Ebook Readers

[Peace]

Hiya!

I've always been a big reader. My family and I read so much that all the empty walls in our house are covered with shelves, which are all full. Our collection has begun to overflow onto tables and chairs, and I've begun to worry about whether we have too many books. Unfortunately, there isn't a library or a secondhand book-store in my town. (If there were a library, we wouldn't have this problem because we'd just borrow our books.)

In any case, I've decided to help curb the incoming tide of books in my house buying an ebook reader.

So, I was wondering: What ebook readers do people on EC use? Are there any you'd like to recommend?

At the moment, I'm considering a Pocketbook 903. It's the same size as a Kindle DX, but supports more formats. (And, from what I've heard, does much better with PDFs, which I often need to use.)

[thedreamwatch]

I have a Kindle. I am COMPLETELY in love with it. It works fantastically and it's lovely and you can read it in direct sunlight and it's slim and light and the e-ink technology makes it so that it looks like the page of a book and never hurts my eyes even if I read for hours.

Also, Amazon has amazing customer service. I had a problem with my Kindle, and after a five minute phonecall there was a new on on the way to my house, slated to be there in three days and a label in my inbox so I could send the problem one back free of charge. It was the most pleasant customer service call I have ever made and they were really helpful and very fast.

I don't know much about PDF's and Kindle. i have only one on mine and it's just fine looking, but honestly, if it's mostly books you're after, I'd say go Kindle.

[Kidd]

I have a Kindle too and it's a godsend. I love, love, LOVE it. It downloads everything really quickly and the e-ink makes it easy to read for an extended period. It's really small, and slim, and the battery life lasts for forever. If you turn the wifi off it will last for over three weeks on one charge. Even if you forget to turn it off though, it will still last for a good week or so before it needs to be charged again. The only thing I don't like is that Kindles don't have a backlight, so you can't read in the dark. I would still recommend it though.

[Helen]

I too use a Kindle, and I would whole-heartedly back up all the testimonies about its awesomeness. Amazon has all sorts of free books up, and the ones that aren't free are very reasonably priced all the same, and the only problems I've had with it are the experimental settings, but of course that's why they're "experimental". Be careful what you load on the browser because it freaks out if the page is too complicated XD

[TheEdend]

I'll be the different one and go with the Nook!

I freaking love that thing! It hasn't given me any problems so far and its easy to use. They also give you free books every two Fridays and they give you coupons for free food at B&N every now and then, which is awesome if you live near a B&N with a cafe in it. Oh, and they let you lend certain books to people with other nooks.

Pretty much all e-readers are the same when they come to the e-ink technology since all of them use the same company. The only important difference, to me anyway, is the different formats the e-reader supports. The only reason why I didn't go for the kindle was because they don't support EPUB which pretty much means you are only allowed to buy books from amazon and not from other places in case amazon doesn't have the book (This includes from websites that allow you to download the free copy of the book that amazon sometimes doesn't offer)

Either way, you really can't mess up by buying an e-reader

[Idonteven]

I have a Kindle and I LOVE it for all the reasons everyone else have stated.

[TheEdend]

Oh, and a new nook is coming out soon! 2 month battery life, touch screen ANd e-ink!

Also, with libraries catching up with e-readers, alot of them are allowing you to check out books with your e-readers. The only thing is that most books will be in EPUB format, which the kindle doesn't support.

If anything I would say wait until the new nook comes out to make your choice. Sounds really good. Specially if you like touch screens (That also depends on the quality of it, too. Their touch screens seem to be slower)

[Enaithor]

I don't read much, so I just use the Kindle application for my phone.
You have to turn the pages a lot but it has everything I need: you can read books and turn the brightness down so when you're reading before bed it doesn't burn your eyes...
I don't know if the page turning would be annoying for a heavier reader though

[Filip]

I'm terribly mainstream and got a Kindle.
It loads pages faster than it takes my eyes to get back up to the top of the pages, has just the right size to fit in my backpack, the cover with integrated light is ideal for when I want to read in the dark, and with the 3G version, I basically always have a bookstore with me.

I've heard good things about the nook too, but Barnes and Noble does not have a presence in Europe (or rather, not where I live), so I'd be derived of any of it special benefits.

The format is an issue (with Amazon using their own format and evryone else using epub). However, there's (free) software like Calibre that allows you to convert from one type to the other.

.pdfs and e-readers don't mix too well, in my experience. Complex pdfs seem to always end up with lost images, strangely formatted text or just grey and blotchy. Also, they don't reflow, so zooming in never gives a good image. My solution is to only read pdfs on the laptop, and using the Kindle purely for books, but it really depends on how much you need .pdfs

[Emberstone]

I am planning to get a ipad, and get the kindle app.

But I hear that ipads are hard to read in sunlight, so if you want to read outside, kindle or another ebook reader is the way to go.

[kwyjibo]

The Daily Mash: E-readers 'a threat to impressive-looking bookshelves'

[-Michael-]

I have an iPad and rarely use iBooks or kindle

I don't think ebooks have kicked off in the UK quite as much as the US
I've only ever downloaded one book and that was due to not having one on me.

Id rather pay £2-£3 more for actual paper.
Ebooks annoy me to no end.

Page 56 is actually page 24 when I rotate it into portrait
And having a book which often refers you back a to a specific page.....it's just not done well

Maybe it's the devs fault.
But I won't be giving up my bookshelf anytime soon