I want an e-book reader but have no clue as to which one to get. Please help!

[ohiosmith]

:shrug:

[Betty88]

1. I am very happy with my nook

I know people who love the kindle both are nice devices. I took the nook over the kindle because of the upgradeable memory and changeable battery. Plus I like the look better.

Either way check out a little program called Calibre for ebook management its nice and can convert file types if needed. http://calibre-ebook.com/

Also if you don't need the 3g get the wifi only it will save you about $50. In the 9 months or so I have owned it I have not had a sudden ebook emergency that required an instant download on the subway.

[ohiosmith]

2. Thank you Betty88.

:hi:

[Dappleganger]

14. Same here.

My sweet sister purchased one for at the beginning of July after hurting my back. Now I have read more since then than I have in a very long time. Calibre is also fairly easy to use, except I'm not quite on top of the tagging process yet.

eink is very easy on the eyes, a great relief for us older folks.

[seaglass]

3. I am happy with my Nook - have had it since February and use it every day!

I have not used it to borrow books from the library but you can - and if your library does not have e-books to lend there are other libraries around the country that will give you an e-library card for free or a minimal cost.

You can try out e-readers at Best Buy and of course B&N and Borders - I think Target carries the Kindle but I'm not sure they have working models yet.

You should read the Kindle and Nook boards to get an idea of user experiences. There are slightly different advantages and disadvantages to each device and it would be a good idea to research to see which fits you best.

Also if you get one and use Twitter you can subscribe to Inkmesh.com to get alerts to free books on your device. You can also comparison shop e-book prices on Inkmesh. I think there are more places to buy books for the Nook than there are for the Kindle because of the format but I am not 100% sure on this.

[Pithlet]

4. I love my Kindle. Can't recommend it enough.

I've had one since they first came out. They all have different features and benefits and everyone has their preferences. I tried out the Nook at a B&N after I'd already had a Kindle for awhile, and the Nook seemed a bit heavier and clunkier, and the pages seemed to take just slightly longer to change. And I have an older Kindle I was comparing it to. But, again, a lot of it is simply about preference. They have Kindles at Target now, so you can try them out. I'd give each a try for yourself and see which ones you like.

[taterguy]

5. Love my R-book

http://regulatorbookshop.blogspot.com/2010/06/new-r-book-leaves-existing-e-books-in.html

[Lucian]

6. The Kindle is awesome.

Battery life is outstanding. It lasts a month on a single charge (with wireless off). The form factor is nicer than the nook (and it doesn't have that stupid bar on the bottom with the colored book covers). The page turning is excellent and fast, there is no glare on the screen from the sun, and the buttons are quiet.

[ohiosmith]

7. Many thanks to all. I've checked out the Nook and Kindle on-line and really like both.

Time to make a decision I guess. :hi:

[Redstone]

8. Not sold on any of them yet. I still like books that don't need batteries.

Redstone

[jobycom]

9. WAIT!! WAIT!!! WAITTTTT!!!!

What kind of phone do you have? You can get readers for your phone if it's a reasonably smart phone.

[ohiosmith]

10. :

Seriously, I have a five year old Samsung something or other. :hi:

[jobycom]

11. Uh... can't help there, then.

:rofl:

But if you were thinking of upgrading your phone, you could get a decent one with a reader for around the same as a reader by itself. T-Mobile's Samsung Vibrant comes pre-loaded with one of the readers--forget which--and costs about 150 with a contract. I only know this because it's been calling my name lately. :)

[nolabear]

12. As a paper book lover I still reeeaally like my Kindle.

My husband has lost two of the things now so we've been through all three iterations. His brand new one is light and small enough to fit in the inside pocket of a suit (it's a big pocket). Mine is Gen 2 and I'm shocked at how much I enjoy not having books to figure out what to do with. Some things I still want on paper but I've got about three going at a time on the Kindle and it's been very nice. The only thing that's odd is the strangeness of not having a visceral sense of how far you have left, though they do give you the percentage. For magazines and newspapers I am looking forward to color, but for now I just stick to books.

[KatyaR]

30. Can you adjust the type size on the Kindle?

I need bigger type--my eyes are not so good anymore....

[Fleshdancer]

13. Nook....

When investigating the differences between the Nook and Kindle, I discovered books were cheaper on the Barnes and Noble website than on Amazon. It's wireless just like the Kindle and you can take your Nook into any B&N and instantly receive special offers as well as read books for free for an hour to see if you want to buy it.

My mom's Nook had problems with the software update and she was able to walk into the store, show customer service the problem, and they replaced it on the spot. No fee, no waiting, no headaches.

[rainbow4321]

15. I talked to a Kindle owner today

Normally I just see them being used by fellow train riders each day.

I asked some questions including what kind is the best. Apparently, you don't want to get one from Borders because you can only get books from their stores. And right now, there is talk about them going bankrupt.

The one I saw was the $190 Kindle, mini-keyboard, also plays music, has a book reader voice you can listen to.
The cheaper verson (120 or 140, I forget right now) doesn't have a mini keyboard and I think doesn't do music..basically, less bells and whistles.

[Generic Brad]

16. I recommend an iPad

It does a lot more than just serve as an e-reader. I read news, check the weather radar, play games, surf the web, watch Netflix. Try doing that on a Kindle!

[gmoney]

19. Seconded... it's great, if you can afford it.

It is a little pricier than some people can afford.

Rumors are that version 2 with a camera (at least a chat camera) may be out for Christmas.

[Betty88]

25. If the IPad was $300 less i would say ok

We got one for work to try out. Played with it for a few days. I would love one if someone gave it to me but for the money hell no.

It does make a beautiful reader. BUT it is heavy and large. I can read for hours with my nook but the iPad makes my arms tire after just a short while. That's why everyone in the adds is sitting with it leaning on something.

A reader does not have to be more than a reader for me. The nook has games I don't play, web access (limited but available) that I don't use. I do listen to music every once in a while but 99% of the time its just for reading.

To each his own but for $150 a reader is a good deal, for $500 or $600 I would rather have a notebook over a iPad.

[MrScorpio]

29. Folks should check Craigslist just after Christmas

Deals, deals, deals!

[mreilly]

17. I read books on my Blackberry Bold

... my Blackberry does everything: email, phone, tasks, contacts, notepad, web, MP3s, videos, pictures, camera, Word/Excel/PDF docs and of course e-books (text format). Personally I don't touch proprietary closed-system products like the Kindle, Nook or anything made by Apple (especially not ever Apple, which is overprice, overrated, and overcontrolled). With my Blackberry I can load anything I want onto it and read away. I have a 16 Gb micro-SD card and probably 2000-3000 ebooks I can read whenever I like. The beauty of the Blackberry is it can go with me anywhere even if I'm just driving around the corner to get my oil changed and would like a few minutes to read.

Of the bigger e-readers I do like the look of the Kindle, but the size of it makes it prohibitive to lug around easily, which is one of my must-have criteria. I realize a Blackberry also requires a voice/data plan which may not be your cup of tea, but for a unified PDA it's by far the best I've used.

[gmoney]

18. Have to say that the Nook E-Reader is unintuitive

I've tried playing with one at B&N, and the dual screen thing just makes zero sense. It's creepy how the screen in the store LOOKS like it's on, but it's actually not. Took me a while to figure out that little bit of chrome hidden along the top edge was the power button. Page turn response also seems slow slow slow.

The iPad is amazing, and does a zillion other things, but it's pricey. But man, it's nice to just flip the corner of the page with your fingertip.

But for low cost, I'd probably suggest the Kindle. $139 you can't go wrong, and it's the market leader, so I don't see it ever becoming "abandoned technology." I like B&N, but having so much invested in their "bricks and mortar" stores may be unsustainable in the long term. Just like Netflix killed Hollywood video and has driven Blockbuster to chapter 11, I suspect Amazon and the Kindle may cause B&N to face some hard times. And if B&N shuts down, your Nook E, and all the books you've bought, may be orphaned.

[Betty88]

26. you can flip pages with the nook just swipe the black strip at the bottom

The page turning was slow but the software updates have fixed that to my satisfaction. The IPad is very cool but even if I had one it would not be my reader of choice because of the size and weight.

[seaglass]

28. I read my Nook out on the front porch every day - couldn't do that with an iPad. It's not practical

for me.

[lazarus]

20. Kindle

I tried out a Nook, and had two major problems with it: The touchpad was wonky (and makes the battery life shorter), and the buttons are weirdly placed. On a Kindle, the Next Page button is where my thumb rests naturally, on both sides. On the Nook, it was the Back Page button, which I rarely use. That meant that every time I wanted to change pages, I had to shift my grip. Very annoying.

The only thing the Nook has over the Kindle, in my opinion, is that it does e-pub format. For some reason, the Kindle decided not to. (Well, I know the reason. They want all the books coming from Amazon for the money.)

I have one magazine subscription (The Nation) and several blogs. They're inexpensive and for some reason, I think to check my blogs on the Kindle more than I checked them on the laptop. And the Nation sub saves trees. I wouldn't try to read something graphic like Wired on a Kindle, but a text-based mag is fine. I had Newsweek until I realized how far to the right they were lurching, and it was fine, too.

The problems with the iPad, from the time I've spent playing with one: It's handy for magazines, although expensive, but for books, it's very heavy, has a short battery life, and you're staring at a backlit screen, which is rough on the eyes.

The Kindle's battery lasts for over a week, and it's as easy to read as a book. Plus, no glare when you're outside or in bright light, which you get with the iPad.

When considering which Kindle to get, ask yourself how you're going to use it. I wouldn't get the wifi only version because I often use it when I go to doctor's offices, etc., and want to check the blogs. But if all I did was read books, it'd be fine, as I could just buy books at home.

[some guy]

21. I have a Sony

"Daily Edition."

I didn't really like the feel of the Nook, and didn't like it when I enlarged the font (being able to enlarge font sizes was the main reason I wanted an E-reader. My eyes are getting old, and reading real books for more than a couple hours at a time started getting blurry.)

I didn't look at the Kindle, because the only places I looked didn't have one on display (that I saw) and I didn't want to buy one without having handled it.

I was at Bed Bath & Beyond the other day, and they seemed to have a selection. I didn't stop, but at a glance, it was E-readers. Might want to look there, if you have one near.

I like that my Sony will read epub fonts. I would look for a reader that will work with many types of text, rather than fewer.

Epub and google books don't necessarily work well together. The few google books I've downloaded and read (free books) were apparently scanned versions of existing books, and had a varying number of what I would call scanning errors - errors where two words get mashed together, or mis-read to become words you have to stop and decipher.
( I haven't had this problem with purchased books, or Gutenberg, just google & free. )

I've read about a dozen books on this e-reader, but haven't decided if I prefer it to real books. I do like being able to get a new book at 1:30 in the morning on Sunday night / Monday morning, if I happen to be up then and looking for something to read.

I've done all my downloading via the laptop, which gives me a way to back them up to hard drive pretty easily. I have three copies of every book I've down loaded so far - backed up, on the laptop, and on the reader. For whatever that's worth.

[TreasonousBastard]

22. I'm happy with my Nook. I played with it at a B&N and it...

fit my hand perfectly, with the page buttons exactly where I want them. The screen is non glare and I can read it in full sunlight.

Battery life is soso with the wireless on, but it can be recharged from any USB port and a spare battery can be had if I really need one.

Besides some books I bought from B&N, I loaded it with a hundred or so freebees downloaded from various places. The Nook uses the epub format that Amazon doesn't and that means lots more, and cheaper, choices.

[JCMach1]

23. Samsung's pad computer has also been released...

[Rob H.]

24. I have a new Kindle and really like it

I have just a few books on it thus far, but also have some blog subscriptions. I like that I can fire up 3G and download them to the Kindle rather than having to start up my computer to check them out after I get home. (I work on a computer all day long and don't spend a lot of free time surfing the web unless I'm looking for something specific.) The display is great, too, and page turns are quick enough that it didn't take long to get used to the "negative flash" when turning pages--I don't really notice it now.

I did buy a neoprene sleeve for it to provide a little cushioning and protection because it doesn't come standard with any sort of case. The sleeve I got is made by Built and is available at Amazon, Best Buy, etc.

Enjoy whichever one you decide to get! :)


Edited to add: There's a website, www.epubbooks.com, that has public domain titles from Project Gutenberg's library but they've been proofed to make sure they're as high-quality and as true to the source material as possible rather than just scanning the books in using OCR software and calling them done. They'll need to be converted via third-party software to make them usable on the Kindle, though.

My dad also pointed me to another site, www.baenbooks.com, which is mostly science fiction, that has a TON of titles available for free download in a wide variety of formats.

[stray cat]

27. Kindle - if you want something better than anything else for just reading

139 for wireless, otherwise 189.

Perfect contrast for reading, lightweight. If you want to use something multipurpose then something else like the ipod or ipad but Kindle is a great reader. I thought I would miss the feel of books but I like the lightweight feel much better than hardcovers and my vision isn't great for paper backs anymore. Also, My family all live in different locations but we have each of our kindles on one account so we all have free access to any book we order