E-readers?

[TPMB12]

So what's you're opinion on these? Not paper books vs ebooks, I mean specifically e-readers.

Had a touchscreen kindle (IIRC the base model version back when touchscreen was new to kindles. It hasn't worked properly for years. Battery loses charge even when turned off. Not really just that it won't turn off, but looks like it has.

So I don't like second-hand books, library books and can't spare the space for lots of books, but I want to get back into reading proper books again (ebooks included but not just the internet sites like I seem to do lots of now). E-readers seem a good option. Which one?

I've only known kindle, I have some unread books on kindle too. I'm just curious as to alternatives. I've heard kobo glo is good. Also other brands work on a.whole list of file standards including pdf files. So where do you get books for kobo readers? Can you read kindle books on kobo? I doubt you can but thought I'd ask. I like the idea that I could read a pdf on kobo. Do I just load it up and read like everything else? I have files with various kinds of documents as pdf files from technical drawings to manuals to productivity documents. Could I read them on a Kobo?

Can you convert ebook formats BTW?


What's your opinion on ereaders? Should I stick with the kindles? What are the advantages of each type of reader? What's the cheapest/best value e-reader?

[Kim]

What's the cheapest/best value e-reader?

An app on the mobile device you've already got.  FBReader is good.

Much as I love e-ink displays, I'm happy to read books on a decent LCD or OLED display (light text on a dark background works particularly well on OLED), which means the argument for a dedicated reading device mostly comes down to battery life vs having another thing to carry around.  I don't read or need the battery life enough to justify the cost of a Kindle or similar.

[TPMB12]

Personally I don't like reading ebooks on a tablet or smartphone screen. E-ink is nicer to read IMHO. I would only realistically read it at home or places carrying it isn't an issue. Visiting the in-laws (beats a conversation ) is one situation. Used to read one on bus/train.

BTW I've got a 5.2" screen on my phone. Not really much smaller than 6" but it feels a lot smaller. I'll not read books on there as I find books cause eye strain on it.

It's basically an ereader I want/prefer. Get a real book, use a phone or a tablet. If you have any opinions on ereaders I'd certainly be interested in them.

[rusky]

If you go for a dedicated reader other than a kindle, remember that any kindle books aren't going to work on them. Also remember that kindles don't support epub which is the main ebook format if you're lending from libraries etc.
They all support pdf though. How useful it is to read a large tech drawing on one I don't know. There needs to be a way of scrolling around & zooming to make it work.

If you're looking to convert books from one format to another then I've always got good results from calibre.

[Kim]

Personally I don't like reading ebooks on a tablet or smartphone screen. E-ink is nicer to read IMHO.
[...]
It's basically an ereader I want/prefer. Get a real book, use a phone or a tablet. If you have any opinions on ereaders I'd certainly be interested in them.

Sure.  I was only suggesting what was probably the cheapest.  Obviously it's going to be a compromise.

As for dedicated e-readers, I only have (fairly limited) experience of Kindles and the one thing that stands out - beyond the usual problems with proprietary formats - is that touchscreen-only devices are annoying for page-turning if you use the device one handed (eg. when lying in bed).  I'd much rather have a button on the side where my thumb naturally rests.

[rusky]

The buttons on the old kindle keyboard were great. A pair either side so it didn't matter which hand you held it in. I can only hope that the touchscreen page turn has improved, the last time I saw it, the phrase "hit & miss" came to mind!

[Kim]

They all support pdf though. How useful it is to read a large tech drawing on one I don't know. There needs to be a way of scrolling around & zooming to make it work.

Unless the PDF is mostly simple text, it's a very different use case.  Technical manuals, scientific papers and the like are where a general purpose tablet device beats an e-reader, I reckon.  A large, colour display is often important, and enough CPU grunt to zoom and scroll in a non-irritating manner.

There's a lot to swear about with a 12.9" iPad Pro (not least the expense), but you really can't beat it for viewing complex PDFs.  It's like something out of Star Trek.

But if it's just text, better to feed it to calibre and turn it into an epub for your reader.

[TPMB12]

The drawings thing is purely a last option use. I can't see I'll use a reader for that neither but pdf reader built into an ereader seems to me to be a good idea.

Calibre is an app is it? What does it do?

Amazon kindle annoys me. They're the market leader but with a tied product. Only one format supported isn't versatile. Although it's not what kindle are about. They're all about selling content. I get that but don't have to like it.

I suspect I'll get the cheapest kindle I can get. I think I read somewhere about adverts on them now. Is that right? You get adverts or is that just the home page or something? I think I read you pay a bit more to get ad free kindle.

[Kim]

https://calibre-ebook.com/

It's an application (for real computers) that's a sort of swiss army knife for managing ebooks.


(I think the adverts on the Kindle are what it displays when it's notionally 'off'?)

[Cunobelin]

Personally I don't like reading ebooks on a tablet or smartphone screen. E-ink is nicer to read IMHO.
[...]
It's basically an ereader I want/prefer. Get a real book, use a phone or a tablet. If you have any opinions on ereaders I'd certainly be interested in them.

Sure.  I was only suggesting what was probably the cheapest.  Obviously it's going to be a compromise.

As for dedicated e-readers, I only have (fairly limited) experience of Kindles and the one thing that stands out - beyond the usual problems with proprietary formats - is that touchscreen-only devices are annoying for page-turning if you use the device one handed (eg. when lying in bed).  I'd much rather have a button on the side where my thumb naturally rests.

The more expensive Kindles have this, the Voyager has a small Haptic button, and the Oasis has a real button

I have the Oasis for travelling although in retrospect the Voyager seems to be the better bet as it does not have the same annoying battery warnings as the Oasis

They are better in sunlight or reflective areas than the iPad screens etc, as well as more portable

Having said that the Kindle Fire does run the Library app (Overdrive) so has the advantage of being able to read library books at the cost of the screen usability, but can be picked up cheaply

[Kim]

Having said that the Kindle Fire does run the Library app (Overdrive) so has the advantage of being able to read library books at the cost of the screen usability, but can be picked up cheaply

Probably worth clarifying that the Kindle Fire is basically a heavily customised low-end Android tablet, rather than a dedicated ebook reader.  Not that that's necessarily a bad thing - they're basically trying to do for audio and video what the Kindle did for books - but calling it 'Kindle' is a triumph of branding over clarity.

[Biggsy]

I would recommend the Kindle Voyage but it suffers from the same battery problem you mention, TP.  Still I prefer it to my Xperia Z3 tablet for reading at home.  The display is so much easier on my retinas, especially in a dim room when the tablet is too bright even on the lowest setting.

[Ripio]

I've had a Kobo Mini for about 5 or 6 years now and it is very good, especially for travelling with due to its compact size compared to other ereaders. Unfortunately it is no longer available except second hand.
You can get books from a variety of sources, (including the Kindle store if you have Calibre and the drm removal plug-in).
If buying again I would look at the current Kobo range and avoid Kindles.

[HeltorChasca]

Kindle Paperwhite. Very happy.

[freeflow]

I use the Kindle app on a variety of devices but most of my reading is done on my android phone which has a 6.6 inch screen. I now very rarely buy actual paper books.

[MikeFromLFE]

I read on my Kindle Fire. I've put the Google Play store on mine - straightforward if you follow the instructions found on the web exactly. I use Kindle books, Kobo, Google Books, Open Library, and BorrowBox.
It's not as good as a dedicated ereader in sunlight, but perfectly useable, with an extremely good battery life. Each app works slightly differently though - some allow page turns using the volume control, some don't. It gives me the choice of provider for the best prices.
I don't think I'd go back to e-ink, although the newer smart-ink technology is looking very promising.

[mrcharly-YHT]

I read books on my smartphone a lot. Mostly using the Overdrive app (because this enables me to borrow books from the municipal libraries; I have accounts in two cities). Also using the Kindle app.

It isn't as nice as an e-ink screen but switching to sepia or white text-on-black and choosing an eye-friendly font helps. There is the advantage of being able to read in the dark because of the lit screen (great when sharing a room or when camping).

My eyesight is poor so I appreciate being able to alter the font size and style to something that I find comfortable.

[Mr Larrington]

Last time I looked the Mega-Global Big River Corporation of Seattle, USAnia had Done Things to their format which makes using Calibre a bit more complicated, but that was a couple of months ago so the clever chap who is Calibre may have thwarted The Man by now.

The touchscreen-only business on the boggo Kindle is, like the perennially-right Kim says, a retrograde step over the buttons, but my old one succumbed to Droid Rot and has gone to Silicon Heaven.

[ian]

I have an oldish Kindle Paperwhite. It's decent enough, the lack of buttons doesn't bother me, swishing or touching the page does the trick even when it's in sandwich bag (my cheap-o solution to previous bath tub immersion events). It's getting a bit slow now though (no idea what great leaps and bounds of e-reader technology are swamping it). Battery still last a couple of weeks.

When I travel I'm happy enough with my iPhone (sepia on black doesn't seem to strain my eyes). It makes the screen resolution on my Kindle look like shit when I switch.

I'm umming and ahhing about replacing the Kindle. I don't like their lock-in but equally the buggers have made buying the widest selection of books achingly simple.

[Plug1n]

I've been pleasantly surprised recently with Google Play Books - both the app on an android device and the  play.google.com/books website.

You can upload any epub to one device and then access it anywhere else including a browser, which the Kindle app definitely doesn't do unless you buy it from Amazon.

[TPMB12]

My old kindle has a browser. Perhaps that's a clunky workaround to reading epub format. Google play books and view on the kindle browser. Do modern kindles still have that browser feature?

[Biggsy]

You don't need a browser to read any format on a Kindle.  (Thanks to Calibre).

[TPMB12]

Does calibre work on Android phones? It looks like computers running desktop type OSs not phone ones.

[Kim]

Does calibre work on Android phones? It looks like computers running desktop type OSs not phone ones.

It's an application (for real computers) that's a sort of swiss army knife for managing ebooks.

[TPMB12]

Missed that, thanks. Shame its not on Android too. Don't tend to use my laptop much these days. Only work one but that's not for personal stuff.