MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - Netbook Tablet as a Viable eBook Reader Option

ChrisC333 · 03-13-2010, 08:32 AM

Here’s the long version. Please excuse all the waffle:

PERSONAL BACKGROUND AND BIAS:

I’ve been reading and collecting books (or perhaps just neglecting to get rid of them...) for nearly sixty years and my wife and son also like a book, so we’ve accumulated well over 2,000 in the house and have rather run out of space. So the storage aspect of ebooks was most appealing. However, I did wonder if I’d turn out to be a sufferer from “Nothing Will Ever Replace a REAL Book” syndrome (Answer: No). I also have 63 year old eyes which might have made ereading less enjoyable (It didn’t).

At the risk of rattling Jack’s chain, I admit that I was attracted to ereading by watching the video of the iPad launch. Seeing old Steve relaxing in his chair with his toy looked just ideal. So while waiting for supply - and more accurate information - I’ve been trying three other options. The iPad has now been put on hold, perhaps indefinitely.

1. Acer eMachines eM250 Netbook:

A 10” screen cheapie that was apparently sold at bargain prices in the US by Walmart, among many others. I bought mine locally from a Coles supermarket. This has been the most unexpected success of my three readers. Like Jack’s machine it runs a range of ereader software and is way ahead of the others for accessibility, ease of cataloguing a bigger collection of books into folders, etc. The screen size is very similar to a regular book, but the real surprise has been how comfortable it is to use. I assumed that its bulk and layout might be a problem but it hasn’t been so. It does weigh more than a standard paperback, but less than some of my hardbacks. In fact I have a couple of large printed books that each weigh FIVE times as much as the netbook. So no complaints there.

As part of the business of sorting out how to use the netbook I had a fresh look at the whole business of reading conventional books. There seems to be a popular assumption that the printed book is the “Gold Standard” of reading and that it is an un-improvable format. However, this didn’t seem to survive closer inspection. To start with, unless you have an unusually well bound book they mostly need two hands to hold and operate and the resulting reading surfaces are partly curved not flat. For most of the time one page is easier to read than the other, due to the imbalance of the book thickness from one side to the other and the resulting differences in page curvature. I’m completely used to coping with this, and it’s more like a minor nuisance than a big deal. Nevertheless, it’s still an area where an ebook reader is a clear winner. On a similar note, keeping track of a large collection of printed books becomes increasingly hard. I often now have trouble finding the book itself, let alone tracking down the specific quote I’m after. Another clear win for ebooks on a notebook - huge storage, endlessly expandable cataloguing without the need to keep physically shifting books, and excellent searching ability.

My eMachine easily switches from landscape display to left or right portrait (Ctrl Alt and arrow keys) so ends up looking very much like a regular book. I can stand it up on a table, or lie it flat (the weight of the keyboard doesn’t tip it over, even when opened to the widest angle, which surprised me). Depending on how I’m lying or sitting I can lean it against a convenient limb, hold it with one or two hands or just prop it up like a regular book (with the added bonus that it doesn’t self close or flip pages if I loosen my grip).

The main disadvantage - in fact pretty much the only one I’ve found so far - is the short battery life of between 3 and 4 hours with the 3 cell battery. As I never read for that long at a stretch, and have easy access to power points if I did, this is simply an easily solved management issue. When not in use it lives on a small charging table (actually an old piano stool) along with the various other readers, phones and gadgets that need regular feeds of juice.

I haven’t completely written the iPad off yet, and will watch its progress with interest. It seems to have a lot of pluses. It remains to be seen if the restrictive nature of it will put me off - for a while...

Cheers,

Chris

03-13-2010, 08:32 AM	#55
ChrisC333 Groupie Posts: 194 Karma: 2031 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: West Australia Device: Acer eM250 Netbook, iTouch, iRiver Story, HP TM2 Tablet	Here’s the long version. Please excuse all the waffle: PERSONAL BACKGROUND AND BIAS: I’ve been reading and collecting books (or perhaps just neglecting to get rid of them...) for nearly sixty years and my wife and son also like a book, so we’ve accumulated well over 2,000 in the house and have rather run out of space. So the storage aspect of ebooks was most appealing. However, I did wonder if I’d turn out to be a sufferer from “Nothing Will Ever Replace a REAL Book” syndrome (Answer: No). I also have 63 year old eyes which might have made ereading less enjoyable (It didn’t). At the risk of rattling Jack’s chain, I admit that I was attracted to ereading by watching the video of the iPad launch. Seeing old Steve relaxing in his chair with his toy looked just ideal. So while waiting for supply - and more accurate information - I’ve been trying three other options. The iPad has now been put on hold, perhaps indefinitely. 1. Acer eMachines eM250 Netbook: A 10” screen cheapie that was apparently sold at bargain prices in the US by Walmart, among many others. I bought mine locally from a Coles supermarket. This has been the most unexpected success of my three readers. Like Jack’s machine it runs a range of ereader software and is way ahead of the others for accessibility, ease of cataloguing a bigger collection of books into folders, etc. The screen size is very similar to a regular book, but the real surprise has been how comfortable it is to use. I assumed that its bulk and layout might be a problem but it hasn’t been so. It does weigh more than a standard paperback, but less than some of my hardbacks. In fact I have a couple of large printed books that each weigh FIVE times as much as the netbook. So no complaints there. As part of the business of sorting out how to use the netbook I had a fresh look at the whole business of reading conventional books. There seems to be a popular assumption that the printed book is the “Gold Standard” of reading and that it is an un-improvable format. However, this didn’t seem to survive closer inspection. To start with, unless you have an unusually well bound book they mostly need two hands to hold and operate and the resulting reading surfaces are partly curved not flat. For most of the time one page is easier to read than the other, due to the imbalance of the book thickness from one side to the other and the resulting differences in page curvature. I’m completely used to coping with this, and it’s more like a minor nuisance than a big deal. Nevertheless, it’s still an area where an ebook reader is a clear winner. On a similar note, keeping track of a large collection of printed books becomes increasingly hard. I often now have trouble finding the book itself, let alone tracking down the specific quote I’m after. Another clear win for ebooks on a notebook - huge storage, endlessly expandable cataloguing without the need to keep physically shifting books, and excellent searching ability. My eMachine easily switches from landscape display to left or right portrait (Ctrl Alt and arrow keys) so ends up looking very much like a regular book. I can stand it up on a table, or lie it flat (the weight of the keyboard doesn’t tip it over, even when opened to the widest angle, which surprised me). Depending on how I’m lying or sitting I can lean it against a convenient limb, hold it with one or two hands or just prop it up like a regular book (with the added bonus that it doesn’t self close or flip pages if I loosen my grip). The main disadvantage - in fact pretty much the only one I’ve found so far - is the short battery life of between 3 and 4 hours with the 3 cell battery. As I never read for that long at a stretch, and have easy access to power points if I did, this is simply an easily solved management issue. When not in use it lives on a small charging table (actually an old piano stool) along with the various other readers, phones and gadgets that need regular feeds of juice. I haven’t completely written the iPad off yet, and will watch its progress with interest. It seems to have a lot of pluses. It remains to be seen if the restrictive nature of it will put me off - for a while... Cheers, Chris