Aug

Battle for the eBook Readers: iPad vs. Kindle

admin

8615

Battle for the eBook Readers: iPad vs. Kindle

When Amazon released the world’s first dedicated eBook reader, everybody was wide-eyed in anticipation. The Amazon Kindle allowed you to buy, collect and read as many as 1,500 books in a device that was lighter than a regular paperback. Since then, many manufacturers have come up with their own eBook readers, including Apple, who decided to give fans an all-in-one device with the Apple iPad.

With iBook, the iPad’s dedicated eBook reader, it looks like the competition for ebook supremacy is getting fiercer. Let’s see how the Kindle and Apple’s new kid on the block matches up when it comes to ebook functionality.

The Pros of the iPad as an eBook Reader

Priced at 9 (for the base model), the iPad is an all-in-one entertainment and multimedia gadget with its functionality as an eBook reader just the icing on the cake. By installing iBook, you turn your iPad into a virtual library that can hold 32 to 64 gigs of your favorite fiction. With its multi-touch functionality, the iPad allows you to “flip” through pages, much like a real book. It also has all the functions of the Kindle–from letting you bookmark and search pages to having a handy dictionary you can use on the fly. iBook also shows you how many pages are left before the chapter is over, so you can determine good stopping points if you have something else to do.

The Cons of the iPad as an eBook Reader

The pros being said, there are some features that Kindle fans will miss in the iPad. For one, some users have reported that there is considerable eyestrain while reading ebooks for long periods of time on an iPad–something they did not experience with Kindle. The iPad is also heavier than the Kindle at 1.5 pounds and books purchased from iBook are encrypted in a format that can only be read on your Apple iPad.

The Pros of the Amazon Kindle

With its E-Ink display, reflective screen and dense pixilation of its text, the Kindle is easier on the eyes than the Apple iPad. You can spend hours reading eBooks on the Kindle without straining your eyes. In addition, its battery can last for 2 weeks and it is also as light as a thick comic book, making it easier to carry around than the iPad. Has your Kindle run out of batteries right at an exciting part in your favorite book? No sweat. Simply continue reading from your computer–since you can read Kindle books on different platforms, including the iPad. The Kindle is also cheaper than the iPhone, at 9 and it has more titles (450,000 books and counting).

The Cons of the Amazon Kindle

The Kindle is just what it is–an eBook reader. It doesn’t have a speedy browser, it doesn’t have thousands of cool applications and it doesn’t have Bluetooth or WiFi. You can’t play graphically enhanced games in it, nor can you watch movies or videos on the Kindle.

Comparing the Amazon Kindle with the iPad might be a case of, well, apples and oranges. Both devices cater to totally different sets of needs. Do you want an eBook reader that does its job exceptionally well or do you want a handy tablet that can do almost everything that your laptop can do, including download eBooks? We hope that our detailed list of the pros and cons of both devices help you make your decision.