[voltaire]

I'm planning on doing a 6 week walking trip, the Camino de Santiago and will have time on my hands in the evenings. As it's a 780 km walk I can't take my laptop with me nor can I afford the weight of a few books so I'm considering either a Kindle 3g or a pb. How easily is the text to read compared to the Kindle e-ink? Are there many choices in books with the e-reader apps available on the pb? Also, is there anything like an Otterbox type shell for the pb, it'll be in my pack for most of the day. Last question is the weight, need to keep my kit down to 12-15 kg, how much does the pb weigh? Any info appreciated.

[laurah2215]

I use the Kobo app on the PB and I love reading on the PB. I didn't find the glare bad, but I had my screen brightness set lower. You can set the screen brightness to your desire. The PB is pretty solid in the hands but not as heavy as some tablets. It is a nice size to hold and you can easily hold in one hand and flip between pages with a finger. The Kobo has a great assortment of ebooks along with many free ebooks. You can also find a variety of cases for the PB (check out the CB store!).

[BBOttawa]

I read ebooks using the included Kobo app, it's good, and the screen is bright enough to read on the beach (which I've done many times), and doesn't hurt my eyes at all. The Playbook weighs 400grams, less than a kilo, the iPad is around 680grams I believe.

The Crackberry store here has lots of cases for the PB, not sure if they have an Otterbox but I bet they have something similar.

[k_evjen]

My wife has a Kobo Touch, and nothing can beat the e-ink for readability. I've used the Kobo app on my playbook, and I'm not too impressed with it. It works, is pretty much all I can say about it. I've had some problems with formatting in some books, and it has crashed on my a few times. If you want to be able to browse, watch movies, music AND read some books I'd go with the PB. If you are going to be exclusively reading go with something with the e-ink. Can't beat the Kobo Touch's 2 week+ battery life either...

[BBOttawa]

I agree with k_evjen, if all you want to do is read ebooks get a Kindle, they're like $79 now I think. If you want to do more grab a Playbook for $249 from Sears if you buy a case, which it looks like you want anyway. The sale ends soon I believe though, I would guess the price will go back up to $349 at least when they release OS2 with the Android player and native email.

[Chrysalis1156]

I have both a pb and a 3g Kindle. If you're planning to read in the evening on a Kindle you'll need lighting as there isn't any backlight on it. They do sell cases with lights built in. Just thot you should be aware.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[NaijaBerry]

Since you mentioned taking your laptop, you obviously want a bit more than reading and that's what the PB will give you. As far as reading is concerned, its perfect for me. I use the kobo app and the book reader app from appworld. The book reader works great with DRM free epubs. I read a book under the blazing hot sun the other day and even at that, no issues with glare, you can adjust the background within the apps or your screen brightness to compensate. I'd say go for the PB.

[CracklePot]

I own a Kindle and a PB too. The e-ink technology is nice, but what really makes the Kindle shine as a travel reader is the battery life. I can turn wifi off on mine and get the battery to last a month or two. Truly phenomenal battery life.

The PB is my main daily reading device though. Since I had the Kindle before the PB, I already had quite a bit of Kindle ebooks, so now I read them on the PB by "pinning" the ones I want via Kindle's Cloud Reader, which downloads the books to the PB for offline reading.

[notfanboy]

You'll be sleeping in a different place everyday. The Kindle will not require charging for weeks at a time. With the Playbook, you need to top up every couple of days. You will need an external light source for the Kindle though. I recommend the Mighty Bright clip on which is powered by AAA batteries which you could buy at any point in your trip. That clip light can also double as a flashlight in a pinch.

The Kindle and charger is also cheaper and more robust. Just keep it in the bubblewrap envelope it came when storing it in your backpack. It it gets stolen or lost, you only lost $100.

One more thing that the Kindle can do is that it can read out your books to you while you are walking during the day. The text to speech is nowhere near as good as a professional reader, but it is serviceable. Plug in your earphones and the time will pass by quickly when you are on the road. When you resume reading at night, the Kindle will have remembered the place in the book where you last listened to.

[LuayS]

I'v began converting some PDF ebooks using Calibre to the nook epub profile and using PlayEpub to read them great.

[voltaire]

Thanks for the information folks. Will probably buy a kindle 3g for my trip.

[CzechShark]

I'm planning on doing a 6 week walking trip, the Camino de Santiago and will have time on my hands in the evenings. As it's a 780 km walk I can't take my laptop with me nor can I afford the weight of a few books so I'm considering either a Kindle 3g or a pb. How easily is the text to read compared to the Kindle e-ink? Are there many choices in books with the e-reader apps available on the pb? Also, is there anything like an Otterbox type shell for the pb, it'll be in my pack for most of the day. Last question is the weight, need to keep my kit down to 12-15 kg, how much does the pb weigh? Any info appreciated.

The kobo app when using night mode on the PB is fairly decent. Althought nothing beats an actual reader like Kobo with the e-ink technology, it a lot easier on the eyes.
But for ocasional reading the PB is very acceptable.

[shootsscores]

Thanks for the information folks. Will probably buy a kindle 3g for my trip.

No. You should take the PB. It also takes high quality pics and vids.

Now, I'm assuming that you're always going have access to electricity so the PB will need a charge at some point on your 780 km forced march. The charger is very light and will also charge your BB which would also give you bridge functionality.

The Kobo reader works great.

I daresay that if you use the PB to read, take a few vids and occasionally surf the net that the PB charge should last 3-4 days or more.

You could even keep a journal on the PB.

The device is very robust and the OS pretty much indestructible.

If you're taking a long trip and walking is the mode of transportation, the PB will adequately replace 10 pounds of gear and a score of bits and pieces.

[FF22]

If you want to stay in touch and browse then the pb would be nice but it will really need charging quite regularly and that takes time. The kindle 3 will go for weeks on the one charge. I habe the ligbted kindle case and it takes its power from the kindle. There are estimates that with light the battery will last aboout 20+ hours. Plus it is easier on the eyes. I used the k3 on a sierra camping trip.

[shootsscores]

If you want to stay in touch and browse then the pb would be nice but it will really need charging quite regularly and that takes time. The kindle 3 will go for weeks on the one charge. I habe the ligbted kindle case and it takes its power from the kindle. There are estimates that with light the battery will last aboout 20+ hours. Plus it is easier on the eyes. I used the k3 on a sierra camping trip.

Don't need a light for the PB. If the OP is going to be using the PB for an hour or two a day, the charge should last a week. Time to charge is moot as charging can be done while sleeping. How'd the k3's vids look?

[symphara]

I use my PlayBook to read books (ePubs and pdfs). It's very nice, particularly in portrait mode, with an ePub, it feels like a book. I've been considering an e-ink device for a long time but I like the convenience of having the built-in light, and the LCD is not tiresome as I feared, so I'll stick with the PlayBook.

The only thing letting it down a little is quality of the ePub software currently available. None is of commercial quality in my opinion and ironically none is free, although in truth they are inexpensive. The iPad fares better here, but otherwise it's a bit on the large side for reading - plus, a much heavier device and thus harder to use for long periods.