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bossarea
Forum Admin
United Kingdom
3652 Posts |
 Posted - 10/20/2009 : 16:47:29
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I noticed that Amazon has started selling the Kindle reader outside of the US now and I'm a bit tempted.
Has any of you tried any E-book readers yet? Are they any good? Are the books overpriced? |
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DeFrag
Moderator
USA
3409 Posts |
Posted - 10/20/2009 : 17:26:50
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I have so been tempted & the units are quite capable already, especially the 2nd or 3rd versions. From what I've heard, they sound quite capable, fast, easy to use, & the content is affordable.
But, I'm still waiting for the perfect form factor.
Cross a NetBook with a Kindle & I think I'll go for it.
That is to say... why can't a Kindle-like device be a real computer?
Another idea is a Kindle/NetBook already has cell capability so keep it in your pocket & bluetooth it up to your ear like a regular cell phone does now. I realize that manufacturers will only produce marketable devices but I look like Batman already with geek tools hanging from my belt.
All we need is one damned device: computer/cellphone/pda/gps/psp/mp3/digicam/vidcam/voicerecorder/travelclock/mediastream/rangefinder
Blackberries have about half the functions now. Is it so difficult to add a couple more? No. Televisions are finally coming out with Ethernet connections. Convergence is way to slow. |
Edited by - DeFrag on 10/20/2009 17:31:36 |
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sp-1
Platinum Member
Germany
1454 Posts |
Posted - 10/20/2009 : 17:33:39
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As far as I understood the books, when released, costs as much as the printed version. That's overpriced if you ask me.
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zerksies
Double Platinum Member
USA
3406 Posts |
Posted - 10/20/2009 : 21:55:03
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| Id rather have paper |
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DasBeef
Gold Member
United Kingdom
704 Posts |
Posted - 10/20/2009 : 23:39:18
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Digital book readers are convenient, paper has feel....
....ok, lets not go there...
Anyway, had a chance to play with a book reader thingy. Don't know the brand or model, but it was a pretty sweet gadget. The fella that owned it said it's really easy to get the books off the net, if you know where to look, and if you're into that kind of thing. Really easy to read, and if you're studying, that one I was messing with had the ability to 'write on it' so you could put notes on the pages of interest. |
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FRANZONI
Double Platinum Member
Ireland
3543 Posts |
Posted - 10/21/2009 : 00:34:35
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It's also real easy to stroll around the corner to the public libary and borrow some books... also a lot cheaper and i can use the laptop for free 'cause it's a wi-fi zone.... unashamed plug for one the most under used,important public services we have in the western world...free the mind.... just finished reading a couple of books,one was called "home before daylight" by steve parish,a member of the Grateful Dead road crew and an excellent read... well recommended... the other was "wild boy" by andy taylor of Duran Duran..also a good read but not near as wild or entertaining as the book about the Garcia & Co.... |
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Dr. Bob
Moderator
Australia
6593 Posts |
Posted - 10/21/2009 : 12:06:03
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Hi bossarea
The Kinkdle 2 is highly regarded within my USA based Technical circle of friends.
The auto sync between devices being a big plus.
As well as the screen & battery life.
Yes books are not cheap, but they do keep a database of your purchases,
And you can always re-download the ones you have purchased,
if you were to unfortunately loose your Kindle or have it stolen.
Kindle's are also individually Serial numbered & can be deactivated,
if they were to be stolen - lost - misplaced forever.
Regards Dr. Bob 
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bossarea
Forum Admin
United Kingdom
3652 Posts |
Posted - 10/21/2009 : 14:47:19
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A guy at work received his Kindle today so I was lucky enough to have a go at it.
The screen is very good. Even in direct sunlight or from an acute angle, it is easy to read the text. I can see how it's difficult to create a all-in-one device with this screen. It is excellent for text but a bit rubbish with pictures. The size and thickness of the Kindle is similar to a pocket book and is just right. Since it ships with US mains plug, it needs charging through USB instead. This is a bit awkward if I bring it on holiday and has no laptop available.
The built-in web browser was so-so. The lack of a mouse means you'll have to skip from link to link and it was tricky to find out where you were on a page.
It doesn't support pdf natively but there's a converter freely available. I didn't try to convert anything but there's a warning that advanced pdf's might not be formatted correctly.
There's a few plusses and a few minuses. I'm still tempted but not sure whether to get one. I might have a look at the Sony and compare them. |
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DeFrag
Moderator
USA
3409 Posts |
Posted - 10/21/2009 : 17:31:24
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These are great:
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Edited by - DeFrag on 10/21/2009 17:32:53 |
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DeFrag
Moderator
USA
3409 Posts |
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bossarea
Forum Admin
United Kingdom
3652 Posts |
Posted - 10/22/2009 : 13:39:02
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Found this site on wiki:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_e-book_readers
which lists a lot of what's available. It's not completely updated so it's necessary to look up each reader to verify the tech specs.
It's hard to choose. The Nook doesn't have a web browser and battery life is shorter than Kindle. Instead it's got wifi and SD card slot but then the iRex (Philips) and Sony has touch screens and isn't tied to specific book stores which is pretty cool.
Think I might sit on the fence for a while longer  |
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jaymzHal
Silver Member
United Kingdom
297 Posts |
Posted - 10/22/2009 : 19:39:54
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The new kindle features a lot of flaws that weren't in the first one, oddly. Mostly due to copyright, for example some authors have complained about the text-to-speech function losing them audiobook sales, so it is disabled for some books. Another issue is that the ability to use the contents/index to skip to a chapter/page has been disabled because some authors don't like that their book has been hotlinked. Another issue is that the reader does not have one push multiple page skip, so it's "easier" to repeatedly tap turn page forward, whereas in the older model you could skip multiple pages with one button tap. Normally when new models come out they iron out the flaws, not add new ones! Still, in principle I'd absolutely love one, purely for the access to wikipedia anywhere in 130 countries! (with the international version). It pretty much becomes the hitch hikers guide to the galaxy with that (plus you can use it for wikitravel, better than carrying around a satnav!), and yes, someone has beaten me to that comparison:
http://xkcd.com/548/
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E-books
