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Old 06-29-2014, 04:53 PM   #1
heghedush
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Which e-reader for outdoors/travel?

Hello everyone,

I am looking at getting an e-reader for my travels and camping as the weight and bulk of my ipad 2 are a problem. What would you advise me to get, please?

The 2 most important things to me are battery life and the ability to put my own books in it.

Because I will be using it mostly outdoors I need one that comes with a light. From my understanding the Kindle Paperwhite has this and also a 2 month battery life? But what I am not sure of is 2 months with the light on or off? And just how much reading per day exactly?

My budget is ~100 pounds, I wouldn't like to go much higher than that as I will only use the device for reading, that's it. Not interested in any other features such as browser, mp3 etc.

Many thanks
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Old 06-29-2014, 05:08 PM   #2
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Reading outdoors in the daytime you don't need a light at all. Reading after sunset, you need the same amount of light you'd need for a book printed on paper. You can use one of the "headlight" style flashlight (UK: torch) or a clip-on book light. Besides, the headlight would be useful for other night-time tasks other than reading. Therefore, the basic Kindle (listed at 59 UK pounds today at Amazon.co.uk) would be sufficient. Instead of a headlight, you can purchase a cover which contains a light built in. Note that this cover draws power from the Kindle to power the light, so reading a lot in the dark will mean you'll need to charge it more often.

I would guess that the battery life claim on the Amazon site is probably predicated on reading no more than an hour a day -- and without turning on the internal light in the Paperwhite. I read 3-5 hours most days and my Kindle (Gen 3, aka Kindle Keyboard) needs to be charged about once a week to 10 days.

You can side-load books onto the device from your computer, assuming that they are in Mobipocket format and without DRM. Also, immediately after loading new books onto the Kindle, there's a lot of background activity as the books are indexed to support search. So, leave it plugged in overnight after you download new books or push new books from your PC.
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Old 06-29-2014, 08:31 PM   #3
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What you really want is http://www.meetearl.com/. But, they haven't been released yet.

I think any of the current front-lit readers will do. I haven't heard of any being waterproof, but my Kobo Glo has been splashed without any problems occurring.

For the battery life, they seem to quote roughly the same. And they are based on about 30 minutes reading per day. So the claim of two months is questionable. I have gone about 40 hours reading with my Glo, but usually connect more often.

One thing to consider is the type of touch screen. Some use a capacitance based screen and some use IR. The latter works better with gloves.

As to specific devices, the Kobo Glo or Kobo Aura would be good for you. They have the same size and resolution screen, but the Aura is a more compact. It has flush screen and uses capacitive touch rather than the IR of the Glo. If you weren't after a lit device, I would suggest the 5" Kobo Mini.
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Old 06-29-2014, 10:45 PM   #4
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I would recommend the Kindle Paperwhite even though you don't need the light if reading outside during the daytime. I found this out while sitting out in the sun: you can turn the light down to minimum. It's a nice reader generally and I've never regretted purchasing it.
The light is very useful for times when reading in dim light. Second Generation PW's have evenly lit screens, on the whole.
I've got no complaints.
The battery only drains quickly if you load lots of books on the reader at one time and it takes a long time to index them. There are ways round this.
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Old 06-30-2014, 12:00 AM   #5
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Kobo Aura is what I would recommend because it handles ePub and it also has a front light.
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Old 06-30-2014, 12:47 AM   #6
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I would like to suggest Kindle fire and Kobo mini for both light and handy for outdoor travel time. I think kindle will be best for battery backup also.
But personally I use Sony and never suggest you to go for it at travel.
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Old 06-30-2014, 12:50 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Aanya View Post
I would like to suggest Kindle fire and Kobo mini for both light and handy for outdoor travel time. I think kindle will be best for battery backup also.
But personally I use Sony and never suggest you to go for it at travel.
The Kindle Fire is not a good idea in this case because the screen will be hard to read in the sunlight. Suggestions should (IMHO) be kept to eInk only.
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Old 06-30-2014, 04:58 AM   #8
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Originally Posted by davidfor View Post
I think any of the current front-lit readers will do. I haven't heard of any being waterproof, but my Kobo Glo has been splashed without any problems occurring.
The PocketBook Aqua seems to fit the OP's bill.
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Old 06-30-2014, 05:20 AM   #9
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If the small size doesn't bother you, I second the recommendation for the Kobo Mini. The small size is convenient, and the screen is somewhat more protected by the bezel. Mine's also survived a dunking, which really surprised me. I just stick it in a ziplock bag if it's likely to get wet. I don't try to read in wet conditions.

As others have noted, you can use an external light source if you do, in fact, need to read in darkness.

I read sideloaded books exclusively on it.

If you carry one of the various USB battery phone rechargers, you can easily keep it charged out in the field.
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Old 06-30-2014, 06:07 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by davidfor View Post
For the battery life, they seem to quote roughly the same. And they are based on about 30 minutes reading per day. So the claim of two months is questionable. I have gone about 40 hours reading with my Glo, but usually connect more often.
It is the usual false advertising that you get with any product, where you really have to read the fine print. It would be more accurate to describe it as having a life of ~28 hours of reading time. Also, note:

Quote:
A single charge lasts up to eight weeks, based on a half hour of reading per day with wireless off and the light setting at 10. Battery life will vary based on light and wireless usage.
Time is estimated even with light factored in, possibly since light cannot actually be turned fully off without a hack that lives here on MR, and because Amazon thinks everyone should keep the light on anyway to give it a more whitened look.
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Old 06-30-2014, 11:25 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by heghedush View Post
Hello everyone,

I am looking at getting an e-reader for my travels and camping as the weight and bulk of my ipad 2 are a problem. What would you advise me to get, please?

The 2 most important things to me are battery life and the ability to put my own books in it.

Because I will be using it mostly outdoors I need one that comes with a light. From my understanding the Kindle Paperwhite has this and also a 2 month battery life? But what I am not sure of is 2 months with the light on or off? And just how much reading per day exactly?

My budget is ~100 pounds, I wouldn't like to go much higher than that as I will only use the device for reading, that's it. Not interested in any other features such as browser, mp3 etc.

Many thanks
Just about any of the lighted readers available in the UK would be fine. The Kindle Paperwhite and Kobo Aura are both £109 (very little to choose between them) and the older Kobo Glo is £89. All are touch screen readers with built in lights. I'd rule out the Kobo Aura HD (more expensive and bigger screen), and the Kobo Mini (it's not in stock these days).

They will all have roughly similar battery life (the advertised 2 months is usually based on 30 mins reading per day with wi-fi off. So just figure out how much you read per day and roughly work it out from that. More realistically it's 3-5 weeks. Unless you have the light up full, it doesn't have a major impact on the battery life). And you can easily load any of them up with your own books simply by transferring them via USB. Just bear in mind, the Kindle reads Amazon format books (mobi/AZW) and the Kobo's are epub format. Though if you use Calibre and Apprentice Alf, formats/DRM are easily dealt with.

Although people have mentioned other options without a light, for sheer ease of use when travelling & camping, you can't really beat one with a light already included.

Just make sure that whatever one you buy, you get a good case for it at the same time, .
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Old 07-01-2014, 05:35 AM   #12
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Thanks a lot for the input everyone!

I really liked the idea of the Kobo Mini, but because I wear glasses and my vision in not so bright conditions is poor, I had to pass. I think it's a tossup between the Kobo Aura and Kindle Paperwhite.
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Old 07-10-2014, 06:07 AM   #13
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Hi again,

I bought the Kobo Aura, just opened the box, plugged the cable to my laptop and then noticed there was something weird with the screen. It looks like this now:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/a1q9iia2ju...710_110015.jpg
I take it it's broken?

Also, I installed Kobo Desktop and the device doesn't show being connected.

Last edited by heghedush; 07-10-2014 at 06:22 AM.
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Old 07-10-2014, 06:30 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by heghedush View Post
Hi again,

I bought the Kobo Aura, just opened the box, plugged the cable to my laptop and then noticed there was something weird with the screen. It looks like this now:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/a1q9iia2ju...710_110015.jpg
I take it it's broken?
That looks like an entirely normal "switched off" eInk screen to me. All eInk devices exhibit "ghosting".

What happens when you press the power switch?
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Old 07-10-2014, 08:23 AM   #15
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Nothing, it stays the same. Whether it's plugged in or not, whether i hold the power button longer or just slide it it's the same.
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