E book readers 2012

E-Book Readers for the
Holidays 2012
Suzanne Reymer
Montana State Library

Wednesday, December 12, 12

Find out interest levels of group in e-ink vs. tablets. Adjust
presentation time accordingly.

E-Ink or Basic E-
Readers
• Amazon Kindle –
starts at $69 with
ads
• Amazon proprietary
format
• Wifi only – works
with mtlib2go via
Whispersync and
Amazon account

Good basic reader. Manual controls instead of touch. May not
hold up to rough use.

Kobo Mini
• $79.99
• Smallest and lightest
e-reader w/5 inch
touch screen
• EPUB format
• Adobe Digital
Editions for mtlib2go


Smallest screen. About the size of a large smart phone like
Galaxy Note 2. May be too small for anyone needing enlarged
fonts.

Barnes & Noble
Nook Simple Touch
• Nook Simple Touch
– list price $99.00 –
sale prices lower
• EPUB format
• Adobe Digital
Editions for
mtlib2go


Barnes Noble's basic reader. Still a good bet and we're seeing
some really good holiday prices. One feature to note, it lacks
even a basic web browser so it can be difficult to get onto some
free wiﬁ networks that require passwords entered into a browser
window.

Sony Reader

• Starts at
$129.99
• EPUB
• Wireless
mtlib2go
downloads


Sony tends to offer last year's technology at this year's prices.
This model is no exception. It does have one outstanding
feature, however. It runs some apps like the color e-reader
tablets. One of the apps it comes with is Overdrive Media
Console. So you can search for and download mtlib2go ebooks
directly to the device with no computer. It's not the best
experience but it works provided you have a wiﬁ connection.

The Next
Generation
• Kindle Paperwhite
• Starts at $119 for
wifi w/ads
• Also available w/o
ads - $139
• 3G w/ads - $179
• 3G w/o ads - $199


This year's e-ink technology is the glow or paper white screen.
This uses a layer with LED lights to shine onto the e-ink surface.
This provides greater contrast as well as the ability to read in all
light conditions from bright sunlight to dark.
Amazon's version is the only one to come with a 3G or cellular
option.

Nook Simple Touch with Glow Light

• $119
• Wifi only
• No ads
• EPUB


Kobo Glo

• $129.99
• Wifi only
• No ads
• EPUB


One of the fun things about Kobo is the choice of colors.

Common E-Ink
Features
Adjustable font size and page layout
Long battery life
Adjustable brightness on glow devices
Only need Internet access for
downloading and updating content
Need a computer to access library
(mtlib2go) content. Except Sony Reader.


Find out if they are familiar with Montana Library 2 Go. Perhaps
offer a little bit about the procedure. Go onto the website via
computer, ﬁnd a book, check it out. On a Nook or Kobo,
download the book to computer, open Adobe Digital Edition.
Connect ereader to computer, use ADE to transfer book to
ereader. Can do the same with Kindle or Sony Reader. But Kindle
also offers the option of transferring to device via Whispersync
and Amazon account. With Sony Reader you can do it all on the
device.

Wifi vs. 3G
Wifi requires a wifi hotspot to access the
store and download purchased materials.
Kindle Whispersync requires wifi to
download mtlib2go titles wirelessly.
3G uses cellular networks to access
store and download materials. Higher up
front charge but generally no on-going
charges for e-ink readers.
You can always download to a computer
and transfer titles to the device.


This can be handy if you find yourself looking for reading
material somewhere without free wifi: perhaps an airport or
runway. The 3G is limited to the Amazon Kindle store, however.
Amazon is now restricting other Internet uses to wifi only. Drat!

Formats
EPUB is the standard format for e-books
Many stores use EPUB (Barnes & Noble,
Kobo, Google Playstore, Sony) but they
attach DRM (Digital Rights Management) so
they work on own devices, apps
Adobe Digital Editions allows DRM
protected EPUB to be used on other devices
Amazon Kindle uses own proprietary
format
All display PDF (Portable Digital Format)
but not well


Montana Library 2 Go often offers 3 formats: Kindle, Adobe EPub
and Adobe PDF. Kindle will only work on Kindle and Kindle apps.
EPub will work on most devices as will PDF. The main difference
between the latter two is word ﬂow. EPub will change the text
layout as you increase or decrease font size. With larger fonts in
PDF, you generally get less of a full page view.

Ecosystems


I think it's worth keeping in mind which ecosystem you want to
buy into. Amazon and Barnes & Noble make most of their money
on content so it's very much in their interest to keep you buying
from them. We'll see this even more with Kindle Fire.
One thing to consider in Nook's favor is if you're buying for
someone who might appreciate some individual hands on
assistance. B&N does still have a bookstore in Billings and they
will offer help and advice. And they will probably try to upsell
you to Nook HD.
Kobo has recently signed agreements with a number of
independent book sellers to be their ebook provider. This means
that if you sign up for Kobo via a favorite bookstore's web page,
a percentage of the sale will go to that bookstore. That also
works for Kobo apps.

Color E-Readers
• Kindle Fire HD
• $199 wifi w/ads
• 16 GB and 32 GB
• Kindle app store
• Amazon content
• OverDrive Media
Console app for
mtlib2go
• FreeTime for parental
controls
• Syncs w/Audible

Yes, the Kindle Fire is an inexpensive tablet. Just keep in mind
that's an inexpensive tablet designed to run Amazon approved
apps and consume Amazon content. It does that pretty well. I
bought a Fire last year and was frustrated that Amazon chose to
block Google apps. When I discovered I couldn't run apps for
Gmail or Google calendar, it didn't have much use for me.
On the plus side, if you're considering a tablet for a child or
preteen, Kindle has created FreeTime that will allow parents to
set time limits and restrict access.

Nook HD
• Starts at $199 – 8 GB
• Best screen resolution
• Nook app store
• Barnes & Noble content
and some others e.g.,
Netflix
• OverDrive Media Console
for mtlib2go content
• Parental controls
available

Like the Kindle Fire, Barnes & Noble would like to restrict you to
their app store and their content. The Nook app store does not
have many apps available. This device does have the best screen
resolution of any 7 inch tablet. Nook also offers parental controls
and multiple proﬁles.

Kobo Arc
• Starts at $199.99 for
16 GB
• Android 4.0
• Google Play Store
• Apps available for
Kindle, Nook, Kobo
and OverDrive Media
Console for mtlib2go
• Third party apps for
parental controls

Kobo is offering an Android tablet without the restrictions and
overlays of Fire and Nook HD. You can run apps for all of the
other ereaders as well as Kobo.

Google Nexus 7
• Starts at $199 for 16 GB
• AT&T cellular
• Android 4.1
• Google Play Store
Kindle, Nook, Kobo and
OverDrive Media
Console for mtlib2go
• Third party apps for
parental controls

There are a lot of Android tablets out there. For those looking for
the purest Android experience, Google offers its Nexus line. It
always has the latest version with all the bells and whistles.

Android vs. iOS
Android is the mobile operating system
created by Google
It runs most non-Apple devices,
including Kindle Fire and Nook HD
You want 4.0 or higher for a good
tablet experience, except for Kindle and
Nook
iOS is Apple’s mobile operating system
running iPads, iPhones, and iPod Touch


iPad Mini
• Starts at $329 for 16
GB wifi.
• Cellular option w/
AT&T, Sprint or
Verizon
• iTunes App Store
Kindle, Nook, Kobo
and OverDrive Media
• Parental Controls
Available

You pay an Apple premium for iOS devices. The latest is the iPad
mini. The advantage is really in the apps. The Apple iTunes app
store has more apps and more speciﬁcally designed for tablets
than Google or Amazon. Basically every cool app you'll hear
about comes out ﬁrst for iPad. This is also where most of the
really creative magazine, newspaper, book apps start out as well.
The downside to the iPad mini is that Apple chose not to go with
the retina display of the current larger iPad but rather to go back
a generation to an earlier fuzzier display. This is a deal breaker
for me. But many seem not to mind.

Tablets for Kids
• Fuhu Nabi 2 -
$199.99 for 8 GB
• Android 4.0
• Nabi app store w/
lessons and apps
designed for kids
• Parental control
• Durability


There are also a number of tablets designed for kids. This one
caught my eye. It seems a bit pricy for it's limited audience and
life.

Full Size Tablets
• Kindle Fire HD 8.9” – starts
at $299 for 16 GB wifi w/
ads.
• 4G/LTE available for $499
for 32 GB w/ads. Allows
250 MB/mo. for 12 mos.
• Amazon app store
• Amazon content
• OverDrive Media Console
app available for mtlib2go


I'm not going to spend much time on full size tablets because I
don't see these as ereaders. They're more laptop replacements
that can be used for reading.
Amazon just came out with this full size tablet this year. I expect
it's aimed more at the video and gaming market. Same
restrictions apply as the smaller Fire.
Interesting cellular option. I expect most will end up contracting
with AT&T for more.

Nook HD+
• 9 inch tablet starts at
$269 for 16 GB.
• Wifi only
• Separate profiles –
also available on HD
• Nook app store
• Barnes & Noble
content and some
other
• OverDrive Media
Console

Google Nexus 10
• 10 in tablet starts
at $399 for 16 GB
wifi.
• Separate profiles
• Android 4.2
• All Android apps
• All e-reader apps
available
• OverDrive Media
Console

iPad
• Starts at $499 for
16 GB wifi. 32
GB & 64 GB also
available
• Cellular option
w/AT&T, Sprint or
Verizon
• iTunes App Store
• All Ereader apps
• Parental Controls


Surface with Windows RT
• Starts at $499
for 32 GB.
• Surface Touch
and Type covers
extra
• Wifi only
• Windows Store
apps only
• Kindle and
OverDrive apps

While I think this is interesting, it's a ﬁrst generation product. In
comparison, iPad is in the 4th. So we can expect there to be
some bugs. One of the big complaints at the moment, is the lack
of apps.
Another oddity is that Microsoft will soon be offering th Surface
Pro that will run all existing Windows apps. So, if you really are
looking for a Windows laptop replacement, it might be worth the
wait.

This is by no means an extensive overview of tablets large and
small, but rather a sampling. There are numerous Android
tablets out there with varying prices and capabilities. Hopefully,
the spreadsheet will give you a starting point when comparing
your options.

E book readers 2012

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