Is Kindle What I need?

[MikeinBaja]

I am a satellite guy - not a huge gadget guy so I need some help.

Since we retired we have been doing a lot more traveling - mainly cruises - and I'm looking at a Kindle for the e-book reader (saving space & weight). On our last 15 night cruise I went through 8 hard copy books.

I do like the Kindle features, but have a wi-fi question. At cruise ports (mostly foreign) I usually drag my laptop ashore looking for free wi-fi to check email, etc. How well does the Kindle work for email on something like Gmail?

Could I reasonably leave the laptop home if that is the ONLY functionality I want through wi-fi on the ship or in port?

Are there better e-readers that I should be looking at in the same rough $ range?

 

[Juan]

Kindle is an excellent reader but it won't do email..There is supposed to be a kindle "Tablet" sometime this year that "should" do email but details are sketchy at best.. The kindle is real easy on the eyes (along with the black and white nook and Sony e reader) But the color nook and IPAD (With Kindle app) cause waaay too much eyestrain for me. The kindle also uses ATT 3G technology (If u get the more expensive one) that loads books for free to your kindle

 

[MikeinBaja]

Thanks Juan - you know what I'm trying to do - what are the alternatives? I hate dragging hard copy books & a laptop along on a cruise. The Kindle is easy on the old eyes - but is there something "out there" that will do both with a good battery for the international flights?

Next trip is April - but we have 3 scheduled in '12.

 

[isaacmorseMI]

an iPad would probably be the best option. It has a Kindle app among tons of other apps. Plus it's battery lasts 10 hours.

 

[MikeinBaja]

an iPad would probably be the best option. It has a Kindle app among tons of other apps. Plus it's battery lasts 10 hours.

Thanks - I did look at that - but the battery life is an issue. Most international flights (time in transit) are +/- 15 hours. As a reader, it lasts for 2/3 of the expected trip between recharges.

There must be something out there that fills the bill. All I'm looking for is an e-reader that can do GMail while traveling - and one I can read as easily as the Kindle.

 

[isaacmorseMI]

Thanks - I did look at that - but the battery life is an issue. Most international flights (time in transit) are +/- 15 hours. As a reader, it lasts for 2/3 of the expected trip between recharges.

There must be something out there that fills the bill. All I'm looking for is an e-reader that can do GMail while traveling - and one I can read as easily as the Kindle.

You could get one of these.

Newegg.com - Kensington PowerBack K39249US Battery Case with Kickstand and Dock Black

 

[klang]

Assuming you want to read outdoors on your cruise there really isn't currently a single solution. Kindle and Nook are great readers, they can hold thousands of books and the battery can last for weeks but they aren't meant for email. iPad and the other tablets are great for email but the LCD's are really hard to read outdoors. I travel with both a Kindle and an iPad.

 

[Juan]

Thanks Juan - you know what I'm trying to do - what are the alternatives? I hate dragging hard copy books & a laptop along on a cruise. The Kindle is easy on the old eyes - but is there something "out there" that will do both with a good battery for the international flights?

Next trip is April - but we have 3 scheduled in '12.

get a smartphone for email(and movies and music i.e Droid X2) and kindle for reading and leave the laptop at home

 

[mdram]

there is a hack out there to put android on a nook

 

[Voyager6]

The Nook is easily rooted for android.
Nook Color rooted -- Turns $250 e-reader into an affordable Android tablet | Android Central
Nook Color Android Development - xda-developers

 

[MikeinBaja]

Thanks guys - so if I understand this right you can do a root hack into the nook so you have the "user rights" to upload android?

What are the odds of bricking the nook in the process?

With android running in the background, would you expect severe deterioration in the nook's battery life due to the "extra" background process running?

 

[jayn_j]

Thanks - I did look at that - but the battery life is an issue. Most international flights (time in transit) are +/- 15 hours. As a reader, it lasts for 2/3 of the expected trip between recharges.

There must be something out there that fills the bill. All I'm looking for is an e-reader that can do GMail while traveling - and one I can read as easily as the Kindle.

These guys have a charger that works with airplane power plugs: VersaCharger PRO - All-in-One travel charger - Car, wall outlet, and airplane charger

I agree about the ipad being hard to read in bright sunlight though. No good single solution. Personally, I use an ipad and read in the shade.

 

[klang]

Nook Color is an LCD device. The regular Nook has an E Ink display like the Kindle. You want E Ink for outdoor use.

 

[navychop]

get a smartphone for email(and movies and music i.e Droid X2) and kindle for reading and leave the laptop at home

Good idea.

At my wife's library the Nook is the most popular. Plenty of iPads and Kindles also.

 

[diogen]

What are the odds of bricking the nook in the process?

Unless you apply force, it's very hard to brick a Nook.
Install something like phiremod (one of the full Android flavours), turn off WiFi if not in use and the battery should last for a while.
Like any Android device (phone, tablet) at least half the battery is consumed by the screen. Configure brightness 1/3 or so.

But remember, reading books on it while on a sunny deck of a cruise ship )) will never be as easy as on a e-ink display (e.g. Kindle).

Diogen.

 

[Juan]

I would suggest going to "Best Buy" and trying them out in person

 

[avg1joe]

I had been using the kindle app on my iphone but finally decided to get a kindle. About $105 including shipping for a refurbished 2nd generation 3g kindle from amazon with the same warranty as a new one. Along with the ability to download books via 3g there is also a built in web browser which you can check your email (or any other webpage) for free with your 3g connection. I can't comment on how this would work outside the US. Amazon has a link to an coverage map for when you are traveling but the link didn't work for me. Keep in mind the browser is in black and white and is incredibly clunky to use. If you are just checking or sending text emails and have limited expectations then you should be able to get by. Remember, this is free and amazon describes the browser as "experimental". There is a website: kinstant.com that you can filter webpages through on the kindle to reformat them for the kindle. It works with yahoo mail so gmail will likely work as well.

I used the iphone to try the app versions of the kindle, nook, ibooks, and a couple others. Amazon has more for less in my opinion. The only thing the kindle didn't have was support to download ebooks from your library through the Overdrive system. Overdrive has announced that kindle will be supported soon. Some people believe this will happen next month.

 

[avg1joe]

I had been using the kindle app on my iphone but finally decided to get a kindle. About $105 including shipping for a refurbished 2nd generation 3g kindle from amazon with the same warranty as a new one. Along with the ability to download books via 3g there is also a built in web browser which you can check your email (or any other webpage) for free with your 3g connection. I can't comment on how this would work outside the US. Amazon has a link to an coverage map for when you are traveling but the link didn't work for me. Keep in mind the browser is in black and white and is incredibly clunky to use. If you are just checking or sending text emails and have limited expectations then you should be able to get by. Remember, this is free and amazon describes the browser as "experimental". There is a website: kinstant.com that you can filter webpages through on the kindle to reformat them for the kindle. It works with yahoo mail so gmail will likely work as well.

I used the iphone to try the app versions of the kindle, nook, ibooks, and a couple others. Amazon has more for less in my opinion. The only thing the kindle didn't have was support to download ebooks from your library through the Overdrive system. Overdrive has announced that kindle will be supported soon. Some people believe this will happen next month.

Just for kicks this is posted over 3g on my kindle.

 

[moosehaed]

Kobo is an alternative e-ink reader and is the cheapest of the three.

 

[navychop]

Overdrive has pretty much of a lock on the libraries. I find it awkward.