Tablet Reader - Flame war begins here

[Too Tall]

I got Mrs. Too Tall the ipad gen II last yr. and it's gone baby gone. For giggles I tried and dismissed it for reading books and e-print such as NYT, Washington Post, New Yawker. What I did not like is the screen quality, too much glare.

Who has a strong opinion one way or the other? I'm looking at Kindle HD. Our family has a metric ton of books on amazon to share and mom's first generation Kindle reader is awesome. That has a wonderfully soothing display for reading books.

Talk to me.

[jitahs]

Pure reader or combo?

E- ink for the former, wife has stolen my Kindle.

Want a full-on Google experience, fast browser, fast search, access to all your Amazon books through app, not carry a laptop or big tablet everywhere, sick of using your crappy resolution phone, not be bound to iStuff, have (theoretically) an extensible OS in perpetuity with amazing screen resolution, Google Now, no contract dirt cheap 7" form factor?

Apps for screen dimming take the brightness down enough for night time reading but not in the same category e-ink.

Nexus 7.

Mini iPad really nice, much more screen real estate and deeper colors, lighter vs. nexus. Weight makes a difference over a few hours.

[jscott]

I'm posting this from my iPad mini, and after I'm done I'm going back to reading a Kindle book on it. I received this as a gift, and it changed my opinion about 7" tablets. It's much more portable than the full-size model and I don't miss the extra screen real estate. Much easier to type on, too. It's a winner.

[gggross]

IPad is my vehicle of choice. No issues other than no Adobe.

[zetroc]

If you aren't stuck on the kindle format or e-ink, jitahs is absolutely correct about the Nexus 7. I bought one when it came out and it's great. 7" is the perfect size for web surfing, the thing isn't heavy like a 10" iPad, there are a ton of apps available, and the software is so good it really isn't even funny.

I have no experience with the kindle, except for using an older one to read one magazine article. They do seem easy on the eyes.

[cody.wms]

I like the new small kindles for just reading. I was able to get one of the "offer" ones with ads for $50 through Amazon deals. Just checked, they are only $69 now anyways. Can't beat that. (FYI, most of our local libraries have e-collections now).

Full on tablet I'd go Nexus 7. I like the new Android stuff (I have a Note II, so no tablet for me anymore) and would go for one of them over a mini, Apple fan that I am.

[jitahs]

Pure reader or combo?

E- ink for the former, wife has stolen my Kindle.

Want a full-on Google experience, fast browser, fast search, access to all your Amazon books through app, not carry a laptop or big tablet everywhere, sick of using your crappy resolution phone, not be bound to iStuff, have (theoretically) an extensible OS in perpetuity with amazing screen resolution, Google Now, no contract dirt cheap 7" form factor?

Apps for screen dimming take the brightness down enough for night time reading but not in the same category e-ink.

Nexus 7.

Mini iPad really nice, much more screen real estate and deeper colors, lighter vs. nexus. Weight makes a difference over a few hours.

Having said all that, starting from scratch I would get both a Kindle Paperwhite and a dedicated 7 incher, but not a hybrid like the Kindle HD. The Paperwhite is clearly (pun) better than the original e-ink.

You can afford both because a Nexus 7 + Kindle will still come in about the same as a mini iPad. Check that they will be less.

Added: Kindle HD hijacks the native Google browser and focuses all ads and buys and browsing into the Amazon machine. Fine if you don't mind, caveat emptor.

[cody.wms]

You can afford both because a Nexus 7 + Kindle will still come in about the same as a mini iPad.

Actually is $60 cheaper to get the combo:

$200 Nexus 7
$69 Kindle
$269 vs $329 for the mini.

I like reading on the e-ink readers much more than a tablet if you're gonna be reading for a while.

[jitahs]

Actually is $60 cheaper to get the combo:

$200 Nexus 7
$69 Kindle
$269 vs $329 for the mini.

I like reading on the e-ink readers much more than a tablet if you're gonna be reading for a while.

I was editing while you were typing; great cheap minds think alike.

[Jaq]

Go with the Kindle and get an Amazon prime account. The advantage is that, with the Prime, there are a tremendous number of free books available that would otherwise cost money if d/l & read on an iPad or other non-Kindle reader. My wife has the low-end paper-white model & loves it so much she gave me the iPad.

[jitahs]

So far we got: Nexus, Kindle, Prime (good call) < mini iPad.

[Nathanrtaylor]

The Kindle Paperwhite is the e-reader that all the other ones wish they were. I've found myself trying to physically turn pages countless times.

[jitahs]

btw you'll need two Paperwhites because Queenie will never give hers up.

[Matthew J]

Read Kindle Paper White. Do almost all personal computing on the Ipad. The retina screen is great for websites, watching basketball games, basic word processing, etc. Reading for extended periods of time really hurts my eyes. Kindle on the other hand is gold.

[robin3mj]

I have a 2nd gen kindle and iPad2. Much prefer reading on the kindle, but can get by with kindle books on the ipad if taking a short business trip.

One caveat on the kindle is that far fewer books that you buy are lendable to other people than I'd hoped. And the kindle "free" library on Prime doesn't have a ton of titles and last I checked you can oly check out one a month.

That said, the reading experience is a number one, and the ability to sync across platforms with the kindle account is also good.

PS- not sure if Instapaper is available on Kindles, but this app is worth it's weight in gold for people who like reading long magazine articles. Coupled with iPad (or other tablet) and a weekly visit to longform.org and longreads.com and you never have to go without good mid length reading material.

[roseyscot]

Wife uses a non-backlit kindle. It's great, except she needs an accessory light when up with the newborn at 3am.

We bought my father a Nexus 7. His first tablet (he's a 17 inch laptop so he can read it more easily kind of guy). He loves it for reading and email and surfing net.

I read my Kindle books on my 4.5 inch HTC droid phone. Great for reading during lunch (especially since I commute on the bike), when traveling for work, and even at night.

I have an ipad 3 for movies, net, and entertaining the 3 year old. I can never get comfortable with it for reading. Too big, too heavy, too awkward to read in bed. I'd probably do better with a Nexus 7.

[jitahs]

Wife uses a non-backlit kindle. It's great, except she needs an accessory light when up with the newborn at 3am.

We bought my father a Nexus 7. His first tablet (he's a 17 inch laptop so he can read it more easily kind of guy). He loves it for reading and email and surfing net.

I read my Kindle books on my 4.5 inch HTC droid phone. Great for reading during lunch (especially since I commute on the bike), when traveling for work, and even at night.

I have an ipad 3 for movies, net, and entertaining the 3 year old. I can never get comfortable with it for reading. Too big, too heavy, too awkward to read in bed. I'd probably do better with a Nexus 7.

Fits in jersey pocket. Barely. Not too heavy.

[VA_MEL]

Definitely in the Paperwhite camp. E-ink for reading. Tablet for Internet, video, apps. Different horses for different courses. Maybe we should start a gadget stash house thread.

[roseyscot]

As others noted, the access and syncing to your kindle library from a variety of devices is very nice. so where exactly do you need to use this reader? work? bed? airport? lazy boy? places where you won't have internet? that might shape your decision of what you need (not what you want).

Fits in jersey pocket. Barely. Not too heavy.

yeah, but I already carry a work phone, personal phone, lunch, wallet, and sometimes clothing layers. I don't need to schlep a mini tablet to work too.

[cody.wms]

One caveat on the kindle is that far fewer books that you buy are lendable to other people than I'd hoped. And the kindle "free" library on Prime doesn't have a ton of titles and last I checked you can oly check out one a month.

The e-book situation can be both awesome and mind boggingly frustrating. This book costs $5 more than the paperback version. They actually want more for the version that has a marginal cost of near zero. I also know that the book is gonna be pretty awful, but I'm invested in the series at this point.

But do check out the e-collection at your local library (libraries). For me, both Fairfax County and Alexandria have good stuff. I need to renew my Arlington County card, and explore what I can get from the Baltimore ones. That's a lot of DC specific info, but it's worth checking out what's around you/your best friend/siblings, etc. if you live near a major library network.