Two of the most popular ereaders are the Barnes and Noble Nook and the Amazon Kindle. Each appear to be trying to outdo the other with upgrades, new features as well as price reductions. Which one is best? Let us explore each through a Nook vs. Kindle comparison.
First, what kind of screen technology does each have? The Barnes and Noble Nook reader uses an E-Ink Vizplex electronic paper on a six-inch, sixteen-level, gray-scale display. When viewing, it reads like a normal printed page in a book or newspaper with no glare. The high contrast screen makes the text sharp and easy to read.
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The Amazon Kindle also uses E-Ink, the latest generation known as "Pearl". Supposedly, their newest model, Kindle 3, now has 50% better contrast than their older Kindle 2 edition. The Pearl technology is one step up above what Barnes and Noble Nook uses. Like the Nook, the Kindle has a six-inch, sixteen-level gray-scale display, with a resolution of 167 ppi (pixels per inch) and a no-glare screen.
The E-Ink technology used in either the Nook or Kindle ebook readers probably would not disappoint most readers as far as the display goes. But, if you want the top of the line digital ink display, then you would have to choose the Kindle. Perhaps the Nook will be upgraded later down the line, but you may have to wait awhile.
What type of media formats can each use? Unlike the screen technology, which is fairly similar between the two ereaders, there is a big difference between what files the Nook can read vs the Kindle. The open source ebook file standard is called EPUB. The Nook can read EPUB files whereas the Kindle cannot. That being said, Amazon offers thousands of public domain titles for free and over 700,000 titles in its store. If for some reason you need access to many EPUB files, then you may want to choose the Nook.
As far as storage capacity goes, Kindle wins this one. The Kindle has 4G of storage which can hold approximately 3,500 ebooks. In comparison, the Nook only has 2G of storage capacity which can store about 1,500 ebooks. However, the Nook does have a microSD expansion slot. A 16GB card (sold separately) can hold and additional 17,500 ebooks.
The Kindle wins on battery life as well. With wireless turned off, the Kindle's battery can last up to ten days without having to be recharged and ten days with wireless on.. The Nook, on the other hand, only will last 10 hours with wireless turned off, two days with wireless on. However, the Barnes and Noble Nook battery is user replaceable whereas in order to replace the Kindle battery, the unit must be shipped to Amazon and changed by them.
Both ereaders come in WiFi and WiFi plus 3G models. Amazon, being its competitive self, offers both models cheaper than the Nook, currently at 9 and 9, respectively. It should be noted that Barnes and Noble also has come out with a new model called Nook Color. Besides the obvious, it has a little more functionality closer to that of a tablet more so than that of just an ebook reader. So far, Kindle has not come out with an equivalent, but it is safe to say they will probably answer with an equal or, most likely, better version.
Nook Vs Kindle - Which Ereader Is Best? BARNES AND NOBLE
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