Need a little help deciding

manchuia · 05-31-2008, 12:33 PM

I have a few leanings, but i am not sure if I have the right impression of these devices. First let's talk about my situation and how the reader would work with me.

I personally am not a fan of books. I like them in theory, but the reality is i can never get comfortable with them (one side is too heavy from the pages I have / haven't read). In general they are too big (I read a TON of tech books, just go to your local book store and see the size of the latest <insert programming language> here book. I am always between 3 or 4 and I never know which I want to start reading and by the time I figure it out, that one is upstairs, or in my office, or under a couch. I just flat out suck at bookmarking (making going back to a book a 5 minute adventure to figure out where I left off). And, finally, I am losing the war with the girlfriend for bookspace (she loves books and as such has domination over ever book shelf / surface that may hold a book in the house). I know when I am beat. I'd rather not keep fighting that war.

I like the information that comes from reading. I am a voracious blog / newspaper reader and I have a subscription to safari books online that covers my tech needs. I was recently hired by a company for my potential (not for my experience) and as such I will be going through a lot of topics at break neck speed and want an e-reader to help manage an online and growing PDF library.

I have narrowed it down to the three most popular (it seems) readers: The iliad, sony reader, and kindle.

I made a quick case for each below:

Iliad: This is the monster that seems like it should be great for me. I forgot to mention that I absolutely HATE writing notes in books, but love taking digital notes (do in safari) because I can go back and modify. Between the touch screen, better resolution, and linux platform, this should be a slam dunk, but there are issues. I don't like the size (it seems too big) and I know that if something is too big, then I simply will opt to leave it at home making it something of a large paperweight. The ergonomics bother me as well as I fidget and read in multiple positions, so the inability to do everything from either hand worries me. I have an N800 right now and i run into problems with the D-pad being on the right, especially when I am lying on that side.

Sony Reader: This is around because it is cheap. There is a slight worry I may be completely off base with this e-reader option and should just get a UMPC instead (although I have done countless years reading off of a screen and would prefer to "rest" the eyes a bit after work with an e-ink display). Wit the Sony the investment loss isn't as great. The cons are connectivity and syncing. I currently have two devices I have to sync: an Iphone and a Nokia N800. The iphone remains synced because the base also charges. The N800 is NEVER synced (I just forget) because there is nothing to really force me to bring it to the computer and go through that process. I worry about my laziness in regards to updating RSS or books through the reader

Kindle: Connectivity problem solved. Whispernet is the MAIN reason this device is on the list. It also has a nice combination of other options (some notes / highlighting, a browser, etc.) but what i get from every review I have read is that it doesn't really do any of these things (besides download books from amazon) well. The major con here is the same as the major advantage. I can see myself racking up purchases through impulse buying very easily. Ergonomics are also a win and negative for the device. I can use it with either hand, but it seems like I will always be pressing the next page button if I am too fidgety with the device.

Right now I am heavily leaning towards the Kindle with an upgrade path to the Iliad, but I would like real world reaction to my assumptions about these devices.

If you are still reading at this point: THANK YOU!!!! I know it's a lot of info, but I figure a recommendation can best be made if the person knows all the information up front.

wallcraft · 05-31-2008, 01:05 PM

Your biggest problem will be PDFs. The Kindle essentially only reads MOBI files, so the PDFs have to be converted. One option is to convert to images, but I don't think you will be happy with this approach. So as a test, try importing one of your PDFs into Windows MobiPocket Reader. Its conversion to re-flowable MOBI is thought to be the basis for Amazon's e-mail Kindle service. Copy the resulting .prc (or .mobi) file to your N800 and try reading it with FBReader. In landscape mode, the N800's screen is the same width and half as high as a 6" E-Ink screen. So you need twice as many page flips, but this should tell you if this approach is likely to work for you. Or skip the N800 step and use Windows MobiPocket Reader directly (e.g. in a smallish window) to display the converted file.

If the technical books you want are already Kindle ebooks that might be a reason to buy a Kindle (they may not be otherwise availabe as ebooks). However, the publisher's don't always produce good ebooks particularly for non-fiction.

manchuia · 05-31-2008, 01:09 PM

Yeah, and that's why I keep the iliad around. It seems to handle native PDF better. Thanks for the conversion tip to the n800. I will give it a go.

05-31-2008, 12:33 PM	#1
manchuia Connoisseur Posts: 68 Karma: 384 Join Date: May 2008 Device: In under a month I will have had both Sonys and a Kindle	Need a little help deciding I have a few leanings, but i am not sure if I have the right impression of these devices. First let's talk about my situation and how the reader would work with me. I personally am not a fan of books. I like them in theory, but the reality is i can never get comfortable with them (one side is too heavy from the pages I have / haven't read). In general they are too big (I read a TON of tech books, just go to your local book store and see the size of the latest <insert programming language> here book. I am always between 3 or 4 and I never know which I want to start reading and by the time I figure it out, that one is upstairs, or in my office, or under a couch. I just flat out suck at bookmarking (making going back to a book a 5 minute adventure to figure out where I left off). And, finally, I am losing the war with the girlfriend for bookspace (she loves books and as such has domination over ever book shelf / surface that may hold a book in the house). I know when I am beat. I'd rather not keep fighting that war. I like the information that comes from reading. I am a voracious blog / newspaper reader and I have a subscription to safari books online that covers my tech needs. I was recently hired by a company for my potential (not for my experience) and as such I will be going through a lot of topics at break neck speed and want an e-reader to help manage an online and growing PDF library. I have narrowed it down to the three most popular (it seems) readers: The iliad, sony reader, and kindle. I made a quick case for each below: Iliad: This is the monster that seems like it should be great for me. I forgot to mention that I absolutely HATE writing notes in books, but love taking digital notes (do in safari) because I can go back and modify. Between the touch screen, better resolution, and linux platform, this should be a slam dunk, but there are issues. I don't like the size (it seems too big) and I know that if something is too big, then I simply will opt to leave it at home making it something of a large paperweight. The ergonomics bother me as well as I fidget and read in multiple positions, so the inability to do everything from either hand worries me. I have an N800 right now and i run into problems with the D-pad being on the right, especially when I am lying on that side. Sony Reader: This is around because it is cheap. There is a slight worry I may be completely off base with this e-reader option and should just get a UMPC instead (although I have done countless years reading off of a screen and would prefer to "rest" the eyes a bit after work with an e-ink display). Wit the Sony the investment loss isn't as great. The cons are connectivity and syncing. I currently have two devices I have to sync: an Iphone and a Nokia N800. The iphone remains synced because the base also charges. The N800 is NEVER synced (I just forget) because there is nothing to really force me to bring it to the computer and go through that process. I worry about my laziness in regards to updating RSS or books through the reader Kindle: Connectivity problem solved. Whispernet is the MAIN reason this device is on the list. It also has a nice combination of other options (some notes / highlighting, a browser, etc.) but what i get from every review I have read is that it doesn't really do any of these things (besides download books from amazon) well. The major con here is the same as the major advantage. I can see myself racking up purchases through impulse buying very easily. Ergonomics are also a win and negative for the device. I can use it with either hand, but it seems like I will always be pressing the next page button if I am too fidgety with the device. Right now I am heavily leaning towards the Kindle with an upgrade path to the Iliad, but I would like real world reaction to my assumptions about these devices. If you are still reading at this point: THANK YOU!!!! I know it's a lot of info, but I figure a recommendation can best be made if the person knows all the information up front.

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05-31-2008, 01:05 PM	#2
wallcraft reader Posts: 6,975 Karma: 5183568 Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Mississippi, USA Device: Kindle 3, Kobo Glo HD	Your biggest problem will be PDFs. The Kindle essentially only reads MOBI files, so the PDFs have to be converted. One option is to convert to images, but I don't think you will be happy with this approach. So as a test, try importing one of your PDFs into Windows MobiPocket Reader. Its conversion to re-flowable MOBI is thought to be the basis for Amazon's e-mail Kindle service. Copy the resulting .prc (or .mobi) file to your N800 and try reading it with FBReader. In landscape mode, the N800's screen is the same width and half as high as a 6" E-Ink screen. So you need twice as many page flips, but this should tell you if this approach is likely to work for you. Or skip the N800 step and use Windows MobiPocket Reader directly (e.g. in a smallish window) to display the converted file. If the technical books you want are already Kindle ebooks that might be a reason to buy a Kindle (they may not be otherwise availabe as ebooks). However, the publisher's don't always produce good ebooks particularly for non-fiction.

05-31-2008, 01:09 PM	#3
manchuia Connoisseur Posts: 68 Karma: 384 Join Date: May 2008 Device: In under a month I will have had both Sonys and a Kindle	Yeah, and that's why I keep the iliad around. It seems to handle native PDF better. Thanks for the conversion tip to the n800. I will give it a go.

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