I'm hoping some of you who are more tech-saavy than am I can help me out a bit. I'm thinking about getting an e-Reader for my mother. Something like the Amazon Kindle or the Nook from Barnes and Noble. So just a few questions...

Is the Kindle compatible with books downloaded from Barnes and Noble and vice versa or do they have incompatible formats? My mom shops at lot at Barnes and Noble online, so that compatibility would be a must.

Can these devices receive internet through a home Cox Communications wireless internet network or only through a separate plan like for the phones?

Does anyone have any experience with the Nook or Kindle or any recommendations? My mom wouldn't need lots of bells and whistles. Simple is better. Basically what I have in mind is just something she can use to read books (hopefully just as the pages of a real book look) and something lightweight she can carry around the house for internet. Any suggestions?

Thanks!

Barnes and Noble ebooks only work on the Nook and won't work on the Kindle, and vice versa

are you looking for a simple ereader or one which lets you download apps too...

Nook Tablet, Kindle fire and Nexus 7 are full tablet while other Kindles and Nooks are just ebook reders

However you can buy the Nexus 7 which is $199 and both Amazon ebook store and Nook ebooks work on it. while you also get access to Google ebook store

And they all have wifi options, don't think they have a data plan

so my suggestion would be to get the Nook as you mother is a Barnes and Noble customer and if you looking for a simple e-reader

I have a Kindle. Kindle only accepts MOBI format, but you can easily convert other e-books into Kindle format using Calibre. If an ebook has a DRM in it, it will not be able to be converted. The books your mum purchases are probably DRM protected. Amazon lets the publisher decide whether to DRM their books or not, and most do. All kindles have wifi, but you must pay more to get the version with 3G.

B&N books are DRM protected

Thanks so much guys! That's a big help and basically clears up the questions I had.

It sounds like the Nook tablet or Nexus 7 might be the best option. Mostly it would be used for reading, but I'd like for her to be able to pick up her home wifi the same as on her computer, which is too heavy for her to lug around (she suffers from rheumatoid arthritis). It would be nice for her to have something light that she can carry to her bedroom or her back deck. She's a fan of auto racing (much more so than am I) and Cox digital cable has an option that allows you to watch TV online, so I was thinking she could sit on her deck or hole up in her bedroom and watch. So I'll check those out!

Thanks again!

Mudcat wrote: She's a fan of auto racing (much more so than am I) and Cox digital cable has an option that allows you to watch TV online, so I was thinking she could sit on her deck or hole up in her bedroom and watch. So I'll check those out!

Yeah the Cox TV Connect App, I have it on my iPad and it's awesome. They don't have every channel though, but they have most of the good ones. FWIW, the Speed Channel is one of them.

dmize wrote:

Mudcat wrote: She's a fan of auto racing (much more so than am I) and Cox digital cable has an option that allows you to watch TV online, so I was thinking she could sit on her deck or hole up in her bedroom and watch. So I'll check those out!

Yeah the Cox TV Connect App, I have it on my iPad and it's awesome. They don't have every channel though, but they have most of the good ones. FWIW, the Speed Channel is one of them.

Awesome! Thanks for letting me know. I was going to check it out and make sure she could get Speed, ESPN, TNT and Fox. And it's definitely good to know it works very well.

Mudcat wrote:

dmize wrote:

Mudcat wrote: She's a fan of auto racing (much more so than am I) and Cox digital cable has an option that allows you to watch TV online, so I was thinking she could sit on her deck or hole up in her bedroom and watch. So I'll check those out!

Yeah the Cox TV Connect App, I have it on my iPad and it's awesome. They don't have every channel though, but they have most of the good ones. FWIW, the Speed Channel is one of them.

Awesome! Thanks for letting me know. I was going to check it out and make sure she could get Speed, ESPN, TNT and Fox. And it's definitely good to know it works very well.

ESPN's not on there unfortunately, TNT is. Not sure about Fox.

ESPN also has an app though for ESPN3 you should be able to use.

dmize wrote:

Mudcat wrote:

dmize wrote:

Mudcat wrote: She's a fan of auto racing (much more so than am I) and Cox digital cable has an option that allows you to watch TV online, so I was thinking she could sit on her deck or hole up in her bedroom and watch. So I'll check those out!

Yeah the Cox TV Connect App, I have it on my iPad and it's awesome. They don't have every channel though, but they have most of the good ones. FWIW, the Speed Channel is one of them.

Awesome! Thanks for letting me know. I was going to check it out and make sure she could get Speed, ESPN, TNT and Fox. And it's definitely good to know it works very well.

ESPN's not on there unfortunately, TNT is. Not sure about Fox.

ESPN also has an app though for ESPN3 you should be able to use.

Thanks! Yep, she should be fine with ESPN3. They put just about everything on there.

You need to be aware though of the fact that reading from a tablet is much less pleasant and pretty much impossible in the sun, unlike with a e-reader. Personally, I own a Kobo Touch.



Great little thing. It has its own online store and I've downloaded a lot of books for jack sh*t.

It accepts the following formats:
Books: ePub, PDF en MOBI
Documents: PDF
Images: JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP en TIFF
Text: TXT, HTML en RTF
Stripbooks: CBZ en CBR

So in the end it's going to be important to decide what is more important. If you are really looking for something she can read from, go for a e-reader. If you really want her to be able to surf the web etc., go for a tablet.

I'm a bit late to this thread, but I recently have really gotten into reading. While I enjoy purchasing books and like the fact that I'm starting to build up a collection, I think I might be interested in a kindle. I do a lot of shopping on amazon and I've noticed the kindle version is a few bucks cheaper (although a few bucks here and there isn't a big issue). I tend to be a little OCD and I'm not a big fan of carrying my books out with me (they tend to get damaged and dented when put in a bag). Anyway, I guess I just wanted to hear what what some of you have to offer. I'm thinking the kindle would make things more convenient and it might also offer me other things that I'm not yet aware of.

I spoke with my brother about getting a kindle a year or so ago and he said it was best to not purchase it as I wasn't reading many books that would be available on it. I was about to order 4-5 books the other day and the price was beginning to climb up quite a bit, I figured with Christmas around the corner, I might be able to work something out. I don't really get presents from my parents anymore (mom dukes always hooks me up with something, I am a mommas boy after all) and Grandma is usually good for 50 bucks (I'm not sure what year she thinks it is). But all jokes aside, I stopped expecting gifts a long time ago.

Thanks in advance for any help and I'm off to do a little of my own research.

THC 10 wrote:I'm a bit late to this thread, but I recently have really gotten into reading. While I enjoy purchasing books and like the fact that I'm starting to build up a collection, I think I might be interested in a kindle. I do a lot of shopping on amazon and I've noticed the kindle version is a few bucks cheaper (although a few bucks here and there isn't a big issue). I tend to be a little OCD and I'm not a big fan of carrying my books out with me (they tend to get damaged and dented when put in a bag). Anyway, I guess I just wanted to hear what what some of you have to offer. I'm thinking the kindle would make things more convenient and it might also offer me other things that I'm not yet aware of.

I spoke with my brother about getting a kindle a year or so ago and he said it was best to not purchase it as I wasn't reading many books that would be available on it. I was about to order 4-5 books the other day and the price was beginning to climb up quite a bit, I figured with Christmas around the corner, I might be able to work something out. I don't really get presents from my parents anymore (mom dukes always hooks me up with something, I am a mommas boy after all) and Grandma is usually good for 50 bucks (I'm not sure what year she thinks it is). But all jokes aside, I stopped expecting gifts a long time ago.

Thanks in advance for any help and I'm off to do a little of my own research.

like i said to Mudcat are you looking for a full on eReader or an eReader sized tablet like Nexus and Fire which can too be used to read books

Can't say that I really know how to answer that. What exactly do you mean by eReader (sorry, all of this is so foreign to me)? My main purpose for this device will be for reading so all the extra stuff doesn't mean much to me. It would probably come down to price. If there isn't a drastic difference in price, I would go with the device that gives me the most features (such as internet and access to an application store). Not sure if this explanation and my original post would give you enough information to recommend a ereader option and a tablet option.

I did speak with my brother today and he said he would lend me his kindle (this would allow me to test it out and see how I like it).

Apologizes in advance if I wasn't very helpful in explaining myself.

a eReader is just for reading books, while eReader sized Tablet (7inch) are not just for reading but a full on tablet for apps, video, web etc

eReaders can range from the simple $50 to $150 (Better screen, brightness in sun)

While the 7inch Tablets are from $150-$300, Kindle Fire and Nexus 7


and the thing to make sure when you are buying ebooks is to make sure they are compatible with your device, ebooks bought from B&N might not work on Amazon eReader/Tablet and vise versa. But they both might work on Nexus 7

does your bro have a Kindle eReader or Fire?

check out laptopmag.com for reviews of eReaders