e-readers and gadgets

by **AMPY** » 06 Aug 2012, 23:59

There was a fair bit of chat on the subject of e-readers a little while ago. So - finding myself owning more than my fair share of said gadgets - I thought I'd add my ten penneth.

Let's be clear - the best type of book is a book. Invented centuries ago and never bettered. But on holiday, e-readers do offer significant savings on weight. One of my Kindles can hold 3000+ books and still weighs less than a typical paperback.

Gadgets I own -

iPhone
Kindle 3g with keyboard
Kindle touch (don't ask)
Nexus 7 (new tablet from Google)

Screen size -
Not that much between the Kindles and the Nexus. iPhone obviously way smaller.

Best for book reading -
The Kindles - not much to choose between the two on quality of display. The Kindle touch is a little nicer on page turning but nothing to get worried about.
The Nexus display does, initially, look pretty impressive. Bright and sharp. But in real life I suspect it would get pretty tiring fairly quickly. Reflections from the screen would certainly be a problem. In bright sunlight I think it would be next to useless. Only time it might be better would be in (say) a dark hotel room. Here the backlit display would be preferable to the Kindles which rely on ambient light. The Nexus does have a Kindle app so can download/share the same books as the others. Can also access books from other download sites.
Wouldn't seriously use the iPhone. Screen way too small to be pleasant to use.

Web browsing
Nexus is streets ahead of the others. Bright, colourful screen. Very easy to zoom in/out and move around. iPhone would be my second choice. The Kindles do (technically) offer web access but it is a real pain to use. Black and white, but more importantly, difficult to navigate around a page. If web access is important than don't rely on the Kindles to provide it.

Connectivity
iPhone - Wifi ok. Can use 3g but I have it switched off on Symi to avoid charges.
Kindle 3g - Free 3g (or the nearest Symi can manage) or Wifi
Kindle touch - Wifi only
Nexus 7 - Wifi only

Battery life
Kindles are streets ahead - can go weeks on a single charge. The other two will only go a day or two.

Overall
The Nexus 7 is the most versatile device. If both web browsing and e-reading are important then this would be the best all rounder.
e-readers - Kindles. No question.
Making phone calls- iPhone. Only one of these that does that so not much of a contest.

Hope that might be of some use to some of you. If you have any queries please post a response or send me a PM.

A

PS Can I just add a personal endorsement for a gadget called a Travel Monkey. (Available from Amazon and others) Basically a universal charger for all these gadgets plus loads of different phones - Don't leave home without it!

by **Gemma1** » 07 Aug 2012, 08:22

Useful info Ampy

I'll be sticking to books for my Symi trip in 6 weeks but might need to invest in an e-reader for next year's island hopping holiday as think we might only have 15kg luggage allowance. From what you've said the Nexus sounds very good but probably no good if I want to read in the sun :?:

Ah well, perhaps they'll have improved by next June

by **snoopy2** » 07 Aug 2012, 10:31

Great info Ampy and a strong argument for gadget v books. But - i still like books and they do have the double purpose of weighing my case up to 15 kg and when leaving them wherever i have been giving me the weight for that all important bottle of mataxa on the way back and no worries about suitcase weight. cheers books! 8-)