Out of Pod Experience

I got a kindle app on my iPad. Works fairly well, gives you a tablet and kindle in one. I am actually very fond of this medium, I can carry a lot of interesting book with me quite easily. And a table lets you do all a kindle can do + have dedicated pdf readers and what not (it also works on youporn/redtube, and that is a neat bonus).

However, I would not recommended the iPad, it is actually a weak device and very limited. If I had not gotten it for free from my work I would have gotten another tablet device from Samsung/HTC or whatever runs android. I avoid Apple as much as I can.

Not a huge fan of tablets for reading. Maybe because I'm a little biassed because I actually own a Kindle and no tablet but in the end it depends on what you're looking for. If you just want to read and don't need/want the additional functionality of a tablet always go for a dedicated e-reading device with an e-ink screen.

Why? Pretty simple:
As mentioned before although only black and white and not backlit the e-ink display does not reflect anything. Direct sunlight is not an issue at all. Actually some of the time I like to sit in the sun on purpose to read on the device. It's kinda nice.

And and the batteries last for ages since the display actually only consumes energy upon "creating" the page. Once it is loaded no energy is consumed.

That said there are however a few limitations you might need to consider. Although the kindle in particular has a chromium based (experimental) browser that works quite well the screens latency is not all the good on e-ink devices plus you got no support for movies/streams and the sort.
Another thing to consider is that PDF is a really terrible format. Kindle can display it but it's no fun working with it plus it is a terrible format to convert into proper e-book files. This is the reason I try to avoid this terrible file format like the plague and save my own "creations" in a proper text file that can be easily converted into everything you desire (including pdf).

So yeah depends on what you want. Using mostly proper ebook formats, direct sunlight can be an issue and you're not interested in charging the device all the time plus want something light/small? Go for an e-reader no questions there.

Want an all-rounder with a proper web-browser, back lighting, good pdf displaying and direct sunlight isn't an issue at all? You'll probably want to spend your money on a decent tablet (i.e. not iPad) or netbook.

ninja edit almost forgot.. although the Kindle does not currently support the ePUB format (which is basically what everybody is using) it supports MOBI (which almost every ebook store has as an alternative and is technically the same format as AZW). In addition since ePUB is a proper e-book format converting it into something that works (like MOBI) isn't really an issue.

The Kindle Fire is good, backlit screen so you don't need to be in the stupid sun

I have had a Fire since January, and I agree completely.


Books work great, no complaints there.

Magazines require zooming in; the screen resolution is not quite high enough to clearly read some text while viewing a full page.

No real complaints about web browsing, although I would prefer a larger form factor in this area as well. Just don't expect it to perform like an iPad.


All in all it;s not a bad device. But in hindsight, I would probably now buy a larger form factor Android tablet without Amazons market limitations.

Very much this.
I bought a cheapa$$ tablet to read and do "other stuff" and all I end up doing with it is reading and maybe listening to a podcast.

What I have now is a cheap backlit screen that has to be plugged in after 4-5 hours and after a day of reading I look up to bloodshot eyes in the mirror.

Tl;dr tablets are only good for reading anyways, get one that does that best and doesn´t blind you.

Thanks for the comments so far.

I finally discovered that the local MicroCenter had a bunch of tablets on display, including Kindle (though not the playbook, which is not a surprise really). Looked at a relatively recent Nook, a Kindle Fire, and two Android systems (I didn't know they were at first, just liked the larger screens and overall form factor when I saw them).

I tried manipulating whatever they had on there for books, as well as bringing up two wordpress-based websites (my own, which is a 'stock' layout, and another that I know is module-laden).

The sites come up pretty good, but the top and background images take the longest on a Kindle Fire they had there. Not a huge deal but a surprise anyway.

Two things that did come to mind so far:

-> The 'keyboard' interface was pretty bad on Kindle, fair on the Nook, but worked really well on the two Android-based devices I tried (closest to the iPad). This will probably not be a deal-breaker as long as the BT keyboard systems I saw will work with the device I choose.

-> I am very surprised how heavy the Kindle Fire was (taking into account the anti-theft cables attached to all of them ), and yet it also appeared the least solid. The Nook and two Android systems looked far more durable.

The two other systems were from Acer and Asus, and I loved their interface (basically the same). It would be a coin toss between the two, if I chose this route, since both companies have good experience in notebook spaces. If Sager had a tablet of some sort, though, I'd get very curious.



Thanks. Do you know if a PlayBook will require Enterprise locking, if the connecting BB already is as well?


@ Jett0 - valid point about Win8. Is there a set date for release yet? I'm not in any hurry, so may consider waiting.

As I'm dropping off for awhile, an update:

Playbook is now off the table due to not knowing if RIM devices will exist at work - or at all - in the next year or two. I'm currently eying the latest device that Google released, and it my favorite in both size and price right now. The other alternative would be something like an Iconia Tab, or just punt and get a Nook for now.

Thanks for the info everyone.

I totally stick to Android and Google Play Books. I had both nook and kindle. When I actually have time to read I usually don't have either with me. I always have my Droid with me though. Play Books is just as customizable and I can even listen to music while I read or anything else I can do with a Droid. It's also cheaper comparatively, my Droid was only a penny.