Best reader - iPad vs. Kindle

Joined
Feb 15, 2008
Messages
457
Reaction score
1
Points
18
Location
Winston-Salem, NC
Your Mac's Specs
10 GB 13" MacBook Pro, 64GB WiFi, 128GB iPhone 7
My daughter wants a "e-reader" for her birthday. I use an iPad myself but I invite and will appreciate suggestions and pros/cons of the iPad vs. Kindle as well as other units. Thanks in advance.
 

chscag

Well-known member
Staff member
Admin
Joined
Jan 23, 2008
Messages
65,248
Reaction score
1,833
Points
113
Location
Keller, Texas
Your Mac's Specs
2017 27" iMac, 10.5" iPad Pro, iPhone 8, iPhone 11, iPhone 12 Mini, Numerous iPods, Monterey
You can probably find at least some opinions by searching the forums. Several of our members own both. However, I can give you one advantage the Kindle has over the iPad and that's price. So, how much are you willing to spend Dad? :)
 
OP
billwill
Joined
Feb 15, 2008
Messages
457
Reaction score
1
Points
18
Location
Winston-Salem, NC
Your Mac's Specs
10 GB 13" MacBook Pro, 64GB WiFi, 128GB iPhone 7
Price isn't as much an issue as convenience and usability. I see the commercials with the guy using an iPad and the girl with a Kindle teases him about reading it in sunlight, but couldn't you just reverse the polarity on an iPad to get the same effect?

I'm also concerned about the weight factor. I haven't held a Kindle but from its pictures, it looks a lot lighter than the iPad and would not get heavy with long reading time. I think my iPad would become heavy if I tried to read a book with it for a long time.

And then there's battery life... so many features to compare. Thanks.
 
Joined
Apr 7, 2010
Messages
347
Reaction score
11
Points
18
Location
Casa Grande AZ.
Your Mac's Specs
27"iMac OS X 10.7.5 Core i5
My wife has a Kindle and loves it. Books are reasonably priced also.
 

cwa107


Retired Staff
Joined
Dec 20, 2006
Messages
27,042
Reaction score
812
Points
113
Location
Lake Mary, Florida
Your Mac's Specs
14" MacBook Pro M1 Pro, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD
My wife has a Kindle and loves it. Books are reasonably priced also.

Not if you're in the habit of buying used books. My wife is an avid reader and I've often thought about picking her up a Kindle or iPad as a gift. But what I noticed was, each time her book club selects a new title, she picks it up for a buck or two on Amazon in like-new condition. With shipping, it's usually less than $5. Far more economical than the typical $14-20 Amazon seems to charge for books I've looked into.

And it's even less of a value if you're in the habit of loaning or borrowing books. For the most part, that's just not possible with an eReader.

If your daughter travels frequently and likes to have a wide variety of books, it might make sense. But I think the Kindle, in particular, isn't the best value. At least the iPad can practically replace a laptop in terms of its versatility. So, you're not just getting a single-purpose device.

Just a few things to think about before you part with your hard-earned cash...
 

robduckyworth


Retired Staff
Joined
Jan 4, 2011
Messages
2,971
Reaction score
109
Points
63
Location
Reading, UK
Your Mac's Specs
15" MBP, 2.5GHz i7, 750GB, 6770M 1GB, iPad 3, iPhone 4, custom PC
the kindle has a special screen that looks "like" paper. ive used one before, and id much rather look at a kindle for three hours over an ipad. however... kindles have a very primitive web browser,no apps released for them, and dont really do anything the ipad doesnt. they can read out books like the Mac does through the "say" command in terminal... but it wont exactly replace a dedicated audiobook.

the ipad definitely has more potential.

but if you dont NEED an ipad, why not go for the kindle. if all you want to do is read books, why go for all the unnecessary frills that comes with the ipad. Do you need Angry Birds, iWork etc?
 
Joined
Apr 7, 2010
Messages
347
Reaction score
11
Points
18
Location
Casa Grande AZ.
Your Mac's Specs
27"iMac OS X 10.7.5 Core i5
Not if you're in the habit of buying used books. My wife is an avid reader and I've often thought about picking her up a Kindle or iPad as a gift. But what I noticed was, each time her book club selects a new title, she picks it up for a buck or two on Amazon in like-new condition. With shipping, it's usually less than $5. Far more economical than the typical $14-20 Amazon seems to charge for books I've looked into.

And it's even less of a value if you're in the habit of loaning or borrowing books. For the most part, that's just not possible with an eReader.

If your daughter travels frequently and likes to have a wide variety of books, it might make sense. But I think the Kindle, in particular, isn't the best value. At least the iPad can practically replace a laptop in terms of its versatility. So, you're not just getting a single-purpose device.

Just a few things to think about before you part with your hard-earned cash...

Her last two books were under $4....total. Most of hers ran $9.99. We tend to travel...her more than me, and she is a big reader and packing books on a plane just doesn't cut it. Kindles can be had for $139...new. The difference between that and my iPad buys a lot of books.
 

cwa107


Retired Staff
Joined
Dec 20, 2006
Messages
27,042
Reaction score
812
Points
113
Location
Lake Mary, Florida
Your Mac's Specs
14" MacBook Pro M1 Pro, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD
Her last two books were under $4....total. Most of hers ran $9.99. We tend to travel...her more than me, and she is a big reader and packing books on a plane just doesn't cut it. Kindles can be had for $139...new. The difference between that and my iPad buys a lot of books.

Interesting. Haven't seen them that low-priced yet. I guess it depends on the title.
 

RavingMac

Well-known member
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Jan 7, 2008
Messages
8,303
Reaction score
242
Points
63
Location
In Denial
Your Mac's Specs
16Gb Mac Mini 2018, 15" MacBook Pro 2012 1 TB SSD
I think it really depends on what and where you are going to be reading. I love my iPad, but I would agree in direct sunlight the Kindle is better. Everywhere else the iPad rocks IMHO.
As far as books go, price is essentially the same since iPad has Kindle APP. But, a very big advantage arise when you read books and magazines with heavy color and photo component. Kindle is not a serious competitor for comics, magazines and photo books.
If all you are ever going to be interested in is black text, save your money and go for the Kindle. Otherwise iPad all the way.
 
Joined
Sep 24, 2006
Messages
2,766
Reaction score
232
Points
63
Location
Brooklyn, New York
Your Mac's Specs
15" 2014 MacBook Pro, i7 2.5Ghz, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD; iPad 3, iPhone 6
How old is your daughter? The iPad is probably more fragile and will offer more distractions form reading, like games and video, not to mention web browsing. Yes you can also kinda do those things on the kindle, but it's rubbish.

I think the Kindle is a slightly better dedicated e-reader, but the iPad is one of my favorite gadgets ever... and if she's likely to want to read magazines and books with illustrations, iPad is the only way to go.
 
Joined
Dec 12, 2009
Messages
357
Reaction score
18
Points
18
Location
Midland,Tx
Your Mac's Specs
iMac 27" 2.66GHz i5, 1TB HDD, 12GB RAM, OS X 10.7.3, iPod Classic 160GB,iPad 1 64GB Wi-fi, iPhone 4S
If you are concerned about glare when using it in sunlight, you could get the anti-glare Invisible Shield. I have that on mine and have no problems using it outside.
 
Joined
Oct 1, 2007
Messages
7,163
Reaction score
275
Points
83
Location
UK
Your Mac's Specs
Mac Mini i5 (2014 High Sierra), iPhone X, Apple Watch, iPad Pro 12.9, AppleTV (4)
My last few Kindle book purchases were <£1 from the top ten kindle books list. Both excellent Stephen Leather thrillers. Prices are definately starting to shift.

If it's purely an eReader you want the Kindle wins hands down (screen, weight, battery life, free over the air download and sync).

But, and it's a big but . . . . if you want to do anything else (liston to music, video, apps, internet etc) then the iPad is the way to go without question.

Really comes down to it's end use. I went down the iPad route and now you'd have to prise it from my cold dead hands to get me to give it up :)
 
Joined
Mar 15, 2008
Messages
11
Reaction score
1
Points
3
I have both and would not give up my Kindle for reading. It's much lighter and much easier on the eyes. Both devices are fantastic, but both have their purposes.
 

GNR


Joined
Aug 7, 2010
Messages
28
Reaction score
0
Points
1
IPad 2 is rumored to use a redesigned screen that cab=n be read in sunlight
 
Joined
Apr 7, 2010
Messages
347
Reaction score
11
Points
18
Location
Casa Grande AZ.
Your Mac's Specs
27"iMac OS X 10.7.5 Core i5
And this is here because...
 

cwa107


Retired Staff
Joined
Dec 20, 2006
Messages
27,042
Reaction score
812
Points
113
Location
Lake Mary, Florida
Your Mac's Specs
14" MacBook Pro M1 Pro, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD
Joined
Dec 1, 2009
Messages
15
Reaction score
1
Points
3
we got my son (age 12) a nook for christmas, and he loves it! the books he likes, the hunger gamers series, the vlad tod series, etc are about 4.99 each for the nook. he loves that he can download the next book in a series right then and there!
 
Joined
Jun 17, 2010
Messages
343
Reaction score
11
Points
18
Location
Missouri
Your Mac's Specs
2 iPod Touches and iPad
And with the iPad, you are not just tied to Kindle. Of course there is Apple's iBooks app that actually has a better "reader experience" (IMHO) than the Kindle app, but of course, NO ONE beats Amazon in terms of content. Borders and B&N also have apps plus there are "generic" readers like Stanza, GoodReader, Wattpad and Bluefire (that allows you to read Adobe epubs from your local library if they use OverDrive) that gives you access to other publishers and self-publishing sites.
 
Joined
Apr 10, 2006
Messages
107
Reaction score
4
Points
18
The iPad and the Kindle are totally 2 different devices. If she wants a true reader without the bells and whistles, gift her a Kindle. I've read on both devices and the iPad doesn't come close to the ease of reading on the Kindle. The lack of glare, the readability of the characters, and the resemblance to paper cannot be matched by the iPad. The glare on the iPad is annoying.

However, if she wants a reader that can also do other things, then gift her an iPad.

It really comes down to what's most important to her: reading books or reading/surfing/games/email/productivity.

Personally, if space is an issue, I'll just bring my iPad. If it isn't an issue, I bring both and use the Kindle to read.
 

Shop Amazon


Shop for your Apple, Mac, iPhone and other computer products on Amazon.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
Top