Bibliophiles suffering from tiny residences, rejoice! The E-readers are in the house, and currently we enjoy enough unique brands on the market to allow for some degree of competition and invention. Obviously, no product is ever a perfect match for everyone, so below we have some simple descriptions of each entry. Another great model is Fujitsu S1500 Scansnap Scanner.
Amazon’s Kindle provides a good sized selection of books and other publications which are available via their wireless data network. The Kindle can keep around 1,500 e-books, which is fortunate, as it provides no expansion slot for extra memory. The Kindle could play MP3 and AAC audio and can talk to Windows and Mac platforms.
The battery is permanently part of the device and is not removable, however the battery life is described as “good”, which may or may not be acceptable to you. Regrettably, it’s not compatible with checked out e-books via your public library available in the ePub format. Moreover, while the wireless service is useable outside the US, you are going to be responsible for additional fees for uploading books there.
Barnes & Noble’s Nook can offer you nearly as many books and magazines as the Kindle, and additionally it is ePub compatible and can enable you to loan certain e-books for up to 14 days. The Nook cannot let you download books outside the US, though. The Nook is comparable to the Kindle regarding system compatibility and provides the added advantage of an expansion slot for additional memory, along with a exchangeable battery. The Nook does not allow word or text files, unfortunately, and the software is still somewhat buggy. Another nice option is Fujitsu S1500 Scansnap Scanner.
The Sony Reader is the patriarch of e-readers, and as a result enjoys the benefit of having worked out nearly all of its problems. The Reader has also been subject to a few updates, therefore it has been in a position to react to marketplace forces in addition to advancements in technology. Sony’s Reader could keep thousands of electronic books, and additional publications can be made room for with the inclusion of an optional memory card. There isn’t a book or periodical format which the Reader does not support, including ePub and PDF files. Oddly enough, one update the Reader has yet to offer is wireless ability, therefore each file must be downloaded from a PC.
The iPad remains new enough to be a virtual unknown, in spite of its super-hyped and fashionably late arrival at this particular party. As per many reviews, it performs extremely well as a reader, accomodating all of the formats which can be operated with the competing e-readers, and provides several gaming applications as well. Interestingly, Apple is choosing to sell this gadget as a business tool, even though it is outperformed in that capacity by almost all netbooks and Apple’s own iPhone. Another good item to look into is Fujitsu S1500 Scansnap Scanner. This is the fastest scanner on the market, a businessman’s best friend. This will not conserve time but also space on the desk or at home.