This has been an interesting thread for me to read.  As tablets have a wider use than the readers, perhaps there's a place for both gadgets?  For those who read a lot of paperbacks, the kindle/ereaders seem the way to go.  And for those who want portable internet browsing - the tablets.    For troglodytes like me, nothing beats a real paper book with a bookmark.  (I have a large collection of bookmarks!)

I want to invest in some technology this year, starting with a mobile phone.  It's driving my kids nuts that I'm incommunicado unless I'm at home.  I also think I'll get a tablet but from what I've read, there's some good ones coming out this year so I'm in no hurry for that.

Yes, yes, Sirdave, I knew all that before the time, I did read your post plus various reviews and recommendations before buying, which is why I had also anticipated things like weight and "screen reflections' and sunlight on the screen would be a problem with an LCD.

But the proof of the pudding is in the eating as they say, and so, when I went to check out some tablets at the stores, I liked the 7-inch version of the iPad. 10-inch was definitely too big and heavy for me - you could just as well go laptop then.

...but iPad itself is a bit expensive for me, so I went with a cheaper make, I got a 7" MSI.

However, the real proof lies in the eating, and it turns out that the darn thing is so useful that I don't want to leave it on the charger, I want to use it all the time. 

Luckily, I have since yesterday, actually experimented and found that the thing charges a lot faster if you completely power off when charging, just having it 'sleep' is what has been making the charging process go so slow for me.

Still, if a certain bit of cash I'm hoping for, comes in, I'll definitely be looking at getting the Kindle as well, anyway. Can't have too many gadgets can one now?  Just a pity they cost money. 

Originally Posted By Caroline (12 JAN 2012 7:26pm)

  For troglodytes like me, nothing beats a real paper book with a bookmark.  (I have a large collection of bookmarks!)

 

I used to think like this, but: the tablet turns pages more easily, it "props up" and holds more easily, is still lighter than most thick harcovers, and you don't lose your bookmarks.  Plus if you forgot to book mark your page, the thingie actually remembers where you left off, and it opens the book where you left off last.  Plus you can type in the page number you want to go to.  Certain more sophisticated readers can also search out words or phrases, and you can make notes without messing ink on your book. 

Not to mention, that you can fit thousands of books in your handbag ALL AT THE SAME TIME!!!!   What can beat that, hmm?

Maybe this:  Into classics?  You can download audiobooks of works in the public domain at Libri vox, and ebooks at Gutenburg off the internet for FREE in about 3 seconds per book.  Sure beats going to the physical library and being told the books you are seeking are all out.. and thus wasting a good part of your morning/afternoon/evening, eh?

Oh, and I forgot another thing.  You can have all your ebooks on your PC with  PC software readers for all the different formats.  This enables you to, when participating in online discussions about books, to easily 'copy and paste' passages from your book without having to write the passages out by hand.   Neat, huh?

Originally Posted By Traveller (13 JAN 2012 1:06am)

Originally Posted By Caroline (12 JAN 2012 7:26pm)

  For troglodytes like me, nothing beats a real paper book with a bookmark.  (I have a large collection of bookmarks!)

 

 

I used to think like this, but: the tablet turns pages more easily, it "props up" and holds more easily, is still lighter than most thick harcovers, and you don't lose your bookmarks.  Plus if you forgot to book mark your page, the thingie actually remembers where you left off, and it opens the book where you left off last.  Plus you can type in the page number you want to go to.  Certain more sophisticated readers can also search out words or phrases, and you can make notes without messing ink on your book. 

 

Not to mention, that you can fit thousands of books in your handbag ALL AT THE SAME TIME!!!!   What can beat that, hmm

Same for me Trav, I felt kind of the same as Caroline but now that I  have a reader Im totally into it. I also like that I can lean it up against my knees when reading in bed and not have to worry about the page flipping, sometimes my hand aches from holding the book or just gets tired. the only drawback is that I cant loan them out unless the other person has a reader. But like the pc that will change over the next few years and most eveyone will own one I would imagine.

 Yep, a tablet is probably next on my list for next Christmas or birthday unless I get a job. Then I'll  probably buy one sooner.

Personally I've not been tempted to get a tablet, as I've had an iPod touch for many years, which covers the basics such as checking one's mail, looking up facts, setting reminders and so on.  The display is too small for reading, though, and I suspected I would want something with considerable battery life and predictable ambient light requirements, so an e-ink reader was the obvious choice.  

It can be clunky tech sometimes, but it gets the job done! 

I thought a tablet was basically just a laptop with a touch screen.

Originally Posted By colpet (15 JAN 2012 7:11am)

I thought a tablet was basically just a laptop with a touch screen.

Well, it's physically much smaller, but also has rather inferior hardware and less space (which you can upgrade but not to as much as a laptop typically has).

Also, mine runs with an Android operating system as opposed to Windows, Linux or Mac, or whatever OS's your bigger computers use.  So I can't install the same software on it than I can on my PC or laptop.  It's kind of like a large, smart smartphone.

Just, a smartphone is much easier to use as a phone.

A tablet is something inbetween a laptop and a smartphone- you know, like an iPad, except that the iPad uses Apple software and my specific tablet uses Android software. 

Ok, Now I can't decide if I should go just a bit more expensive and get the newest Kindle touch (The $99 one) instead of the very cheap $79  one. 

Oh SirDave, SirDave, where are you???

EDIT:  Well, my decision was kind of made up for me; the $79 one is sold out locally plus a lot of reviews said the Touch is better, so.. if all goes well, I'll be getting my new Touch delivered to me tomorrow.  

Wait a bit, I thought the new generation e-ink readers don't have that annoying black flash when turning the page.. (I know someone with an older Kindle, and that black flash is really a deal-breaker for me.)  Now I see some remarks on the net the suggest that the new Touch also has that flash.  Noooo... 

Originally Posted By Traveller (13 JAN 2012 12:55am)

 I liked the 7-inch version of the iPad. 10-inch was definitely too big and heavy for me - you could just as well go laptop then.

Must have been one of the other models such as the Samsung tablet (which comes in 3 sizes) 'cause there is no 7-inch iPad. Of course, what one considers too big and heavy is a personal decision, but just for the record, the 10-inch iPad is not as big and heavy as any laptop I know of, including the Mac Air, though the latter is pretty darn thin...

Originally Posted By Traveller (17 JAN 2012 5:13am)

Ok, Now I can't decide if I should go just a bit more expensive and get the newest Kindle touch (The $99 one) instead of the very cheap $79  one. 

 

Oh SirDave, SirDave, where are you???

 

EDIT:  Well, my decision was kind of made up for me; the $79 one is sold out locally plus a lot of reviews said the Touch is better, so.. if all goes well, I'll be getting my new Touch delivered to me tomorrow.  

 

Wait a bit, I thought the new generation e-ink readers don't have that annoying black flash when turning the page.. (I know someone with an older Kindle, and that black flash is really a deal-breaker for me.)  Now I see some remarks on the net the suggest that the new Touch also has that flash.  Noooo... 

I don't think you'll find the brief flash all that intrusive. It would be nice if it wasn't there and eventually I'm sure they'll eliminate it totally (but who knows how long that would take since it's been several years since the first Kindle came out), but it's never been something that reviewers such as Consumer Reports make any big deal about.

Originally Posted By SirDave (17 JAN 2012 9:53am)

Originally Posted By Traveller (13 JAN 2012 12:55am)

 I liked the 7-inch version of the iPad. 10-inch was definitely too big and heavy for me - you could just as well go laptop then.

 

Must have been one of the other models such as the Samsung tablet (which comes in 3 sizes) 'cause there is no 7-inch iPad. Of course, what one considers too big and heavy is a personal decision, but just for the record, the 10-inch iPad is not as big and heavy as any laptop I know of, including the Mac Air, though the latter is pretty darn thin...

 

 

I know it's not as big, but I meant pricewise and for the PC OS you can get for a laptop, I'd rather go for a laptop than a 10 or 11 inch tablet which is definitely too big for me to fit into my handbag and too big and heavy to hold comfortably in my hand, if you see what I mean.

Re the flash;  apparently you can set the newer Kindles not to do a refresh for about 4 or 5 pages.  It does apparently cause  ghosting if you don't properly refresh, but I'm hoping that won't bother me too much.  I will post some feedback once I've had time to try it out, maybe around Thursday or so.

Originally Posted By Traveller (13 JAN 2012 1:06am)

Maybe this:  Into classics?  You can download audiobooks of works in the public domain at Libri vox, and ebooks at Gutenburg off the internet for FREE in about 3 seconds per book.  Sure beats going to the physical library and being told the books you are seeking are all out.. and thus wasting a good part of your morning/afternoon/evening, eh?

This might be somewhat off-topic, or for that matter another regional issue, but even though I live in a relatively poor town our local library subscribes to a service called Bibliomation Downloadable ebooks and audio books. The catalog lists approximately 1000 fiction and 500 non-fiction titles, all inclusive i.e. contemporary, classics, historical, bio and auto bio etc. They check out as a physical book, or rather download to a PC and are subsequently transferred manually via a software program to your device. When the lending period expires the files expire on the PC and you are instructed to delete the files per the licensing agreement on your particular device. cough cough.

Three months ago I would have said this is a fantastic service, provided you don't own a Kindle as the format (Adobe EPUB eBook) or whatever wasn't supported with Kindle. I assume something happened, pressure, sales as all Kindle devices are now supported

Anyhow, my point is that if one has access to a similar service make sure to check device compatibility beforehand.    

Luckily you get PC software readers for almost every format you can think of, and remember that Kindles can (last time I checked)  read PDF.  ..but even if it couldn't, it's not really a problem, because there's software out there that converts from Kindle (AZW) to other formats and vice versa.

..so, all you need to do is to dld your .mobi or .epub or .lit or whatever to your PC, and then convert it to an AZW file and you can dld it to and read it with your Kindle.  -or hang on, I think the DRM might have been the problem with the Kindle, eh?

Yeah, so I guess one needs to make sure which DRM is compatible with whatever device..  and I think libraries might have their own form of DRM.

Yeah, it should be stressed that DRM schemes remove conversion as an option.  I'm mystified with the Kindle doesn't simply support ePub.  There's nothing about it that's prohibitive, nor is it particularly primitive, either, so what's the deal?

Originally Posted By JKing (17 JAN 2012 8:22pm)

Yeah, it should be stressed that DRM schemes remove conversion as an option.  I'm mystified with the Kindle doesn't simply support ePub.  There's nothing about it that's prohibitive, nor is it particularly primitive, either, so what's the deal?

Market share.  If people can start reading library books on their Kindles, then people will prefer to read library books in many cases, and Amazon will potentially lose sales of their AZW books.  In many cases, Kindle owners will also buy epub from other outlets.  I think Amazon would be wise to start retailing books in epub format, whatever they lose in terms of AZW sales, they can gain (if they do it right) by selling epub and mobi to the Android and non-Kindle reader market.  Because right now, there are lots of reader alternatives to Kindles, most of them supporting more file formats, and so Kindle could start losing out on ereader sales.  (However, they've still been selling like hotcakes), and one of their marketing points is that they have a very wide variety of titles in their AZW format.

It takes about 2 seconds to convert a book from one format to another with the software available, so it's not all that much work involved. Probably will be more work to slap DRM on those than in actually converting them.  But hey, why convert all your books, (if you're Amazon) you simply need to become a gateway for all the existing epub/mobi titles already out there.