What's better - the Kindle or the Nook?

[tortoise1956]

I really like B&N, but I don't know how the Nook compares as far as quality, availability, formats, etc. I'm interested in hearing from users of either, or both.

[NYC_SKP]

1. What's wrong with the iPad?

I have one, books on it, but haven't had anything else to compare it to.

:shrug:

[laconicsax]

3. Price, battery life, screen glare...

Kindle: ~$200, battery lasts for weeks, no glare.
Nook: ~$200, battery lasts for about a week, no glare.
iPad: $500-$830, battery lasts for up to 10 hours, plenty of glare.

As a book reader, it's pretty dismal in comparison.

[daleanime]

2. Families trying to make the same decision...

got a lot to learn, leaning a little to B&N.

[lazarus]

4. I prefer the Kindle

We're buying a second one this weekend.

A couple of things led me to the decision. Three, actually.

The Kindle's battery life is longer, by a good margin.

The Kindle uses a sort of mouse/stick thingy and a keyboard for navigation, while the Nook uses a colour touchscreen. I hate touchscreens. And the touchscreen uses up a lot of battery life (see point 1).

Finally, and this seems small but is actually huge, when I held a Nook in the position I'd hold it to comfortably read, my thumb rested on the back page button. On the Kindle, it rests on the next page button. I don't want to have to readjust my grip every time I turn the page, so the Kindle scores the win.

If you don't use the 3G connection and stick to wireless, you can't beat the 139 price the new Kindle is at, either.

The only thing the Nook has over the Kindle is that it uses ePub, but I haven't needed to use ePub, so I don't care. Supposedly, there are more free books available on the Nook, too, but Amazon is constantly adding new stuff, so I don't know how long that will last.

[TreasonousBastard]

5. I'm happy with my Nook...

Battery life isn't a problem for me-- it recharges from any USB port and the battery lasts a lot longer if I turn off the WiFi. The silly touchscreen on the bottom isn't used that much, and turns itself off, so doesn't use much battery life.

It fits my hands perfectly and the way I hold it my thumb lands on the "page forward" button.

B&N has (so far) a larger number of ebooks available, and the prices are comparable, but I do wish there were more periodical subscriptions available.

They brag about lending books and the free reading at the coffee shop (you get a free donut with some downloads). Not such a big deal for me, but might work for some people.

The few small quibbles I have, like the sucky browser, will likely be dealt with in future software upgrades.

[customerserviceguy]

6. My prediction

These things won't really take off until the price drops to under $50. At $200 each, they're expensive toys for the upper middle class, and those who wannabe like them.

[stray cat]

7. 139 now

[stray cat]

8. If you like to read it is cheaper than a big screen tv purchased by those who love tv

But reading has to be important to you.

[spin]

12. I'm far from rich and I recently bought a $139 Kindle...

So far so good.

Some of the newer and more popular books are quite expensive (Over $10). This makes little sense to me. Consequently, I don't buy them. I've found a lot a really good books for a reasonable price on the Amazon Kindle store. I just look at the ratings.

I've also found a lot of older excellent books for absolutely no charge.

I used to head out to the library on a regular basis. I would glance at the book and the reviews on the back and decide if it looked interesting. About one half the time it was when I tried to read it. I always found it a pain in the ass to have to read five or six books before having to return them to the library or renew them. Some days, all I want to do is to read one chapter before I go to sleep.

The Kindle is a vast improvement over paper books. Since I haven't used the other book readers, I will not comment on them.

[customerserviceguy]

13. There are a lot of people who are willing to plunk down cash

for a new technology. I wasn't there with cell phones, but I did buy a modern computer in 1998, before there was 50% acceptance of the things. I was willing to part with half a month's take home pay, because I knew that this was going to be something that would change my life. I was willing to buy a $100 calculator in 1974, because I thought the same thing.

I can't say that a Kindle or a Nook would do that, especially since there are old-fashioned books still around. But my prediction was "take off", and it's clear that a majority of Americans don't own an electronic book reader. At $50, it becomes a cheap purchase, the same way the calculators were when they got down to about twenty bucks, in the late 1970's.

[spin]

14. I believe that the price will decrease over time ...

like buying a razor. The razor might be cheap but the blades are expensive.

Still, as long as inexpensive books are offered, the book readers will be a worthwhile buy. The writers we have today are not really that superior to the writers of yesteryear.

[tanyev]

15. Question: The older books you have found for no charge....where?

[spin]

16. I found some in the Kindle store...

For example:

A Short History of the United States
http://www.amazon.com/Short-History-United-States-ebook/dp/B000JML9XG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1286927645&sr=1-2

War and Peace
http://www.amazon.com/War-and-Peace-ebook/dp/B002RKRUPE/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1286927752&sr=8-4

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
http://www.amazon.com/Adventures-Sherlock-Holmes-ebook/dp/B000JQU1VS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1286927806&sr=1-1

Practical Grammar and Composition
http://www.amazon.com/Practical-Grammar-and-Composition-ebook/dp/B002RKS5TY/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1286927920&sr=1-11

[tanyev]

17. Cool. Thanks!

[tanyev]

9. Marking to read later.

[eilen]

10. I don't own a Nook so I can only tell you about the Kindle

I like it. I am able to send epub books to it via email and they convert it and put it on my Kindle for a nominal fee-- very cheaply--I think it is 15 cents a megabyte. The Kindle app I have on my Iphone syncs with my Kindle at home.

[daleanime]

11. Kicked.

In the hope for more information.:hi:

[skorpo]

18. I prefer the Kindle

I borrowed a Nook and a Kindle from friends. I decided that I liked the Kindle best because of the multitude of free books available at their site. I also downloaded the Kindle app to my computer and can read all my books on it too.

[tortoise1956]

19. Well, it sounds like...

The Kindle has a solid lead over the Nook. However, I think the best answer I took out of this is that the technology is still in the early stages, and I will probably be happier if I wait for another year or so. I still like the feel of a book in my hands too much to surrender to progress!

One good thing about getting old - even old books read almost like new to me...


To all who responded, please accept my gratitude. I really appreciate those who took the time to share their thoughts and feelings.

[Scout]

20. FYI, before you buy...

http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2010/10/12/pm-ipad-and-kindle-users-cant-borrow-from-ebook-libraries/

iPad and Kindle users can't borrow from e-book libraries

story at link above

[LWolf]

21. A related question: Are there, or will there be, readers that

are not connected to one ebook provider, but that can download books from anywhere and anyone? I think that's what is holding me back. I love printed books, and always will, but I have way more print books than I can manage. If I could begin to shift a large part of my library to digital, my space would be a lot clearer, and it sure would be easier to move.

Another question: Do ebook readers come with audio, so that you can read or listen, or both?

[getting old in mke]

22. Nook for me

I'm very happy with my nook. I particularly like the "swipe to turn pages" rather than pushing a button: 1) it works rhythmically rather like a paper book page turn; 2) puts no long-term mechanical stress on the device which a button press does.

I use the library a lot, so having a native epub device that doesn't have to try to do a conversion is very useful. Plus moving books on and off is just a file copy--no need for the send a file anywhere. Doesn't hurt that epub is Google books primary format, either, for all the public domain texts there.

For any eReader, be sure to check out SmashWords and FictionWise, among others, that have large collections of free and inexpensive reads. The "experimental" electron formats at Project Gutenberg are getting pretty good, too. And seek out Calibre for library management. (For SF readers, Baen has tons of their titles available free.)

I still read lots of paper books, and always will. But, if you're going to read at dinner, it's easier and neater to turn the page of a nook than a book :)