I've loved the Amazon Kindle since I first spent $400 for one in November 2007, and I've loved my Barnes and Noble Nook since I bought it in 2009. When a new device comes out, I make sure I spend some time reading books, trying to upload my own files, and trying to read dubious e-editions of ancient pdf files to see how well an ereader works in real life, which is why I have such a strong affection for my Kobo reader. When it comes to touch screen ebook readers, I was a little reluctant. After all, my iPad has fingerprints. Did I want that on a Kindle screen?
Kindle Touch and Fingerprints
The death of a Kindle 2 brought a Kindle 3 into our home, and now I realize fingerprints are simply not an issue. The screen is so sensitive that one barely needs to touch the Kindle 3 and the pages turn. It is an annoyance at first. I learned that I was not alone in this adjustment. Anyone who has lived with an iPad, Kindle Fire, or Nook Color has learned a certain finger technique, and that has to be adjusted for the Kindle Touch. It initially seems like the pages skip ahead sections, but that is because I expected an immediate response when there is a fraction of a second delay. It is fast enough to be almost immediate, and within the adjustment to that almost lies frustration.
Kindle Touch: Wi-Fi or 3G?
Back in the dark ages of technology, I used to lug around a laptop, then a netbook, and then my Kindle 1 freed me from needing a netbook just for email and reading blogs and newspapers. My iPhone and iPad changed everything again, but for a glorious season I traveled with just my Kindle. The Kindle Touch still has 3G, but it doesn't have the same web browsing experience. You can get to the Amazon Kindle ebookstore and to Wikipedia over 3G, but everything else needs wi-fi if you want the experimental browser. If you have easy access to wi-fi most of the time, you don't need to spend the money on 3G.
Kindle Touch with Special Offers
Sponsoring ads on the Kindle helps reduce costs, which are competitive. At $99, the Wi-Fi Kindle Touch is a good deal, and the ads and special offers are not distracting from reading. There aren't even a lot of details in the ads; you request that Amazon send you information if you are interested in an offer.
We've read a lot of free books with our family Prime membership, and I love the X-Ray feature for books because it is an easy way to track characters and places. For me, the X-Ray and the Prime books are the reasons to prefer a Kindle Touch over the Nook, and the web browser feature seals it because the Nook is more limited than the Kindle. The Barnes and Noble Nook Simple Touch has a $10 discount if you are a B&N member, but I think the Amazon Kindle Touch is a better deal if you don't live in a town where you would read a Nook in the store, especially if you have Amazon Prime. Meanwhile, when I travel, I don't leave home without my trusty Kindle 1. I like the 3G web browser (I miss Kindle Now Now), the keyboard, and the SD card, and those are all features that seem to be extinct or endangered in new ebook readers.
Alex Sharp - Alex Sharp is a teacher who has been keeping Suite101 readers up to date with the latest in audio- and e-book gadgetry since 2008.
