Nee new E-Book reader, using Archos 5 Android to read books at the moment.

robins777 · 08-09-2010, 04:12 AM

Hi I'm John (UK) and new to this forum and have a question for other members.

I am using an Archos 5 Android to read E-Books at the moment and would like something a little bigger which show the text better. It has to be small enough to go in my pocket. I am looking at the new Kindle which has a 6" display against the 5" of the Archos and wondered if extra size made much difference. I want to be able to read outdoors as the Archos is unreadable bright light/sunlight, and wondered how well something like the Kindle coped with such conditions.

I am on a limited budget £100 -£150 and the Kindle at £109 fits that budget nicely. Any sugestions, comments etc. would be helpful and as I live in the UK not all readers are available to me.

TIA John

rlauzon · 08-09-2010, 05:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by robins777

I am using an Archos 5 Android to read E-Books at the moment and would like something a little bigger which show the text better. It has to be small enough to go in my pocket. I am looking at the new Kindle which has a 6" display against the 5" of the Archos and wondered if extra size made much difference. I want to be able to read outdoors as the Archos is unreadable bright light/sunlight, and wondered how well something like the Kindle coped with such conditions.

I am on a limited budget £100 -£150 and the Kindle at £109 fits that budget nicely. Any sugestions, comments etc. would be helpful and as I live in the UK not all readers are available to me.

The screen size will be noticeable, but you'll get the biggest difference from the screen type (LCD vs. eInk).

Since you are looking for a pocketable device, the Kindle really isn't a good choice. The device has a large frame around the screen and won't fit well in most pockets. You might want to look into picking up a Cybook Opus, which has the same screen size, but is an overall smaller device. I have no trouble putting it in my pocket - even with the protective case on it.

Also, your epubs from your Archos won't move over to the Kindle without some sort of conversion since the Kindle only supports its proprietary format.

church mouse · 08-09-2010, 06:31 AM

As rlauzon has said, moving from an lcd to an e-ink sceen will be the biggest difference for you. I have had both 6" and 5" readers and I did not find the loss of area that much of an issue.

I currently use a Sony 300 and do love its size and ergonomics. I noticed at the weekend that Waterstones is now offerring these at £99.

One consideration for you may be whether you have already acquired drm protected books. If you have drm protected epubs, the Kindle will not read these (unless you are in to drm stripping and re-formatting). The Sony reads drm epubs you may have purchased from WH Smiths, Waterstones etc.

Converting non-drm protected epubs to mobi for a Kindle is relatively painless with Calibre (though one may get the odd conversion error).

Were I coming to e-books for the first time, I confess I would probably go for the Kindle - I have been surprised at the breadth and relative cheapness of the UK Kindle book store compared to the epub stores I have been using, and it has the easier purchase and download to the e-reader functionality.

Withing your price bracket, I honestly would not look beyond the Sony and the Kindle in the UK. Just above your bracket is the Pocketbook 360, which gets very good reviews on this site for its design and firmware. I believe greenreader is the only UK site at which you can buy it, but stand to be corrected.

Ben Thornton · 08-09-2010, 06:42 AM

I have a Sony at the moment and am ordering a Kindle, largely because Amazon has the largest selection of content and the best price. So, I'd recommend thinking about what content you want easy access to. If you want to buy and read fiction, I'd go for the Kindle in the UK at the moment.

robins777 · 08-09-2010, 10:07 AM

Thanks for replies. I have a several hundred free books, classics and copyright free, on my Archos all in epub format and wanted to be able to read these on what ever device I get. Plus there are a lot of royalty free book which can be downloaded. At the moment I am not into buying E-Books as in a lot of cases they seem as expensive as buying the actual book, which I still do a lot. I am a little old fashion as I prefer to hold a actual book in my hand, plus I buy CD's instead of purchasing the downloadable file.

"rlauzon" As for size, just checked and pockets will accept the Kindle.

"church mouse" looked on Waterstones and the Sony 300 is back up to £139 . If I get the Kindle I will have to convert all the epub book I have at the moment, is that right?

John

slm · 08-09-2010, 10:14 AM

You may want to look at a 5" e-ink screen.
Although the Archos is called a 5" screen, because the diagonal is almost 5 inches, the relative dimensions are slimmer. The Archos has about 9.8 square inches of viewing area, a 5" e-ink screen (which is 3" by 4") has about 12 square inches.
(A 6" e-ink screen, which shares the same 3:4 ratio, is a bit over 17 square inches.)

fjtorres · 08-09-2010, 10:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by robins777

. If I get the Kindle I will have to convert all the epub book I have at the moment, is that right?

John

Correct.
Calibre software will do a good job for you and its free. It aso has a lot of other useful features, like serving up you ebook collection over the net that can come in handy with a connected reader like Kindle.

Also, since you're talking PD books, be aware that most of those are also available in free Kindle-compatible editions (often from Amazon itself) so you may not need to convert them. But it is still a good idea to check out Calibre.

Tomsk · 08-09-2010, 11:52 AM

I'll chip in here as someone who has gone from an eink display to the A5A.
I had a bebook mini (5" display) which I found OK for reading, except the screen was a bit small. I then sold that and purchased a KDXG, for it's larger (higher resolution) display which I now use for manuals and pdfs. I found the KDXG a little too big for reading novels - too heavy to hold comfortably.
I considered buying another eink reader with a 6" screen, but I also looked at the A5A. The A5A (8GB) was priced the similarily at just under £200, but then Amazon suddenly dropped the price of the A5A (8GB) to £156 and I promptly purchased one.
Because of the higher contrast of the A5A's backlit LCD, I find I can read quite comfortably using smaller text than I could with the BBM. All my reading is done indoors, so sunlight is not an issue.
If the K3 had been launched a couple of weeks earlier, I would have probably would have purchased that instead of the A5A. However used the A5A for a few weeks now, it does have the added benefits of video, web and email access. Now when I travel I only need carry the A5A, whereas before I would have had to carry my ereader and netbook.
I know the K3 has wifi (and optionally 3G) but I think navigating around a web page without a pointing device (touchpad, mouse or touch screen) wouldn't be a great experience.
Having said that, the K3 is on my shopping list at Amazon.co.uk. At the moment I can't decide to buy it for myself or as a gift for my niece.

church mouse · 08-09-2010, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by robins777

"church mouse" looked on Waterstones and the Sony 300 is back up to £139 . If I get the Kindle I will have to convert all the epub book I have at the moment, is that right?

John

John, if you have a Waterstones nearby, give them a call. The £99 for the Sony 300 was an in-store only promotion, not available on the web. I saw it at the weekend and even the staff seemed cnfused as to how long it was to last.

ProfCrash · 08-09-2010, 02:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rlauzon

The screen size will be noticeable, but you'll get the biggest difference from the screen type (LCD vs. eInk).

Since you are looking for a pocketable device, the Kindle really isn't a good choice. The device has a large frame around the screen and won't fit well in most pockets. You might want to look into picking up a Cybook Opus, which has the same screen size, but is an overall smaller device. I have no trouble putting it in my pocket - even with the protective case on it.

Also, your epubs from your Archos won't move over to the Kindle without some sort of conversion since the Kindle only supports its proprietary format.

Actually, the K3 will be 21% smaller then the K2 and is reported to be able to fit into a jacket pocket. OK, the report comes from Amazon but I have a sneaking suspicion it is accurate. They shrunk the keyboard and the case around the screen.

robins777 · 08-09-2010, 03:31 PM

Thanks for all you help, I think the new Kindle is the one I will go for. Amazon is temporarily out of stock at the moment so I will place an order and if I see something something else I prefer whilst waiting I can always cancel the order.

08-09-2010, 04:12 AM	#1
robins777 Enthusiast Posts: 31 Karma: 10 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Wigan UK Device: Kindle 3-- Archos 5 A	Nee new E-Book reader, using Archos 5 Android to read books at the moment. Hi I'm John (UK) and new to this forum and have a question for other members. I am using an Archos 5 Android to read E-Books at the moment and would like something a little bigger which show the text better. It has to be small enough to go in my pocket. I am looking at the new Kindle which has a 6" display against the 5" of the Archos and wondered if extra size made much difference. I want to be able to read outdoors as the Archos is unreadable bright light/sunlight, and wondered how well something like the Kindle coped with such conditions. I am on a limited budget £100 -£150 and the Kindle at £109 fits that budget nicely. Any sugestions, comments etc. would be helpful and as I live in the UK not all readers are available to me. TIA John

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08-09-2010, 06:31 AM	#3
church mouse Evangelist Posts: 482 Karma: 5277078 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: UK Device: Kindle Voyage, Kobo Clara HD, Kobo H2O, Boox Poke 2	As rlauzon has said, moving from an lcd to an e-ink sceen will be the biggest difference for you. I have had both 6" and 5" readers and I did not find the loss of area that much of an issue. I currently use a Sony 300 and do love its size and ergonomics. I noticed at the weekend that Waterstones is now offerring these at £99. One consideration for you may be whether you have already acquired drm protected books. If you have drm protected epubs, the Kindle will not read these (unless you are in to drm stripping and re-formatting). The Sony reads drm epubs you may have purchased from WH Smiths, Waterstones etc. Converting non-drm protected epubs to mobi for a Kindle is relatively painless with Calibre (though one may get the odd conversion error). Were I coming to e-books for the first time, I confess I would probably go for the Kindle - I have been surprised at the breadth and relative cheapness of the UK Kindle book store compared to the epub stores I have been using, and it has the easier purchase and download to the e-reader functionality. Withing your price bracket, I honestly would not look beyond the Sony and the Kindle in the UK. Just above your bracket is the Pocketbook 360, which gets very good reviews on this site for its design and firmware. I believe greenreader is the only UK site at which you can buy it, but stand to be corrected.

08-09-2010, 06:42 AM	#4
Ben Thornton Guru Posts: 900 Karma: 779635 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: UK Device: Kindle 3, iPad 2 (but not for e-books)	I have a Sony at the moment and am ordering a Kindle, largely because Amazon has the largest selection of content and the best price. So, I'd recommend thinking about what content you want easy access to. If you want to buy and read fiction, I'd go for the Kindle in the UK at the moment.

08-09-2010, 10:07 AM	#5
robins777 Enthusiast Posts: 31 Karma: 10 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Wigan UK Device: Kindle 3-- Archos 5 A	Thanks for replies. I have a several hundred free books, classics and copyright free, on my Archos all in epub format and wanted to be able to read these on what ever device I get. Plus there are a lot of royalty free book which can be downloaded. At the moment I am not into buying E-Books as in a lot of cases they seem as expensive as buying the actual book, which I still do a lot. I am a little old fashion as I prefer to hold a actual book in my hand, plus I buy CD's instead of purchasing the downloadable file. "rlauzon" As for size, just checked and pockets will accept the Kindle. "church mouse" looked on Waterstones and the Sony 300 is back up to £139 . If I get the Kindle I will have to convert all the epub book I have at the moment, is that right? John

08-09-2010, 10:14 AM	#6
slm Fool Posts: 377 Karma: 3557934 Join Date: Feb 2003 Device: Kindle Voyage, Kindle PW1, Kobo Glo HD, Nook Glowlight Plus ...	You may want to look at a 5" e-ink screen. Although the Archos is called a 5" screen, because the diagonal is almost 5 inches, the relative dimensions are slimmer. The Archos has about 9.8 square inches of viewing area, a 5" e-ink screen (which is 3" by 4") has about 12 square inches. (A 6" e-ink screen, which shares the same 3:4 ratio, is a bit over 17 square inches.)

08-09-2010, 11:52 AM	#8
Tomsk Womble Posts: 120 Karma: 4505298 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Manchester, UK Device: KFHDX8.9, Fujitsu S1300, Voyage, K7	I'll chip in here as someone who has gone from an eink display to the A5A. I had a bebook mini (5" display) which I found OK for reading, except the screen was a bit small. I then sold that and purchased a KDXG, for it's larger (higher resolution) display which I now use for manuals and pdfs. I found the KDXG a little too big for reading novels - too heavy to hold comfortably. I considered buying another eink reader with a 6" screen, but I also looked at the A5A. The A5A (8GB) was priced the similarily at just under £200, but then Amazon suddenly dropped the price of the A5A (8GB) to £156 and I promptly purchased one. Because of the higher contrast of the A5A's backlit LCD, I find I can read quite comfortably using smaller text than I could with the BBM. All my reading is done indoors, so sunlight is not an issue. If the K3 had been launched a couple of weeks earlier, I would have probably would have purchased that instead of the A5A. However used the A5A for a few weeks now, it does have the added benefits of video, web and email access. Now when I travel I only need carry the A5A, whereas before I would have had to carry my ereader and netbook. I know the K3 has wifi (and optionally 3G) but I think navigating around a web page without a pointing device (touchpad, mouse or touch screen) wouldn't be a great experience. Having said that, the K3 is on my shopping list at Amazon.co.uk. At the moment I can't decide to buy it for myself or as a gift for my niece.

08-09-2010, 03:31 PM	#11
robins777 Enthusiast Posts: 31 Karma: 10 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Wigan UK Device: Kindle 3-- Archos 5 A	Thanks for all you help, I think the new Kindle is the one I will go for. Amazon is temporarily out of stock at the moment so I will place an order and if I see something something else I prefer whilst waiting I can always cancel the order.

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