusive and lets you really focus on what you want--the content.
//p
The music collection.
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Gurn Blanston

Quote from: petrArch on June 05, 2010, 12:59:25 PM
I have had the Kindle DX for a little over a year now...

Thanks very much for that review. You have managed to answer a lot of the little questions that have been nagging me and which don't ever seem to get addressed. NOW I can think about actually getting one myself, since the answers you gave were positive from my POV. :)

8)

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drogulus

#13
Quote from: petrArch on June 05, 2010, 12:59:25 PM
I have had the Kindle DX for a little over a year now and am extremely happy with it.

     That a very interesting take. It sounds like the dreaded "lock-in" may not be so bad after all.

     I've DL'd a few free books to my Kindle for PC program, just to get an idea of how it works.

Quote from: Gurn Blanston on June 05, 2010, 01:20:35 PM
Thanks very much for that review. You have managed to answer a lot of the little questions that have been nagging me and which don't ever seem to get addressed. NOW I can think about actually getting one myself, since the answers you gave were positive from my POV. :)

8)

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       I'll be in Texas next Sat., and gone by Tues. Is that OK?

       You can go to a site like ManyBooks and pick up all kinds of free books in both Kindle and non-Kindle formats.
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Gurn Blanston

Quote from: drogulus on June 05, 2010, 02:37:53 PM
     
       I'll be in Texas next Sat., and gone by Tues. Is that OK?

Actually, OK is just north of here, we are TX. But I can see that I don't need to give you the good advice to not stick around for long; we are expecting near 100°F  (38°C for our non-F members)  in the next couple days. Only a fool would visit here for any amount of time at this time of year! :o :o

8)

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drogulus

Quote from: Gurn Blanston on June 05, 2010, 03:01:01 PM
Actually, OK is just north of here, we are TX. But I can see that I don't need to give you the good advice to not stick around for long; we are expecting near 100°F  (38°C for our non-F members)  in the next couple days. Only a fool would visit here for any amount of time at this time of year! :o :o

8)

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     I went in June last year, and it hit 101 degrees. But that was Ohhhh Kaayyy, because it wasn't terribly humid. The forecast for next Sat. is 96 degrees and dry. I think we just might make it.
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Scarpia

#16
Quote from: Gurn Blanston on June 05, 2010, 01:20:35 PM
Thanks very much for that review. You have managed to answer a lot of the little questions that have been nagging me and which don't ever seem to get addressed. NOW I can think about actually getting one myself, since the answers you gave were positive from my POV. :)

8)

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Now playing:
Quatuor Festetics - Hob 03 19 Quartet in C for Strings Op. 9 #1 4th mvmt - Finale: Presto

Borders is coming out with a reader with same display as the basic Kindle for $150.  I suspect the Kindle price point will have to come down from $260.

KevinP

A (perhaps) helpful article on software availability for each of the major readers.
http://ilmk.wordpress.com/2010/06/05/stables-of-contents/

petrarch

Still on this topic, I remembered an interesting tidbit. Like everyone else, I read the most I could about the device to get some sense of eventual issues and problems that people were having before deciding to buy. The most interesting report was one that I must say happened to me in exactly the same way, even after I had read about it. When I unpacked the unit, it had the typical transparent adhesive protector covering the screen, with some instructions on how to power and charge the device for the first time. When I removed the adhesive protector, I was taken aback because it was completely transparent, and all the text and diagrams about charging it were a page rendered by the device itself (probably the default page once it comes out of the assembly line). That was a very satisfying and amazing surprise, and it goes to show how seamless e-ink technology really is.
//p
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A view of the whole

drogulus

#19
     The NYTimes had this yesterday:

     
     Among E-Readers, Competition Heats Up

     By JOANNA STERN

WHEN Steven P. Jobs, Apple's chief executive, introduced the iPad, he bluntly took aim at the rapidly emerging e-reader market.

"Amazon has done a great job" with the Kindle, he said. "We're going to stand on their shoulders and go a little bit further."

The iPad's full-color screen and its ability to browse the Web and run thousands of applications certainly make it more versatile than the Kindle, but Apple is not the only company bringing more than just black-on-white text to readers.

AsusTek, Dell and Hewlett-Packard will soon be following Apple's lead, bringing to market large-screen tablets that are ideal for reading books and newly formatted digital magazines and newspapers. And unlike Amazon's and Sony's stand-alone e-readers, which are limited by monochrome E Ink screens, the new multipurpose devices provide access to the Web and other applications.

Does this mean dedicated digital reader devices will be landing in the grave? Not quite. While the price of many basic e-readers has been cut to stimulate sales, companies like Barnes & Noble and Spring Design have melded those E Ink screens with secondary color displays to add some Web functionality to primarily single-function e-readers.

The result includes smarter devices and more choices. Here's a roundup of products to consider in choosing a digital reader now.
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