Anyone own a kindle?

[Zorrofan]

As you may have already guessed, old Zorro is not one of those new tech whiz types, so I need some advice from you young'ns. I am looking for a device which will help me read annual reports (PDF) and on-line materials (books, magazines) but at the same time will be easier on my eyes and allow me to do it from the comfort of my easy chair.  My first question is am I better off with a laptop or a kindle?  I know a kindle can be used to read books and PDFs but is it easier to read than a computer monitor? i.e is it easier on the eyes than staring at my computer? How hard is it to download these types of materials to a kindle and do you do it directly to the kindle or off of your computer?  Any help is appreciated....

 

thanks

Zorro

[prevalou]

the kindle is better and easier on the eyes, except for pdf. You can download very easely directly to the kindle your materials. And the battery lasts a long time.

[gfp]

I've had several kindles hoping to use them to read SEC filings for years.  The apple iPad has been the device that finally allows me to keep all of my annual reports (in full color), SEC filing pdfs, newsletters, etc..  all on one device.  The application I use is "GoodReader" and with basic tech skills you can easily drag and drop your files over to the ipad on your home wireless network.  You have to keep the screen clean or your finger smudges make small text hard to read.  I travel now with many thousands of documents in a 1/4" device.  It's awesome for a filing nerd.

 

If you want the black and white kindle for the good eInk screen, get the large version, which should handle pdf formatting much better.

[rogermunibond]

Ditto to what globalfinance said.

 

If PDFs are you thing, then the iPad or the Kindle DX.  The regular size Kindle is great for books but awful for 8x11 pdfs.

[CONeal]

globalfinance

 

What GB size is your iPad?  I've been debating this purchase for a while and want to make sure I don't spend more than I need to. 

[ERICOPOLY]

I've had a kindle for more than two years now and it's great.  However I tend to leave it behind these days -- I ditched the Blackberry this summer and bought an IPhone 4.  The phone goes with me everywhere so I installed the Kindle app on the phone and that's where I do most of my reading now. 

[Zorrofan]

I've had several kindles hoping to use them to read SEC filings for years.  The apple iPad has been the device that finally allows me to keep all of my annual reports (in full color), SEC filing pdfs, newsletters, etc..  all on one device.  The application I use is "GoodReader" and with basic tech skills you can easily drag and drop your files over to the ipad on your home wireless network.  You have to keep the screen clean or your finger smudges make small text hard to read.  I travel now with many thousands of documents in a 1/4" device.  It's awesome for a filing nerd.

 

If you want the black and white kindle for the good eInk screen, get the large version, which should handle pdf formatting much better.

 

thanks again for the help folks! globalfinance since you have had both - as PDFs are my main focus, although the ebook thing is appealing, which do you recommend - the ipad or the kindle dx?

 

If I go with the ipad do I need to install a kindle app for ebooks?

 

thanks

Zorro

 

 

[SmallCap]

Has anyone tried out the Nook and found out how it handles SEC filling type documents and PDF's?

 

SmallCap

[ExpectedValue]

Has anyone tried out the Nook and found out how it handles SEC filling type documents and PDF's?

 

SmallCap

 

I don't own a Nook but from the looks of it - any small sized e-reader like a regular Kindle or Nook will be somewhat problematic when displaying SEC filings. This stems from the fact that their screens are smaller and not designed to display content that's printed on 8.5x11 paper.

 

So you can of course still put those filings on it, but you would have to constantly zoom in and out to see things like charts which might be annoying given the fact that e-ink requires the screen to re-draw.

 

Larger E-Readers like the Kindle DX or tablets such as the iPad should not have this issue.

[turar]

Is anybody on this board actually using Kindle DX to read SEC filings? Currently it seems people are theorizing mostly. I'm also looking to buy Kindle DX for this sole purpose, but I'd like to see if it would actually work. From what I understand, you will have to flip the screen horizontally and display half-page at a time to be able to read full-zoomed PDF (half page at a time).

[Guest Bronco]

Four letters - I P A D

 

 

While buying the kindle, make sure you pick it up in your ford duster.

[ERICOPOLY]

The IPAD sucks when you are trying to read in the full sun.  That's where the Kindle really shines (sorry for the pun).

[coc]

I'd recommend the iPad as well, I do all of my reading on there besides books. An app called iannotate lets you mark up the PDF documents with highlights and so forth, which I'd recommend as well. It's an easy system to read and keep up with your annual reports and so forth, without razing a rainforest.

 

[jjsto]

I own the smaller 6" kindle 2.  I love reading books on it.  But, not so much pdf files.  In my opinion the iPad is far superior for reading pdf files.

[Guest valueInv]

If the screen is problem, you might want to wait till Apple releases the next generation of the iPad in January. It may have the retina display which I find much easier on the eye. In fact, between reading on my iPhone 4 and my iPad, I almost reading on the iPhone 4.

 

The iPad is not so good in sunlight but then I never really read outdoors. If I need to, I can find some shade :-)

[Zorrofan]

Is 16 GB enough for the ipad? Or is it better to go with 32?

 

cheers

Zorro

[twacowfca]

More mem is always better.  Take it from an old Mac user. Mac Air, iPad and iPhones R US.  :)

[rogermunibond]

Zorro - one reason to hold off on purchasing an Ipad is the rumor of a 2nd generation Ipad coming Spring 2011.  If it is 1/3 lighter than the current Ipad that will be a big improvement IMO.  Plus, the likelihood of an added camera.

 

http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2010/09/28/new-lighter-ipad-could-include-camera-usb-port-analysts-say/

[alertmeipp]

u may as well never buy any gadgets from apple.

fast outdated version is the norm.

[rmitz]

If the screen is problem, you might want to wait till Apple releases the next generation of the iPad in January. It may have the retina display which I find much easier on the eye. In fact, between reading on my iPhone 4 and my iPad, I almost reading on the iPhone 4.

 

The iPad is not so good in sunlight but then I never really read outdoors. If I need to, I can find some shade :-)

 

Unfortunately, there's no certainty that it will be coming out with the Retina display in January.  But, if it does, I'll be running out and buying 3. :) (I have thus far held off mainly for that reason).

[Zorrofan]

Zorro - one reason to hold off on purchasing an Ipad is the rumor of a 2nd generation Ipad coming Spring 2011.  If it is 1/3 lighter than the current Ipad that will be a big improvement IMO.  Plus, the likelihood of an added camera.

 

http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2010/09/28/new-lighter-ipad-could-include-camera-usb-port-analysts-say/

 

Thanks - after all the feedback i'm leaning more towards the iPad now rather than the Kindle. Waiting for the second generation iPad is a good idea!

 

cheers

Zorro

[nodnub]

Thanks - after all the feedback i'm leaning more towards the iPad now rather than the Kindle. Waiting for the second generation iPad is a good idea!

 

cheers

Zorro

 

It depends where you plan to use it. If you need to read outside I would get a kindle DX.  Even in sunlight it's pretty much as easy to read as real paper.

 

Try taking a laptop outside on a sunny day to get an approximation of what reading on the iPad would be like.  (ipad will be better than a laptop but nowhere near as good as Kindle.)

 

--

Comparison in different lighting environments:

http://www.futile.com/2010/04/ipad-vs-kindle-lighting-test/

 

If you want a color display (not black and white e-Ink like the Kindle) AND you want to read easily outside, then you pretty much need to get a device with a transflective display. 

http://blog.gsmarena.com/pixel-qi-transflective-lcd-trounces-the-ipad-unit-in-broad-daylight/

These don't come installed in many large screen devices yet.

[gfp]

The ipad actually has half the RAM as the iphone 4, making it's processor slower.  New versions will have a better screen, more RAM, cheaper storage, etc...  That is always going to be the case.  Holding off on buying technology because the next version will be better and a better deal doesn't always work the best.  I got the ipad 3G with 64GB of memory the day it came out, mostly because I'm an apple fanboy and get all of their products.  But this thing has paid for itself many times over every month I've had it just by the increased access to corporate filings.  On a small easel it can act as a dedicated screen next to your desktop, just for documents.  Airplane trips are orders of magnitude more productive.

 

The kindle is so much better for reading, but my wife stole mine and 99% of the time I'm not reading it in bright sunlight.

 

Also, there should be competing tablet devices running both Android and Windows out now or very soon.  They will all store and display pdf's well.

[Ballinvarosig Investors]

I have had the lend of a Kindle DX and an ipad for the last few days. Two great devices, but they do different things.

 

If you're looking for a device purely for reading, then the Kindle DX is the only way to go. The e-ink technology really is like reading off paper, I read annual reports off it for a good 5 hours on the trot with no problems whatsoever. Don't forget, when you buy a Kindle, you have free internet for life too. That is incredibly handy if you're on the move.

 

The ipad is a more all-round device. If you're looking for a colourful, contrasty internet browsing experience with full multimedia, then it's great. You can watch films on it, muck around with apps, etc. the sky really is the limit. While reading off it is perfectly fine, my eyes just felt so much less strain with the Kindle.

 

Personally, I have just ordered the Kindle DX for reading, and will stick with my laptop for day to day work. If you're a heavy-duty reader like me, your eyes will thank you for the Kindle ;D

[Munger_Disciple]

Ballinvarosig Investors,

 

You mentioned that with Kindle DX, you get free internet for life. Can you please expand on this? I am curious if Kindle lets you surf the web and access email. TIA!