iPad vs Kindle
For some reason, I’ve been involved in several iPad vs Kindle conversations lately. It seems a number of my friends are considering purchases, either for themselves or their children, and they’re looking for recommendations.
As for technology, I tend to straddle two worlds. As you may know, I’ve done a number of posts about my happy entrance into the world of Apple, and I now own both an iPhone 4S and an Ipad 1. We also have a number of other Apple products in our family. However, I work in tech, and almost everything I work with is Windows based. So I can’t be entirely Apple, because there are things related to work that I need to do/test from home. So I am a technological hybrid, for all intents and purposes.
When it comes to reading, I almost never pick up a book any longer. As I’ve said previously I am a true iConvert when it comes to books. It took a long time for me to want to read on an e-reader, but once I made the leap I’ve never looked back.
As far as iPad vs Kindle goes, I must admit, I started first with iPad. I bought my iPad because I wanted one, and then I discovered the Kindle app (and the iBooks app as well) afterwards. The Kindle app does basically what a Kindle e-reader does, but on your iPad. And oh, how wonderfully! With my iPad Kindle app, I can download books directly from Amazon, just as a Kindle e-reader can do. I can adjust the font size, brightness, make notes – the normal things Kindle can do. But, unlike the Kindle, reading is smooth! Touching either margin moves the pages that direction – right for forward, left for back. Holding the iPad upright gives a long page, while holding it landscape lets you have two pages open at a time. And touching the top right corner sets your bookmark. So easy! And being touchscreen, it just makes the whole process easy and intuitive.
Yes, a Kindle e-reader can adjust font size and brightness, make notes, set bookmarks, and you can even get a touch screen reader now if you’re willing to pay a bit more. But one thing I could not get past was the page changes. Between every page, when you move from one page to the next, the entire screen goes completely black before the next page appears. Yes, I know all about the ink and how it redraws the screen. But that knowledge didn’t improve the experience for me. Would it have bothered me if I’d seen and held a Kindle first? Yeah, I think so, because I looked at videos online before I bought my iPad and I noticed straightaway.
After my husband and I both had iPads, we even considered getting a Kindle just because of price and how light they are to carry around. We went into the store, touched, held and used one, but walked out without it. That screen blacking thing was just too distracting for both of us, and the smoothness and ‘feel’ of the iPad just trumped the Kindle hands-down from our experiences.
So I’m on record as totally iPad. Even having seen and used a new Kindle Fire, thanks to a work colleague, I still don’t want one. I love my iPad, and reading on it is a pleasure. And hey, if I get bored of reading or finish my book, I can use any of the myriad apps I have on my iPad as well. J
About Me
Leanne BennettI'm an American living in England, married to a Brit and the mother of three children. I work for the local council, building and maintaining servers and networks for primary schools.
I think my background, my citizenship, my experiences and my location give me a unique take on life. Herein are my musings on such...
