Choosing a dedicated ebook reader?

[jbcohen]

Why have you chosen a dedicated ebook reader rather than a tablet? Some of the reasons that I can see are: Not wanting all those distractions from the books that we are reading and that battery life and the strain of the LCDs.

[BeccaPrice]

you just about summed it up for me. I like the long battery life on my K3, and it's a lot lighter in my hands than a tablet would be. Plus, when I read, I like to *read* and not be distracted by email or facebook updates.

but right now my hands are really bothering me, so weight is a primary factor.

[jbcohen]

*Getting off track **

Do you have a cover on yours, I did and my hands hurt, I solved that by getting a pouch and removing the kindle from all covers while I am reading.

[BeccaPrice]

I have a cover on my k3, yes, and will be getting one for my Paperwhite. I like the firmness of the cover, to protect the screen. Also, I tend to lose and drop things, and a sleeve would be just one more thing to keep track of.

[ucfgrad93]

Long battery life, up until recently ereaders were much cheaper than tablets, easier on my eyes, built in dictionary, better visibility in sunlight, etc.

[KimberlyFDR]

I got my Kindle 4 last Christmas, I got my Kindle Fire HD this Christmas, so I have both However, I use them completely differently because each has its own advantages for specific functions.

What I Use My Kindle 4 For

• Reading Amazon books
• Side-loading non-Amazon books
• Reviewing ARCs
• Sending personal documents to read (fanfic, papers, articles, etc)

Advantages Over Kindle Fire HD

• Longer battery life
• Ability to use collections (I have so many books, and from so many different sources, that I need them in different collections to keep track)
• Focused purpose

What I Use My Kindle Fire HD For

• Reading comics (Color! Wonderful!)
• Media consumption (Movies, music, apps, quick time-fillers)
• Reading the borrowed Prime novel of the month (my free month is ending on Sunday and I won't renew, but it's easier to read those novels on my Fire)

Advantages Over Kindle 4

• Color, color, color
• Quick ability to cross-check something online that I run across when reading
• Easier to buy books on the device

So, I enjoy both of my devices and the functionality both provide me. It's been great expanding my Kindle family. My life changed when I got my Kindle and it's changed again since I got my Fire HD

[meeera]

I have both also. I use the Kobo Glo for reading books. It's small and light (my primary consideration; this is why I switched mostly away from treebooks). Also, it won't strain my eyes or interfere with my sleep cycles, and the battery lasts a long time.

My tablet I use for reading comics, for flicking through news, for email and social media, for watching video, for games, etc etc.

[pidgeon92]

It's all about the screen and the weight. I love the way eink looks, and I like a lightweight reader, particularly for reading in bed.

[manou]

My iPad is my workhorse and my communication tool (email, facebook, etc.) I am studying Chinese and use my iPad to do home work, essays, speeches, presentations, research and to memorise vocabulary and grammar patterns.
My Kindle is my pocket-sized library, on top of it, reading on a back lit device is too much of an eyestrain for me.

[Julius Caesar]

Originally Posted by jbcohen

Why have you chosen a dedicated ebook reader rather than a tablet? Some of the reasons that I can see are: Not wanting all those distractions from the books that we are reading and that battery life and the strain of the LCDs.

You are right about the eyestrain. I can't stand staring at an LCD screen for an extended period of time. It gives me an eyestrain.

I can read for hours and hours with a dedicated an e-reader with e-ink screen and my eyes never get tired. In fact, with Kindle Paperwhite, I find it much more pleasant to the eyes than a printed book. My eyes get tired much less.

[xendula]

Originally Posted by manou

My iPad is my workhorse and my communication tool (email, facebook, etc.) ....
My Kindle is my pocket-sized library, on top of it, reading on a back lit device is too much of an eyestrain for me.

Same here. I've had an iPad since preorder became available on the first generation, and could not live a day without it, but I would never read on it.

I have the official Paperwhite cover and an aftermarket one for my Paperwhite, because the auto-wake functionality makes it as similar to a pbook as it gets: no more button pressing. All I want from an ereader is to be able to read on it without ever running out of juice, customize font/line settings, access the cloud library and transfer books wirelessly from my libraries.

[Lutraa]

In addition to the reasons others have provided, I prefer to read in bed on one of my Kindles v. my phone or PC because it doesn't involve exposure to a bright screen. Exposure to bright light during the "night" part of our circadian rhythms is associated with poor health, e.g. higher rates of breast cancer. Plus it's hard enough to regulate my circadian rhythm in the winter at 61.5 degrees N without shutting down melatonin production right before I'm supposed to sleep for eight hours.

[Sregener]

Simply put, the glare on the screen makes it impossible for me to read off a tablet for very long without a headache.

[maianhvk]

- Because e-ink is the closest thing to real paper.
- It's small but it holds thousands books, which makes mobilereading extremely convenient. *
- And of course the battery lives on while tablet needs charging everyday.

* Edited to add that when I bought it, I did intend to "bring it everywhere" as some people here do. But after 2 broken screens, I learned to err on the safe side and now I leave it home, in thick cover, on my desk on top of everything else

I can't read in public, anyway. It's just too distracting.

[DuckieTigger]

My tablet doesn't cut it for reading. It doesn't cut it for anything actually. The only use of it is very rarely does it wake up from sleep to carry with me to kitchen or front room when looking something up in browser. The 10" screen is too small for watching movies, can't type on the keyboard with 10 fingers, the speakers are too bad, it is too heavy to carry around, can't see anything outside in sunlight, it is too slow. Well in short, it was nice when it was new, now it just turned into an oversized phone that cannot even make phone calls.

Tablets try to squeeze too much into too little room. Jack of all trades, master of none. That is why I chose a dedicated reader. For what it is meant to do it does a pretty good job. I can read, occasional look up a word in dictionary, is light and small enough to carry everywhere.