Anybody Have an e-Reader ?

[bljones]

My wife and I read. A lot. Some people have home theatres, we have a library. I am starting to warm to the idea of getting an e-reader for the boat. Anybody have one? Throw me your input, please

[Hannah on 'Rita T']

Do it. 3500 books in a Kindle, a lot more than the space under our bunk that I just took 20 books out of. I feel really badly about not being able to share the way we did in the 90s but not enough to carry that number of books around. The Kindle allows you to share on uo to six devices on one account so our daughter in Nicaragua,my husband and I all share one account. Even if we don't all read each other's books, it's still cheaper and a win win on space.

[rourkeh]

My wife and I both have them. I bought the Sony version when it first came out years ago then got her one for christmas a year later. We have basically lost all interest in tv so we both read a huge amount and the digital format cuts down on the clutter. They became especially useful when we moved to Costa Rica for 2 years as we had no access to any sort of book store the entire time and the ability to download books whenever you want is great. It is also much cheaper in the long run. Be sure to check out the different types of reader available now as they do not all have the same format, in order to protect market share. I believe the different libraries are available to anyone so you can see who stocks books more in line with your interest. I have not bought a real book in years, could be the death of Barnes and Noble.

[maxingout]

Even my I-phone reads e-books.

[noreault]

The new Kindle is wonderful. Easy to use, I will never go back to books it is so much better.

[RTB]

Ditto on the Kindle.

It doesn't do any fancy stuff, but does what it was designed to do. It goes forever on a charge. Definitely a great way to take a huge library with you while cruising.

[bljones]

I am leaning toward the sony touch, for a couple of reasons-
1. It is open-source, so i am not tied to Amazon, or Barnes & Noble, or Indigo/Chapters for my selection.
2. The company I represent is offering one as part of my incentive program. i could persuade them to change models if necessary, so...
can anybody give me an advantage of a kindle or Kobo over the Sony Touch?

[RTB]

I know the Kindle is easy on the batteries. Keep in mind while cruising, you must keep things charged up, which uses amperage from the batteries. I don't know about the Sony or Kobo. Check out the specs compared with the Kindle.

[S/V Willow]

I bought a Hanlin V5 a year ago and I am utterly besotted. I chose this particular model as it isn't tied to one source and believe me that is important. It also reads many different formats including the 'big' ones like epub, pdf, mobi, lit and so on.

I have over 400 books already and on a yacht that is such a huge factor. I say go for it without a shadow of doubt. Research which one works for what you want but dont go for 5 inch screen (my one mistake) go for 6 inch it is easier on the eyes.

I have seen an iPad and would love love love one of those and the reader app for that is efficient and I am impressed but they are a bit more - although not that much. But yep go for it.

[S/V Willow]

Oh yes power wise my Hanlin charges up on the computer by usb or through power on the inverter and takes minimal power. One charge up will last me 4-6 weeks depending on how much I use it. If I am on the computer and I remember I plug it in just to top up but as it only really uses more power for 'turning' the pages it is very power friendly. Just remember to turn them off at night as that does use up power quite a bit quicker when just sitting on standby. good luck.

[RTB]

Besotted??? Pretty strong words there.... It MUST be good!

[aquarian]

I love it on my phone. If you don't mind small and have a smart phone, you can download e-reader software (several different versions including Kindle-which I like) free. The smart phone version functions very much like the actual Kindle. You can find and purchase books from your phone, bookmark / highlight text. It syncs itself to your library at amazon and your PC if you install the FREE software on your PC also. I am in college and have many of my textbooks on my phone, some Kindle, some not. FREE is really good!

[bljones]

Right, then.
Keep the feedback coming, folks, i am finding it hugely helpful. Okay, so one advantage the Sony has is the 6" screen. The internal memory is not as large as the kindle, but with SD cards that point is moot. SD memory is so cheap any more it is criminal. looks like battery life is pretty much equal, unless you use the 3G and wifi on the kindle, which a) the sony doesn;t have, and b) sucks battery life.
kobo isn't even really in the running, apparently? the price point is attractive, but it seems to offer fewer features than the sony or kindle readers.

[S/V Willow]

RTB - yep totally and utterly besotted! But I am a heavy reader and my husband is thrilled as I no longer change the waterline with all the books that I pick up. Yep love my ereader. Best thing I ever bought!

[S/V Willow]

Hey Jones don't get too excited about the extras! They are gimmicks, nice, but gimmicks. It is a reader first and foremost. The kindle is extremely popular with my American friends and they love it but cruising doesn't lend itself to exclusivity of options. I like that I can go to any ebook supplier and get whatever I want. Also I have never spent one cent on a book - lots of free sites out there.