# iPad vs kindle



## NickTB (Feb 4, 2007)

Ok so I'm about to move and I need to get rid of 400+ books. I currently have an iPad 2 which I have a couple of books on, but I'm thinking of getting a kindle. Pros/cons anyone? I like the iPad for the backlight as the kindle doesn't have one, but at the same time, the backlight could strain my eyes after a while? I can't stand the thought of attaching a light to a kindle though.

Any other differences/comparisons I should be aware of?

Cheers 

Nick


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## shonajoy (Jan 27, 2009)

I've never used my kindle since getting my iPad and the kindle app! Download direct from amazon or wherever, find it so much better to read at night and it's never hurt my eyes.


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## Bero (Mar 9, 2008)

If it's JUST for reading the Kindle screen is very impressive. Although the iPad one is great 99% of the time you can't sit on the beach/in bright sunlight and read it.


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## AaronGTi (Nov 2, 2010)

I work for Amazon, do not buy the Kindle!


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## NickTB (Feb 4, 2007)

AaronGTi said:


> I work for Amazon, do not buy the Kindle!


Ha ha why?


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## AaronGTi (Nov 2, 2010)

the company is a joke mate, they are selling refurbed units as brand new units.


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

I don't read, but the Missus does, and reads loads. She loves the Kindle (with a cover to make it feel like a book) and the iPad is used for surfing, games etc. 

If I did read books, I'd do it on the Kindle, it is so much easier on the eye.


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## hoikey (Mar 9, 2011)

AaronGTi said:


> the company is a joke mate, they are selling refurbed units as brand new units.


alot of electronics companies do. if something is sent back as no fault found then they will clean it up and resell it


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## sirkuk (Mar 5, 2012)

I have a Kindle and tablet. Always use the Kindle to read. Much easier going on the eye and you can see it in sunlight.

The iPad of course does more but if it's specifically for reading that you want it, the Kindle.

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk


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## Grizzle (Jul 12, 2006)

They shouldn't be selling items as new if they are refurbished.


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## hoikey (Mar 9, 2011)

it will happen more than you think


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## m1pui (Jul 24, 2009)

sirkuk said:


> I have a Kindle and tablet. Always use the Kindle to read. Much easier going on the eye and you can see it in sunlight.
> 
> The iPad of course does more but if it's specifically for reading that you want it, the Kindle.
> 
> Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk


Same for me.

Had my iPad for about 20 months now and have had the Kindle app on it since I got it or it was released, not sure which was first. I personally struggle to read a chapter on the iPad before it makes me feel tired. Also, stupid as it seems, the iPad is an awkward size to hold to read. 2 handed when browsing the net, etc is fine, but I like to hold whatever it is like a book when I'm reading, and I just couldn't get away with it.

Picked up a Kindle 4 from Argos Outlet on eBay at the beginning of June for £69.99 and I absolutely love it. Have read 3 or 4 books since then, one of which I'd been struggling with on my iPad since before Christmas.

Don't dismiss it for not having a backlight. I picked and LED one up from a bargain bin in Curry's for £4.99 and it does the job brilliantly. Also, not being affixed to anything, means it gets used when I want to read magazines in bed too. :thumb:


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## Natalie (Jan 19, 2011)

I don't have an ipad/tablet but I do have a Kindle and even if I had a tablet I would use the Kindle for books. 
It doesn't have the backlight so it's easier on your eyes to read - more like a "real" book, I think it wouldn't work as well if it was backlit, also it would be more difficult to read outdoors _if_ the sun ever come out. I was reading mine on holiday in bright sunshine with no problem. You can buy covers for them which have a light so that you can use it in lower light levels if you don't want to put a lamp on.


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## m1pui (Jul 24, 2009)

Here's mine 

Kindle 4 (2011) : H.R. Giger Landscape XIX by puihungma, on Flickr


Kindle 4 (2011) : H.R. Giger Landscape XIX by puihungma, on Flickr

And I've got this case Belkin Verve Tab: £4.97 (if you look at the pink version it's a clearer pic)
and this light Verso Clip Light £12.99 (I managed to get one with a knackered box from the reduced bins in local Curry's)

TBH though, I leave it out of the case for the most part. It fits in most of my trousers pockets perfectly without case.


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## Derekh929 (Aug 28, 2011)

Wife loves her Kindle


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## OvlovMike (Jul 19, 2011)

Grizzle said:


> They shouldn't be selling items as new if they are refurbished.





AaronGTi said:


> the company is a joke mate, they are selling refurbed units as brand new units.


It's perfectly legal for a manufacturer to test/repair/clean and then re-sell equipment as new as long as it comes with all the usual perks of being 'new'. If the device has been wiped, cleaned and repackaged with usage data reset their side it's as new as all of the other 'new' tablets. HP do it, Dell do it, Apple sure as hell do it and HTC usually miss the 'cleaning' part out when doing it!

Nothing to get worked up about.

Mrs has a Kindle (finally) and loves it, it's much easier on the eye than the iPad - after an hour or two reading on the iPad my eyes started to go funny - the Kindle I could read for hours as that screen is perfect.


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## m1pui (Jul 24, 2009)

Argos Outlet eBay: Kindle 4 £69.99

Marked as refurb but I think some must be brand new, ex-display or non-faulty customer returns. My box seal was broken but it still had protective cover on screen. Cousin got one still in a sealed box.


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## leon20v (Jul 7, 2007)

Always Kindle for me as well.. have an Asus Transformer TF300, Can do an hour of reading before eyes start to get tired.
Can read for hours on the Kindle no problem and the battery life makes it worth the money too


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## ShiningScotsman (Jun 20, 2012)

+1 for the kindle - still has a look and feel - weight ratio closer to a real book which makes the process way more simple than on my I-pad


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## Pezza4u (Jun 7, 2007)

I'm looking at getting a kindle for my missus birthday next month.

Does anyone know if the cheaper new ones on ebay are ok, they're around £75 as I want to get a case as well so £89 from Amazon is abit over my budget.

Unless anyone knows of any deals/discount codes at the moment?

Also are there any good sites for free ebooks?


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## m1pui (Jul 24, 2009)

Link through with ones you're looking at and someone will tell you if they're ok.

I got mine from Argos Clearance on eBay for £69.99, but it doesn't look like they've got any listed currently. It/They're listed as refurbished, but mine came in a fully sealed box.

A good site for free eBooks. Amazon


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## Pezza4u (Jun 7, 2007)

This is the one I saw - http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-Amazo...ts_eReaders&hash=item4ab8519f49#ht_3482wt_927

Although I've just seen there in another one called a Kobo, which uses the same screen as the Kindle and it's £59.


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## neilb62 (Jul 30, 2007)

I made the mistake of taking my ipad instead of my kindle on holiday a couple of months ago, I found it hard to read in sunlight, heavy to hold whilst reading, and I had to put up with wifeys p-taking as she happily read her kindle on her sunlounger...

Next time I'm taking both..


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## m1pui (Jul 24, 2009)

Pezza4u said:


> This is the one I saw - http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-Amazo...ts_eReaders&hash=item4ab8519f49#ht_3482wt_927
> 
> Although I've just seen there in another one called a Kobo, which uses the same screen as the Kindle and it's £59.


He's an American based business that sells imported products in the UK.

Business Seller Info:
Pace America Inc.
Pace Am.
21 Holman blvd.
11801 Hicksville, NY
United States

The same company also trades as Digigood on eBay.

I wouldn't necessarily discount the above as a bad thing and the price of the Kindle is good so I certainly would consider it if I was in the market for one.

I've never tried the Kobo, but I think my Kindle (the same model you're looking at) is absolutely fantastic. The benefit of the Kindle is Whispersync & the Kindle app for phones/computers/tablets which means you can sync your Kindle collection (and page turns) wirelessly amongst all of your devices


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## Pezza4u (Jun 7, 2007)

I've bought grey imports before from ebay with no problems but I guess for a saving of £15 I'm better off buying it from a UK supplier. It would be easier if I ever had to use the warranty.

I've done a little reading up on the Kobo and I think the Kindle may be better as you can't buy books from Amazon on the former. The Kobo (wireless) also only reads ePub and PDF formats, the Kindle reads AZW, TXT, PDF, unprotected MOBI, HTML, DOC, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP.

I am surprised at how much some of these ebooks cost though, some are more than the paperbacks!


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## Natalie (Jan 19, 2011)

I've got a programme called calibre-ebook which allows you convert files for your preferred e-reader.
So I _think _you could download something from Amazon to desktop Kindle then convert to epub/PDF?
Not something I've tried though.

You have to pay VAT on Kindle books but not on "real" books so that bumps the price up a little 

Plenty of free to <£0.99 books about though  I spotted the idiot abroad diary for 20 p today.


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## m1pui (Jul 24, 2009)

There's VAT applicable on ebooks. There was calls to make them VAT free this year but, thus far, the government aren't changing their stance.

There's thousands of free, mostly classic, ebooks available on amazon, otherwise there's no legitimate ways of getting free, or even paperback cheap priced, ones.


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## Wash'n'Go (Mar 13, 2007)

My wife is after an Ereader, I was about to buy her the Sony PRS-T2 until I read some of the reviews. 

I read good things about the Barnes and Noble Nook with Glowlight which is not long out, does anyone on here have one and if so what's your verdict?

This may sound like a dumb question but is Epub the preferred format? It's just that a friend of our has given us a load on ePub eBooks which we'd like to be able to read.

Thanks


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## Alex_225 (Feb 7, 2008)

No brainer though really, you've already got an iPad 2 so get a couple of books on it and see how you get on. 

If you didn't have anything and wanted to just do reading the Kindle is cheaper and designed to feel more like a book. The iPad is a multi-use tablet which you can read books on hence it being more expensive.

You've got the iPad so give that a go. If not invest in a Kindle.


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## kevoque (Jan 16, 2012)

Just got a copy of 12000 books on a 8gb memory stick so all into iPad ! Brilliant far better than kindle ! IMOA


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

There are rumours of this being a tenner, but probably linked to a mobile phone contract - http://us.txtr.com/beagle/


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## rob3rto (May 23, 2007)

Shiny said:


> There are rumours of this being a tenner, but probably linked to a mobile phone contract - http://us.txtr.com/beagle/


Looks like it can only download books via Bluetooth phone app.
I can imagine cost unless there's a way to funnel in your own existing ebooks.

m.gizmodo.com/5950457/this-ereader-will-cost-less-than-15


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## NickTB (Feb 4, 2007)

kevoque said:


> Just got a copy of 12000 books on a 8gb memory stick so all into iPad ! Brilliant far better than kindle ! IMOA


Was that from ebay?


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## kevoque (Jan 16, 2012)

No a m8 has got them on a 8gb stick not from eBay !


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