E Readers

windchime

Hi, Can anyone help me?

I am thinking of buying an E Reader to save carrying books on holiday, the only thing is I don't know anything about them or which is the best to buy. I can just about get around my lap top so am not techie minded.

Does any one have any info they can pass on to me or advise me which is the best please.

Thanks in advance.

This is my first post under this name but i have used the forums before but just could not get in under my previous name so i have had to rejoin.

[Deleted User]

Best bet is go into a shop and have a play with one, see how you like them.

One very popular one is the Amazon Kindle - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kindle-Wireless-Reader-Wifi-Graphite/dp/B002Y27P46/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1295340073&sr=8-2

However there are lots of other brands, try looking for some reviews. Websites like this may help:
http://www.pocket-lint.com/ebook+readers

Ultimately, the best option is to 'try before you buy'

penrhyn

Bought myself a Kindle for Christmas, can't fault it.
Sadly they have increased in price a little.

Why not download the free Kindle reader to your PC, and try out a couple of free books from the Amazon site, it will give you some idea.

aliasojo

Looked at the sony e readers first, decided the Kindle was better and got one for Xmas. Very happy with it.

Only one thing I don't like and that's the screen saver pics they have. I think they are to address this so you can have your own pic or even just the cover of one of your books but right now, I have a very boring pic of Darwin or someone (can't actually remember offhand, lol) and I'm slightly resentful I have to put up with someone else's choice of pic, especially since it's miles away from my usual choice of reading material. Why they thought that was a good idea beats the heck out of me. :undecided That's my only dislike though, the machine itself is the bees knees.

free4440273

Amazon kindle is the best -- leaves the rest trailing /

penrhyn

I like the screensavers, Jane Austen, John Steinbeck, just checked, Mark Twain is up ATM. Someone in the States wants to sanitise the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, so he is current, well sort of.

starnight_2

I have a kindle, but it really is personal preference. I would also suggest looking at one in person. Kindle's are stocked at John Lewis if you have one near you and Waterstones and WHSmith (IFAIK) both stock other ereaders.

MsHoarder

I'd disagree with the Amazon Kindle because they are the only eReader on sale in the UK which has the ability to delete books from your device after you've bought them, and they have used this ability in the US (ironically on 1984). For this reason I bought a Sony eReader, which I love. If you get the Kindle you will be tied to Amazon's books, most other eReaders will allow you to add any epub files to them, so you are free to use other booksellers.

Yolina

I've got both a Kindle and a Sony 650 (the Sony was an early Xmas present!) I like them both in equal measure and they both have things that irritate me - the best would be to pop into a John Lewis and have a play with both to see which one you like best. If it comes down purely to budget, then the Kindle will win as it is cheaper.

Here's my quick opinion:

- Screen: same on both (e-ink pearl)

- Books availability: the Kindle mostly ties you in to amazon (also ok for books from Smashwords, Project Gutenberg, Feedbooks, Manybooks and quite a few others). Books from Amazon tend to be cheaper unless it's from one of the "agency publishers" who set the price anyway. The Sony means you can get ebooks from WH Smith, Waterstone etc (and also Smashwords, etc as above) but not from Amazon. If your library does e-book lending then these will work with the Sony but not the Kindle.

Downloading books: the wi-fi and/or 3G on the Kindle does make it easier to get books, however it's worth noting that due to the huge range of routers out there, some may be easier to connect to than others and also if you go for the version with the added 3G (more expensive) the provider is Vodafone. The Sony software is IMO next to useless so use only use Adobe Digital Editions (you need to get an Adobe ID anyway to be able to get the books on the Sony) and it does require a bit more faffing about to transfer stuff to it compared to the Kindle 1-click.

Navigation: the Kindle uses hard keys for navigation, which sometimes can make things a bit tedious, the page turn buttons location is great though. The Sony has a touch screen but can also be navigated with hard keys.

Build quality: the Sony wins that one hands down, it just feels much sturdier, metal instead of the Kindle plastic

Customer services: Amazon are really good - any issues and they'll send a new one no questions asked. They also have a 7 day return policy for e-books (i.e if you've bought by mistake, or the book hasn't be formatted properly by the publisher and is full of errors).

epninety

The massive sales of the Kindle means I suspect that just about everyone offering ebooks will find a simple solution to offering books for it.

There is software available for converting other formats to be used on the kindle, and the K3 does a great job of handling PDF files. I bought mine as an experiment to view PDF technical manuals in the workshop, and I've been amazed how well it handles even 1000+ page PDF files. My only complaint is that there is no support for PDF indexes.

I may have to buy a second one, as I started reading a novel on it as an experiment, and was amazed how quickly it felt vary natural to use.

And don't forget #1 reason to get a 3G kindle

I've not tried any other e-readers, and I'm not saying the kindle is better than any other, but 3G data is a major plus for me, and the sheer sales volumes suggests that the hacker community will find interesting things to do with them (and already is).

loulou123

I have a sony ereader (the old pocket edition) and even though i was doubtful about it, not feeling like a real book etc, i have to say i love it.

I chose the sony over the kindle, mainly because you could use public librarys ebooks on it (i know you can on the kindle using callibre and other programmes to strip and convert - but i couldnt be bothered with that!) i've only had it since xmas, but being able to go onto a library website and download a book, certainly beats walking to the library in the rain!