eReaders

[wellinghall]

We are thinking of getting eReaders, particularly with various short- and long- haul trips that are coming up over the next few months. What experience have you had of them so far?

I have used two very briefly - kargicq's (though I can't remember what it was), and a colleague's Kindle (which half my FList seem to have had for Christmas!) I liked them both.

Comments

[purplecat]

I recently bought myself the Sony PRS-350. This is the smallest of the Sony eReaders and I was deliberately aiming for something as portable as possible - my impressions in no particular order are

a) It is certainly nice and compact. Some people who've tried it have complained about the screen size but it is fine for me. At approx 11cm x 15cm it is still too large for the pockets of my favourite winter jacket but I'm choosing to blame the designers of women's clothing for this.

b) On the advice of several websites I chose to download the open source calibre software to manage books on it rather than to even attempt to use the software that came with it. Calibre installed easily on the Mac and integrated seamlessly with the ebook reader. Calibre lets you convert files in various formats, such as html, into the ebook formats, and lets you manage a library away from the device and on your computer where, for instance, you have a proper keyboard to type in tags and so forth.

This also allowed me to experiment with Calibre first before I bought the reader to see if I liked it. Calibre apparently also works with the Kindle and, if I had a Kindle, I'd be tempted to use it if I had one of those as well, but that's because I don't like to be locked in to one supplier. I'd certainly recommend playing with the program before purchasing an ebook reader.

c) So far I've not put any purchased software on it but focused on freely available books and fanfic. Fanfic is easy to convert into the readers format using calibre. ManyBooks.net has a huge range of free ebooks available but it is slow to browse, so it's not good for stumbling across stuff - you need to know what you want.

d) The page refresh rate is slower than I expected and took a little getting used to.

e) You can turn pages while standing on a railway station platform without removing your gloves. In other circumstances though I prefer the page turn experience on an actual book. I find the touch screen page turn unreliable (it's inclined to turn on the dictionary) and the buttons just have to be pressed a little bit more firmly than I'd like.

f) But if you are on a train in which the lights have failed then it's no easier to read than a paperback would be.

g) The documentation and interface encourage you to place it in sleep mode when you are not reading however it only holds its charge in sleep mode for about 24-48 hours. If, as I am, you are really only using it once a day and want to be able to fish it out of your pocket as you stand on a platform, then you really need to switch if off. This doesn't seem to be a problem beyond alarming the ebook reader which will flash warning signs at you when you do switch it off.

h) It's surprisingly good at reading PDFs. I didn't have high hopes there and some simply don't work with it but a lot of modern ones do, which is also good for reading academic papers on the train.

[beckyc.livejournal.com]

I got my kindle for my birthday last year, so I've had quite a few months to experience it. I wrote a review of it online (not posting link here as that would link my identities in a non-locked post).

Long story short:

Kindle 3G gives you free international web browsing which is a GODSEND when abroad. That is shiny and fabulous and wonderful. Though the web browser is a bit crap.

[aranelcharis.livejournal.com]

My friend got a Nook for Christmas and one of my students has a Kindle. Both really like them for much of the same reasons. The Nook has a touch screen at the bottom and I'm not sure if the new Kindle has one, but that feature makes navigating through books very simple when I tried it. With both you can go on the internet, read pdfs, play games (sudoku which I played on the Nook), and not have to charge it all the time.

[lisa-marli.livejournal.com]

My daughter loves her kindle. I recently got her a book cover that will hold a light in the cover spine, which will make for easier reading in dim light, as e-paper is not back lit to conserve on power.
Oh, and two friends have iPads (caveat, one does work for Apple), which can be used as eReaders. They like color screens which are self lit. The screen isn't quite as sharp as e-paper but neither one has problems reading books for long periods. But battery life is shorter. Still it is a full computer. But it is Apple, you have to get the software through them, but there is a lot of software out there (a lot of it free), including a Kindle reader.

[alitalf.livejournal.com]

My limited experience is of using a pda to read .lit books (from Baen books) and more recently a generic android tablet for the same use. Both of these have backlights, so use more battery than a reader using e-ink. However, the android tablet battery lasts several hours, and is great for reading at night - when a passenger in a car, or in bed, or on a bus. Trains generally have good enough lighting to read an e-ink device.

I would probably not choose a kindle, because of the limited format support, and the DRM on Amazon's e-books. However, you can convert other book formats to something that the kindle will read, and its screen is very good. Personally, after a few attempts with DRMed ebooks, which I have, of course, lost access to because I don't have the device I first downloaded it onto, I only buy any digital content if it has no DRM. BAEN books have therefore received more money from me than the total of every other item of digital content I have bought.

I suggest that you try out some ebooks using Calibre to read most ebooks, and the Kindle application if you want to try conclusions with Amazon, and read on a laptop, just as a test. That might give you an idea about where they sell the ebooks you want - but of course some are free. Look at the Baen Free Library.

If you find that Amazon sells many ebooks you want, you can choose the kindle, or download software to remove the DRM and read the book an any reader you want. In that case, I would look at the Sony 950 - I think that is the one - e-ink, has a touch screen, but just aqs good contrast as ones that are not touch (unlike the previous model).

The Sony one costs more, looks better, and will read anything except Amazon books afaik. I am dithering between the Sony, the basic Kindle because the price is much less, and not getting an e-ink e-reader at present. YMMV. If budget is not a major issue, I suggest you look closely at the Sony reader.

[didiusjulianus.livejournal.com]

Kindle snatches back your books if there is some kind of recall, so I've read. (Not useful if you have written some essential notes in the margins, and it's one of those 'you've bought the license not the actual thing' jobbies of which I am not a fan, isn't it?)

Other than that, don't know. Spend so much time in front of a computer I want REAL books the rest of the time (recognising YMMV) and e-readers etc. are no good for FLICKING and I like flicking back and forth.

[camillofan.livejournal.com]

I am just starting to use the (not latest model) Kindle I was given last year (I am a slow adopter), and I have to say I like it...

EXCEPT for the "flicking" thing. It's such a pain to go back a few pages and refresh your memory of something or someone or some line of dialogue that has turned out to be important later in the story.

Alternatively, it's easy but I don't know how to do it.

[sally_maria]

Obligatory link to my post of useful things for ebook readers. :-)

I've really enjoyed having my Sony PRS-505 - being able to carry several hundred books worth of reading material in one unit was a godsend on holiday, and I didn't need to recharge it all week.

[kargicq.livejournal.com]

Obligatory '+1' from another happy PRS-505 user. I think they've been discontinued in favour of the smaller models now, but I endorse what Lousie says a few posts above this one. (Although -- re (g) -- mine holds charge when in sleep mode for about two weeks.)