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kylera

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Dec 5, 2010
1,195
27
Seoul
I'm debating between these two things for a Christmas present. First off, I am quite aware that they aren't exactly the same things, but I can't afford to ask for both of them from my girlfriend.

I like the Paperwhite because I like to read a lot, be it on print or on my iPad right now, and the thought of having a dedicated reader that has absurd battery life sounds up my alley.

On the other hand, I also like the Nexus because it's another ecosystem I would love to mess around with. In essence, it would be something I can tinker with and explore other apps or features with.

Currently, I only have one book I bought digitally from Amazon, and instead, I have a bunch of OCR'd books in txt or ePub format in my external hard drive. I can see myself buying books off of amazon, or other non-DRM formats.

I am also aware that there is a Kindle app for both iOS and Android, so I can read books bought off Amazon or ebooks converted for Amazon on pretty much any device. However, the idea of a dedicated reader is just as appealing.

Thoughts?
 
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The absolute only reason to choose the Paperwhite over an N7 is battery life. A Paperwhite is supposed to last 8 weeks with 30 minutes of reading per day and the light at 10.

A N7 might get your through the day, depending on how much and what you use it for.
 
The absolute only reason to choose the Paperwhite over an N7 is battery life. A Paperwhite is supposed to last 8 weeks with 30 minutes of reading per day and the light at 10.

A N7 might get your through the day, depending on how much and what you use it for.

E-ink is magnitudes better for reading text.
 
Do you see yourself using the N7 just for reading? The paperwhite is a great single tasked item. It does one thing very well and that's display books. The N7 is good at displaying ebooks but it does other things as well.

Personally, I opted for a tablet (iPad mini) over the paperwhite because I knew it could do more. I recently went camping and took the iPad with me. I was able to do some reading and watch a movie. My point is that it provided a higher level of functionality then the paperwhite ever could. If you think you'll be using it for other things then the N7 is a better choice. If you think all you want to is read then the paperwhite is probably the better choice.
 
Do you see yourself using the N7 just for reading? The paperwhite is a great single tasked item. It does one thing very well and that's display books. The N7 is good at displaying ebooks but it does other things as well.

Personally, I opted for a tablet (iPad mini) over the paperwhite because I knew it could do more. I recently went camping and took the iPad with me. I was able to do some reading and watch a movie. My point is that it provided a higher level of functionality then the paperwhite ever could. If you think you'll be using it for other things then the N7 is a better choice. If you think all you want to is read then the paperwhite is probably the better choice.

The N7 is frankly more for tinkering as well as reading - I have a 4th gen iPad that I use for most general computing on the go. But as you say, the fact that the paperwhite can do one thing extremely well is what attracts me to it as well.
 
I'm using the nexus 7 for two days now and I'm pretty happy with it. It's a great device ( fast, really nice screen etc. ), it's my first android device, I got it because I was bored using only ios, so for me you should go for the N7 :)
 
You have an iPad (Have you tried out Marvin? You can use Calibre to convert your books into ePub to read on it). I think you'd enjoy reading on that more than the N7. So I'm going to go with the Paperwhite.
 
Given that you have an ipad already, the paperwhite sounds much better. It's so nice to read kindle books on a display thats better than lcd or a paper book. I'd rather go with the kindle that has buttons on the side than the paperwhite, but the paperwhite is way better.

If you're more set on looking at another ecosystem, I'd rather get a dell venue pro 8 and install android on it, so you get the advantage of a full blown windows 8 and android.
 
The absolute only reason to choose the Paperwhite over an N7 is battery life.

And the Kindle screen is much better for long reading sessions and reading outdoors.

The battery life advantage of the Kindle cannot be understated or minimised if you do any sort of travelling. It is simply so much better.

Given that you already have an iPad and you do a lot of reading, if you can only have one device i'd definitely say get the Kindle.
 
As you already own an ipad I'd recomend the kindle. I also have an ipad mini and an android tablet (samsung) but I value my kindle more for reading. In fact if I could only have one I'd ditch the tablets and have a kindle. Reading on an lcd display can't compare to reading on an eink one.
 
And the Kindle screen is much better for long reading sessions and reading outdoors.

The battery life advantage of the Kindle cannot be understated or minimised if you do any sort of travelling. It is simply so much better.

Given that you already have an iPad and you do a lot of reading, if you can only have one device i'd definitely say get the Kindle.

Agreed. The kindle is lighter and less expensive as well.
 
FWIW here's my 2 cents:

If you want to take a reader that you can read anywhere even in direct sunlight without the glare and that has absurd battery life, get the ereader. My bf has one and it's amazing, in fact, he's getting me my own for xmas.

I have an iPad, but wouldn't dream of trying to read with the sun over my back with it.

Tablets are ok all arounders, but imo they blow as readers if you want to do any reading outside in bright light.

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You have an iPad (Have you tried out Marvin? You can use Calibre to convert your books into ePub to read on it). I think you'd enjoy reading on that more than the N7. So I'm going to go with the Paperwhite.

What he/she said...

Esp about Calibre
 
If it's for a serious reader, who reads books that are 500+ pages long, or reads several books a month, a true e-reader is the way to go.

If they are a casual reader, or using it for magazines, articles, childrens books, then a tablet is a good option.
 
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