E-Readers

SkrewzLoose

SkrewzLoose

Something Clever
Verified Military
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I figured I'd put this back here in case anyone has some first hand experience I can draw from. I'm going to be putting an e-reader on my Christmas list but I'm not sure which one. I'm pretty sure I want to go with a Kindle and the Paperwhite and Voyage are the most recent manifestations. I've read the reviews on Amazon and it has me leaning a bit more towards the Paperwhite. I would be using it strictly for reading books, unless someone out there thinks there is a tablet that can fill the role of book & movie platform appropriately.
Does anyone have one and if so what do you see as the pros and cons?
Has anyone used more than one kind and can offer comparison?
Thanks in advance for any help you all can offer.
 
I use an iPad for everything but it's not really ideal as a reader if you were going to be using it in the sunlight. It works fine indoors but if you're going to use it outside you probably want to look at a different tablet.
 
I have a Kindle fire which I have greatly enjoyed. It is much more than a dedicated e-reader, but I don't believe it is a full tablet either. It is light, big enough without being a pain, battery life has held up nicely over the last year and some with no problems, and the screen is pretty nice. Only complaint is that it doesn't really play well with anything besides the Kindle book format and pdf it seems, which is a bit of a shame but not a serious issue.

I have watched movies/YouTube on it before and I will say it is definitely lacking in terms of screen real estate, I have still found it much nicer for use in cars/busses/flights than a laptop. But that is about the only time I think it really wins out as a platform for viewing movies, honestly.

One big pro is that putting documents/pdf files on it is remarkably easy. Just email it to the Kindle email address associated with the device and it'll bring it up automatically next time it connects to wifi. Not sure if any other option has this ability or not, but it is definitely a nice feature to know about.
 
I have a Kindle Paperwhite and love it. For books only I would tell you to buy one all day long and twice on Sunday. If I put it in Airplane Mode the battery will last for several weeks depending on usage and light intensity. A marathon 24+ hour trip from bagram to the states via Dubai? I've never had to charge my Kindle while my iPod is usually dead unless I charge it during a layover.

I don't like how Kindle handles PDF's though, that may be the one downside. I think the text is usually too small and if you step it up in size then an entire page doesn't fit on the screen, you usually have to scroll to the right to read a page. A few words about Amazon's customer service: I was at a FOB when my first Kindle took a dump, a Gen 2 or 3 Kindle. Make it back to Bagram, called the Kindle Help Desk after trying various reset methods online. The CS rep realized I'd tried the various methods and actually read the FAQ. He set me up with a replacement Kindle which arrived at the speed of USPS to Afghanistan. BNormally you have less than 30 days to return the broken Kindle. When I told him I was in Afghanistan, hence the APO address, he gave me 45 days. The whole call took less than 10 minutes.

If you include movies? I'd think about the Kindle Fire or some version of it. Another option is a tablet running the Calibre App, which brings me to...

...grab a copy of Calibre. It is free and simply amazing. I convert just about anything into a .mobi format which Kindle can read. Again, PDF's can be a pain and don't render well, but if you're running a tablet then it won't matter because you have Adobe or something similar. Another huge plus for calibre, it has a built in e-reader. You can pick up any tablet running Android, drop Calibre on it, and do everything within that app.

Books? A Kindle Paperwhite. Plus movies? A Kindle Fire or a tablet. Regardless, grab a copy of Calibre. Even if you have to pay for the tablet App it is worth it.
 
I have a Kindle and a Nook Color. Both are a couple of years old. I also have a fairly new Samsung Galaxy Note 8.
For reading books the Kindle and the Nook are a better size for me. Easier to pack and hold.
Things I've come to expect: Color and a touchscreen. The color is great for magazines if you read those or plan to.
The Kindle is strictly button control and I've thought of buying a new one but it still works so...

Freefalling said:
Another option is a tablet running the Calibre App, which brings me to...

...grab a copy of Calibre. It is free and simply amazing. I convert just about anything into a .mobi format which Kindle can read. Again, PDF's can be a pain and don't render well, but if you're running a tablet then it won't matter because you have Adobe or something similar. Another huge plus for calibre, it has a built in e-reader. You can pick up any tablet running Android, drop Calibre on it, and do everything within that app.

Books? A Kindle Paperwhite. Plus movies? A Kindle Fire or a tablet. Regardless, grab a copy of Calibre. Even if you have to pay for the tablet App it is worth it.
Click to expand...

Absolutely agree 1000%. Calibre is the only reason I still buy Kindle books at all. If I paid to read it, I want it to be in a format I can use. I stopped buying ebooks from Amazon due to their restrictive file type. Calibre was a real godsend.
 
We have a kindle fire and I would prefer an iPad. I read on my iPhone most of the time.
 
Any preferences for WiFi or WiFi + 3G?
This will be used for week long underway and deployment next year, if that helps.
 
I have a Paperwhite, and love it. So far, I have only used WiFi, with no troubles. Plenty of battery life, and very user friendly. I can't add very much to what Free has already said. The only problem I ran into was loosing the damned thing. I would set it down somewhere, and forget exactly where I left it. The other concern I had was dropping the thing and breaking it. Amazon markets a nifty Paperwhite specific folder/case for around $20.00. It is perfect fit that looks great, and adds some needed protection as well. Grab the Paperwhite, and happy reading.
 
Red Flag 1 said:
I have a Paperwhite, and love it. So far, I have only used WiFi, with no troubles. Plenty of battery life, and very user friendly. I can't add very much to what Free has already said. The only problem I ran into was loosing the damned thing. I would set it down somewhere, and forget exactly where I left it. The other concern I had was dropping the thing and breaking it. Amazon markets a nifty Paperwhite specific folder/case for around $20.00. It is perfect fit that looks great, and adds some needed protection as well. Grab the Paperwhite, and happy reading.
Click to expand...
J, I have the same problem all the time. My CRS has become CRAFT...full blown!
 
LOL @SkrewzLoose on the CRAFT. Never heard that. Hope I don't forget it.
On dropping/losing them. Yes.
I have leather covers for each that look like books. Protects them and separates them from the Galaxy Note.
Something like the one attached.
 

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Make sure you really think about if you read enough to justify an e-reader. I have one, and it's the best thing since sliced bread, but if you only read one book a year....probably not worth it. I hate reading on tablets, phones etc because the screen is terrible for long periods of time.

Will you be traveling a lot? If so, I think an e-reader is better because the battery takes weeks to die. If you always have access to outlets and want something bigger than your phone to read AND watch movies...well might want to look at a tablet.

TL;DR- If you love books, a dedicated e-reader has no match.
 
SkrewzLoose said:
Any preferences for WiFi or WiFi + 3G?
This will be used for week long underway and deployment next year, if that helps.
Click to expand...

I use both. With the way I bounce around, I'm never sure I'll be around a hotspot. That said, there are more and more of them popping up now. Last night I upgraded my desktop to the latest OS and it kept trying to connect to my cable company's wireless service during set-up.

If you're going to use it primarily as a means to have a bunch of books available while you're at sea whilst using almost no physical storage space and the ship provides Wi-Fi then I don't know that paying for a 3G account is necessary.
 
I have a nexus 7, with the e reader apps, I travel a lot for work and dragging 2 devices around is not an option (harsh weight limits on luggage for work). I've got a WiFi version, use my phone as a hot spot if I can't get WiFi.
 
I used to have a Sony e-reader, and was perfectly happy with it until they changed up their e-store and support. I currently use my iPad and the Kindle app to read, but there hasn't been time for any recreational reading lately (it's all been work or school). I went with the iPad and reader appS so I could shop around and get the best prices on digital versions of my textbooks for school, whether it was through Barnes & Noble, Amazon, or one of the other apps that carry college digital texts. It was purely a fiscal move to stretch that GI Bill dollar.

If all you're looking at is simply to read, then the Kindle Paperwhite is really the way to go. Battery life, online support, product design, you can't beat it, IMO. I don't know anyone with a Fire, so I can't compare the two (get with me after Christmas, when I've had a chance to paw the one Smallish Child is getting).
 
I didn't think I'd enjoy the Kindle. Love it.
racing_kitty said:
I used to have a Sony e-reader, and was perfectly happy with it until they changed up their e-store and support. I currently use my iPad and the Kindle app to read, but there hasn't been time for any recreational reading lately (it's all been work or school). I went with the iPad and reader appS so I could shop around and get the best prices on digital versions of my textbooks for school, whether it was through Barnes & Noble, Amazon, or one of the other apps that carry college digital texts. It was purely a fiscal move to stretch that GI Bill dollar.

If all you're looking at is simply to read, then the Kindle Paperwhite is really the way to go. Battery life, online support, product design, you can't beat it, IMO. I don't know anyone with a Fire, so I can't compare the two (get with me after Christmas, when I've had a chance to paw the one Smallish Child is getting).
Click to expand...
Momma and I have fires.
Nice screen for watching movies in-flight, or when mini-me is in the truck.
I had to cut down book purchases because of space, so the Kindle allows me to keep buying books, and not worry about shelf space.
 
I have a Kindle Fire that I use mostly for reading and I like it . If just for reading I would consider the Kindle white paper because it seems more like reading a book versus reading on a screen with the Fire.
 

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