May 1014
The iPad vs. the Kindle – An E-Reader Face-Off
May 14th, 2010
There are more and more iPads are popping up at the office. Three of us have kids who are addicted to Godfinger. Me? I love surfing on the couch and playing games like Rush Hour and TanZen. Despite the popularity of the iPad at work, I’ve been reading a lot of critical articles and blog posts about the iPad, esp. as a reading device.
So I decided it was time for a face-off between the iPad and the Kindle. I invited my friend Eileen to come over to the house with her Kindle. Eileen would represent the Kindle while my 5 year-old would represent the iPad. Here’s the face-off video where I play host and ask the co-stars to compare the iPad vs. the Kindle in terms of: e-bookstore experience, screen size and display, resolution, page turning and search. See for yourself and be the judge. Who do you think won this face-off?
This homemade video brings home the point that with the Web and social sharing sites, everyone’s a critic, a moviemaker, or a citizen journalist. Despite a legion of tech writers reviewing the iPad, I felt compelled to create my own iPad review. And now I’ll reach out to my network of friends, clients, colleagues and followers on Facebook, Twitter, blog and e-mail to share my video, get their feedback and try to influence their thinking about these devices.
How about you? Are you publishing your own content to social networking and sharing sites? What’s your take on the iPad and have you decided to get one?
May 15th, 2010 at 5:53 pm
I think both devices are pretty awesome. For me, I am going to buy an iPad in the future because the device can do tons of other things that the Kindle can’t do (at least right now).
However, since this review is strictly focused on e-reader capabilities, my thought is that the Kindle is still superior, especially if you are a hardcore reader. It fits in your hands better and the UI was designed specifically for e-reading. You don’t have to wave your hands around to change pages. The biggest benefit in my opinion is that the battery life on the Kindle is ~100 hours so you could take it on vacation with you to a foreign land and not worrying about trying to charge it. The iPad…. not so much. Last but not least, I think staring at the E-ink for hours is easier on the eyes and allows avid readers to use a light source of their choice.
My .02… :)
Garry
May 16th, 2010 at 3:09 pm
Thanks for the great comment, Garry! My entire family loves “my” iPad. In fact, it’s a rare evening when I get to actually use it.
I agree that the Kindle is a superior reading device, at least at this point, but for overall value and entertainment, I’m sticking with my iPad. But if I were going somewhere for a week or month and didn’t have access to power, I’d definitely get a Kindle.
BTW, I’m working on another video reviewing the Apple and Kindle apps on the iPad, as well as a review of the other capabilities of the iPad. Will let you know when they’re up.
May 17th, 2010 at 9:17 am
Loved the article and the video! Eileen and CJ faceoff was great! I am an iPad fan. I was surprised to see the purple cover on your iPad..LOL.
May 17th, 2010 at 10:10 am
Love the video!
I have to say that I love both devices. I do read on the iPad as well as the Kindle. I find that the iPad interface is much better than the Kindle for low-light reading (because of the backlight) and the speed of the page turn. (You don’t actually have to swipe, but can tap the edge of the page).
The Kindle is lighter and works better in full light/sun because there is no glare.
One thing I hear is coming to the Kindle software is the ability to tag/categorize books, which is awesome. I have hundreds and it would make it way easier to group and find. iPad already has this function, however it’s a little less useful because it groups by series of groups, not individual. Example: if you tag a book as Urban Fantasy, Chicago, Wizard; then another one Urban Fantasy, Seattle, Wizard - there’s no way to *just* look at Urban Fantasy, iPad (like iTunes) sorts on the combination. :(
That said, I also love the multi-functionality of the iPad. It’s great for surfing, videos, etc. Lots of great free apps!
- Maria