MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - Looking for an e-reader with decent note taking capabilities

ProfCrash · 05-10-2011, 03:01 PM

You will get 14 plus hours of reading time on a K3 very easily. My K1 got that, I flew from the East Coast to San Fransisco, had a two hour lay over, and then San Fran to Sydney. I think I read for about 12-14 hours on the trip (I have toruble sleeping on planes) and my K1 was running out of power as we cleared customs.

The K1 was advertised as lasting for 1 week without using 3G, the K3 is advertised as lasting 1 month with minimal use of WiFi/3G. What really matters is the number of page turns that you make. People using the game applications have noticed that their battery life is a great deal shorter then what is advertised. That is because the power drain on an e-ink screen comes from the page turns. So when you play scrabble or monopoly or sudoku you are changing the page more frequently and you burn through the battery more frequently.

If you are comfortable texting on a blackberry or similar phone keyboard you will be fine with the Kindle Keyboard.

That said, you would probably enjoy the EPub readers when traveling. The Sony is an international device and works very nicely. The people who use it love the touchscreen. You can buy books internationally using 3G with the 950. For the 650 and 350 you would have to use the USB cord to move books to the Sony. It has good battery life, you would be able to make a 14 hour plane flight easily enough. Since it is an EPub reader you will have more stores to shop from.

More stores does not mean more selection, there seems to be the same number of books available in Mobi format for the Kindle as EPub for the other readers. You can choose what store you buy from, if that is important to you, and it will be easier to get books in foreign languages. You will not be able to buy books from Amazon (Mobi format) or Barnes and Noble (They use a different DRM then Sony at this time) without stripping DRM and int he case of Amazon, converting to EPub.

The Nook is another option for Americans. The downside is that it is difficult to buy books overseas and I don't believe that the 3G works outside the US. The upside is that you can shop at any EPub book store and put those books on the Nook. Again, you have more shops but that does not necessarily mean more options. You can take notes in a book on the Nook but it is suppose to be a bit tricky. The battery life is not much to write home about but I think it would ast a 14 hour plane flight if you were to turn off the LCD screen at the bottom.

And there is the Kobo. I don't know much about the Kobo. I know that it can read books from all EPub stores except Barnes and Noble. I know that it does not have a bookmarking option and the it does not come with a dictionary. I have no idea how to take notes on it.

05-10-2011, 03:01 PM	#7
ProfCrash Tea Enthusiast Posts: 8,554 Karma: 75384937 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Somewhere in the USA Device: Kindle1, Kindle DX Graphite, K3 3G, IPad 3, PW2	You will get 14 plus hours of reading time on a K3 very easily. My K1 got that, I flew from the East Coast to San Fransisco, had a two hour lay over, and then San Fran to Sydney. I think I read for about 12-14 hours on the trip (I have toruble sleeping on planes) and my K1 was running out of power as we cleared customs. The K1 was advertised as lasting for 1 week without using 3G, the K3 is advertised as lasting 1 month with minimal use of WiFi/3G. What really matters is the number of page turns that you make. People using the game applications have noticed that their battery life is a great deal shorter then what is advertised. That is because the power drain on an e-ink screen comes from the page turns. So when you play scrabble or monopoly or sudoku you are changing the page more frequently and you burn through the battery more frequently. If you are comfortable texting on a blackberry or similar phone keyboard you will be fine with the Kindle Keyboard. That said, you would probably enjoy the EPub readers when traveling. The Sony is an international device and works very nicely. The people who use it love the touchscreen. You can buy books internationally using 3G with the 950. For the 650 and 350 you would have to use the USB cord to move books to the Sony. It has good battery life, you would be able to make a 14 hour plane flight easily enough. Since it is an EPub reader you will have more stores to shop from. More stores does not mean more selection, there seems to be the same number of books available in Mobi format for the Kindle as EPub for the other readers. You can choose what store you buy from, if that is important to you, and it will be easier to get books in foreign languages. You will not be able to buy books from Amazon (Mobi format) or Barnes and Noble (They use a different DRM then Sony at this time) without stripping DRM and int he case of Amazon, converting to EPub. The Nook is another option for Americans. The downside is that it is difficult to buy books overseas and I don't believe that the 3G works outside the US. The upside is that you can shop at any EPub book store and put those books on the Nook. Again, you have more shops but that does not necessarily mean more options. You can take notes in a book on the Nook but it is suppose to be a bit tricky. The battery life is not much to write home about but I think it would ast a 14 hour plane flight if you were to turn off the LCD screen at the bottom. And there is the Kobo. I don't know much about the Kobo. I know that it can read books from all EPub stores except Barnes and Noble. I know that it does not have a bookmarking option and the it does not come with a dictionary. I have no idea how to take notes on it. Last edited by ProfCrash; 05-10-2011 at 03:06 PM.