I recently came back from vacation where I did a lot of reading and relaxing by the poolside and found that the perfect sidekick for me was the Amazon Kindle that I had acquired about 6 months ago. Because I got it during the winter months I really didn’t have the opportunity to test it out in full sunlight but when you compare how it performs vs. a color screen display of a notebook, iPhone or iPad there is no comparison. My biggest problem with the Kindle is its single functionality that leaves me wanting more. But as an ebook reader it works great. It was funny though to watch my wife trying to use it after working with her iPhone and trying to swipe the screens to move the pages like you do on the iPhone or iPad. I have to admit that swiping your finger across the screen is a very natural movement.
This device which has support for the touch screen technology, is in color, has an SD card slot and integrates with the Barnes and Noble eBookstore. So while this may not effect Kindle sales, it may have a definite impact on the Nook. It is only rated for 6 hour battery life though which is on the low side, but it does support PDF, ePUB and HTML, has a web browser and a media player for enjoying music, photos and videos. I’m sure playing videos will shorten the battery life even more. The biggest difference is the price though. At just $199 it becomes very appealing as an entry level device.
Built-in Features:
- 7 Inch Color Touch Display with 800x600 pixel resolution
- Wi-Fi Built in
- Android Operating System
- Web Browser
- Media Player that allows you to view Pictures, Videos, and listen to Music
- Appointment Calendar
- Alarm Clock
- Email Client
- USB Port to transfer files
- SD Slot supports up to 32gb flash memory cards
- EBook reader supports: dictionary lookups, allows note taking, word search, font resizing, bookmarks
Pros:
- Android Operating system could lead to more applications this unit could support down the road
- 7-inch touch screen with 800x600 pixel resolution
- SD Slot-opens expandability
- Wi-Fi opens access to web based storage and applications and of course web browsing (don’t know if it supports flash)
- Multiple eBook format support (PDF, EPUB and HTML)
- Price $199.99
Cons:
- While it has a media player I don’t see any support for Audible.com audio format.
- 6 Hour battery life
- Using this outside in the sun’s glare would not be easy on the eyes
- Weights 16 ounces
- No app store for add-ons yet…
Move over Nook, here comes the $199 Pandigital Novel | ZDNet
Pandigital, B&N partner on $200 color e-reader | Crave – CNET
A Novel Idea From Pandigital: an Android-Powered E-book Reader - Yahoo! News