Ereaders can stuff a whole bookcase into a tool that matches in your pocket. They beat studying on a cellphone or pill because of their E Ink screens which might be simpler in your eyes. And the textual content shows so clearly, printed pages look virtually fuzzy by comparability. Some screens are even obtainable in coloration now. We’ve examined fashions from all the key manufacturers to provide you with suggestions for a funds decide, one with buttons and the perfect ereader total.
What to search for in an ereader
Loads of apps, together with the Kindle app, will allow you to obtain and browse digital books on a cellphone or pill. However what makes e book readers totally different is the display: practically all of them use know-how from an organization referred to as E Ink. It manufactures digital paper shows (EPD) composed of three sheets: one containing hundreds of thousands of microcapsules crammed with black and white ink particles sandwiched between clear electrode layers. When a cost is utilized, both the black or white particles shift to the highest, forming letters and the whitespace round them.
As a result of these shows are so totally different from customary LED panels, you’ll be able to count on most ereaders to do quite a few issues properly. They’ll be simpler to stare at for lengthy intervals of time and simpler to learn in direct daylight. Additionally, since E Ink shows solely require energy to rearrange the ink, these gadgets have for much longer battery lives than even the perfect tablets: we’re speaking weeks, not days.
The ereader market just isn’t as saturated as, say, the smartphone market, however there are nonetheless loads of choices on the market and so they do have small however vital variations amongst them. They have an inclination to vary from round $100 to greater than $400, although often the upper finish choices are stylus-enabled learn/write E Ink tablets just like the Kindle Scribe. Past worth, you need to take into account bodily properties like buttons, lights, storage and backbone, in addition to how the software program permits you to discover and entry books.
Studying options
With any ereader, you’ll navigate the OS through faucets and swipes, and a few add bodily page-turn buttons. Most with built-in buttons have an auto-rotating display so you’ll be able to press along with your proper or left hand.
As E Ink know-how has superior, decision has vastly improved – even the funds Kindle ereader has a 300 ppi show. You’ll be able to nonetheless discover fashions with decrease decision, however we don’t suggest them.
Some ereaders have entrance LEDs that help gentle temperature adjustment. Meaning you’ll be able to change to a hotter gentle after the solar goes down, which can really feel simpler on the eyes. For those who’re involved about blue gentle, you need to go for a reader with that characteristic.
Different options
The capabilities of those pocket libraries have superior significantly for the reason that early days. Along with storing books, some allow you to browse the online, run apps and play music. The display’s body charge can’t deal with gaming, however it’s ok to point out you the Wikipedia entry for New Zealand’s South Island when you learn Birnam Wooden.
For those who hearken to audiobooks, it’s your decision a Bluetooth-enabled ereader able to enjoying them. A lot of the fashions we examined have that capacity, with the notable exception of the Nook ereader we tried. Remember the fact that audiobook recordsdata can take up extra space than print recordsdata so you will in all probability need a gadget with a better storage capability if you happen to plan on doing a number of listening.
Above all, you need to take into account the place and the way you propose to seek out books to learn. Most ereaders make it best to buy via their very own e book retailer, however all of them (even Kindles) will now allow you to obtain titles from different sources, like libraries, unaffiliated e book sellers and free public area websites.
get books in your ereader
Kindle, Nook and Kobo all have their very own shops that you just entry immediately from every model’s gadgets. Costs are pretty aggressive among the many sellers, too – as I write this, the present NYT bestselling fiction e book is $13 at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, eBooks.com and the Kobo retailer. The highest nonfiction launch, The Anxious Era, prices $16 in any respect 4.
Amazon gives Kindle Limitless for $12 per thirty days, and it contains 4 million titles from which you’ll be able to decide your subsequent learn. It contains audio and ebooks, however you gained’t discover many large, new releases or older bestsellers. Kobo has a subscription referred to as Kobo Plus with about 1.3 million titles: it goes for $8 per thirty days for ebooks solely, $8 for audiobooks solely or $10 for each.
Shopping for a e-book from a proprietary retailer immediately delivers it to your gadget, offered you’re linked to WiFi. It additionally syncs your studying throughout gadgets and apps, so you’ll be able to decide up the place you left off in your cellphone if you happen to forgot your ereader at dwelling. It really is probably the most handy approach to go, however if you happen to don’t wish to be locked into one model’s retailer, or if you happen to go for an ereader with out its personal market, you do have choices.
add ePubs onto an ereader
Shops like ebooks.com and Google Play have hundreds of thousands of ebooks on the market as digital rights-managed (DRM) ePub recordsdata, which practically all present ereaders (excluding Kindles) can show. Titles from some publishers like Tor and public area classics from websites like Venture Gutenberg are additionally bought as ePubs, however with out the added DRM. Consequently, Kindles do help these recordsdata. Books you get from third-party sources will look similar to ones you got from a proprietary retailer, because of the flowable, formatted nature of ePub recordsdata. Whereas these device-agnostic e book collections offer you additional choices for locating your subsequent learn, they require a number of further steps to get the recordsdata onto your ereader.
To take action, you’ll usually want a pc operating a free program referred to as Adobe Digital Editions (ADE). After shopping for and downloading the ePub file, open ADE and plug your ereader into your pc. Your gadget ought to pop up within the left panel. Drag and drop the ePub file out of your downloads folder into the principle panel in ADE. The file will show as a picture of the e-book cowl. Drag that picture onto your gadget on the left panel. If the file contains digital rights administration (which protects towards unauthorized copying) you’ll have to authorize your ereader, which requires utilizing or making a free Adobe ID. When you’ve completed including recordsdata to add, eject the reader out of your pc to finish the switch course of.
Kindles use a web-based uploader as a substitute of the ADE technique. However since Kindle makes use of its personal proprietary DRM know-how as a substitute of Adobe’s, the one recordsdata it could actually settle for from third events are non-DRM recordsdata, similar to from Tor Publishing or Venture Gutenberg. After downloading a suitable ePub file, drag and drop it into your browser with the Ship to Kindle web page open. So long as you’re signed into Amazon, this wirelessly transfers the recordsdata to your related gadget.
Boox additionally makes use of a browser uploader referred to as BooxDrop (together with many different strategies) to ship ePubs to the gadget. Open it from the Boox App menu and also you’ll see a device-specific url. Sort that into your browser to entry a file supply portal that uploads to your library. Boox’s built-in ereader app, NeoReader, additionally doesn’t help recordsdata with DRM, so that you gained’t be capable of learn present titles from most publishers utilizing that app. Thankfully, Boox gadgets run practically each ereader app on the market, Kobo and Kindle included, letting you entry ePubs any variety of methods.
learn library books on an ereader
Your native library card permits you to borrow audio and ebooks via a program referred to as Overdrive and its companion app Libby. On a Kobo, you might have have built-in entry to Overdrive in a separate tab. When you’ve linked your library card, the search perform will embody outcomes for titles obtainable out of your native library; a number of faucets will add your choices to your gadget for the size of the mortgage. I personally discover it best to borrow the title I would like via the Libby app on my cellphone. After that, the e-book pops up on my Kobo’s dwelling display as soon as the gadget syncs.
To learn library books on a Kindle, you’ll be able to both undergo the Libby app or the Overdrive part of your library’s web site. When you click on Borrow, you’ll see the choice to “Read now with Kindle,” which takes you to Amazon’s website to register. After that, the e-book can be delivered to your gadget the subsequent time it connects to WiFi.
For different ereaders, you’ll undergo your library’s Overdrive portal and obtain the ePub after clicking the Borrow button. You’ll be able to then use the ADE course of we described above. Gadgets that run exterior apps, just like the Boox Leaf 2, will let you learn library books through the Libby app, simply as you’d on a smartphone or pill.
You may as well use the Libby app to borrow audiobooks, however you gained’t be capable of entry them via your ereader. (The exception is an ereader, just like the Boox Leaf 2, that enables exterior apps). I discovered it was simpler to hearken to an audiobook on my cellphone anyway, no matter whether or not I borrowed it via Libby or purchased it from Kindle or Kobo.
How we examined
When placing collectively any information, the very first thing we do is spend hours researching the sphere. We have a look at what’s obtainable, what’s new, and what buyers {and professional} reviewers must say. Then we slender an inventory to the perfect candidates for hands-on testing.
I ended up getting eight ereaders, representing 5 totally different manufacturers: Amazon, Kobo, Barnes & Noble, Boox and PocketBook. I purchased, borrowed and uploaded books for every gadget utilizing the strategies above. Over the course of 4 weeks I evaluated each within the areas of e-book entry, ease of studying, additional options and total worth. Right here’s every thing we examined to date:
One of the best e book readers for 2024
Picture by Amy Skorheim / Engadget
Display screen measurement: 6” | Decision: 300 dpi black & white, 150 dpi coloration | Capability: 16GB | Waterproof ranking: IPX8 (submergible to six ft for 60 minutes) | Heat gentle: Sure | Lock display adverts: No
Learn our full Kobo Clara Color assessment
Our earlier decide for this class, the Kobo Clara 2E was a superb ereader with a crisp show, a heat glow and responsive, intuitive contact controls all housed in a water-proof gadget that felt premium. When Rakuten introduced the Clara can be up to date, I nervous we’d see a tool with superfluous revamping to justify an inflated worth. Fortunately, that’s not the case. The Kobo Clara Color not solely provides coloration and a sooner processor, it’s simply $10 greater than the earlier era.
Because the title suggests, this ereader provides coloration to the web page, lending slightly vibrance to e-book covers, tables and graphs, and even the panels of graphic novels. The know-how comes from E Ink, within the type of the Kaleido 3 module that includes a coloration filter layer on high of the usual black and white microcapsule layer. That ends in two totally different resolutions on one display: 150 dpi for coloration and 300 dpi for textual content.
Full-color pages remind me of comedian e-book artwork from the ‘60s, muted but saturated. Color makes book covers more enticing and adds a little variety to headings, and tables in some non-fiction books. It’s definitely not a vital characteristic, however it provides vibrance and it’s enjoyable. There’s a slight distinction in readability between the colour and non-color model of the Clara. For those who look carefully, you’ll be able to see a little bit of noise on the white elements of the web page. That is as a result of added coloration filter layer. It is not distracting and solely one thing I seen when evaluating the 2 generations side-by-side. but when absolute readability is your main objective, chances are you’ll be higher off with a non-color ereader.
In all probability the extra helpful improve right here is the twin 2GHz processor, a bump from the Clara 2E’s 1GHz CPU. There’s a noticeable enchancment within the velocity of the web page turns and navigating from the menu to the web page and again once more is sort of instantaneous. As with the 2E, the Color hardly ever errors a swipe for a faucet or a web page flip gesture for a menu request.
The adjustable heat entrance gentle continues to be right here (it’s truly slightly hotter on the Color) and makes studying at night time simple on the eyes. The working system is similar, with intuitive entry to the Kobo retailer, your private books and titles out of your native library through Overdrive. You’ll be able to customise your studying expertise with choices for font, font measurement, line spacing, margins and so forth. Kobos don’t have a approach to save a gaggle of show settings just like the Kindle does, so I’d like to see that added with future OS upgrades. However for now, the customizations are simply sufficient to get your e-book the way you need it to look.
The Color is sort of equivalent in form and measurement, and has the identical premium really feel because the 2E, although the plastic has a grainier end. The bezels are noticeably much less flush with the display now, although that didn’t alter my studying enjoyment.
Now that it prices $150, the Kobo Clara Color is $50 greater than the bottom mannequin Kindle. However the waterproof construct, heat entrance gentle, responsive controls and lack of adverts (which price $20 to do away with on Amazon’s gadget) make it value it. And, in nice information for the proper to restore crowd, it’s even designed to be user-repaired as soon as it falls exterior of guarantee via a partnership with iFixit.
- Customizable settings
- Much more responsive contact controls
- Colour is nice and textual content is crisp
- Kobo’s retailer not as huge as Kindle’s.
Picture by James Trew / Engadget
Display screen measurement: 6” | Decision: 300dpi | Capability: 16GB | Waterproof ranking: None | Heat gentle: No | Lock display adverts: Sure
Amazon has dominated within the ereader house for therefore lengthy that I used to be shocked when a Kindle gadget didn’t win me over. A Kobo might have taken the highest spot right here, however nothing can beat the customary Kindle in relation to worth. It’s listed at $100 however has gone on sale each few months since its debut in October 2022, generally for as little as $75.
With it, you’ll be able to entry the perfect of what Amazon has to supply, together with many unique titles. Kindle Unique is a catalog made up of one million titles, together with books by established authors in addition to newer, self-published writers; Kindle Limitless gives the widest number of any subscription-based studying service on the market; and Audible Originals is made up of narrated titles and podcasts you’ll be able to solely hear via a Kindle gadget or Amazon-owned app.
For those who like to modify between audiobooks and ebooks, Kindle is the way in which to go. If you purchase each iterations of a title, you not solely get a reduction, however the Whispersync characteristic strains up the place you might be within the e-printed model with the narration, too. Say you hear for an hour after which wish to learn – the synchronization permits you to decide up on-screen the place you left off audibly. (Although we should always level out that you would be able to’t hear and browse concurrently on the identical gadget.) In assessments, the characteristic was pretty correct, getting me shut sufficient on the web page or within the audio to determine my spot.
The usual Kindle doesn’t really feel significantly luxurious, however it doesn’t really feel low cost both. The shell has a velvety end that doesn’t accumulate fingerprints, however I discovered myself wishing it had extra texture for a greater grip. Navigating from a web page to the menu isn’t as speedy as Paperwhite or the Kobos we tried. And it takes a number of moments to wake from sleep after hitting the button and swiping.
Web page turns are fast, however the touchscreen gestures didn’t all the time do what I wished them to. I’d usually discover the web page skipping ahead once I thought I’d tapped to return. There’s no heat gentle, which didn’t trouble me through the day, however at night time it felt like I used to be nonetheless looking at my pc.
Kindle’s studying customization is nice, letting you dial within the font, measurement and margins. You’ll be able to even save a set of settings as a “theme,” one thing not supplied by different gadgets. I created one with bigger textual content and wider line spacing referred to as “tired eyes.”
Some folks gained’t be bothered by the lock display adverts that come customary on each Kindle gadget (except you pay to take away them). They’re pretty innocuous, largely selling Kindle e-book offers or particular titles (it’s not such as you’ll see promos for TVs or robotic pool cleaners).
Personally, I like with the ability to set the sleep display to the e-book cowl of what I’m at the moment studying, however it’s simple to recover from that if all you need is a extra handy approach to eat books on the lowest worth. It is also value noting that the Kindle Children is similar gadget however comes with a canopy, an extended guarantee and goes on sale extra regularly than the usual model.
- Inexpensive
- Kindle e book choice is big
- Good integration between ebooks and audiobooks
- Good customization choices
- Not waterproff
- No heat gentle
- Lock display adverts
Picture by Amy Skorheim / Engadget
Display screen measurement: 7” Decision: 300 dpi black & white, 150 dpi coloration | Capability: 32GB | Waterproof ranking: IPX8 (submergible to six ft for 60 minutes) | Heat gentle: Sure | Lock display adverts: No
When Kobo got here out with the brand new Clara Color, it additionally debuted the , which is likely to be the extra thrilling of the 2 gadgets. Along with coloration know-how from the E Ink Kaleido panel and an upgraded processor, the Libra now has stylus help. It’s the one ereader on this checklist with that characteristic, making it loads like a small — however all of its new options truly make it a greater ereader.
After I wrote concerning the earlier era ereader, the Libra 2, I used to be impressed by how comfy it was for studying. None of that has modified; the buttons and auto-rotating display adapt the gadget to simply about any studying place you selected and the skinny design, textured again and soft-touch plastic give it a premium really feel.
Kobo’s interface is sort of the identical right here as with different fashions, properly organized to allow you to simply discover your present reads or browse and search new titles from Kobo’s retailer or your native library within the Overdrive tab. The customizations for gentle and textual content allow you to get the web page trying simply the way you prefer it, however there aren’t so many choices that it feels such as you’re writing code.
The brand new options add to the expertise. In coloration, e-book covers all look extra attractive — although, in case your TBR checklist is already three ft lengthy, this gained’t not assist issues. The brand new processor makes waking from sleep, turning pages, navigating the menu and altering orientation zippy quick.
Then there’s the standing compatibility. Strive as they may, some new applied sciences their real-world counterparts. That’s largely how I really feel about styluses — I’m only a large fan of pen on paper. However Kobo’s stylus makes it so enjoyable to spotlight textual content and scribble notes within the margins of a e-book that I’m beginning to come round. Plus, it neatly and magnetically attaches to the aspect so it doesn’t get misplaced.
Urgent and holding the button on the aspect of the stylus highlights textual content whereas flipping it round erases. I by chance pressed the button a number of instances once I was making an attempt to jot down, however I obtained used to the position after a couple of minutes of utilizing it. You’ll be able to decide from 4 totally different highlighter colours and think about your written notes and spotlighted textual content within the notes part of any title — which I may see being fairly helpful for e-book membership reads, faculty assignments or simply refreshing your self on a previous learn earlier than you dive into the sequel.
Writing within the margins or immediately on the textual content labored on each e-book I attempted. Although I ought to level out that if you happen to change the font measurement in a e-book, your handwritten notes can be transformed to a sticky note-type field. Going again to the unique font restores your authentic scribbles.
The Kobo Libra Color is $30 dearer than the Libra 2, however you get loads for $220. If it had been simply an ereader, the stunning colours, responsive studying expertise, quick web page turns and straightforward highlights would make it well worth the worth. However you additionally get options that make it extra than simply an ereader, like Dropbox and Google Drive integration, a beta internet browser and free-writing and text-converting notebooks.
In fact, the stylus prices additional and also you gained’t get options like notebooks and writing within the margins with out it. Collectively, the set prices $290, which continues to be $50 cheaper than the most well-liked stylus-enabled ereader, . That one does have an even bigger, 10-inch display, which, for me, is slightly large for an ereader. The Libra Color however has simply the precise options on the proper measurement, plus some extras that stretch its usefulness.
- Premium construct that is comfy to carry
- Crisp textual content and wonderful colours
- Responsive and intuitive contact controls and buttons
- Including the stylus permits for margin notes
- Kobo’s retailer is much less huge than Kindle’s
Picture by Amy Skorheim / Engadget
Display screen measurement: 7” | Decision: 300dpi | Capability: 32GB | Waterproof ranking: None | Heat gentle: Sure | Lock display adverts: No
Boox launched the Web page in the course of final yr as a substitute for the now-discontinued Leaf 2. Stacked side-by-side, the 2 look equivalent: each have 7-inch E Ink screens, two handbook page-turn buttons and a skinny, light-weight design.
Inside, the Web page has an additional gig of RAM, an upgraded Qualcomm CPU and an even bigger 2,300mAh battery, up from 2,000mAh on the Leaf 2. The batteries final so lengthy already — on the order of some weeks — so I didn’t discover a big distinction there, however the additional processing energy and reminiscence has noticeably upped the wake velocity, effectivity in opening apps and page-turning velocity.
It nonetheless runs on a fork of Android 11, which suggests the Web page acts extra like a pill than a standard ereader. Just like the Leaf 2, it’s finest fitted to the tech-savvy — you’ll get little hand-holding in setup and utilization. The pill is impressively customizable, with programmable buttons and fine-tunable settings. Boox customers have created APK recordsdata to tweak and enhance your expertise additional. The gadget even has audio system and may run apps like Spotify. In brief, the Web page can do excess of a typical ereader can, if you happen to’re prepared to experiment.
However the ereader expertise can be fairly good. The tender, adjustable entrance gentle with temperature management makes for nice low-light studying and the flush, glare-free, 300dpi display is crisp and detailed. Boox has its personal app library or you should utilize Google Play to seek for and obtain apps very like on a smartphone or pill. You’ll be able to even get ereader apps from different producers, together with Kobo and Kindle, and set up Libby to learn borrowed books from the library.
Boox’s built-in ereader app, NeoReader, is properly featured with an excellent quantity of management over the look of the textual content. Nevertheless it solely handles DRM-free ePubs from websites like Venture Gutenberg or publishers like Tor. If you wish to learn ePubs with digital rights administration, which make up the overwhelming majority of present ebooks, you’ll want to make use of a distinct app. In fact, you might take away the rights administration from the recordsdata, however that’s technically unlawful, even after you “own” the e-book.
- Succesful, customizable pill
- Helps a number of ereader apps
- Strong construct with a crisp display
Picture by Amy Skorheim / Engadget
Display screen measurement: 6.13” Decision: 300 dpi | Capability: 128GB | Water-resistant: Sure, splashes and spills | Heat gentle: Sure | Lock display adverts: No
Boox makes two sizes of its ereader. The is smaller than the , doesn’t have buttons and goes for about $80 much less. However after making an attempt it, I don’t suggest it. It’s laggy and getting the Google Play Retailer to work was a ache. As soon as I did, web page turns in apps like Kindle had been excruciatingly sluggish.
The Boox , nevertheless, is sort of enjoyable. It’s the identical measurement and form as a smartphone and, in a number of methods, acts like one. The house display is a muted black and white model of what you would possibly discover on a typical Android — you’ll be able to even add a number of widgets. Just like the Web page, it could actually obtain and run apps from the Google Play Retailer and has audio system to play music and movies. The E Ink display (a Carta 1200) renders textual content crisply, however photographs, significantly shifting ones, look far grainier and rougher than they’d on an actual cellphone’s LED display. That stated, the video high quality is the perfect I’ve seen on an E Ink display, because of a software program enchancment Boox calls Tremendous Refresh Expertise.
However make no mistake, it’s not going to exchange your cellphone. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are the one connectivity and the 16MP digital camera is only for making doc scans you’ll be able to convert to PDFs. However the phone-like construct is comfortingly acquainted and the E Ink display is beautiful to learn. At $280, it’s dearer than a typical ereader — and a few E Ink tablets — however it’s a extremely transportable approach to learn Kindle, Kobo, Google Books and different ePubs, whereas additionally dealing with easy video games and apps like a smartphone. For those who’re sick of the glow of your handset, the Boox Palma is a captivating various.
