If you’ve not yet been convinced to swap paper and print for a portable library (aka. a Kindle, Nook or Sony Reader), perhaps you can be convinced to give these half-way houses a try. The following apps are free, easy to use and offer a fantastic range of additional features that no block of paper could ever dream of offering you.
eBooks by Kobo
According to its iTunes preview page, Kobo gives users access to ‘millions of free and affordable eBooks‘ as well as subscriptions to popular newspapers and magazines.
Kobo also allows users to take advantage of a number of unique features designed to make the reading experience more social and interactive.
- ‘Reading Life’ enables keen bookworms to create a personal ‘book cover’ based upon the titles they choose to read. You can also view stats on your reading habits and compare your habits with friends.
- Reading through Kobo can earn you awards (because of course, reading has always been a competition…)
I like this feature a bit more though:
- You can find out your book’s ‘pulse’ – this enables you to see who shares your taste in literature and discuss your current conquest in the Kobo ‘community’.
Users can also benefit from night mode, customisable text and the ability to add notes.
Wattpad
Wattpad is an eReader application designed around user-generated content; thus, if you’re a firm fan of Charles Dickens or Booker prize winners you might find the hit and miss nature of this free content a little bewildering.
Wattpad enables anyone to try their hand at telling a story and sharing their words with the world. If you’re open-minded about amateur writing and are enticed by the idea of discussing what you read with the writer them self, Wattpad can’t be beaten.
Kindle
As an application from the makers of the ereader, the Kindle iPhone e-book reader is always going to be one of the best.
As well as offering users instant access to over a million books and hundreds of magazines and newspapers, users benefit from:
- A simple, attractive and effective interface.
- The ability to read book samples before you buy.
- A ‘search’ function, to help you relocate a page of particular interest.
The kindle application also offers ‘whispersync’; a feature that remembers precisely where in your book you were when you last stopped reading.
B&N eReader
Understanding that if they want to survive bookshops have to move with the times, bookstore giant Barnes and Noble have jumped on the eReader bandwagon in order to offer casual readers and dedicated bookworms alike this simple and attractive way to view publications on their PC, Android or ‘i’ device.
With over two million books, newspapers and magazines available at the touch of a button, along with thousands of books available to download completely free, it’s clear that Barnes and Noble are a firm contender in the race for the eReader crown.
The B&N eReader offers such invaluable features as ‘LendMe’ technology, that lets you share books with family and friends, as well as the ability to sample any book for free and sync your eReader across multiple devices.
The Real eReader
Although all of the above offer a feature rich, cheap and convenient way to get reading, there really is no substitute for an actual eReader.
Simply put, real eReaders utilize an ingenious screen that has no light and can’t instigate eye strain – just like reading a real book!