Just got a new ipad air 2 and have a question

[Kaysclie]

I have never before had an apple product and have been spending the last few days getting use to the apple experience. I have lots of epub books in calibre on my pc and am hoping this forum group can advise me as to which ereader app I should purchase.....marvin classic, marvin 3, or something else? My air 2 came with 9.3.4, which may make a difference.

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by Kaysclie

I have never before had an apple product and have been spending the last few days getting use to the apple experience. I have lots of epub books in calibre on my pc and am hoping this forum group can advise me as to which ereader app I should purchase.....marvin classic, marvin 3, or something else? My air 2 came with 9.3.4, which may make a difference.

I use Marvin 3. You can transfer the books from Calibre to Marvin 3 via Calibre's server. I'm happy with the combination.

[cedhax]

Originally Posted by Kaysclie

I have never before had an apple product and have been spending the last few days getting use to the apple experience. I have lots of epub books in calibre on my pc and am hoping this forum group can advise me as to which ereader app I should purchase.....marvin classic, marvin 3, or something else? My air 2 came with 9.3.4, which may make a difference.

Since you're posting in this Apple Devices forum, you might have noticed two iOS reader apps prominently mentioned in the very same forum. They are MapleRead (formerly named BookMaster) and Hyphen. They are indeed direct competitors to Marvin. Each app has its own fans.

I have tried all three and have a strong preference for one of them, which has done, among other things, an excellent job of supporting calibre with its excellent software, FAQ and technical support via this forum.

[svenlind]

Originally Posted by cedhax

Since you're posting in this Apple Devices forum, you might have noticed two iOS reader apps prominently mentioned in the very same forum. They are MapleRead (formerly named BookMaster) and Hyphen. They are indeed direct competitors to Marvin. Each app has its own fans.

I have tried all three and have a strong preference for one of them, which has done, among other things, an excellent job of supporting calibre with its excellent software, FAQ and technical support via this forum.

I have also tried all three. For me the competition is between Marvin 3 and Mapleread. They are both excellent readers.

IMO Mapleread has the edge in the rendering of content, text and images.

I do tend to use Marvin 3 the most. In Marvin you can specify Text Menu Commands in order to do for example online translations and misc. Wikipidia searchs. I read many English books and English is my second language, I am therefore very glad that I can use my paid translation service subscription from within Marvin.

Mapleread does have an excellent access to Goggle translate, but Google translate can't compete with my Danish online translation service.

[dieterpops]

You can also use some more mainstream apps, like iBooks, Nook, Kobo, and Overdrive. These will all import ePub files.

[Kaysclie]

Thanks everyone. I am going to expand my question a little bit. On my android devices I have been using Moon+Reader pro because it gives so many choices, such as a myriad of fonts, control over paragraph spacing, page width, backgrounds, and more. Are there any reader apps that will do as much with epub ebooks on the apple devices? Sounds like Marvin and Maple Read are favorites here. Will either one of these(or another one) be as good as Moon+
Reader pro? I have read the descriptions of these apps, but I think I need user input as I haven't read comparisons of apple apps compared to Moon+Reader. I was thinking that since Apple has such a wide range of developers, some ereader app must compare.

[kyteflyer]

Marvin and Hyphen both have free versions (limited to one book at a time) so you might want to trial those. I can't say much about Mapleread, its not my cup of tea, but others will be able to give a better notion.

Marvin and Hyphen both have lots of customisability, but Hyphen (I think) allows more flexibility with regard to fonts.

[odamizu]

Originally Posted by Kaysclie

... Sounds like Marvin and Maple Read are favorites here ...

Hyphen is pretty new, which is why it doesn't have much of a following yet. 1.0 came out last November, and while it piqued my interest, I didn't become a convert until 1.2, which was released just last week (Sept 11).

Marvin is the oldest. That's why it has the biggest following.

MapleRead's been out a while, but under the name BookMaster.

I have used all three, and they are all worth trying which you can do for free with some limitations. CORRECTION: Hyphen has a free version which limits you to one book at a time. Marvin has a nag-banner, which allows you to try all features banner-free for 24 hours, then you have to pay to remove the banner. MapleRead doesn't have a free version for iPad, but the iPhone version (CX) is free with an in-app purchase for "Pro Upgrade." I can't remember what features you get for the Pro Upgrade since I already purchased it and can't remember what was missing before.

Bluefire Reader is also worth looking at if you want to read epubs with Adobe DRM (e.g., library books). It's totally free.

Originally Posted by Kaysclie

... On my android devices I have been using Moon+Reader pro because it gives so many choices, such as a myriad of fonts, control over paragraph spacing, page width, backgrounds, and more. Are there any reader apps that will do as much with epub ebooks on the apple devices? ...

MapleRead has the most customization options when it comes to background, but for everything else (fonts, margins, etc.), I prefer Hyphen.

Marvin also offers a wide variety of customization options, but its brightness control is system-wide, which bugs me. Hyphen and MapleRead give you the choice of system vs in-app brightness. Also, Marvin has a frustrating bug where you can lose your page location if you flip from portrait to landscape or vice versa. The only workaround I've found is to lock rotation to prevent flipping. If I want to change orientation, I set a bookmark, change orientation, go to the bookmark, then lock orientation again.

[cedhax]

Originally Posted by kyteflyer

Marvin and Hyphen both have free versions (limited to one book at a time) so you might want to trial those. I can't say much about Mapleread, its not my cup of tea, but others will be able to give a better notion.

MapleRead CX is also free to try (not limited to one book at a time).

[cedhax]

Originally Posted by odamizu

...
MapleRead has the most customization options when it comes to background, but for everything else (fonts, margins, etc.), I prefer Hyphen.

IMHO, MapleRead is the one that strikes the right balance between sophistication and ease of use, including background and everything else (fonts, margins, etc.).

Marvin also offers a wide variety of customization options, but its brightness control is system-wide, which bugs me. Hyphen and MapleRead give you the choice of system vs in-app brightness.

Actually, MapleRead gives you more than that now. v1.5 introduced Reading Dimmer as a convenient way to choose between system-wide and app-specific brightness control, optionally dependent on night mode, good for battery-saving and extra dimming. I really appreciate this convenient feature, as I want system-wide brightness control for day-time reading, and app-only brightness control (for extra dimming) for night-time reading.

Also, Marvin has a frustrating bug where you can lose your page location if you flip from portrait to landscape or vice versa. The only workaround I've found is to lock rotation to prevent flipping. If I want to change orientation, I set a bookmark, change orientation, go to the bookmark, then lock orientation again.

Overall, MapleRead is the most stable app among these three apps.
I am really impressed by its (software) engineering quality.

[odamizu]

Originally Posted by cedhax

...Overall, MapleRead is the most stable app among these three apps. I am really impressed by its (software) engineering quality.

I haven't encountered any instabilitites in Hyphen 1.2 (or MapleRead, for that matter)

[svenlind]

Originally Posted by Kaysclie

Thanks everyone. I am going to expand my question a little bit. On my android devices I have been using Moon+Reader pro because it gives so many choices, such as a myriad of fonts, control over paragraph spacing, page width, backgrounds, and more. Are there any reader apps that will do as much with epub ebooks on the apple devices? Sounds like Marvin and Maple Read are favorites here. Will either one of these(or another one) be as good as Moon+
Reader pro? I have read the descriptions of these apps, but I think I need user input as I haven't read comparisons of apple apps compared to Moon+Reader. I was thinking that since Apple has such a wide range of developers, some ereader app must compare.

Hyphen probably has the largest selection of fonts, but there are also very many fonts to choose from in Mapleread and Marvin.
In Marvin you can furthermore add your own favorite fonts. I have added these fonts. They are free fonts and are quite heavy but that is to my liking.

I do think you should try them all, they can as mentioned be freely tried.

[odamizu]

Hyphen also allows you to add your own favorite fonts by dropping them into Hyphen's Documents in iTunes. However, I haven't tried it.

I also just noticed the OP was asking specifically about ereading apps for iPad, so I've corrected my post (#8) above. MapleRead does not have a free version you can try on iPad; only the iPhone version is free (with an in-app purchase to unlock "Pro" features).

Another thing about MapleRead is there are 3 different versions, 2 for iPad and 1 for iPhone. It's not a universal app like Marvin and Hyphen.

That said, I have purchased full/Pro versions of Hyphen, MapleRead and Marvin to support the developers and encourage continued development. A small price to pay, I think, for the enjoyment ereading gives me

[Kaysclie]

It is definitely unfortunate that MapleRead for Ipad does not have a free version to try.
So far I have downloaded and tried Marvin and Hyphen...love the fonts in Hyphen...so many choices there! But Marvin seems easier for me to use. But I haven't reached a decision yet. I will give them both more time and more usage before I pick. Is Marvin 3 that much better????
I do appreciate the idea of springing for all three as odamizu has chosen to do. The total cost isn't that much $$ especially when you figure all of the work that goes into development and time spent by the app developers. I know that I will spend many enjoyable hours reading on my Air 2 and why not invest a bit more money in good reading apps!!

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by Kaysclie

It is definitely unfortunate that MapleRead for Ipad does not have a free version to try.
So far I have downloaded and tried Marvin and Hyphen...love the fonts in Hyphen...so many choices there! But Marvin seems easier for me to use. But I haven't reached a decision yet. I will give them both more time and more usage before I pick. Is Marvin 3 that much better????
I do appreciate the idea of springing for all three as odamizu has chosen to do. The total cost isn't that much $$ especially when you figure all of the work that goes into development and time spent by the app developers. I know that I will spend many enjoyable hours reading on my Air 2 and why not invest a bit more money in good reading apps!!

I've purchased Marvin 3 (definitely a big improvement) and Mapleread. Add in iBooks and Kindle and I have plenty of options. I prefer Marvin 3, as much because of the library management options as the reader customization.