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Ebook Readers?

pridecity

pridecity

Patients took over asylum
So, I've been floating around Amazon adding to my list of books I want to get eventually (list is topping 500 books or so now). I've considered replacing my collection of hardcopy books with eReader versions, though it would be expensive and I'm not sure if it's feasible. I had a couple of questions for those who have eReaders, specifically iPads and Kindles.

I have never seen an ebook being read in person, so if these questions sound dumb, please excuse.

I'm an Apple person. I have a Macbook, Ipod, and Iphone. I think it'd be nice to complete the collection eventually with an Ipad. I'm looking for a book reader and I know Ipad does it. I've read that Kindle is easier to read in the sun, which is important to me as I like reading outside.

Those who have eReaders, how is your outdoor viewing?

Also, I want a lot of books that have graphics (Manga, textbooks, gardening, field guides, etc). From what I understand, Kindle does not display color. Does Ipad? How important is it to you that your graphics are colored?

Any additional advice or vices you care to share about your reader?
 
Barnes and Noble's Nook is praise for it's screen being readable in the sun and such. I believe they also give you 3 e-books free if you buy 1 paper back...
 
I would vote for iPad no matter what. It's fine for reading in daylight. Are you going to be reading in the blazing sun, anyway?

(Posted from my iPad)
 
I'm not too interested in the Nook unfortunately. I've been told that it's difficult to find certain books for it.

@Nanci, yes I'll probably be in blazing sun. I'm one of those people who tend to be too stupid to get out of an uncomfortable situation when I'm in the middle of a good book. I'm a member of the "been sitting on the floor so long that my butt is numb" club. Also, at car shows, there tends to be little shade so being cooked is about as good as it gets. Lol
 
I would discourage you from acquiring an iPad as an Ebook reader... it's LED technology and it's exactly like reading allot of text from a computer screen... it isn't kind to your eyes and really... it's not comfortable after a while.

The Kindle however, uses E-ink, which is basically like reading a real book. There's no back light, you actually need a lamp to read in the dark- but that's exactly why it's so great. It's wonderful on the eyes, just like a book... but lighter than most heavier books and is a wonderful substitute to having tons of books at home.

Also, I wouldn't consider downloading copies of books you already paid for in electronic form as stealing. That's just MHO though.
 
Here is a thread on the various ereaders.
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1250672#post1250672

I have both the Kindle and an iPad, though my Kindle is the 2nd generation and there have been a few improvements to the new Kindle. I also have the 1st generation iPad, but I don't think there is much difference between generations as far as using it for an ereader. The pros for the iPad is that you can have a bunch of e-reader apps on it, i.e. Kindle, B & N and Apple's own, plus others. It is great for graphics, the Kindle does well enough but it isn't colored and only has a 6" screen. The 9" Kindle would be much better for graphics but it's about the same price as a 1st generation iPad and I'm not sure for the price difference, that it's worth it. In the Kindle app, you can change the background color, I use the black back with white font for low light reading and I like the sepia background for reading in brighter light. It's a bit easier on the eyes. Still, there is a pretty big difference in the amount of eye strain reading using the iPad versus the Kindle. The Kindle also has Text to Speech which is invaluable to me and none of the apps has that. Personally, if it was at all possible, I'd get one of each! Amazon has way more books than any of the other e-book stores I've looked at, they are way better priced than Apple and though the books are comparably priced between Amazon and B & N, Amazon has a much larger selection of full sized free novels. B & N have some, but almost all of theirs are either small short stories or teaser chapters to full books you'd have to buy to finish. Amazon does have some of those too but many more full length ones. Hopefully that helps a bit and the discussion in that other thread.
 
I don't have a lot of books with graphics, of the few I have, I haven't been that impressed by the Kindle app on the iPad. I'm not sure if that is the iPad or just a formatting issue with those few books. None of the graphics are colored but I don't think they were supposed to be. So I don't know if the Kindle app supports color graphics or not. Maybe someone else does? I don't have any books in the iBook app, Apple's prices on everything I've thought about buying, offend me. But having watched other people with various Apple devices using iBooks, that app seems to do really well with colored graphics.
 
I have an ipad2 and use it with the kindle app mostly because I can use it on my iPad or android phone. With IBooks you are restricted to an Apple device.

I have no problem reading outdoors.
 
You know what I like the iPad for, reading-wise? Magazines! I have a whole bunch on there, including some British reptile magazine. The app I use is Zinio. I have a book, in Zinio- Snakebit, Confessions of a Herpetologist. I like not having stacks of magazines to carry around/hoard/drag in and out of the house.
 
Well I guess you can read books from a PC screen- personally, I can't- not a serious reading session of a book that is. It DESTROYS my eyes and I just don't like it.

The kindle gives you a feel of a book, the iPad is simply a portable pc screen.
 
I have a kindle and I love it. I got it in May for mother day gife. I have read like 10 or so books on it. It is more like a book then a comp. I got my from best buy and it also had a 2 year warrenty on. It was also only 130.00 a ipad is 400.00 if you want to have a something for just books then I would go with a Kindle if you want to do more and you have the money then go with a Ipad. I also like the Kindle becouse i can bring it to the park and read it with not glar on the scean
 
Well, here's where I'm at right now:

I basically live with a computer attached to my face, so my eyes are about as damaged as they can be. Those who go to the local reptile expo know I always have the stupid thing with me. So, saying this, I don't think the glare will be much of a problem with me. I'm not too worried about price at the moment because I'm in the research stage and if I'm determined enough, the price isn't a problem.

If sun glare isn't too bad on the iPad, then both are still in the running. If I can transfer certain books from iPad to Kindle, or visa versa, then maybe both are in my future, depending on the situation.

Chances are, if I get both, I'll end up reading twice as many books as I do now, which is bad because I'm in the middle of... three I think. Let's see... Lucy's child, that romance novel I'm reading, the Inca and Mayan Mythology book, and.... yep. Three.

With two eReaders, I'd have two different books going, plus whatever hardcopies I happen to be in the middle of. I guess that's okay too. My main concern is the color of images in books I'll be reading. I'm sure I'll miss not being able to see colors of birds or bugs in field guides (if available in e-form).

And I never thought about magazines! I wonder if my favs are available? Nat Geo, Archeology, Psychology Today, Handyman....
 
Magazines at Zinio. I _love_ consuming magazines this way. There is a wide variation in pricing.

There is a Kindle app for iPad/iPhone. So you purchase books from Amazon, and then you can read them anywhere you have a Kindle account, is my understanding. I have one Kindle book, Primal Blueprint, but all I have done is glance through it.
 
One of the other things to think on, is battery life. In bright light where I have to turn up the backlight on the iPad, I get around 8 hours of battery life. Generally I don't use mine in bright light and keep the backlight down as low as it will go. Usually I get 10 to 14 hours out of the iPad. Which is pretty good for that type of device. With the Kindle, with really heavy usage like turning the 3G on and running the Text to Speech, both battery hogs, I get about 2 days. If I don't use the 3G or the Text to Speech, I get about 14 days, that's using it 4 to 8 hours a day. And the K3 is supposed to have a longer lived battery than mine.
 
Tavia, What all uses are there for the 3G on a Kindle? I am thinking of getting one for my daughter. She is in her sophomore year of college and still reads recreationally like crazy. I thought the Kindle would ease her load of carrying extra books. Is the 3G used for web and email too? Is it worth the extra $50?
 
tsst said:
Tavia, What all uses are there for the 3G on a Kindle? I am thinking of getting one for my daughter. She is in her sophomore year of college and still reads recreationally like crazy. I thought the Kindle would ease her load of carrying extra books. Is the 3G used for web and email too? Is it worth the extra $50?
Click to expand...

As far as I know, it only means you can connect to the kindle store via 3G rather than be dependent on Wifi... though I may be wrong.
The Kindle 3 supports PDF now... which is great.
 
Battery power for my kindle lasted up to a month for me I have the newest one out there. Well i did not get the 3g I did not think it was worth it. I have had it sec may have charged it up 2 times I think. You can use it for email and web, but it is not may for going on the web like a comp is. I love my kindle. and I think it will help with your eyes also to get you to but the comp down. I get megrains and using the kindle when reading does help and you can make the print biger smaller or larger. and it only wieght a few oz. Now with that is said. Now you have to see if you want a E reader or a comp with a E reader. I pad to me is not a E reader it is a comp with a e read ap on it. I know a kindle can hold up 5000 books. I hope this helps
 
I personally think the 3G is totally worth it, though I know many people who are completely satisfied with just the WiFi. We didn't have WiFi in our home up until about a year ago (just got rid of it a few days ago in fact, because we are broke) and there aren't a lot of WiFi hotspots around the little town I live in. Without it, I'd be severely restricted in the number of places to download books, you can download them wirelessly through either method or you can do it through a computer and USB cable too. You can surf the Web using the 3G, which also broadens the areas you can use that feature. The main difference, as has been said, between the Kindle and the iPad, is that the Kindle is an e-reader that just happens to let you browse the web and the iPad is a computer that let's you use reading apps on it. The Kindle browser is functional but not something that you'd really want to just sit down and play with. The only time I used it extensively, other than checking email, was when I got railroaded into baby sitting a BP and I had very little idea what their care was. Didn't have access to a regular computer but was able to research their care on the Kindle and that was a huge help!

Back to the 3G question. To me here are the pros. It is a one time payment that, if you compare it to any other 3G plan out there, is exceedingly cheap. It will triple the areas you can use the wireless, to surf the web or to download a book.
If you live in an area with lots of hotspots and don't travel much, it isn't necessary. The extra price is a bit of a con too, though a small one. With that said, IMO there aren't any real cons to it, just cases where it isn't really necessary.
 
I did not get the 3g wifi becouse I have wireless internet. It take a sec for the book to download to my kindle with out it.
 
I have a Kindle myself and absolutely LOVE it. Yea, it doesn't display color, and I know you want that for manga, but reading books on it is amazing. I have an outdoor job, and have never had an issue with being unable to read in the sun. The issue that I have with the iPad (other than I'm not an Apple fan) is that the battery dies so fast. With the Kindle, as long as you don't constantly have the wifi/3g on, the battery lasts literally for weeks. I haven't charged mine since halfway through August, I use it nearly every day for several hours, and it JUST died on me. Not having to worry about charging it to make sure it's ready to go the next day is the biggest thing for me.

Even though you don't like the Nook, they DO have a color version of it now. However, it's also LED and not that ink stuff, so you'll run into the same problems as the iPad.

Hope that helps!
 
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