ATTENTION FRIENDS WITH E-READERS

[sunshine_queen]

I am pretty sure I want to get an e-reader for Christmas/my birthday, and while I was perfectly content to just say HAND ME MY KINDLE my mother just reminded me that the Nook exists.

So I put it to you guys! Any darts/laurels about any of them? Heard any horror stories? Do you have one or the other that you absolutely adore? Details please!

In other news, I am all packed for my trip to Strasbourg, I'm just waiting until it's time for me to go into Paris to spend the night at Katie's before leaving tomorrow night. So excited! There will be pictures!

Comments

[yahtzee63.livejournal.com]

I've had two Nooks and loved them both. (The first was lost in the mugging; it didn't break or anything.) I really like being able to go into a bookstore and ask about it if I have questions, and Amazon is not always top notch with service. I don't know whether you want to go all-out for the tablet, but I hear that the new Nook tablet has significantly better power than the Amazon Kindle Fire.

Enjoy Strasbourg!

[sunshine-queen.livejournal.com]

(Perfect icon is perfect!)

You're right about the Nook having a place I can actually walk into if there is a problem. I don't know much about Amazon customer service, so that is a really good point. I don't think I'm going to spring for a tablet, but I will investigate. Thanks for the info!

[queenmidalah.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure if the Nook can do this, but I have a Kindle and one of the things I enjoy is that PDFs of books I have I can email to my kindle email address and it downloads so I can read on my Kindle.

The only complaint about the Nook I originally heard, but have no idea if this is true or not anymore, was that you could only buy things from B&N to download to it. I'm still learning my Kindle, but I think I can get books from anywhere as long as it's in a compatible format.

[sunshine-queen.livejournal.com]

This is good to know about the PDF emails! And I will need to look into the Nook/only B&N thing, because that is important. Thanks for commenting!

[taragel.livejournal.com]

I chose a Nook color last year because I wanted to be able to rent e-books from the library for free pretty easily and Kindle didn't have that option at the time. They do now, or will very soon I guess. But I do think Amazon is a bit proprietary in general and make it pretty hard for you to purchase ebooks from other online retailers and easily get them onto your Kindle. Other ereaders are more flexible there.

[lizardbeth-j.livejournal.com]

we've been dealing with this same question in my place and thinking about the Color - do you know if the Nook Color read Kindle format books? I have a couple kindle books on my phone already, but I'm guessing it's proprietary both ways?

[taragel.livejournal.com]

Nope. It won't read Kindle. I think you'd have to strip the DRM somehow and then put it in a program like Calibre to convert it.

You can read adobe epubs (library books are epubs too) and PDFs and .DOCs on it. Can't read mobi/AZW.

[sunshine-queen.livejournal.com]

You're the first person I've met with a Nook, this is good to know! I really do want to be able to get books from the library still- that was one of my main arguments against getting an e-reader all this time, because I love going to the library.

[taragel.livejournal.com]

Renting ebooks is awesome! You don't have to worry about taking them back! If you have a good library system near you, definitely do it. (I wish I had kept my NY Public Library card so much!)

[sunshine-queen.livejournal.com]

It sounds so cool! And it also looks like I'd be able to do it here in Europe since it's all through the internet/USB cable or whatever and using your library #. SO CONVENIENT.

[vash26.livejournal.com]

Strasbourgh is very pretty *happy sigh* Although, you're used to Paris, hmm...

[sunshine-queen.livejournal.com]

It was absolutely beautiful! It really was a whirlwind trip, though- I really wish I could've seen more of it for a longer period of time. Another trip!

[meryl-edan.livejournal.com]

I have a Kindle and I adore it. (And I love books too, but it sounds like you are past the point of the books vs. e-reader debate.) I don't find book formats to be a problem at all; there's a great freeware called Calibre that organizes/sorts ebooks and can format whatever you have to whatever you need (and there are LJ communities for book-sharing, ahem). I don't have experience with the Nook but I've been very happy with my Kindle.

[sunshine-queen.livejournal.com]

Oh, I absolutely love books and the feel and smell of them, but in France right now I have two Game of Thrones books and a copy of my favorite book I found at a used bookstore here, and that's *it* because of weight restrictions on my luggage, and it is the worst! (And also I want to read books on the metro and it's always a debate over whether or not to bring my jillion pound book to read or just listen to my iPod. SAD DAY.)

But this Calibre freeware sounds wonderful (and also booksharing, cough.) Thank you for your input!

[seariderfalcon]

I have a classic Nook and I love it enough that I'll probably stick with B&N's products if I decide to upgrade to a fancier model.

Nooks can handle .epub and .pdf files, and the aforementioned Calibre will convert a huge variety of files into whatever format you need no matter which ereader you decide to get. I find it especially useful for the conversion fanfic that's in .html and .doc.

I did look at Kindle and the Sony E-Reader too. Sony might have won me over just for the sheer variety of file types it can handle, but the models available in stores last year didn't offer enough memory to suit me. I was getting ready for a short-notice trip at the time, so I didn't want to order one of the better models online. The store-available models may have improved by now. The Nook came with a lot more memory AND a slot to insert a microSD card so I'll never be in danger of running out of space. The Kindles offered a decent amount of memory but I don't think it was expandable at the time.

The ultimate deciding factor for me was simply going into a store and holding each one in my hand. The Nook felt the most comfortable to hold and just seemed sturdier all together. I knew I'd carry mine in my purse absolutely everywhere I go. I didn't want something that seemed too delicate.

Of course, I don't think the Nook is available outside the US right now, so that particular method of deciding won't work too well, obviously. The Kindle, on the other hand, does have significantly more of an international presence and may be something that will have more weight in choosing the device that's right for you.

BTW, I have no idea how well it works since it's not compatible with my older device, but I did see a few other people mention this on the LJ of another friend; Nook Colors apparently *can* be transformed into an Android tablet by using its microSD slot and a $35 card. So later on, if you find yourself wanting to upgrade from a regular reader only to a tablet without the expense of purchasing a whole new device, it might be something to consider as well. http://www.n2acards.com/

I don't think I've seen anyone on my flist complain about their chosen readers regardless of what brand they have, so I suspect whichever one you go with will probably be great no matter what.

[sunshine-queen.livejournal.com]

Aaaah amazingly informative comment, you are the greatest! I am kind of swayed by the idea of a physical presence of stores if there's a problem (since I will be moving back to the states) and I am pleased by the idea of being able to expand memory/ possibly use kind of like an android were I to spring for the better model (though I doubt I will.) Also, STURDY IS GOOD. I'm sure that, like you said, whatever I pick will wind up being great, but it's very nice to get opinions from the flist. Thank you so much for the information! <3

[uscathena.livejournal.com]

I have a nook. It gets the job done. I think the key differences between the two are going to be their available libraries. That said, I don't see you downloading from bn or Amazon as much as you might other places and converting the file into whatever format your reader takes via calibre.

If I were you, I'd be looking at the differences in price, storage size and 3g/WiFi features.

[sunshine-queen.livejournal.com]

I don't see you downloading from bn or Amazon as much as you might other places and converting the file into whatever format your reader takes via calibre.

Most likely a true story.

And all of those stats will be taken into account! Thanks for commenting!