Best E reader

[NightAngel79]

OK how about the best e reader app? Had freda on my omnia and it handled everything i threw at it; html, text, epub. Any that handle all three?
Figured on using adobe for pdf's (is there foxit for android? admit i haven't thought to check yet)
Seems like there are lots of choices but i'm interested in what the community uses/thinks is the best.

 

[necosino]

I use Aldiko

 

[NightAngel79]

I use Aldiko

what formats can it handle?

 

[necosino]

So far I've used PDFs, HTMLs, RTFs, and TXTs.

 

[Nunley]

This is one of the blatant holes in the android market, I think. There really aren't many choices for readers and especially readers that have a book selection outside of the Gutenberg project parameters. Amazon has announced a Kindle app toward the end of the summer.

The lack of readers/bookstores with current content is one of the reasons I say.."I love my android phone except for this.....". Hopefully developers see the revenue potential and fill out the market with good, bugless applications.

 

[mozetti]

I'm using Shortcovers, which is an older app for the Kobo e-book store. Kobo is supposed to be releasing an new Android reader this month. The name will change from Shortcovers to Kobo. I had the Kobo reader on my Blackberry Curve 8330 and liked it. Shortcovers isn't bad, but I'm betting the new Kobo e-reader is going to be pretty good.

 

[NightAngel79]

So far I've used PDFs, HTMLs, RTFs, and TXTs.

No sh*t?? You haven't tried any e-pub's?
And content isn't a problem as i already have hundreds of books on my pc so not really worried about that. Just looking for something simple and fast, did massive amounts of reading on my omnia and would like to continue that trend. Gonna try out aldiko (when my phone finally gets here that is!)
Thanks again necosino!!


Edit: would still like to hear what others are using/think is the best. Or comments on the ones already mentioned.
Thanks

 

[WizeGuyDezignz]

I second Aldiko. I like it a lot.

 

[NightAngel79]

Deleted

 

[trankster]

I am using eReader www.ereader.com/android for Fictionwise/eReader books. eReader is not perfect, it is still a beta version but very useable. You cannot sort or categorize books in its library with the current version, but works just fine as a reader. iReader ($1.99 Android Market) also looks interesting and can work with several formats including eReader, Mobipocket, txt, PDB.

 

[nstallion]

Amazon is working on a Kindle app for Android.

 

[NightAngel79]

Whats the difference between the free and paid version of Aldiko?

 

[edbro]

Whats the difference between the free and paid version of Aldiko?

One costs money and the other one does not.

Seriously though, from what I read, the premium version is identical but is there as a way for users to show support. Sort of like donating.

From their blog:

However, a point that was raised on repeated occasions was that a lot of people who had interest in the app were unable to get their hands on it, simply because they are located in a country where the Android Market does not yet support paid applications. In order to make it as widely available as possible, we’re excited to announce that we have put Aldiko for free on the Android Market.

The paid version is still available as a “Premium” package, which we encourage you to get if you like Aldiko and would like to support us.

 

[Bearly]

Yes, it supports ePub.

Aldiko I think is one of the best readers. It's as good as Apple's iBooks app, I think, though I haven't used iBooks too extensively.

I love the ability to create "collections" in Aldiko and to tag your books. That's great for technical eBooks and textbooks.

 

[NightAngel79]

One costs money and the other one does not.

how is it for reading with a white backround, or can that be changed? I do alot of reading on my ohone and wondered how easy on the eyes it will be

 

[necosino]

how is it for reading with a white backround, or can that be changed? I do alot of reading on my ohone and wondered how easy on the eyes it will be

You can switch between a day/night mode (basically reverses the contrast) which I found to be nice.

 

[jasoraso]

I use Aldiko - I used to use Freda on my WinMo Touch Pro2. The importing of books is a little different - it wants the books in a particular directory, and you had to peform an import function - till I discovered that Calibre will treat the Incredible as a Reader - I can tell Calibre to send my books to the device, and then tell Aldiko to import - VERY SIMPLE.

I started converting my books to ePub to use with Freda (most of my library is in mobipocket format); and Aldiko works very well with that.

The screen on the Incredible is GREAT for reading - very sharp - (better than retina ... and Aldiko has an awesome feature - slide your finger up/down on the left side of the screen and it changes the screen brightness on the fly. The menu also has a night/day button.

The ONE thing that needs to be improved (and I think this will be applicable to all readers on the incredible for now) is that the bottom buttons stay lit.

Does anyone have any suggestions for turning the light off on the bottom buttons????

 

[mrspeedmaster]

The screen on the Incredible is GREAT for reading - very sharp - (better than retina ...

I find the "very sharp" read very hard to believe. I, too, use Aikaido but lets be honest.

The Incredible uses a Pentile Matrix sub-rendering engine which makes it horrible for reading text. There are 30-40 articles on this with conclusive evidence to refute what you say "very sharp." By the very fact it uses Pentil Matrx, black fonts on white background have dithering of the edges of the font. It is very, very noticeable. If you take a picture and zoom in, you can see it and it isn't my opinion. The other 30-40 scholarly articles disputing your 'very sharp" claim.

Furthermore, the published spec from HTC and Verizon states clearly, the screen is a 16 bit display. There will be dithering. Whether you like to believe that or not.

Even the Motorola Droid with its regular LCD produces better text performance.

Color, vibrancy, saturation, I won't argue with you. The AMOLED screens are great for that. But for reading text, the Incredible falls considerable short due to its competition - EVO 4G, Motorola Droid, and iPhone 4.

 

[necosino]

I don't have any issues using the Incredible as a reader, and I agree, having just the text on the screen is really, really sharp.

We're happy with it, if you aren't.. get a kindle or something, lol..

 

[jasoraso]

I find the "very sharp" read very hard to believe. I, too, use Aikaido but lets be honest.

The Incredible uses a Pentile Matrix sub-rendering engine which makes it horrible for reading text. There are 30-40 articles on this with conclusive evidence to refute what you say "very sharp." By the very fact it uses Pentil Matrx, black fonts on white background have dithering of the edges of the font. It is very, very noticeable. If you take a picture and zoom in, you can see it and it isn't my opinion. The other 30-40 scholarly articles disputing your 'very sharp" claim.

Furthermore, the published spec from HTC and Verizon states clearly, the screen is a 16 bit display. There will be dithering. Whether you like to believe that or not.

Even the Motorola Droid with its regular LCD produces better text performance.

Color, vibrancy, saturation, I won't argue with you. The AMOLED screens are great for that. But for reading text, the Incredible falls considerable short due to its competition - EVO 4G, Motorola Droid, and iPhone 4.

All I know is that I enjoy reading on it. The text renders very well for me a the distance I hold the screen. Maybe it is the AMOLED, but it is less fatiguing on my eyes than my Touch Pro 2 - maybe the backlight is softer from the AMOLED technology - I don't know.

I was worried about the reports of the mismatch of pixels vs. resolution (I understood it to be similar to watching 720p on a 1080p screen, or maybe the oppposite) and corresponding text sharpness, but all I can say is that I've found reading on the Incredible to be very nice - and the text seems quite sharp to me. The 16bit v. 24bit I don't think has any impact on reading - its just black and white, or maybe white and black?

I've been reading on devices for years (Dell Axim5, Axim3, Samsung i730, Motorola Q9, Touch Pro, Touch Pro2) and I can honestly say that this is the best reading experience of all of them. Whether its AMOLED, or the high resolution screen, I don't know, but I think it is well suited to hours of reading.

I just need to figure out a way (besides black tape) to turn off the lights on buttons!

 

[wayrad]

It seems Incredibly sharp to me.

Somebody had to say it.

 

[NightAngel79]

bump

 

[mrspeedmaster]

I've been reading on devices for years (Dell Axim5, Axim3, Samsung i730, Motorola Q9, Touch Pro, Touch Pro2) and I can honestly say that this is the best reading experience of all of them. Whether its AMOLED, or the high resolution screen, I don't know, but I think it is well suited to hours of reading.

Quality is a matter of perspective. Of course it is going to look better than all those older devices that you've used. But, unless you compare it to its modern contemporary counterparts,you can't say it is very sharp.

Once you compare it side-by-side to some of the other high caliber phone on the market, your standards will definitely change.

 

[dguy]

Quality is a matter of perspective. Of course it is going to look better than all those older devices that you've used. But, unless you compare it to its modern contemporary counterparts,you can't say it is very sharp.

Once you compare it side-by-side to some of the other high caliber phone on the market, your standards will definitely change.

You're arguing over a non issue. The fact is, AMOLED screens work extremely well as a text reader. Anyone would be able to read a book comfortably for extended periods of time on it without any complaints. I've done it, so have countless others. Nobody cares or asked if there's a resolution/clarity difference with another device, that's another topic entirely. All anyone mentioned is that they found reading on the Incredible enjoyable and sharp. I don't understand how or why anyone would try to argue with that.

Besides this, it's VERY arguable that just because of the way an OLED is lit, it is much better for reading than an LCD, even considering resolution differences.

 

[mrspeedmaster]

You're arguing over a non issue. The fact is, AMOLED screens work extremely well as a text reader.

I guess you haven't read the numerous, countless rebuttal to that when people clearly show that Pentile Matrix rendering on AMOLED gives it a disadvantage when it comes to text reading.

Besides this, it's VERY arguable that just because of the way an OLED is lit, it is much better for reading than an LCD, even considering resolution differences.

Again, I am going to attach a picture for you to see. Comparing a Droid Incredible to a motorola with almost half the resolution of the DINC. With the DINC's higher pixel density, it should result in something easier to read. Well, I will say the text is sharper but all the problems with Pentile Matrix sub-rendering rears it ugly head out and you can see how it is distracting on the eyes. I wish I had a Motorola Droid or EVO to show you because it will demonstrate that LCD (with the same resolution as our AMOLED) will be better for reading text.


Look at the 100% crop. The text on the DINC is plagued with red/greenh fringing. This, again, is by nature of the Pentile Matrix sub-rendering algorithm designed into our phones. The image of the lower resolution Moto is not as sharp because it has lower pixel density. It only has a slight greyish on the fringing due to anti-aliasing.

Many people can see this with no magnification whatsoever. I can see this.