e-book enabling?

[thanate]

There was some discussion when grauwulf did the taxes in which he tried to convince me to take (largeish sum of money) out of the state refund as a pregnancy/birthing/infant care bonus. I haven't done it, as we have somewhat different ideas of how to handle finances (which is why I'm the one who handles bills & things) despite having a mental list of garden and possibly-a-doll things that could easily blow through the discussed amount. But I am again considering the whole e-reader thing. Probably not Kindle (not fond of being wedded to amazon format or delivery, and that they can just go in and wipe your device at will or system error does not make me happy.) and sort of leaning towards Kobo Glow, despite not actually having been able to find a real one to look at.

I think (in the absence of actually owning a device) that I'm not worried about having something where I have to route everything through my computer, so the relative smallness of the Kobo online store doesn't bother me terribly. I am NOT FOND of the screen flash thing, and don't expect I ever will be, but that also seems to come with the territory. No need for color or other excitement-- if I need pictures, I'll buy a real copy. My basic requirements are for something that I can read book-length amounts of text on without giving myself migraines, long battery life, and decent amounts of storage space. Nice clear light possibly a plus, non-reflective screen options more so (though I gather there are applied options for that if the device itself doesn't provide.)

Anyone have thoughts, or pros/cons about what you've used?

Comments

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

I see why you are not keen on the Kindle. However, it's the only electronic device that is fine on my eyes when I'm having a migraine with actual pain. (I have migraine aura all the freakin' time without pain, hence the distinction.) I'm not entirely clear on whether they can wipe the stuff I've put on my Kindle not through them--pdfs and Gutenberg downloads and like that. Also, I don't trust other manufacturers/service providers either. Seriously, though, the screen is important. I would check the screen first.

[thanate.livejournal.com]

Fair enough. Once I get into full-on headache mode, even paper & good lighting is a lost cause; my problem is that eyestrain is one of my headache triggers, and once I get caught up in reading I *will* just keep turning one more page until I give myself a full-on migraine. Unfortunately, the five minutes staring at things in-store isn't really sufficient to give me any idea on whether a screen will work or not. I mean, I guess I could try shopping when I've already got a headache, but that sounds like a bad idea...

Honestly, what I want is the ability to rent or borrow something for a week or three to find out if it actually *does* work, but if there's anywhere that does this, I've yet to find it.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Yah, I was lucky that timprov was willing to be my in-house guinea pig.

[queenoftheskies.livejournal.com]

I loved my Nook Color, but gave it to my daughter recently because she'd used her Nook to death. (It had a long and fruitful life.)

Nook Color is easy on the eyes and a joy to own.

I will be buying another Nook once the budget allows.

[veyska]

Far's I know "they" can't wipe anything they didn't help put there. S'part of why I plan on getting off my duff here before I buy more than a couple eBooks and installing a workaround so I can make back-up copies they can't abscond with. Also means I'm not leashed to one "faction's" hardware indefinitely. Quite happy to point you at that workaround if you'd like.

I can't speak for the Kindle Paperwhite myself, but Dad raves about it and says the text is so clear that he was able to lower his font size a few steps for reading and he also really likes how even the backlighting is. I've got a Nook with Glowlight (they beat Kindle to the punch for backlit eReaders by a few months and I had an unclaimed funds check coming in for almost exactly the pricetag) and am also quite happy with it so far. Also have a Nook Color I won in a contest, but while the tablet-y ness of it is nice (dual-boot Android off the micro SDHC card slot) the battery life just isn't enough for a day of reading let alone more intensive usage. I know Amazon is supposedly providing .epub compatibility at some point (if they haven't already), but the Nooks can read it. Text is closer to good newsprint than black-on-white ink-on-paper like the Kindle, not sure how much of an issue that might or might not be. Nook (non-tablet) also has physical back/forth buttons on the side, which I believe the Kindle lacks.

[thanate.livejournal.com]

The various video comparison/reviews we've been able to find online suggest that the Nook's light function is a lot duskier and yellower than either the Kindle or the Kobo options, though this may be that they just haven't rolled out a second gen on the technology yet. I've poked at Nooks in B&N, and for three or four minutes the contrast & resolution are fine, but the real reason I haven't actually *gotten* anything yet is uncertainty as to how well I'll deal with it in the several hour range. Bah. Want rental options...

Anyway, thanks, and I may ping you about backup workarounds if I ever get that far.