I have a laptop, Acer 14 inch, but am thinking I might want a device to read ebooks. I know zero about them. However when I went to the B&N site it seems that the prices are higher for the ebooks than I had anticipated. I looked for Louis L'Amour westerns and they ran over $5. My situation is that I am not physically very active, and when we visit my son in CA, my wife and he can walk on the beach. However, I cannot walk very far, and will spend that time in his house reading. I thought a Nook might be the answer to keep me from carrying a lot of paperbacks. I can read one in a few hours, and would need one per day. Not sure if a Nook is the answer.. All comments and recommendations will be appreciated. Thanks, Jerry
Jerry, since you have a laptop, perhaps all you might need is the free software: NOOK for PC. Another option is Amazon Kindle for PC (there's a download button in the page, no need to send for it). Whichever you choose, afterwards, you'll need to setup an account to download any books and pay for them.
If the books you read contain only texts (not graphics, images, tables or colors), a Kindle is a good option. I have used Kindles for several years, for the last 2 or so a Kindle Paperwhite ($119). I use it every day for 1-2 hours. Battery charge lasts more than a week, the display is very good (for texts). On the other side, it tends to be slow on certain operations. Another option is a smartphone or tablet with a 5.5+ inch display and a good resolution, 1080x1920 or better. You lose the battery advantage and the non-glare screen.
Depending on your location you can get a Amazon Kindle HD 7" for right around $100 brand new. My wife and kids all have one. They use them for reading and netflix.
Another Kindle reader user here (Paperwhite). Would find it hard to be without it as I read so much! Lots of free book offers and also very low priced daily offers on books of all types.
I am going to look at a friend's Kindle next week. The downside of my own wants is the price of the books. I realize that books are high when new, but I frequent a used book store and have credits for returns. That makes 15 or 20 books pretty cheap. But I wanted something when visiting family and not going somewhere with them to read. I do appreciate the comments, and it appears that a Kindle is a much better purchase than the Nook. Regards, Jerry
If you read tech books stay away from any e-ink device with a screen smaller than 10 inch. You can find cheap books at Story Bundle and Humble Bundle. They release new book bundles every two weeks or so. You can also use the subreddit ebooks deals to find good offers.