[sashlon]

I've read here and there about people using the PB for ereading, but I had never tried it until recently. The native Kobo app is junk unfortunately, and I can't even get it to open anymore. I sideloaded Kindle and android Kobo. Kindle was deleted pretty fast because you can't sideload books onto the app. Kobo was okay, but not as good as I hoped.

Then I found Playepub and Book Reader in the App world. I bought them both after reading the reviews. I think I like Playepub better, but it's a bit buggy. Overall, either of these is a pretty cool reading app. I've loaded all of my books onto my PB and I'm good to go. My Sony Reader is going on ebay. This is a real plus for the PB for me. Just the right size foreign ereading.

Now we just need RIM to come to the party with some ebook consumption apps, so we don't need to sideload everything.

[anon(3870164)]

I am still using Kindle, you can sideload .mobi ebooks actually, just drop to the /misc/android/kindle folder.

[kill_9]

I read books and documents on the BlackBerry PlayBook but e-ink tends to be easier on the eyes for extended reading. I dim the backlighting to about 45% which helps.

[Chrysalis1156]

I've stopped reading on my Kindle as well. I love Book Reader and now it's pretty much all I use. I use the black background with white text and am able to read at night while my hubby happily snores on. Happy reading!

[kb5zht]

What books will Playepub and Book Reader accept? I mean, what format? Will it read Kindle books?

[PanaSama]

What books will Playepub and Book Reader accept? I mean, what format? Will it read Kindle books?

Playepub reads .EPUB format books (the most popular e-book format), Book Reader supports .EPUB and .MOBI wich is the format Kindle uses, bear in mind that both of them don't support books with DRM so if you are buying your books from the Kindle store (or Nook, Kobo, etc) you will need to have that DRM removed, there is a great e-book manager software for the PC called Calibre that can remove the DRM with the help of some plugins.

IMO the best e-reader on the PlayBook is Book Reader, hands down, it's even better than the sideloaded Kindle app, the UI is a bit bare bones but it renders the books perfectly, in comparition books on Playepub looks like youre reading them from a text editor.

[jivegirl14]

I've read here and there about people using the PB for ereading, but I had never tried it until recently. The native Kobo app is junk unfortunately, and I can't even get it to open anymore. I sideloaded Kindle and android Kobo. Kindle was deleted pretty fast because you can't sideload books onto the app. Kobo was okay, but not as good as I hoped.

Then I found Playepub and Book Reader in the App world. I bought them both after reading the reviews. I think I like Playepub better, but it's a bit buggy. Overall, either of these is a pretty cool reading app. I've loaded all of my books onto my PB and I'm good to go. My Sony Reader is going on ebay. This is a real plus for the PB for me. Just the right size foreign ereading.

Now we just need RIM to come to the party with some ebook consumption apps, so we don't need to sideload everything.

I've actually done the exact opposite and bought the Kindle Touch ereader since getting the Playbook.

I found I don't enjoy reading on the Playbook as much as I thought I would... Although Epub book reader and PlayEPub are both great (the latter is a little buggy and but the former is always updated so they are both pretty good. The Kobo is underwhelming so I rarely used it). Book reader renders books better in my opinion so that was the one I used most.

I never thought I'd get an ereader once I had the Playbook. But a few things I found impacted my reading on the PB...the screen dimming unless I kept touching it, the battery sometimes draining (and the fact that I couldn't read for hours on end without ensuring it's charged - a biggie for me especially for travelling) and the fact that in sunlight it was impossible to see the screen at all. Also I found it a little heavy to hold for reading in bed and a bit harsh on my eyes.

I got my Kindle Touch a couple of weeks ago and absolutely love it. I find reading on it pure joy.. and I'm actually reading more - and faster. I can read it even in bright sunlight and the battery lasts for ages - even when using the nightlight cover at night. It weighs almost nothing. For me it's perfect and more convenient... I am astonished at how much I enjoy reading with it.

I still love my Playbook to bits... I just don't read books on it since getting my Kindle Touch. And I think the issues I had with it are common to all tablets... I don't think reading from a slab of glass gives me the best reading experience (or at least not the experience I want). But it certainly made me think of how I could improve my reading experience.

When I told my friends I got a KindleTouch they said why not just get the Kindle app for the Playbook? I said that I didn't want to sideload it but really it wasn't about apps as I had 2 pretty good ereader apps on my Playbok that I'd been using, it was more about the overall experience.

[FF22]

Jivegirl:

I would have to agree. I'm soon going on a trip and both the pb and my Kindle3 will accompany me. The pb for watching movies on the flight and for browsing and showing pictures and other general entertainment but the K3 for reading in bed, outdoors and for its long battery life and ease on the eyes. Although, I just did sync HungerGames2 on both devices just in case!

[litig8or98]

I read books and documents on the BlackBerry PlayBook but e-ink tends to be easier on the eyes for extended reading. I dim the backlighting to about 45% which helps.

Agreed. I have a PB and a Kindle, and although I'd dearly love to have a working, native Kindle app, it would never actually replace my Kindle. The PB screen is nice, but for reading, doesn't even come close to e-ink, and I like that my Kindle can go more than a month without a recharge.

To each his own, but for me, one would never fully replace the other.

[jivegirl14]

Jivegirl:

I would have to agree. I'm soon going on a trip and both the pb and my Kindle3 will accompany me. The pb for watching movies on the flight and for browsing and showing pictures and other general entertainment but the K3 for reading in bed, outdoors and for its long battery life and ease on the eyes. Although, I just did sync HungerGames2 on both devices just in case!

Totally!
I am off home to the UK in August and with a 7-hour flight it's the PB for films/movies and, as you say, browsing, pictures, and entertainment,and my Kindle Touch for reading on the flight (and at the airport and everywhere else).

This will be the first time I've ever flown without my paperback books... I usually take 3 or 4 with me when I travel. I've loaded several hundred ebooks on my KindleTouch so it's going to be a new (and lighter) experience - where I won't have to worry about the battery. A friend said that some flights have power outlets behind seats now... and I know they do at airports - but I've not spotted them in-flight. I also have hundreds of books still on my PB, doesn't hurt to leave them there.

[Harryl6134]

As some of you know, our family sort of "tiptoed"into the tablet arena, one device at a time. First, I bought a basic Kindle 4 (with special offers). Then my wife bought a Kindle Fire, to try it out, and to entertain our six-year-old granddaughter on a long road trip. About a month later, the PB went back on sale with "fire-sale" pricing, and OS2 was released...about a week before my birthday! The temptation was too much!

As things now stand, my Kindle is in the hands of my son and daughter-in-law, my wife is happy with her Fire, and I'm doing all my reading on the PB.

The point raised above about everything-ink being better in bright light IS valid, though...I'm considering an anti-glare screen protector for the PlayBook. Any suggestions?