What e-reader do you have?

juniper · May 7, 2016

Did a search but it seems as if we haven't had a thread lately on buying e-readers. I'm looking at them again. The dedicated e-readers, not tablets. I like the e-ink quality and the way it's easy to read outside without glare.

3 years ago I bought a Kobo Mini, but was unhappy with Kobo customer service. Plus their retail store was a mess.

A few months later bought a Barnes & Noble Nook Glowlight. I used it mostly for traveling. Now the battery seems to be worn out. I looked at the new Glowlight. It doesn't have many reviews and some say they have problems with borrowing library books.

A few hours ago I bought online the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite. It's on backorder, won't be here for 10 days. Seems to be easy to use it with the library. Has available probably every book I'd ever want to read.

Sony ereaders are a thing of the past. Sony pulled the plug on them in August 2014.

What e-reader do you have? What do you like about it? What do you not like about it?

Roxxsmom · May 7, 2016

I have a nook tablet, but I don't use it much anymore. I do most of my e-book reading on my ipad, which has kindle, nook, and mobi apps, and I can check my e-mail or look things up on the web while I'm reading in bed. The internet was always kind of cantankerous on the nook.

I've heard good things about the paperwhite, though, if you want a device that's just a reader. I understand it doesn't cause the eye strain issues.

juniper · May 7, 2016

I have the apps on my phone and iPad too, but my iPhone 5s is too small to read on comfortably. Plus, I like the e-reader screen better than phone or iPad.

I prefer to read "real" books, paperbacks and hardcover, but I like ebooks for travel.

TheCuriousOne · May 7, 2016

I have the app on my old iPad but the glass is broken so it's awful to read with. I have one of the latest cheapest kindles for when I'm travelling or for my pile of ebooks TBR. But right now I'm reading a paperback (and that's two pages every night because my body tends to give up on me as soon as I hit the mattress!).

Kay · May 7, 2016

I haven't read a physical book in years. I used to ready only on my kindle app on my phone, but the glare and small screen started getting to my eyes. Now I have a kindle paperwhite and love it. It's the only thing I read on (except for school work).

I love that I can read in bed at night without disturbing my husband with light, can easily change brightness and font size. The battery lasts forever. I only charge my kindle once every 4-6 weeks.

LJD · May 7, 2016

I love e-ink. I've had my Sony e-reader for more than 4 years. The main problem is that it freezes about 1/3 of the time I select a word and attempt to use the dictionary, forcing me to reset it. I buy my books through Kobo now.

Laurasaurus · May 7, 2016

I just use the Kindle app on my tablet.
Feels like it would be a waste of money now to buy a special e-reader when I already have the tablet.

stormie · May 7, 2016

I've had my Kindle Fire for over three years and I love it. My local library also has a lot of ebooks I can borrow. I can read at night without a pesky book light, and with a zip cover I can bring it to the beach. I like the different backlights and the ability to easily make the font bigger. Only a few books ever had glitches, and those were self-pubbed. I use it every day for about two hours and it's still going strong. I hardly ever read hardcopy books now.

(I don't have a tablet, just an iPhone 5s and a desktop computer.)

brainstorm77 · May 7, 2016

I have a Kindle, but I prefer paperbacks. My husband uses his phone for reading.

CassandraW · May 7, 2016

Laurasaurus said:
I just use the Kindle app on my tablet.
Feels like it would be a waste of money now to buy a special e-reader when I already have the tablet.

I have both. the tablet obviously lets you do a lot of things the ereader doesn't. But the ereader is easier on the eyes in all kinds of light, and the battery lasts way, way longer -- days or weeks as opposed to hours.

Ari Meermans · May 7, 2016

I got a Kindle PaperWhite for my last birthday and I really like it. It's easy to read in any light, but I will say the battery needs frequent recharging. That's on me, though, because I'll read twelve hours or more at a stretch. It's also pretty nifty how easy it is to send Word docs and some other files to it, too.

Beachgirl · May 7, 2016

I have the Kindle Fire and the Paperwhite, but I use the Fire more often. I like that I can do so much more with it than just read books, so it's the one I typically take with me when traveling.

Perks · May 7, 2016

I have a Nook Tablet and I don't like it. I started out with the e-ink reader and got this "upgrade" as a gift. I wish I still had my plain one.

juniper · May 7, 2016

stormie said:
My local library also has a lot of ebooks I can borrow. ...

I want to borrow books through the library. I've done it before with my Nook but it was a hassle. Their instructions for borrowing with a Kindle are much simpler. I actually went to a session with a library person to show me how to borrow the books, but she'd never done it with a Nook so we were both learning ... she only knew the Kindle ...

My county library uses both the Overdrive and the 3M Cloud e-book borrowing systems so there's a lot to choose from.

stormie said:
and with a zip cover I can bring it to the beach.

The new Nook Glowlight Plus is waterproof. http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/nook-glowlight-plus-barnes-noble/1122314015

"IP67 certified. Waterproof in fresh water for up to 30 minutes at a maximum depth of 1 meter (3.28 feet). Avoid immersion in saltwater or other liquids."

Suitable for splashes or accidental drops into water, but not actually reading underwater in the ocean I guess.

So that would be a plus for those who like to read in the hot tub or bathtub. I don't do either.

Taran · May 7, 2016

I have a Kobo Touch and I like it quite a bit.

Brightdreamer · May 7, 2016

I have an old Kindle keyboard model that's still running fine despite a hairline stress crack in the plastic. It's the one I throw in my purse to go places - still holds a charge for a long time despite age and decent use, and it's easier on the eyes than staring at a lit screen, though I'm considering upgrading to one with a built-in light. My purse flashlights keep dying on me.

I also had a Nook tablet (the high-end one), which I enjoyed. Overdrive on it was a breeze with the Overdrive app. (Our system also does Hoopla; I have the app, but haven't gotten around to trying it yet.) A couple months ago, I bit the bullet and upgraded to the new Samsung Galaxy S2 Nook (the high-end one), and I'm just loving the thing. Still good for reading eBooks on, but it runs apps so much better, without so many lockup or crashout issues. The old Nook was a decent entry-level tablet, but it never quite had the guts a "real" tablet has...

Carrie in PA · May 7, 2016

I have my Kindle fire, which is technically a tablet, but I use it 99% for reading books, because I prefer my laptop for being online. Probably 90% of my (book) reading is done on it. I have the app on my iPhone, which is ok in a pinch. I use it to read when I'm at the Dr office or otherwise waiting. I just won an iPad mini, and the kindle app was the first app I loaded, but the screen is smaller than my Fire, so I haven't really read anything on the iPad. I'm viewing it mostly as an emergency backup for when my Kindle is upstairs and I'm too lazy to go get it.

AW Admin · May 7, 2016

I'm looking closely at the Kindle Paperwhite.

I'm thinking about going somewhere like Staples where I can actually try one. I love my iPad; it has a retina screen, it can read any format, but it is heavy.

Marlys · May 7, 2016

1. Old-school black-and-white Kindle--the one with the keyboard. I use it for traveling because the battery lasts forever.

2. Kindle Fire. Too much glare to read on, but great for games and video.

3. Kindle app on iPhone. Phone is too small to read comfortably on for long periods of time, but it's fine for while I'm waiting for an oil change or in line at the grocery store.

blacbird · May 7, 2016

E-yes.

caw

frimble3 · May 7, 2016

Kindle App on my laptop, 'cause I only use it for 'disposable' books, or books I can't get any other way. I don't like the little e-reader screens, on my laptop I can open two pages, with a decent size of font, a much more 'real book' experience.
*And poetry, short poems are perfect for e-reading.

Hutching · May 8, 2016

Early on i got a Sony as i thought the Kindle brand would fizzle out. How wrong could I be? In fairness the Sony was, and remains, a decent piece of kit, but the whole buying experience was clunky and frustrating. When I bought a tablet I downloaded the Kindle App. Buying books was easier and cheaper so my Sony is now simply an 'old book store'.

Lissibith · May 9, 2016

I have and love a Nook. It's proven sturdier than my tablet, and I've never had a problem with it that wasn't my own making

Currently trying to decide if I want to get a new one, actually.

PastyAlien · May 9, 2016

I have a Kobo Glo and an Android tablet. Lately I've been reading mostly on the tablet, because I can dim the screen brightness lower than the Kobo (via the ScreenFilter app), which is too bright to read in a dark room. I can also simulate a more natural light (using the Twilight app), which is supposed to mess less with your melatonin levels (don't know if that's true).

It's a lot less fiddly to download library books to the tablet (I have to attach the Kobo to my laptop to download library books). But the Kobo's battery lasts weeks rather than a couple of days, and the screen is MUCH easier to read outside (no glare and the e-ink is pretty comparable to a book) so it would be my choice to to take on vacation.

Matt T. · May 9, 2016

I have the Kindle Voyage. I can't be any happier with it. It's slim, light, easy to hold and the materials are top notch. I would pay the premium just for how good it feels to hold. Like the Paperwhite I used to read on, you occasionally have to reset it when it starts slowing down, but it's not a huge issue.

It's expensive, but I think it's well worth it if you read regularly. After all, if you're going to be reading for hours every day, you might as well get the best device possible.

What e-reader do you have?

What kind of e-reader do you use?

Kindle

Kobo

Nook

Sony

Other brand

my mobile phone

my tablet / iPad

none, I don't like ebooks

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