eBook Reader Review – Top Readers Compared
eBook readers have revolutionized the way we gather and view books, magazines and news. In this article I examine the top ebook readers available on the market today.
There are several criteria consumers should consider when reviewing ebook readers. Among the top features to consider in an ebook reader are screen size, screen type, battery life, recharge time, storage space, weight, overall size, wireless capabilities, and file types accepted.
In my reviews of ebook readers, I include the Amazon Kindle 2 and Kindle DX, the Barnes and Noble Nook, Sony’s Reader Touch PRS-600 and PRS-700, and Aztak’s EZ Readers. There are several others, and we will review those in time, but my intention is to give the reader a small sample with an explanation of feature comparisons so that they can enter the market armed with some basic knowledge about ebook readers.
In my opinion, features like the touchscreen, screen size and type and wireless capabilities should be your first consideration when comparing models. The second thing to consider is the fact that some of the eBook readers have hundreds of thousands of titles available while other readers can only support a few titles. If the above criteria meet with your satisfaction, then you should finally consider price and support.
The Kindle and Sony ebook readers are rated very well by several online sources. The combination of features on these models plus the reasonable price point makes them attractive models. All readers feature the E-Ink screen. Only the Kindle and one Atzak model feature “text-to-speech” to allow the device to read to you. The Sony models feature a touch screen for a more interactive user experience. All models feature a robust nearly 2 week battery life with various charging times, but most are close to 3 or 4 hours. There are slight differences in the file types that each ebook model will accept.
The table below provides you with a visual comparison of each model:
| Model | Kindle 2 | Kindle DX | B&N Nook | Sony Reader PRS-600 | Sony Reader PRS-700 | Astak 5” EZ Reader | Astak EZ Reader |
| Screen Size -Inches | 6 | 9.7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 6 |
| Touch Screen | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Resolution | 600×800 | 1200×824 | 600×800 | 800×600 | 600×800 | 600×800 | 600×800 |
| Wireless | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Storage | 2 gb | 4 gb | 2 gb | 512 mb | 420 mb | 512 mb | 32 mb |
| Battery Life | 2 Weeks | 2 Weeks | 10 Days | 2 Weeks | 2 Weeks | 2+ Weeks | 2+ Weeks |
| Weight (Ounces) | 10.2 | 18.8 | 12.1 | 10.1 | 10 | 6 | 7.8 |
| Document Formats | Kindle (AZW), TXT, MOBI, PRC | Kindle (AZW), TXT, MOBI, PRC, PDF | EPUB, PDB, PDF | BeBB, PDF, Word, EPUB/Adept | BeBB, Book (LRF & LRX), PDF, TXT, RTF, ePub | PDF, DOC, ePub, LIT, PRC, MOBI, WOLF, DJVU, HTML, TXT, CHM, FB2, PPT | PDF, DOC, ePub, LIT, PRC, MOBI, WOLF, DJVU, HTML, TXT, CHM, FB2, PPT |