Kindle - some info please

tatli_lokma

Hi folks,

some info on buying a kindle please. At the moment I am having a bit of eye trouble, which means that glare is not good for it and my signt gets quite blurry. I have been thinking for a while to buy a kindle, but I am not sure if, given my current visual issues, there would be any point. I was really keen on getting one for my holidays to save me bringing a heap of books, but now I'm not sure.

Are the screens on a kindle adjustable - as in can you lighten/darken the contrast? Is it easy enough to see if you are sitting in the shade, or would you need a light? do any of them come back-lit or can you only read them at night by buying a cover with a light?

your advice would be gratefully appreciated.

thanks
Ted

super_furry

There is no back light at all, but Ive always found them easy to read in low light. I think if the light is good enough to read a paper book by, it's good enough for a kindle. You can also chance the fonts and increase their size which may help too.

tatli_lokma

thanks!

and what about in sunlight? does the screen create a glare, or can you read it easily? I'm wondering if it is like some mobile phones or tablets which are hard to make out in sunlight?

super_furry

Sunlight is pretty much the optimal way to read a kindle. It's totally different to any iPad or phone screen, the e-ink screen really mimics a paper book brilliantly. There's no glare and zero screen washout in the sun.

jester77

It's practically the same as reading a book. You will be able to read it in the same light conditions where you can read a book. It doesn't have any backlight, so you can't adjust contrast, but that also means there is no glare. You can increase/decrease font size to suit.

At the moment you need a light to read it in poor light conditions, but the new models (due later this year) are going to have a light built around the screen for nighttime reading. The latest Nook ereader already has it built in, so if you look up the reviews, it will give you an idea of what to expect on the upcoming Kindles.

tatli_lokma

jester77 wrote: »

The latest Nook ereader already has it built in, so if you look up the reviews, it will give you an idea of what to expect on the upcoming Kindles.

so if I wanted to go for one of these where would I get one? is it better, worse or equal to a kindle?
basically looking for something not too expensive, easy to use and download, and the light would be great given that the other half hates when I leave the light on to read. Or would it be just as well to buy a kindle from Tesco at the cheap price and buy a cover with a light?

jester77

Little Ted wrote: »

so if I wanted to go for one of these where would I get one? is it better, worse or equal to a kindle?
basically looking for something not too expensive, easy to use and download, and the light would be great given that the other half hates when I leave the light on to read. Or would it be just as well to buy a kindle from Tesco at the cheap price and buy a cover with a light?

At the moment they are unfortunately only available in the US, but rumour has it that they will be expanding into Europe soon. They have registered a GmbH company here in Germany earlier in the year, so it's probably going to happen, no one knows when.

The device itself only got mixed feedback anyway, their lighting solution didn't get the best of reviews. Whether the new Kindle can pull it off remains to be seen.

I have a clip on light on my kindle for bed and I find it a little awkward, it doesn't clip on so well. You will find that the bottom of the kindle generally doesn't get enough light compared to the top from these lamps, especially as the batteries get weaker. My girlfriend has the keyboard kindle and the cover with the lamp built in. It's a better solution as it uses the power from the kindle itself but it adds a lot of bulk to it which I don't like.

If you don't mind the bulk I would go with the lighted cover but I remember reading that the new v4 kindles with the lighted cover are not as good as the older v3 (keyboard version) lighted cover.