# £50ish tablet or ereader?



## chilango (Dec 9, 2015)

For Christmas, like.

Someone has a budget of £50-60 to buy me a Christmas present. The cheap Kindle Fire has been suggested. I'm hesitant though.

I could do with a new tablet as my iPad 2 is finally beginning to creak enough to annoy after 5 years of heavy use.

I could also do with a new Kindle as mine is even older, and I do like the look of the Paperwhite. That seems to be out of budget range though.

I've had a quick go on a Kindle Fire, wasn't overly impressed. But it was alright. Anyone know what they're like to read on? 

I suspect a £50 tablet would be too compromised in comparison to my iPad and would gather dust once I get a new, bigger phone. I also suspect that my old Kindle would do a better job as an ereader.

Am I right? Or are there any surprise bargains kicking around? Or is the Kindle Fire actually pretty good really?

Thoughts?


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## DotCommunist (Dec 9, 2015)

a 50 quid tablet is going to be a piece of shit and make you long for that creaky old ipad2. Come back, all is forgiven etc


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## chilango (Dec 9, 2015)

DotCommunist said:


> a 50 quid tablet is going to be a piece of shit and make you long for that creaky old ipad2. Come back, all is forgiven etc


That was my initial reaction.


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## Teenage Cthulhu (Dec 9, 2015)

Amazon are doing the Kindle Fire for £50. 

Buy New Amazon Fire 7 Tablet, Quad-core, Fire OS, 7", Wi-Fi, 8GB, Black | John Lewis


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## chilango (Dec 9, 2015)

Teenage Cthulhu said:


> Amazon are doing the Kindle Fire for £50.
> 
> Buy New Amazon Fire 7 Tablet, Quad-core, Fire OS, 7", Wi-Fi, 8GB, Black | John Lewis



I know. Is it any good?


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## gosub (Dec 9, 2015)

got  kindle fire for £39 on Black Wednesday.  Slightly smaller than i'd have liked, so wish i'd gone the next size up.  You pay an extra tenner not to have advert screensaver, not really that intrusive but not sure how classy if its a pressie.   Biggest downer is its amazon apps rather than play, but at £39 I will be flashing it first chance I get.  

Ok to read on (not as good as paperwhite.)	In terms of "you get what you pay for", relatively, probably better value than the more expensive ones.


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## Teenage Cthulhu (Dec 9, 2015)

For £50 they are perfectly OK for watching videos with headphones on, Facebooking on the toilet that sort of thing. I wouldn't want to use it as my main device but for something to keep by the bed or loo it is fine. 

Amazon Fire Review: Is this $50 tablet any good? We tell you why it is and isn't.


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## gosub (Dec 9, 2015)

thats a fair review.   Not a fan of silk the inhouse browser, main reason for flashing.   If I was on Prime that would be a mistake.


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## Teenage Cthulhu (Dec 9, 2015)

For £50 they grand for what they do. The screen isn't the greatest but when most of your life has been spent looking at old CRT screens you don't really care.


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## chilango (Dec 13, 2015)

I've given a tentative nod to this. After all I've nothing to lose. No Google apps though? Hmmm. Would be a blessing in disguise as would restrict "productivity" and focus on casual entertainment.


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## marty21 (Dec 13, 2015)

I have a kindle fire , bought it when it first came out. It is good for music and watching films and that . Ok for Internets but more clunky than the ipad mini (which I also have) and it is good for reading books on.


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## chilango (Dec 28, 2015)

Well, I ended up being given one of these (a Kindle Fire).

You know what? It's alright. For the money it's great, but regardless it ain't bad.

Zippy enough. Nice size, though heavy for the dimensions. Apps are limited, and unlike (say) an iPad there's no temptation to "replace the laptop" with this, but as a chuck in my bag mobile entertainment thing it's fine.

Display is ok, fine for video and surprisingly ok for reading. Not great for webpages though.

So, yeah, pleased


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## Me76 (Sep 17, 2016)

I have a Lenovo A7-50 and it got water (beer) damaged last night.  I'm giving it a couple of days to see if it gets better (it's not doing anything at all at the moment) but will be looking for a new tablet. 

It cost me £80 18 months ago and is now £50 in Argos.  I've been happy with it, but wondering if there's anything else better for a similar price that I should consider?


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## ska invita (Mar 12, 2021)

BUMP

Can anyone recommend a non-Amazon e-reader? I dont know where to start on all this
Id be happy with an older 2nd hand jobby too


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## editor (Mar 12, 2021)

ska invita said:


> BUMP
> 
> Can anyone recommend a non-Amazon e-reader? I dont know where to start on all this
> Id be happy with an older 2nd hand jobby too


£88?





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## ska invita (Mar 12, 2021)

editor said:


> £88?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


thank you

id like not a tablet though, as the temptation to look at crap is what im trying to get away from


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## ska invita (Mar 12, 2021)

so no amazon for me, that leaves Kobo...Nook.. .....okbo...bkoo....obok...any others worth looking at ? nice "paper" experience is probably important to me


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## Throbbing Angel (Mar 12, 2021)

Do you want to read Amazon kindle books on it or what?  Or are you buying/reading another format?  That kinda drives what you can/can't use. (unfortunately)

I read Kindle books on my Android phone and my iPad, for example.


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## ska invita (Mar 12, 2021)

Throbbing Angel said:


> Do you want to read Amazon kindle books on it or what?  Or are you buying/reading another format?  That kinda drives what you can/can't use. (unfortunately)
> 
> I read Kindle books on my Android phone and my iPad, for example.


mainly ePub and PDFs - definitely not Kindle


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## butchersapron (Mar 12, 2021)

Kobo Libre h20 is 30 quid off right now. Waterproof, does all formats, looks smart, battery lasts ages, regular updates.

Oh yeah, light as anything. Can carry in jacket pocket and forget it's there.


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## teuchter (Mar 12, 2021)

I recently had a look at one of these (not mine though)









						Home | reMarkable
					

Replace your notebooks and printed documents with the only tablet that feels like paper.




					remarkable.com
				




Doesn't really fall in the £50ish category though.


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## belboid (Mar 12, 2021)

There are always ways of changing the format as well...


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## butchersapron (Mar 12, 2021)

**


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## ska invita (Mar 12, 2021)

i see there are Nooks on ebay for £10-£20
i might just buy a random one and then maybe upgrade if I get annoyed with it


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## Throbbing Angel (Mar 12, 2021)

ska invita said:


> so no amazon for me, that leaves Kobo...Nook.. .....okbo...bkoo....obok...any others worth looking at ? nice "paper" experience is probably important to me



Ah.

Onyx, Kobo, Nook and after that I'm struggling - unless you do it on a tablet - you don't have to use Amazon on a  tablet, though, lots of other reader apps about


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## Throbbing Angel (Mar 12, 2021)

ska invita said:


> i see there are Nooks on ebay for £10-£20
> i might just buy a random one and then maybe upgrade if I get annoyed with it



Mrs A says the platform is a bit shit if you're buying ebooks.  If you're not, as you mentioned pdfs, check out how they handle them.

I always found pdf viewing better on tablets and larger screens.  On kindle it was a total pain in the arse.


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## ska invita (Mar 12, 2021)

this is interesting - i get sent pdfs and epubs for work to a dropbox - only the Kobo Forma has easy dropbox integration but its really expesnive, but someone has made a workaround for all Kobos




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						All Kobo e-readers can now access cloud storage
					

The Kobo Forma is the only e-reader that has official Dropbox support, but it is their most expensive device and many people have other devices that work perfectly fine. An indie app developer has just created the Kobo Cloud software that can connect up  your e-reader to Dropbox, Google Drive...




					goodereader.com


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## ska invita (Mar 12, 2021)

Throbbing Angel said:


> Mrs A says the platform is a bit shit if you're buying ebooks.  If you're not, as you mentioned pdfs, check out how they handle them.
> 
> I always found pdf viewing better on tablets and larger screens.  On kindle it was a total pain in the arse.


good point, will do


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## ska invita (Mar 12, 2021)

Good comparison of all Kobo models on wiki








						Kobo eReader - Wikipedia
					






					en.wikipedia.org
				




kind of thing:



even more so this is good




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						6-inch eBook Reader Table - Comparisons and Reviews of 6" eReaders
					






					www.the-ebook-reader.com


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## redsquirrel (Mar 12, 2021)

I've got a Kobo Clara, no complaints on hardware at all.

Kobo app on computer could be a bit smoother but that's a relatively minor complaint. 

ska invita do you get e-books from your library? Kobo work fine with Borrowbox


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## Winot (Mar 12, 2021)

teuchter said:


> I recently had a look at one of these (not mine though)
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I’ve got one of those. Haven’t used it for ereading only for storing written notes electronically (it’s really good).


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## Sunray (Mar 12, 2021)

Winot said:


> I’ve got one of those. Haven’t used it for ereading only for storing written notes electronically (it’s really good).



I read a review of this some time ago, might have been the v1.  It was a glowing review as an alternative to a paper pad. It needs to be great to have £399 as a price tag.  I don't have a need for writing things down with a pen but I can certainly see the attraction.  Looks cool.


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## Winot (Mar 12, 2021)

Sunray said:


> I read a review of this some time ago, might have been the v1.  It was a glowing review as an alternative to a paper pad. It needs to be great to have £399 as a price tag.  I don't have a need for writing things down with a pen but I can certainly see the attraction.  Looks cool.



Yes it is expensive but works really well. I use it for work - I do a lot of notetaking and drawing diagrams when talking to clients and the file note can just be uploaded to the electronic file (I'm a lawyer so need a record).

It can't manage to interpret my scrawl though so convert to text is a bit flakey and I don't bother with it.


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## teuchter (Mar 12, 2021)

Winot said:


> I’ve got one of those. Haven’t used it for ereading only for storing written notes electronically (it’s really good).


It looks like it could be handy for doing things like reading / annotating PDFs while travelling, or in a cafe or in the park etc, instead of carrying around piles of paper.

One thing I noticed is that reading PDFs, you can't really zoom or do stuff like change the text size. You just have to read it as if it were on a bit of paper, which would be a pain if the text were a little small for your preferences.

Haven't actually used it myself except for seeing what it's like for drawing/scribbling on (not bad, although for drawing it's not as good as a proper drawing tablet).

The handwriting-to-text as you say seems a bit flaky, and can't be done on the fly.


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## lazythursday (Mar 12, 2021)

I love my Kobo (Libra) - especially the fact you can browse and borrow direct from libraries. My local council doesn't support it, but I found I was able to join a library in a nearby area that does do without any bother whatsoever.


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## UnderAnOpenSky (Mar 12, 2021)

It's worth throwing out that e readers aren't the best for PDF. Your better of having it a ebook or use a tablet.


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## ska invita (Mar 13, 2021)

So far the  Sony PRS-T1 / 2 / 3 look good options - from a video I watched it seems good at dealing with PDFs (can pinch expand, seems to get the text neatly on the screen in general) , has some crude internet so i can get to dropbox and under £50 second hand of course, these are old now.
The PRS were the top of Sonys range before the packed it in, but still seem crude compared to tablets, and newer Onyx readers (Onyx seem much more expensive).
It is amazing that for the same money I could get a snazzyish tablet, but Im trying to maintain discipline and keep with eInk discipline.

Anyone familiar with these Sonys?


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## ska invita (Mar 13, 2021)

example of dealing with PDFS here at 18min30



It mentions that the Sony "supports reflow" for PDFs, which seems to be a good thing ! Looking that up now. Means it word wraps text even if you zoom in.

Thing is I think some PDFs are different to others - some might "reflow" across a page, whilst others might be more static ??? Im speculating based on limited other experience of PDFs
ETA: yes, " has to be real postscript PDF, not a scan " - in vast majority of cases PDFs I get are postscript, so I have hope here


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## Hollis (Mar 13, 2021)

When I was trying to avoid amazon I couldn't find an ereader as good as Kindle.  I have a Kindle Paperwhite.  Got a cheap Kindle Fire afew years ago and it was shit.

These days now I've got a large mobile 6" screen, I increasingly just find myself reading off the mobile using the kindle app.


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## Hollis (Mar 13, 2021)

teuchter said:


> It looks like it could be handy for doing things like reading / annotating PDFs while travelling, or in a cafe or in the park etc, instead of carrying around piles of paper.
> 
> One thing I noticed is that reading PDFs, you can't really zoom or do stuff like change the text size. You just have to read it as if it were on a bit of paper, which would be a pain if the text were a little small for your preferences.
> 
> ...



If you're reading stuff like pdfs then Mendeley is brilliant for noting/underlining etc.  I guess you would have to use on web on a tablet.


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## ska invita (Mar 13, 2021)

I don't really need to annotate, just read.
Now I think about it second hand Kindle isn't a problem, but it looks like this PDF Reflow is key, and I think only Sony has that (from what I can see) eta: and "Pocketbooks"


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## lazythursday (Mar 13, 2021)

Hollis said:


> When I was trying to avoid amazon I couldn't find an ereader as good as Kindle.  I have a Kindle Paperwhite.  Got a cheap Kindle Fire afew years ago and it was shit.
> 
> These days now I've got a large mobile 6" screen, I increasingly just find myself reading off the mobile using the kindle app.


Honestly the Kobo range is at least as good, if not better, than Kindle. I wouldn't go back to a Kindle now, and e-ink does remain a far nicer experience than reading your phone, no matter how big the screen.


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## redsquirrel (Mar 13, 2021)

Yeah comparing my Kobo with my mum's Kindle I think the kobo is at least as good in terms of the hardware, and unlike the Kindle it can be easily used for library books and pdfs.

Where I do think the Kindle wins out is in the selection (and price) of books available, bastards that they are there tend to be more books available on Amazon than on the Kobo store.


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## Hollis (Mar 13, 2021)

The highlighting on the kindle is excellent - especially the app.  I've looked at the kobo app, and the highlighting is just abit more difficult! That's a key feature for me..  Also I guess I don't read pdf's or library books generally. So I'm happy with the kindle... other than them being bastards..


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## UnderAnOpenSky (Mar 13, 2021)

Worth throwing out there about Calibre. It's a book management program for ebooks which does converting between formats. 

My Anonomouse for book torrents.


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## ska invita (Mar 13, 2021)

well ive taken a punt on this
Sony  PRS-T2, 6inch, £40 and clean (mark free)
Seems its particularly really good with PDFs (ts main strength according to some reviews) so that has swung it for me, whatever other limitations it has
wifi so can get to drop box if feeling lazy to do it with a cable etc

fingers crossed it gets me into a better reading habit






thanks for the advice and chat, it really helped me focus in


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## marty21 (Mar 13, 2021)

Hollis said:


> When I was trying to avoid amazon I couldn't find an ereader as good as Kindle.  I have a Kindle Paperwhite.  Got a cheap Kindle Fire afew years ago and it was shit.
> 
> These days now I've got a large mobile 6" screen, I increasingly just find myself reading off the mobile using the kindle app.


I do the same,, most of my book reading is on my phone.


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## Sunray (Mar 16, 2021)

ska invita said:


> example of dealing with PDFS here at 18min30
> 
> 
> 
> ...





PDF's are complex beasts, can do all sorts. e.g.  show handwriting but allow you to search it like text as they have the text too.  Can have images mixed with text, making you wonder why something can't be searched and on and on.

I'm surprised e-readers even attempted to try, needs modern computers to render them correctly in a sensible time.


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## maomao (Mar 16, 2021)

UnderAnOpenSky said:


> Worth throwing out there about Calibre. It's a book management program for ebooks which does converting between formats.
> 
> My Anonomouse for book torrents.


Not doing invites at the moment but you can still do an interview on IRC if you learn their rules. Best run torrent site I've ever seen.


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## UnderAnOpenSky (Mar 16, 2021)

maomao said:


> Not doing invites at the moment but you can still do an interview on IRC if you learn their rules. Best run torrent site I've ever seen.



Yes that's how I got mine. I don't know how you get invites to give. My ratio is something crazy like 7 and I don't have any.


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## nogojones (Mar 16, 2021)

UnderAnOpenSky said:


> Worth throwing out there about Calibre. It's a book management program for ebooks which does converting between formats.
> 
> My Anonomouse for book torrents.


I always forget to request an invite at the right time. I find soulseek ain't too bad for books as well


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## teuchter (Mar 16, 2021)

ska invita said:


> It mentions that the Sony "supports reflow" for PDFs,



Some of the PDF reading things I have on my phone offer this... and it kind-of works...but it never seems to work 100% - certain things get jumbled up and images get messed up. I suspect it might be down to the PDFs themselves not having been made properly rather than the apps failing to interpret properly...or maybe a bit of both.


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## ska invita (Mar 16, 2021)

I received my Sony eReader today and happy to report PDF books display indistinguishable from ePubs. Can increase fontsize, wordwrap etc no probs.
No pictures in these books though.
I tried an old scan PDF and that was a bit small even zoomed in. - so went looking and found an ePub of it anyway.
So Im very happy!
Just what I wanted.

Internet doesnt work for shit though, but Im not fussed about that.
The one shortcoming is I find the background a little bit grey, not as white as a page for sure, but perfectly readable. Would prefer more contrast.


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## lazythursday (Mar 17, 2021)

nogojones said:


> I always forget to request an invite at the right time. I find soulseek ain't too bad for books as well


I've always used mobilism.org, which always leads you to crazy pop up file sharing sites but has plenty of content. But I feel much worse about pirating books than music or video. I try to just do it generally for more mainstream stuff where I figure the author is getting plenty of money already, or for things where I'm really unsure I'm going to like it. I try to have a rule that if I like the author I buy the second book I read of theirs.


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