Ereader Suggestions

[superjawes]

Hey everyone.

The girlfriend is considering getting an ereader. Her requirements are:

1. Ability to use any file
2. Under $125 (more on that below)
3. Minimal viewing strain

She says her budget is $125, but I'm willing to swing a little extra her way if there is a significant performance/ability boost. She's been reading ebooks on her desktop/laptop lately, and this would (hopefully) be easier to carry around and read than either of those.

I am also looking at low range tablets since (or if) she could get her ereader needs covered but with some more ability in terms of music and video.

[Arvald]

there are a lot of colour "media" ereaders that are actually Android tablets and tend to be lower performance but cheaper.

Seems from what I've seen in RL is Sony is the king for battery life.
Kindle locks you to Amazon.
I have a refurb Kobo but the battery life sucks.

Main thing to watch for is a SD card slot.

[JohnC]

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[PhilipMcc]

"Kindle locks you to Amazon"... Hopefully someone more knowledgable than I will chime in. I know of two people who have library cards from large public libraries. It is possible to borrow eBooks.

search for this phrase on amazon:
Public Library Books for Kindle
Visit the OverDrive website at http://search.overdrive.com or the website of your local library to confirm whether your branch is eligible and carries eBooks.

[TheEmrys]

Pirating is legal now? I'm shocked.

[PhilipMcc]

Please read the info before the "shoot from the hip reply".

To the OP - another option - an Amazon Prime account does have have an annual fee. One benefit is 1 free book per month from the Kindle Owners library. I have no idea what the selection may be.

[JohnC]

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[bthylafh]

Pirating is legal now? I'm shocked.

It's legal (though annoyingly tedious) to buy a book from B&N and use something like Calibre to crack the DRM and convert it into Kindle format. It's only illegal if you then share the cracked book with others.

[cynan]

Kindle Paperwhite or Kobo Glo

I'd go with the Kindle Paperwhite IF you think you will be buying most of your ebooks through Amazon.

If not, go with the Kobo Glo instead of the Nook Simple Touch.

The Paperwhite and Glo have the same updated, whiter, 1024x728 e-ink screen. The Nook Simple Touch has the older, grayer, 800x600 resolution version. All have similar non-backlit lighting. They all retail for $119 - right in your budget.

The Kobo Glo supports Epub and mobi popular formats. With the Paperwhite you are stuck with Amazon's.

The Glo is also a bit lighter than the Paperwhite, but this shouldn't be a big deal.

Here's a quick comparison of the Nook Simple Touch, Kobo Glo, and Kindle Paperwhite

[superjawes]

Guys, she reads fanfic. That's why she needs the ability to read different file types. Not piracy.

[JohnC]

Guys, she reads fanfic. That's why she needs the ability to read different file types. Not piracy.

Check your PM, dude.

[just brew it!]

Guys, she reads fanfic. That's why she needs the ability to read different file types. Not piracy.

Nobody is accusing her (or you) of piracy.

[kumori]

With calibre is very easy to put any kind of file on your kindle. It will also convert between different file types including word documents.

[superjawes]

Guys, she reads fanfic. That's why she needs the ability to read different file types. Not piracy.

Nobody is accusing her (or you) of piracy.

I might have missed JohnC's posts before he edited them, but people were talking about pirating, and I thought I might have given the wrong impression when I said "ability to use any file."

Thanks for the responses, guys. I bounce them off her.

[codedivine]

I had a Kobo Glo which I lost on a trip
Anyway, it was a fantastic little device. I have not owned a Kindle so cannot do a comparison, but the UI on the Kobo is well thought out for serious readers. I have seen them ask for feedback from various ereader forums, and then incorporate it into firmware updates.
It is also an open device. You are not locked into Kobo store. I had bought books from Sony ebookstore and I was able to transfer them over as well. I also loaded some non-DRM epubs, and PDFs of some research papers etc and all of them worked fine. The frontlight ("glo") works very well. Battery life was also pretty good.

[hiro_pro]

if she reads for more than an hour at a time forget the android tablets. i have a nexus7 and it is great for flipping through web pages but it really isnt designed for hard core reading. i have an older kindle for books. it is much easier on the eyes. i read some old Peter F Hamilton on my kindle going to hawaii and back. i loved the book and had no issues with eye strain. if fact my only complaint was the flight was too short for his 1,000+ page tomes. i wish i had something with backlight like the paperwhite or glo. if she is going to ever buy a book and wants to make sure the device has a supplier in five years i would go with the kindle. there are too many hints that B&N will be out of business soon.

as mentioned earlier, you should also learn to use calibre. it allows you to convert all sorts of ebooks and docs to your favorite ebook format. FYI, kindle is mobi. AZW is just a fancy mobi. you can read your own books on a nook or kindle (i have never used a kobo). most of the books on my kindle are books i put there. i only bought a few of them like Fluke.

[Arvald]

These days non DRM'd books from other sources are not unusual.

Most technical books I've recieved in the last few years have a non DRM copy of the book tucked into the back of it.

As the op says Fanfic and other sources are also publishing that way.

[just brew it!]

[quote="Arvald"]Most technical books I've recieved in the last few years have a non DRM copy of the book tucked into the back of it./quote]
Yeah, the O'Reilly computer books are non-DRM.