Quote:
Originally Posted by mnfe
1. ePub! My library has a pretty healthy serving of ebooks. In fact, in just two pages worth of books I saw at least 6 I would want to read. Some are Adobe PDF, some are Adobe ePub. I read a LOT when I can (or used to before I had kids), so this is pretty critical. I think I would save a lot of money over time. I tend to forget to return physical library books so this is a great way to check books out with no fines!
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Right now the best eInk devices for reading PDF are Sony's and Kindles. The nookColor is also suppose to be good, but I've not seen any reviews comments. I suppose since it might use the android device
Quote:
Originally Posted by mnfe
2. Wireless, at least wi-fi if not wi-fi/3G. I go back and forth on this one, I'll be honest. While in theory it's great to do books on demand, etc, if I'm primarily doing library books or books from other sites, this feature becomes less useful. BUT there have been times when I have been traveling and been super disatisfied with what I have brought with me, so this would be a definite nice to have.
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On Demand is a nice feature, I've used it once for my daughter who needed to read a book for a class. But that was once over a span of a year.
I think the bigger usage is having 3G for web capabilities; like web surfing, WIKI lookup and google. I read a lot of non fiction and often it I tend to 'investigate' terms or reference books. I also like to keep my Kindle disk usage small as it improves the perfomance of the device(something I learned from my SONY). I often download the next book I want to read from my web browser via Calibre, Feedbooks, mobileread, etc.. Being able to download a book without having to tether your device is a great benefit. I didn't think it was when I had my SONY, but after expereincing the difference I can say 3G is great.
I recently took a cruise where WI-FI and phone access was off the charts ($5 a min). I used my Kindle on the cruise to text message, surf the web, but mostly read. All for free.
My point is 3G access to a book store to buy books a lone is not worth the extra cash for the nook get the WI-FI model. However if you want true 3G for free look into the Kindle it is worth the difference in cost.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mnfe
I go back and forth between LCD and eInk.
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I don't have an opinion on LCD vs. eInk rather I feel each technology has it's own strenth and weakness.
I tend to read using both technology. During the day I read using my Kindle and at night I read using my phone 4" screen.
For daytime reading eInk all the way, there is just no comparision. I don't care what other say about anti-glare or bump the output to compensate. LCD put a strain on the eye and do not look anywhere as good as eInk.
As for night reading I prefer backlit or LCD devices. I know it's just as easy to use a lamp. But these devices have glare and unless you have an even light source it will be difficult to read. Dropping the contrast down and setting the night mode it's very easy to read w/o any glare.
I guess if you had to chose only one and daytime reading was important you might want to seriously consider an eInk device since you can read an eInk device in both environments(with a lamp of course). Where as with an LCD you will have to find a well shaded area to read in daylight.
A few other considerations.
Battery life
eInk are the king of battery life. They can last weeks w/o a charge where most LCD require a daily charge. If you only read at home not such an issue. However I do travel often and having a device that can hold a charge for days is a must, sometimes one does not have the time or opportunity to charge a device. I once took a class(travel) for a week and forgot my charger at home. Having my eInk device allowed me to continue reading for that whole week without worrying about killing the battery. I read for a total of 20hrs.
Web Surfing
I know you mentioned you have a netbook and use that for surfing. But I can tell you the nook is an android device that has a full browser with all the bells and wishes of a touch screen interface, pinch zoom and text reflow. Your experience surfing the web on the android device will be a far better experience than the netbook. (unless you visit tones of flash sites). The nook is suppose to get Android 2.2 (which supports flash). So that last point might be a moot point.
You husband also might have mentioned he want's traditional books, but wait until you child/husband experiences an eBook and their opinion might change.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mnfe
...but I decided that ePub is a necessity.
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This is an argument I just don't get. When will people realize content is far more important than format. There are tons of tools out there that make the conversion process trivial.
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