Classic Nook with Pearl screen?

[JoshLessard]

Hey guys. I live in Canada and am getting ready to buy an eReader. I was *this* close to crossing the border to buy a Nook, and then came the announcement of the Kindle 3 for $10 less. Now I'm stuck again.

The $10 price difference isn't a killer...my issue now is the new Pearl screen. Honestly if it wasn't for the fact that Kindle doesn't support ePub, I would order one immediately. But because Kindle doesn't support ePub, I'm still leaning towards the Nook. However, I'm wondering if anyone knows if the Nook will support the new Pearl screen anytime soon. If so, I will just wait. Anybody have any insight into this?

And while I (hopefully) have your attention, how are people finding the battery life on the Nook since the last firmware update? That's one other difference that worries me a little...Kindle 3 seems to fare much better according to the propaganda from Amazon.

[aagstn]

No telling when a new nook will be released with the pearl screen, but honestly the contrast of the current one is very nice. I get 4 - 5 days of battery life so the Kindle is going to be the winner there, but the new Kindle still has the same issues for me. No ePub support, no SD card expansion slot, and no user replaceable battery which is a nice option to have a couple of years down the road. Spend the extra $10 for a nook and enjoy ePub and seeing your book covers in color.

[shootist]

Originally Posted by aagstn

No telling when a new nook will be released with the pearl screen, but honestly the contrast of the current one is very nice. I get 4 - 5 days of battery life so the Kindle is going to be the winner there, but the new Kindle still has the same issues for me. No ePub support, no SD card expansion slot, and no user replaceable battery which is a nice option to have a couple of years down the road. Spend the extra $10 for a nook and enjoy ePub and seeing your book covers in color.

ditto. I was going to buy a kindle, but bought a nook for the reasons listed above.

[JoshLessard]

Is the 4-5 days of battery life with the WiFi radio on or off? And with how many hours/day of reading?

Thanks.

[AndyfromVA]

I do about 2-3 hours of reading a day on my Nook. I keep Wi-Fi off and everything else at minimum power. After four or five days the batter indicator is at about 50%.

While I'd like to have longer battery life I don't see it as essential. Actually I can't conceive of a circumstance when I'd be without access to A/C power for longer than four or five days.

[aagstn]

Originally Posted by JoshLessard

Is the 4-5 days of battery life with the WiFi radio on or off? And with how many hours/day of reading?

Thanks.

2-3 hours of reading a day. I leave the wi-fi off, but do check the Daily and the store a few times a week with the 3G. I'm usually around 25 to 30% by the last day I charge it so I probably could stretch it much longer if I kept it in airplane mode and drained the battery all the way.

[afa]

Originally Posted by JoshLessard

However, I'm wondering if anyone knows if the Nook will support the new Pearl screen anytime soon. If so, I will just wait. Anybody have any insight into this?

And while I (hopefully) have your attention, how are people finding the battery life on the Nook since the last firmware update? That's one other difference that worries me a little...Kindle 3 seems to fare much better according to the propaganda from Amazon.

Unless there's some B&N 'insider' here on MR, I don't think anyone will really know when the new nook will be coming out. I'm sure B&N want it to be a surprise, mainly because companies know that if they announce the pending arrival of a new device too soon, it causes sales of the current device to stagnate. Now that Amazon have updated their line-up, I think you can expect the nook with Pearl screen to be arriving in the not-too-distant future. Random guess? Some time in the fourth quarter.

As for the battery life - as others have said, my nook lasts 4-5 days as well. Wi-Fi on or off doesn't make a hell of a difference, to be honest. Even when I leave my Wi-Fi on, it seems to go off automatically after a period of non-use, so Airplane mode won't increase the life significantly. Compared to the Kindle, it's not even close. The Kindle's battery life easily trumps the nook's.

Is there a particular reason you're looking at ePub support? Do you plan on getting ebooks from your library? Because if you're just going to be buying books from online stores, the Kindle's format won't be a problem. Amazon.com have a pretty impressive collection of ebooks available, and the prices are usually at least as good (if not better) than B&N's.

[superstitious]

I read about an hour a day and have wifi on maybe once or twice a week just to browse the store. I got about 7 days worth. I used to think it would be a big deal to have to charge it all the time but it really doesn't. I mean honestly what are the chances of me reading 7 days straight?

[JoshLessard]

afa,

My issues with ePub are both short-term and long-term. In the short term, yes I would like to be able to borrow ePub books from my local library, which is already starting to build up a decent collection.

In the long term, I worry about a few things. Closed systems owned by one company never do well against open systems supported by many others, even if the closed format is better (*cough* Betamax *cough*). Also, if I buy a Kindle now and build up a nice collection of eBooks through Amazon, I am absolutely stuck with a Kindle. If some killer ePub device comes out that I would like to switch to, I cannot buy it without having to re-buy all my eBooks. No such problem exists with the Nook (or the Kobo, or the Sony Reader, or the Cybook Bookeen, or the BeBook, etc.)

[boswd]

Originally Posted by superstitious

I read about an hour a day and have wifi on maybe once or twice a week just to browse the store. I got about 7 days worth. I used to think it would be a big deal to have to charge it all the time but it really doesn't. I mean honestly what are the chances of me reading 7 days straight?

I agree, the nooks battery life is the most overrated complaint about the nook.

I get anywhere from 5-8 days, depending on if I read a newspaper or not. And plugging it in to charge after lets say 6 days does not make me want to jump off the roof or start throwing pots and pans around the house. I charge it and then watch the news and eat dinner or something and then it's ready for some reading in bed.

but people love to complain about anything and everything.

oh well, everyone has their own needs I guess.

[JoshLessard]

I'm beginning to think that the complaints about needing to charge the Nook are a bit overrated as well. I'm curious though, how long does it take to fully charge the Nook?

Thanks all.

[binkman71]

If you charge via an outlet, takes a couple hours from dead to fully charged.

If you charge via USB on your computer, it takes damn near forever for some reason.

Nonetheless, the nook does come with the adapter to charge via an outlet (really is just a plug that attaches to the USB cable, but apparently provides slightly more consistent juice to the nook).

K.

[boswd]

Originally Posted by binkman71

If you charge via an outlet, takes a couple hours from dead to fully charged.

If you charge via USB on your computer, it takes damn near forever for some reason.

Nonetheless, the nook does come with the adapter to charge via an outlet (really is just a plug that attaches to the USB cable, but apparently provides slightly more consistent juice to the nook).

K.

that's because the outlet has a stronger charge ouput than a computer. you are spot on, mine take almost 2 hrs exactly from less than 10% to 100%

[Care]

Josh, I am in Canada as well, and while in the States last week I bought a Nook. I was in between a Nook and the Kindle 3.

I have only had my nook for 4 days, but even though I have been playing around with it constantly I am still at 50% battery. I was using my phone and had to charge it almost every day when reading a lot, so if I get a week I will be happy. I think the screen on the Nook is great, better than say the Kobo.

Personally, I like how much lighter the new kindle is. That was the biggest plus for me. The battery was great on the K3, but I couldn't replace it if I had to like I can with the Nook. You can convert your mobi files if you buy another reader, but it might be a pain. And in turn you can convert some of your epubs to mobi. although you never know what new restrictions will be in place in a year or two, so that might change.

In the end I ended up going with the Nook because:
1. I have mainly epubs so far and like the ease of use with them
2. I like that you can see your covers while searching because I sometimes forget the name of a book, but remember the cover
3. I didn't want to pay an extra $2 for my books because I am in Canada, now I can still get them from my regular sources
4. I felt the lcd screen was really easy to use and thought it would be faster for me than the k3 navigation
5. I didn't want to wait!

You have to decide what is most important to you in a reader. If battery life is something you need, then a new kindle would be better. If you care more about compatibility with ebooks, then the nook would be a better choice.

[afa]

@JoshLessard,

I wouldn't worry about the availability of Kindle books. Betamax died out and customers lost, but Amazon is the market leader and one of the world's largest book retailers. I don't expect them to go out of business or fail spectacularly any time soon.

Since library books are a concern for you, however, I would suggest go for the nook.

Originally Posted by JoshLessard

I'm beginning to think that the complaints about needing to charge the Nook are a bit overrated as well. I'm curious though, how long does it take to fully charge the Nook?

Thanks all.

I don't think the battery life is major concern either. In my case, I have a convenient power outlet next to my bed, so I just plug it in and keep reading. No biggie.

As for time... I haven't actually bothered keeping track of how long it takes. I remember my nook's guide said that charging would take about 3.5 hours from a power outlet, but that might have only referred to the initial, out-of-box charging time. I'm not sure about subsequent recharges, but a couple of hours seems about right. Charging via your PC's USB will take longer, of course, but unless you have absolutely no wall outlets within reach, there's no reason for you to do that, anyway.