Kindle vs. Nook

Meme hosted by Lauren @ Epilogue Reviews
Today's Question: Kindle vs. Nook
My Answer:  OK, I go back and forth with this one.  I have owned or worked with different versions of both Nooks and Kindles.  I have had good experiences with both.  
My very first experience with ereaders was with the Kindle DX that was purchased to work with my students.  They were fun, but for me, I thought they were too large.  
I then purchased the first generation Nook.  I loved it, but made one big mistake when purchasing it, I had not bought the warranty.  What I did not know that with all the first generation ereaders with e-ink, they often messed up.  And, because I had not purchased the warranty, when mine messed up - I was left without!!!  The companies do not "fix" the devices, they only replace them.  I learned the next time around.
The Nook is not the only device with e-ink issues.  We have since purchased some basic Kindles for school, and they too have messed up.  We have had to have several of them replaced.  Ugh!  Yes, Amazon is wonderful with dealing with the issue, and quick to replace, but it is a pain in the ........!!
Now, my youngest daughter has a Kindle, and it has yet to mess up.  I do think she is more careful with it than some of the students are though.  So, if you are careful, the e-ink issue might not be an issue at all!!!!!
I have purchased the Nook Color when it came out, and I fell in love!  It is a great device!  I have even dropped it, and it still works.  No issues with the e-ink, as it doesn't have it!!!  I think the tablet devices are the way to go.  
I have not personally had experience with the Kindle Fire or the Nook Tablet, but I have heard many rave reviews for both.  I don't think a person could go wrong with either one!!!
Right now, I am personally using an iPad with apps for both the Nook and Kindle - among many other ereader apps.  I like having them all in one.  They both have great free books available for them, so you don't miss out on much.  Even if you only read the free books, you have so much to pick from.
One benefit that I see with the Kindle app (or devices) that I have not seen with the Nook yet - and it may be that I just haven't happened on it yet - the ability to email documents to your device.  As a book reviewer, you receive many books that are PDFs.  The email option is wonderful for this.  Also, NetGalley uses this option to send your books to your Kindle as well.
So, what is your preference:  Nook or Kindle?

Kindle, Kobo, Nook Which One Should You Have?

E-readers are popping up everywhere - Everyone seems to have one - New ones are coming out of the woodwork!  So, which one should a person own?


It is quite confusing when you start looking at it all.  I have visited Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and so many sites investigating the pros and cons of each reader.  And when you get digging deeper, each one of these  companies have more than one e-reader available at various prices - making it even more confusing!!

We have the Kindle DX at the school I work in - for our special education department.  These are the larger Kindles with the keyboards.  The size makes them kinda bulky, but the students love to use them.  This one is also quite pricey @ $379.

I have owned a first version of the Nook - but had lots of trouble with the e-ink.  It messed up with one drop - and I had to learn the hard way that if you did not buy the extended warranty, that you were S.O.L.!  And guess what - I didn't!!  If I had, they would have replaced it.  I was informed that they did not "fix" them.  

I later bought a first version Kindle for my daughter.  It has similar issues with the e-ink.  I dd learn to get the warranty.  I bought it from Best Buy and when we had issues, they did replace it for me.  


I later bought a Nook Color - just had to have one!  Bought it shortly after they came out!  I love it!!!!  I have not had any problems with it at all.  I have even dropped it a few times!!!!  The color and back-lit screen makes it very attractive and easy to read.  This was my first tablet device.  

Now, I have an iPad 2.  All of the teachers at our school have one, so I don't actually own it, but use it on a regular basis.  On it, I have various e-book apps.  I have the iBook app,  Nook app, the Kindle app, the Kobo app, the Audible app, and various others.  Some think I am crazy because I have all of them and ask me why I don't just stick to one.  Well, I do use all of them.  The books may vary in price from one device to the other - although they are pretty close.  Often times, one company will offer different specials on e-books - Kobo does this often!  Kobo also has a social networking aspect to it - connecting to Facebook.  Audible is for audio books - gotta love those!!!!  And of course, there are the fee books!  Each of the apps offer free books, but I have found that the Kindle app offers more than the others.  Since starting my blog, I have found that authors often offer their books for free for short periods of time -and Kindle is where they are offered!

Since getting the iPad, I have given my oldest daughter my Nook Color.  She reads often and I thought someone should put it to use.

So, what e-reader do you use?  Love to hear everyone's thoughts.

Ebooks

So, how many of you are reading more now because you have an e-reading device of some sort (e.g. Nook, Kindle, iPad, etc.)?  I know my reading has improved.  My first e-reading device was a Kindle from our school (I am a special education teacher & we bought them for our students because of the text to speech feature).  I then bought my own device - first edition Nook.  It was nice, but the electronic ink messed up.  I then invested and bought myself the Nook Color.  I absolutely love the thing.  It was a little pricey - I bought it when the first came out - but well worth the investment.  My youngest daughter has a smaller Kindle (before all the other versions).  She reads more now with it than she did just reading a regular book.  


Now, I have access to an iPad from school.  With this iPad, I have access to all kinds of ereader apps - Nook, Kindle, Kobo, iBooks, etc.  There are so many ereader apps, could be really hard to choose.  I hop around and read from various ones, but I am still very loyal to my Nook app.  


Since I primarily read on an ereader, I thought it would be fun to jump into the 2012 Ebook Challenge (yeah, I know, another one!).  The 2012 EBook Challenge is just how it sounds - reading ebooks.  You can read any genre, any book you want.  


There are seven levels to this challenge, so there is something for everyone:

1. Floppy Disk - 5 ebooks
2. CD - 10 ebooks
3. DVD - 25 ebooks
4. Memory Stick - 50 ebooks
5. Hard Drive - 75 ebooks
6. Server - 100 ebooks
7. Human Brain - 150 ebooks

I am going midway and shooting for Memory Stick - 50 ebooks.  I actually already have 2 down for this year, so I'm at least started.  I figure most of the books I read this year will be in electronic format.  The only ones that will not be are those that are not available that way.  

Find out more about this challenge:   2012 Ebook Challenge.