E Book reader recommendations

Searched information on the site to see a few post about E-Book readers from last year and earlier this year. I am looking at getting an E Book reader possibly a Kindle or Nook to carry with me when I am away form the office rather than carry books. Any one using an E Book reader for study?

What are your pros and cons?
What reader are you using?
Do you have the 3G package with it?
Had to have the reader serviced since you had it?
Do you support e book readers at work?
What format are you using for your books PDF, EPUB,PDB or others

Thank you in Advance for your input and comments

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Comments

Peibol

End of summer for the safaribooks Ipad app

mikej412

I'm happy with my Kindle DX since the software update that added collections -- but I still want folders (and the stuff I move over from my PC to display in Folders or collections).

I've pre-ordered a Kindle 3 with just the WiFi to see if the 50% better contrast is noticeable and to see how well the PDFs look on that. Then I'll probably move my recreational reading onto the Kindle 3 and leave my Kindle DX for study/work.

If the screen is a big improvement and they come out with a Kindle DX Graphite with the 3G and WiFi I might consider getting one of those (and giving my current Kindle DX to my sister).

I'll probably take a look at the Android Tablet the Border's Book website says will be available October 15th -- $300 and a microSD memory card slot might make me skip waiting for a cheaper next generation iPad.

jamesstill

Local-IT-Dude wrote: »

How does the Ipad work in direct sunlight? I'm quite impressed that the Kindle has no issues.

In daylight the glossy screen has significant issues. I won't use it in direct sunlight, it's like reading on a mirror. If you're going to be using it primarily outside - get another device.

Everywhere else however - it's awesome (I've also just learned the joy of Words With Friends - my ID is JamesStill on there too if anyone fancies a game).

Regards
James

tpatt100

I have a Kindle and iPad. For just reading books I prefer the Kindle for the battery life. I have the Kindle app on my iPad and iPhone and now my Android phone.

kaigei

A Big Thank you to all that have replied to this, a lot of good information has been posted. I will have access to an Ipad and a Kindle next week to look over and see what will fit for me and my budget.
Once again I appreciate the information everyone has provided and keep posting information.

tiersten

My 3G Kindle arrived today after Amazon did a horrendous job on shipping out the new Kindles. I preordered this a month ago and it was supposed to arrive on Friday but they gave excuses about problems with their supplier (aka Amazon themselves or whoever manufactures it for them)

Textbook PDFs are a little small on there so a DX would be much nicer for PDFs but ebooks are fine. In the UK at least, it uses GSM 3G from the Vodafone network. The new browser seems to be decent but is a little clunky without a touchscreen. It works for my webmail and various other sites so the worldwide free 3G access makes up for that.

I can't compare it against other readers as I don't have one.

mikej412

My Kindle 3 Leather Cover is scheduled to arrive tomorrow -- but no ETA on the actual Kindle 3 WiFi yet

Hopefully they won't send it via messenger service like they did with my DX and 2 other recent orders. At least the last messenger service delivery fiasco gave me a $30 discount on my Kindle 3 to make up for the non-delivery problem on the last order.

tiersten

mikej412 wrote: »

My Kindle 3 Leather Cover is scheduled to arrive tomorrow -- but no ETA on the actual Kindle 3 WiFi yet

When did you order the Kindle? From what I can tell, they're already into early August orders now and have done several big batches. The WiFi only ones were in stock last week and were shipping early.

A neat new feature of the Kindle 3s is that emailing documents to @free.kindle.com automatically gets sent to the Kindle via WiFi for free as well as the usual email. Totally free file conversion and delivery.

People have ripped apart the Kindle 3 and found that the serial console port is actually in the lower case attachment hole. If you have a correctly shaped piece of etched PCB then you can connect to it without taking apart the Kindle.

I'd actually like an extra Next Page button on the Kindle that operated by you squeezing it. I'm still trying to work out a comfortable position to hold the Kindle when sitting and lying down.

mikej412

That Kindle 3 cover is TINY compared to my DX

tiersten wrote: »

When did you order the Kindle?

August 3rd.

Checking my order status.....

This portion of your order is being prepared for shipment and cannot be canceled or changed.

Hopefully by tomorrow morning the order status will be updated and I'll know the delivery method -- and if they're not using a messenger service again, hopefully a real ETA.

mikej412

mikej412 wrote: »

Hopefully by tomorrow morning the order status will be updated and I'll know the delivery method -- and if they're not using a messenger service again, hopefully a real ETA.

It's scheduled to be delivered Tomorrow.

Unfortunately they are using Ensenda again -- so I don't expect the Kindle 3 anytime soon -- if at all.

I'm probably going to spend a lot of time over the next week or two with Amazon Customer Support since I won't even talk to Ensenda directly anymore.

mochaaddict

dynamik wrote: »

I agree. I was just kidding. I'd prefer to not read on an LCD, and I'd need longer battery life while traveling.

Thats the main reason I went with a Kindle DX. The e-ink thing is easier on the eyes. Had to get the dx vs. the smaller one since I need to read textbook too. I love it so far: light, long lasting battery. The internet feature isn't all that but thats not what I bought it for.

mikej412

mikej412 wrote: »

It's scheduled to be delivered Tomorrow.

They missed the September 3 estimated delivery date -- but at least they didn't post any fake updates.

I got a phone call at 7:24 am on September 4th from the messenger and had him turn around, go to the light, and take the 3rd left. The K3 arrived safe and sound without the drama of the previous Amazon messenger deliveries.

I just went ahead and downloaded all my Amazon content to the K3 and imported my collections from my DX. Then I plugged my DX into my PC and copied my DX files (PDFs) onto an external drive -- and then copied them onto the K3 and updated the collections from my DX again. Everything got sorted into the proper collections on the K3.

Other than having to find the power switch on the bottom edge of the K3 and get used to the 4 little narrow bar arrow keys and selection button in the middle (as compared to the DX 5-way nub), the only annoying thing is lack of auto-rotation

At some point I'll have to pick a PDF with small fonts and compare the DX and K3 side by side -- but I was able to take off my glasses (I'm nearsighted) and read the PDFs on the K3 when I manually rotated to landscape.

I did try the PDF zoom and it worked fine. Since I could read the PDFs I tried so far with the fit to margin option, I'd probably just use the PDF zoom for a graphic or table with super small fonts. I'll also take a look at some of the other size options later if I think about it....

Edit: I tried using the web browser (and WiFi) to log into the mobile Safari Online Books web site -- and it welcomed me with "Hello Kindle3 User" and told me there is an issue and they will be working on it.....

nel

Mike/Tiersten,

Hows the kindle 3 at displaying cisco cert guides etc? i really want one but have been put off by a previous demo of the sony e-reader as many of the cert guides i had did not scale correctly on the e-reader so the diagrams were usually all over the place. Sadly at the time i couldnt get hold of a kindle for a demo. i also want a e-reader for all my uni books as they are now being produced in pdf as part as a "go-green" scheme kind of thing.

Im very intrigued because if the kindle3 can handle all my technical pdf's then this will be a godsend!

Thanks in advance.

arwes

After reading some books on a first gen Kindle all the way to Ashville, NC and back I can definitely say I would much prefer a larger screen. Read a lot of Starship Troopers and I can tell I'm reading it a lot slower than if I were reading an actual book. I was surprised after all the reading that I was only at the 4th chapter when we got back.

chmorin

I'm considering getting a small kindel now that my library is actualy of substantial size. As stated, it is nice to have a library at your hip.

As for the IPad bit... I have an IPhone with the Kindel app, and I can read just fine on that thing if I want a device with low battery life and apples logo on it.

tiersten

nel wrote: »

Hows the kindle 3 at displaying cisco cert guides etc?

You can actually get official Kindle editions of most of the various Cisco books now which will have text reflow. I downloaded a few sample chapters and they are formatted well. You lose out on the freebies on the DVD though as that doesn't get included.

nel wrote: »

i really want one but have been put off by a previous demo of the sony e-reader as many of the cert guides i had did not scale correctly on the e-reader so the diagrams were usually all over the place.

The new Kindle 3 will display PDFs but it can't reflow the text. You either pan around the page or change the orientation and live with the small font.

nel wrote: »

i also want a e-reader for all my uni books as they are now being produced in pdf as part as a "go-green" scheme kind of thing.

Im very intrigued because if the kindle3 can handle all my technical pdf's then this will be a godsend!

You want a Kindle DX then. It was designed to show documents like that and the larger screen means you can get a full PDF page on screen. The only problem is that the DX is more expensive and doesn't have WiFi support.

tiersten

arwes wrote: »

After reading some books on a first gen Kindle all the way to Ashville, NC and back I can definitely say I would much prefer a larger screen.

If it is a correctly formatted novel then I don't see the need for a Kindle DX. The average paperback is similar in size to the Kindle screen.

arwes wrote: »

Read a lot of Starship Troopers and I can tell I'm reading it a lot slower than if I were reading an actual book. I was surprised after all the reading that I was only at the 4th chapter when we got back.

The new Kindle has a significantly improved speed and eInk refresh over the earlier Kindles.

mikej412

The Kindle 3 is great for recreational reading -- and good for travel.

If I'm traveling I'll usually skip dragging the laptop through the airport -- but I do have the sacrificial netbook for those times where I want some computing power with me. The Kindle 3 will probably be my travel reader while the more expensive Kindle DX stays safely at home.

I've also ordered the Pandigital Novel with the 7" screen and a generic import 10.2" Android 2.1 Tablet to tide me over until some of the "name brands" finally hit the market. Not sure if the Pandigital is already Samsung -- or Sunsing.

Border's will have the Micro Cruz Tablet, Archos will have a new Android Tablet, Samsung is going to have one.... maybe in October. I did go back and look at all the press releases from January that promised lots of tablets before now that haven't happened yet...

tiersten

mikej412, Does your Kindle rattle? There seems to be a few reports of people with a rattling Kindle which causes crashes and reboots. People have opened up the rattling Kindles and found that there is a loose screw which is bouncing around inside.

If it does rattle then talk to Amazon CS for a replacement.

Crashes in the browser aren't indicative of anything apart from a buggy browser.

mikej412

tiersten wrote: »

Does your Kindle rattle?

No rattle (or pacifier) -- they sent me a fully grown K3

Oh -- there's also Viewsonic & Toshiba tablets announced. So many Android Tablet press releases -- so few actual products yet....

tiersten

Kindle 3 - 3.0.1 firmware update

Amazon wrote:

We are working on a new software update for our latest generation Kindle 6" device and want to get your feedback. For a limited time, we are releasing an early preview of the next software update. Customers who want to try this early release of the software and provide feedback can download the update below.

This software update adds the ability to create a new Amazon.com account directly from your Kindle, as well as additional performance improvements.

Not been confirmed yet whether this update fixes the debugging exec hole that Amazon left in the 3.0 firmware.

nel

tiersten wrote: »

You can actually get official Kindle editions of most of the various Cisco books now which will have text reflow. I downloaded a few sample chapters and they are formatted well. You lose out on the freebies on the DVD though as that doesn't get included.

The new Kindle 3 will display PDFs but it can't reflow the text. You either pan around the page or change the orientation and live with the small font.

You want a Kindle DX then. It was designed to show documents like that and the larger screen means you can get a full PDF page on screen. The only problem is that the DX is more expensive and doesn't have WiFi support.

thanks for clearing those queries up T.

tiersten

3.0.2 firmware for K3. It is a "preview" release aka beta but the last 3.0.1 preview was the same as 3.0.2 so don't expect any changes unless there are showstopper bugs.

mikej412

Safari has fixed the Kindle 3 web login issue and the K3 works fine with the mobile friendly books.

I did use the 10.2" Android Tablet last night (in bed in the dark) to read a Cisco Press chapter online on Safari using the normal site -- and all was good. I'll still use the Kindles for marathon reading sessions, but I was never a book light fan so the Android Tablet are now my read in the dark solution.

Now all I need to do is find an Android PDF reader/viewer with better navigation for reading PDFs.

I'm not a "Starbucks reader" but I'm going to drag the Android tablets along on a road trip sometime and see how they work in high glare situations.