New Nook announced today
 

looks very interesting. ... watching the live blog.
touchscreen, eink, 2 month battery, lots of nice features. 139; wifi- no 3g
jj

Jim Joe, I don't understand the e-readers. Does 'no 3-G' mean I can't read a book if there's no wifi available? Do you have to have wifi to read a book?

Also, if I have a Kindle, does that mean I have to order all my books from Amazon? If I have a Nook, I have to get all my books from Border's? Same question for the other (I can't remember what it's called) from Barnes & Noble? (Or maybe I mixed up which e-reader goes with each store...)

Can somebody explain to me how these e-readers work? I'm thinking about trying out the Nook because:
1. It's in color
2. It's cheaper than the others
3. I belong to the Borders club & get great coupons for books, but there's no Borders nearby. Nook is for Border's, right?

Thanks for any information,
Electronically Illiterate Cheap Judy :wave:

Hi Judy,

I own the Nook from Barnes and Noble and love it. You can buy books from B&N or download from libraries that have electronic books. The ability to download from libraries is the reason we, my SO, better known as My Lover,:laugh: and I chose it over the Kindle. You do not need WI-FI. Once you have downloaded the book it is on your Nook, the same as downloading something to your PC. I'm not a techie but even I manage to borrow books from the library and download them, downloading books from B&N is even easier. B&N also has many free books you can download. I was reluctant to go to an e-reader but I love it.

Hope this helps. Happy reading.

Halle

See, I don't even know which e-reader goes with each store... :doh:

And if the book is downloaded just like your computer, why couldn't my friend read her books while she was on a cruise?

Thanks for the info Halle! :wave:

I don't know why she couldn't read from her e-reader while on a cruise. When we are out working in the Bush (we work in the middle of nowhere Alaska)we can read our Nooks and believe me we do not have internet never mind WI-FI at some of our remote locations.

I bought a nook a year ago and love it. There are so many free ebooks available that I've only had to pay for a couple and have close to a hundred ebooks in my library. I bought the 3g + wi-fi but don't use the 3g anymore since I put in a home network. I think the new nook will be a big winner at that price point.

I've played a bit with the nook color in B&N. It has a lot of nice features and would be a good reader for magazines. However, I think the bright screen could cause some eye strain for a long reading session.

Once you download an ebook onto your reader, laptop or i-pad; you can read it anywhere.

Lots of variables..
 

E readers have lots of variables so I will try to answer your questions and toss in a few extras.
Keep in mind you can go to amazon, or Barnes and Nobles websites, set up an account, download a free app that will allow you to read ebooks on your computer, and you do NOT even need an e reader. Ereaders make it portable and if it has eInk, easier to read than on the computer.
Kindle (Amazon); nook (barnes and noble); there are lots of others; Android (tablets or nook with android operating system).
Use wifi or 3g (data phone service) free to download books from amazon, barnes and noble, borders, libraries, free internet (gutenberg).. lots of places, many older books free)
For reading best is eink. Kindle has it but does not have touch screen (they will in the fall); New nook today has it plus touch screen.. big advantage.
go to barnes and nobles and read up on them.
I think Barnes and Noble claims to have more ebooks. I have found in the past Amazon ebooks are a little cheaper, but lately they have been the same price. Both have lots of free OLDER books.
One NEAT feature both have is you can download a free sample of the first chapter or few of almost any book and read it before you decide to use the book. Each has different sharing policies BUT... both allow you to download each book to MULTIPLE devices.. so you can read it on your wifes computer, your computer, or your ereader.
The Best solution many techies use is to root or boot a nook into an android OS, and then you can go to google market and get thousands of apps including nook app, kindle app, library app, and read them all on ONE device.. and watch movies, surf the internet, listen to music, 40k plus internet radio channels, play games, and basically live too much of your life holding a NOOK android device.
Hope that helps.
JJ

Here are some thoughts-

As mentioned, the e-readers make the books portable. There are several e-readers available, some color and some black and white. The most popular readers are Kindle from Amazon and NOOK from Barnes and Noble.

Kindle currently only comes in black and white and comes in three versions- $189 has WiFi and 3G so you can download over any wireless connection via a direct wired network connection or over an "internal" direct connect phone type service(free and part of the purchase). The $149 has the WiFi but not the 3G (only wireless or direct connect internet) and the $114 has only WiFi and has ads that pop up periodically to cover the lower cost. Currently you can only get books from Amazon but that is supposed to change soon so that you can borrow from libraries. I do not think they currently have a color version.

Nook by B&N has a black and white 3G/WiFi mode for about $189 and a WiFi only for about $149, The Nook has a small color panel at the bottom that is a touch screen for entering commands and such. The Kindle has no touch screen but has a keyboard instead. Nook allows you to download from libraries. (Note- if you share a single account with a friend or space, then you can share books easily, PM me for details)

NOOK Color by B&N is a full color screen and the whole screen is touch sensitive. It is about $210. It is nice for things like magazines or periodicals and includes multiple touch functionality like on the I-phone.

How to choose- go try them. Best Buy carries both I think as well as some of the other brands. B&N carries the various NOOKS. My wife and I (and our daughter) have the B&W NOOK. THe color NOOK tends to glare and is hard to read in the sun (B&W NOOK and Kindle both use e-ink- which is low glare and great for reading outside or in bright lights, just like a paper book). If you GOOGLE "compare nook and kindle" you will find many reviews.

Good luck with your choices.

The new nook announced today replaces the $149 black and white one and is much better. The color nook sells for 249 and is the one I own.
JJ

Yes! Thanks for the information JJ! :wave:

Thanks Cheryl n Cliff!

PS: Don't we have the smartest, most helpful people in the world on this forum? :mademyday: