1.
How much are you willing to spend?The latest versions of the Amazon Kindle or the Barnes & Noble Nook, are priced at $139 and $149, respectively.
If your budget is at the $200 price point, you can get an e-book reader with built-in cellular data that allows you to download books, magazines, and newspapers anywhere within AT&T coverage. Add a $50 premium on top of the Wi-Fi-only models to get 3G wireless connectivity at the $189 Amazon Kindle or the $199 Nook.

If you want to get touch-screen support (and ultimate portability), check out the new Sony Reader Pocket Edition PRS-350 ($179). However, it lacks of wireless option, you will need to download books to your PC first, then transfer them via a USB cable. (For touch-screen support plus built-in Wi-Fi and 3G, you will pay $299 on the Sony Reader Daily Edition PRS-950, which offers a larger 7-inch screen.)

Another price range of the e-reader category is the $249 Barnes & Noble Nook Color. This Android-powered color LCD touch-screen reader is the entry-level e-ink readers, and versatile for its price.

Amazon’s large-screen Kindle DX and the Apple iPad have been the high-end e-book reader market. The Kindle DX costs $379, whereas the iPad’s price ranges from $499 (16GB, Wi-Fi only) to $829 (64GB, Wi-Fi plus 3G). Compared to the aforementioned readers, both of these devices are very expensive, however the iPad is more of a Netbook or laptop competitor than it is an e-book reader competitor. The iPad features a variety of nice features via tens of thousands of downloadable apps that are not available on more-affordable e-readers. The Nook Color can offer some of the same Web browsing and multimedia features as the iPad, and it could be a more powerful competitor as more Nook-compatible apps are introduced in 2011.

2.
How large of a screen (and weight) do you want?Weight does matter, you will have to hold the device in your hands for a long period of time whenever you want to read, and you should consider its size before buying one.

The Sony Reader Pocket Edition PRS-350 is considered the smallest and lightest dedicated e-book reader, which features a 5-inch touch screen and weighs just 5.5 ounces (without a case). With its 6-inch screen, the latest Kindle weighs 8.7 ounces (without case), a bit lighter than its predecessor. The E-ink Nooks also offers a 6-inch screen, weighs 11.6 to 12.1 ounces.

The Nook Color is equipped with a larger 7-inch screen, but it weighs 15.8 ounces. The Sony Reader Daily Edition PRS-950 also boasts a 7-inch screen (e-ink), but weighs only 9.6 ounces.

If you prefer a large 9.7-inch screen, you can consider the Kindle DX or Apple iPad. Both of them weigh at 1.2 pounds and 1.5 pounds (without case) respectively, some customers found these devices to be too heavy to hold for long reading sessions.

All e-book readers allow you to adjust the font size of the content while reading, so even a small screen can display much bigger type than in a book, magazine, or newspaper.

3.
What are your screen preferences: E-ink or color LCD? Touch or not?E-ink: As close as you’ll get to a printed page

Nook, Kindle, and Sony Reader are dedicated e-book readers that use an e-ink screen. The e-ink screens have some disadvantages: they are black and white, and the pages do not refresh as fast as those on an LCD do. Fortunately, they perform an excellent job of reproducing the look of printed paper. However, they are not backlit, so you cannot read in the dark, but you can read them in direct sunlight, this is what you cannot do on an LCD screen.

If you prefer to read at night with e-ink, cases with built-in lights are available for the Kindle, Nook, and Sony Reader models.

LCD: Bright, backlit–and potentially tiring

The iPad’s LCD screen is a vivid, colorful, brilliant display; while the Nook Color is a smaller but still vivid color LCD as well. Both of these devices are full touch screens (the e-ink Nook features a small LCD touch screen for navigation, but its larger e-ink display does not respond to finger swipes). The iPad’s reflective screen makes it difficult to read in bright light, and many users found that the backlight tires their eyes over long reading sessions.

So, which screen is better for reading: e-ink or LCD? If you do not have a problem staring at your laptop or LCD monitor screen for hours on end, or if you enjoy reading in low light without an additional light source, you will probably like the iPad’s screen.If you enjoy reading Web sites, magazines, and newspapers, and want support for interactive children’s books, you will go with color. If you prefer the look of newsprint, or if you enjoy reading outside, an e-ink display is your best choice.

Touch screen: Prevalent but not universal

If you are finding your preference for e-ink versus LCD or touch screen versus keyboard controls; it is recommended to try a few devices before you buy one. Most major e-book readers such as Kindles, Nooks, Sony Readers, Apple iPads, are available at your local Best Buy.

4.
Do you need always-on wireless data?The entry-level Nook, Kindle, and iPad models offer only Wi-Fi for surfing internet; the $189 Kindle, the $199 Nook, the Sony Reader Daily Edition, and the iPads have access to AT&T’s 3G cellular network apart from Wi-Fi. However, the 3G data plan on the applicable Nooks, Kindles, and Sony Readers is free. On the iPad you will pay a monthly fee to AT&T, it is a prepaid monthly service, not a long-term contract; you can cancel or continue any time, no termination fee is required.

The 3G premium on the Nook and Kindle is $50 each; on the iPad, it’s $130, plus the monthly data bill. Is the extra money worth it? It depends on personal preference. Wi-Fi is good enough for an e-book reader. If you plan to travel to a remote area, the desert, mountains, wherever, you can always download and purchase several books in advance and take them with you on the reader.

The iPad features a wide selection of additional online features such as e-mail, video, a full Web browser, social networking, and so on, a 3G data connection can be a more useful feature. However, there are many Wi-Fi hotspots available in public area such as Starbucks giving free Wi-Fi, you will have many ways to get seamless online coverage with your reading device without worrying about 3G network.

5.
Do you need access to your e-books on additional devices?Having your reading collection “in the cloud”, you are able to access your books on multiple devices, through some e-book vendors provide better cross-platform support than others do.

Amazon and Barnes & Noble offer free apps on the iPad, iPhone/iPod Touch, Android phones, BlackBerry phones, Windows PCs, and Macs. In case, you leave the e-reader at home, you can pick up your book right where you left off and continue reading it on your phone or PC screen.

Amazon and Barnes & Noble currently offer the best support for a wide selection of devices. This software is free, it lets you mix and match e-book stores as you want. You can “try before you buy” as each platform provides hundreds to thousands of public-domain books that you can download and read for free.

6.
Do you need support for the EPUB format?EPUB is an open e-book file standard. Using this format, you can receive loaner books from certain online local libraries, as well as download free (mostly public domain, pre-1923) books from a variety of sources, such as Google Books.

Only the Kindle cannot read files in the EPUB format. If you need this format, you will want to steer clear of Amazon’s reader. Thousands of the most desirable public-domain titles are available on the Kindle for free. This does not consider the Kindle’s lack of EPUB compatibility to be a deal breaker on the device. (Convert EPUB files to Kindle-friendly format by using the freeware Calibre software.)

7.
Which device/service offers the best selection of e-books?Amazon’s Kindle store provides the best selection of books overall, with over 700,000 titles. Barnes & Noble comes second, and Kobo, Borders, and Apple follow the rear.

How can you tell if your favorite author or favorite books are available on a particular format? Luckily, most e-book stores can be searched through a standard Web browser.

The iBooks (Apple) is exceptional. You will need the free iBooks app to search Apple’s selection, on a compatible device (iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch).

The most popular e-book readers have compatibility only with one store each: Kindles work with Amazon’s store only; Nooks work with Barnes & Noble only. Tablets and smartphones that provide wider app support are the closest unit to “universal” readers. The iPad can toggle between reading apps from Apple (iBooks), Barnes & Noble (Nook), Amazon (Kindle), Kobo, and many others.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab also offers access to the Android Market. The Kindle app comes preinstalled, and you can also download the Nook, Borders, or Kobo apps. (Don’t expect to ever see Apple’s iBooks app offered on the Android Market.)

Most versatile hardware readers: Apple iPad (Wi-Fi), Apple iPhone/iPod Touch, Samsung Galaxy Tab, Android phones with full Android Market support, Android tablets with full Android Market support.

8.
Do you want more than just reading?The Kindle and e-ink Nook can do some other things, their Web browsers and onboard games are inferior to what you can do on tablets like the iPad, the Galaxy Tab, and even the Nook Color.

The Nook Color is not as versatile as those tablets, but it’s already got a worthwhile Web browser, works as a decent media player (for some audio and video files), and supports Pandora’s free music streaming service. The Nook Color uses a version of the Android operating system, it has existing Android apps such as e-mail app, social media apps (Facebook, Twitter), and real Flash support could go a long way to making the Nook Color a good and affordable tablet for users who do not want to purchase expensive iPad or Galaxy Tab.

An e-book reader is your best choice, if you are only interested in reading books, newspapers and magazines. The Nook Color is a best buy, if you want to add some light Web browsing and the potential for more functionality in the future. If you are looking for something that works like a laptop, offering e-mail, Web browsing, streaming media, games, and so on, you should consider buying a full-fledged tablet.

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