nook vs Kindle DX no comments
When I look at the search terms and phrases that result in visitors finding my blog I’m seeing a lot of “nook vs Kindle DX”. This is a bit odd, as it is somewhat like comparing apples and oranges – yes, they are both fruit and they both grow on trees, but otherwise they are much different. While both the nook and the Kindle DX are ereaders, they are for the most part aimed at different sets of users.
The Kindle DX ereader is much larger at 10.4 x 7.2 inches. Its 9.7 inch screen will be much better suited for reading documents and periodicals than the nook’s 6 inch screen. On the other hand, at 7.7 x 4.9 inches the nook
will be a more portable ereader. One feature that both ereaders do have in common and that will be of importance for some users is built-in PDF compatibility. Keep in mind though that we have yet to actually use the nook, so we don’t yet know how effective it will be for handling PDF’s.
PDF and document handling aside, if you plan to carry your ereader everywhere with you then the Kindle DX may be a bit too large to be convenient, and you should probably be comparing nook vs Kindle 2. If you will be doing most of your reading at home, the Kindle DX has a beautiful screen with good contrast that is a pleasure to read on. More text fits on the larger screen, so you will be doing less page turns. If you read in bed a lot though, a smaller ereader is probably going to be easier to handle – again, nook vs Kindle 2.
nook vs Kindle 2
For most people thinking about buying a nook, nook vs Kindle 2 (or Kindle Global, which seems to be its current moniker) is a more appropriate comparison. Again, do keep in mind that we have not yet actually been able to use the nook, so while it looks nice in the pictures, we don’t yet know how well it will actually function in real life. Also, if you want one for Christmas, you are out of luck as current pre-orders will not ship until after the new year. Amazon, after running out of stock during the last two holiday seasons, appears to have an ample stock of Kindle ereaders this year.
So let’s look at a few of the features of the nook and the Kindle.
nook Features vs Kindle Features
Appearance
Obviously the nook ereader is a very sexy looking gadget, and I suspect that its appearance alone is probably the primary force behind its apparent success. A lot of people seem to find the Kindle too plain looking. In its defense, the Kindle is all about reading; Amazon has purposely designed it so that there are as few distractions as possible, making it easy to immerse yourself in your reading.
The 3.5 inch LCD touchscreen below the nook’s reading screen is a clever idea, at least on paper. It not only looks nice, it potentially adds some of the benefits of a touchscreen without the drawbacks ( i.e. the touchscreen on Sony’s ereaders causes serious readability issues). It remains to be seen if it functions really well as a navigational device without adding unwanted distractions to your reading.
eBook Lending and Sharing
Being able to share your ebooks with your friends was a much lauded feature when the nook ereader was announced, but it now appears to be more hype and wishful thinking than actual benefit. With the nook you can loan a
book only once and only for 14 days. You cannot read the ebook while it is being loaned out. Worst of all, publishers must opt-in to allow book lending and I suspect getting some publishers to go along with this is going to be worse than pulling teeth. Some publishers have already stated that they will not allow their books to be shared.
eBooks can be shared by up to 6 (in most cases) Kindle ereaders if the Kindles are registered to the same account. This works best for families who have several Kindles. It could also work for a group of unrelated Kindle owners as long as they trust each other enough to share a credit card.
Wireless Connection
The nook ereader has a wireless connection which only lets you connect to Barnes and Noble, and can only be used to purchase and download books. Amazon’s Kindle ereaders not only let you purchase and download books wirelessly, but also have rudimentary web browsing ability. With a Kindle ereader you can check your email if you need to, research your reading on Wikipedia, etc.
The nook ereader also has Wi-Fi, which the Kindle lacks. Barnes & Noble says that you will be able to use this feature to get additional content if you take your nook with you into one of their stores. We’ll have to wait and see how valuable of a feature this turns out to be.
Storage
Both the nook and the Kindle ereaders should hold around 1,500 ebooks. The nook also has a microSD slot so that you can add more memory if you need to.
Audio
The Kindle and the nook ereaders both support MP3 files, but in addition the Kindle also supports Text to Speech. This feature must be allowed by a book’s publisher, and is not meant to replace audiobooks performed by voice actors, but it can be a very useful feature.
Barnes and Noble eBook Store vs Kindle Store
This is a BIGGIE! Ereaders are for reading books, right? So obviously you want access to the most-est and the best-est at the cheapest! In my opinion this is the most important feature of all when it comes to nook vs Kindle. 
Barnes and Noble claim to have over a million ebooks available. The vast majority of these are out of copyright public domain titles from Google. These also include many duplicate titles from different editions.
The Kindle Store has over 380,000 titles available. While this sounds like much less, in fact many more current (as opposed to public domain) titles are available at the Kindle store than pretty much anywhere else. This is especially true if your reading takes you off of the beaten paths of the best seller lists. The more esoteric your reading tastes, the more likely you are to find what you are looking for on the Kindle.
As for books in the public domain, the Kindle Store has a lot of the most popular of these. You can also download more of these titles in a Kindle ereader friendly format from other sources. You can even download directly from Google and use a conversion program such as Calibre to get a format that will work on Kindle ereaders.
As for ebook pricing, with few exceptions the Kindle Store is cheaper than Barnes & Noble. With a few titles the price difference is small, but in many cases it is quite significant.
In availability and price comparisons I’ve done the Kindle Store wins hands down.
Pricing
As to the prices of the nook and Kindle Global ereaders,
There are also refurbished Kindle 2 ereaders
£149.00
£109
