eReaders recommendations

[browneyes106]

I'm thinking about buying eReaders for my parents. My parents were vacationing during Mother's Day so I decided to buy my mom a present and then give to her when I give my dad his Father's Day present. I have read good things both about the Nook, Kindle and Sony eReader. I think I'm leaning towards the Kindle. I'd like to hear from anyone who has a eReader.

 

[lovesmurfs]

I'm thinking about buying eReaders for my parents. My parents were vacationing during Mother's Day so I decided to buy my mom a present and then give to her when I give my dad his Father's Day present. I have read good things both about the Nook, Kindle and Sony eReader. I think I'm leaning towards the Kindle. I'd like to hear from anyone who has a eReader.

My eReader just arrived Wednesday -- Sony Pocket (refurbished). It was $106 on a Woot. Very low-tech, but I love it! It doesn't have any WiFi, so I just have to plan ahead and have a book loaded when I need it. There are other models that have WiFi, I think.

My choice was driven because of the good deal -- I'd really wanted one for a while (I commute 2 hours one way via public transportation). I would have chosen the Sony or the Nook over the Kindle because of the ability to download library books and stuff from Gutenberg for free, which don't play on the Kindle.

ETA: Check out http://www.mobileread.com/ The forums go through the pros and cons of each reader.

 

[J Le]

I've seen a few threads on this but can't hunt them down. This site may help - http://ireaderreview.com/. It has several Kindle vs. X reviews.

I've got a Kindle and a Nook. I've only had the Nook for a month but so far I prefer the Kindle.

 

[browneyes106]

My eReader just arrived Wednesday -- Sony Pocket (refurbished). It was $106 on a Woot. Very low-tech, but I love it! It doesn't have any WiFi, so I just have to plan ahead and have a book loaded when I need it. There are other models that have WiFi, I think.

My choice was driven because of the good deal -- I'd really wanted one for a while (I commute 2 hours one way via public transportation). I would have chosen the Sony or the Nook over the Kindle because of the ability to download library books and stuff from Gutenberg for free, which don't play on the Kindle.

ETA: Check out http://www.mobileread.com/ The forums go through the pros and cons of each reader.

Thanks for that link I will check it out.

 

[ChrizJen]

I have a Kindle (first edition) and I LOVE it!!
It's easy to read, super easy to set up and load, and I love having all of my books right there in a neat little package!

I would definitely do some comparisons, but I have absolutely no regrets about my Kindle!

 

[natenapril]

I think if you are looking for ease I would go with the Kindle but I am biased. I LOVE my Kindle but I read a lot! We played withthe Nook and Sony and ended up ordering the kindle and do not regret it!!!
It is so easy to get any book anywhere you are with wifi or if I'm at home I just use amazon whispernet and it is delivered in less than a minute

 

[natenapril]

I think if you are looking for ease I would go with the Kindle but I am biased. I LOVE my Kindle but I read a lot! We played withthe Nook and Sony and ended up ordering the kindle and do not regret it!!!
It is so easy to get any book anywhere you are with wifi or if I'm at home I just use amazon whispernet and it is delivered in less than a minute

 

[bicker]

There was a thread about this last weekend:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2475676

 

[cc1013]

Consumer Reports just released their analysis of the e-readers and listed the Kindle as their top choice.

http://pressroom.consumerreports.or...zons-kindle-tops-cr-ebook-reader-ratings.html

We have two Kindles in our home and are big fans!

I think the main advantage of the Nook is that you can get library books (if your library offers that option), but I've heard the navigation of the Nook is a bit tricky. Can't speak from experience though.

 

[luvmy3]

I love my eReader. I have a Sony Pocket addition but thats because I wanted something small and something simple. Like a pp said if you want easy to use go for a Kindle or a Nook (Barnes & Noble is giving a $50 giftcard with purchase of it).

 

[DVCLiz]

My eReader just arrived Wednesday -- Sony Pocket (refurbished). It was $106 on a Woot. Very low-tech, but I love it! It doesn't have any WiFi, so I just have to plan ahead and have a book loaded when I need it. There are other models that have WiFi, I think.

My choice was driven because of the good deal -- I'd really wanted one for a while (I commute 2 hours one way via public transportation). I would have chosen the Sony or the Nook over the Kindle because of the ability to download library books and stuff from Gutenberg for free, which don't play on the Kindle.

ETA: Check out http://www.mobileread.com/ The forums go through the pros and cons of each reader.

The Kindle doesn't support library books, but all of the Project Gutenberg free books can be found for Kindle. There are thousands of free books available for all of the ereaders. Whether or not the material is of interest to you is a personal decision.

 

[browneyes106]

After reading through the thread and links. I think I will go with the Kindle.

 

[cc1013]

After reading through the thread and links. I think I will go with the Kindle.

I think you'll be happy with your choice. Amazon's customer service is amazing. My Kindle froze on me recently and within 48 hours, I had a new one at my house. No questions asked. I just had to ship back the old Kindle using the label they sent me. Great service!

Also, there are rumors going around that a new Kindle will be released in August. Not for sure at this point, but if you have time, it might be worth waiting.....

 

[dsnyfan608]

I have the Nook and LOVE it! The Nook is similar to the Kindle. I like the touch screen and it seems sleeker to me. They are similar in weight, but I think it is slightly smaller than the Kindle. I was about to buy the Kindle when BN made their announcement for the Nook. I do not regret my decision!

 

[Lanshark]

I think you'll be happy with your choice. Amazon's customer service is amazing. My Kindle froze on me recently and within 48 hours, I had a new one at my house. No questions asked. I just had to ship back the old Kindle using the label they sent me. Great service!

Also, there are rumors going around that a new Kindle will be released in August. Not for sure at this point, but if you have time, it might be worth waiting.....

I am going through comparisons also. I believe I've settled on a Kindle but hate to buy now if a new verson is coming in August. Does anyone have any idea what new features they're adding?

 

[cc1013]

I am going through comparisons also. I believe I've settled on a Kindle but hate to buy now if a new verson is coming in August. Does anyone have any idea what new features they're adding?

I heard speculation that the new Kindle will be thinner, have faster page turns and better contrast. If the contrast is better, I could see that as an improvement. Personally, I don't have any issues with the thickness and page turn speed of the current Kindle. There are also software updates coming out for the current Kindle that will allow for better organization (along with a few other tweaks). This should be available in the coming weeks for the current Kindle and I would assume the new version would have the same functionality.

Amazon usually gives a 30 day grace period to return the Kindle, so if you order and a new one comes out within 30 days, I believe you could return it and get the new one without any issues. When we ordered my husband's Kindle, they did a price reduction within 30 days and after I called, they quickly credited my account for the price difference.

 

[browneyes106]

I just read the other posts about the new Kindle coming out in August. I'll probably wait a few days and so more research before I make a final decision.

 

[diggndeeper]

I am most interested in the ability to put my own pdf files or word documents on an ereader as I use public transportation to and from work. I am working in the renewable energy field and we have so much material coming at us daily, I wanted to use my riding time to stay productive.

I thought I read somewhere I would have to use Amazon's whispernet to transfer the files to the Kindle but there was a charge for it.

Can anyone lead me to some information? I have the link from the earlier poster.

Thanks.
At Disney in 7 weeks, Wilderness Lodge

 

[cc1013]

I am most interested in the ability to put my own pdf files or word documents on an ereader as I use public transportation to and from work. I am working in the renewable energy field and we have so much material coming at us daily, I wanted to use my riding time to stay productive.

I thought I read somewhere I would have to use Amazon's whispernet to transfer the files to the Kindle but there was a charge for it.

Can anyone lead me to some information? I have the link from the earlier poster.

Thanks.
At Disney in 7 weeks, Wilderness Lodge

I can only speak from my Kindle experience....
Kindles can view personal documents. I often convert them to the Kindle format as those are easiest to read. You can do this for free by sending the document to your free Kindle account for conversion and then hook your Kindle up to the computer to transfer the file. If you would like to keep the native format and it is compatible, you do not have to go through the conversion step. The alternative is to pay 15 cents per MB and have Amazon wirelessly transfer the documents directly to your computer. I have done both options and they are very easy.

One thing I would caution on is that images/pictures are difficult to view on the regular Kindle. If you have a lot of those, I would suggest looking into the KindleDX as it has a larger screen, but it is more expensive at $489. Both Kindle options are e-ink screens, so they aren't ideal for pictures in general.

Here is a link to the Amazon detail regarding transferring documents to the Kindle.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200375630

Have fun at Wilderness Lodge (my favorite Disney hotel!!!!!).

 

[RitaE]

You can put PDF files on any of the readers one way or another (sometimes you have to convert to a different file format), but none of the 6" (smaller) readers display PDF files that have tables and graphs well. They do okay with just plain text.

Amazon charges to convert and send personal documents to a Kindle via whispernet (the wireless service.) If you use the email and sideload them via USB cable there is no charge. If you choose the pay method it isn't that expensive, usually 15 to 30 cents per document, depending on the file size.

Word documents are similar. If there isn't a bunch of formatting like bold, italics and tables etc etc it is sometimes easier just to open them up in Word and save them as a plain txt file. Kindle reads that natively with no conversion. Converting you can either use Amazon's conversion or a couple of other methods ... one way or another they will go on there.

If you want a GOOD PDF display then you are looking at one of the larger sized readers. Many of the tech orientated people over at mobilread.com prefer the Entourage Edge. The Plastic Logic Que is supposed to be released this month which is geared toward the Tech/Professional market. Otherwise, the iPAD does a fairly decent job of reading PDF files too. There are some other options, although all the larger sized readers have larger sized price tags. Mobileread.com is the place to go ask questions.