Best eReader 2018 – Buyer’s Guide

eBook readers have been around for years now and unlike in their early days, there are more options available on the market today than ever.

We would like to see more companies making ebook readers, but unfortunately, the market entry into this space requires a mammoth amount of work and investment.

This is because a complete ecosystem hosting e-books is also required which is a substantial investment effort.

Despite the limited number of options available on the market we fine pick the best eReader 2018 has to offer.

Although some may question the eReader practicality and debate about eReader vs tablet thinking that if you have the former, you do not need the latter.

We actually disagree, as we believe the two devices have been intentionally designed for two different purposes and should not be compared as equivalents. There are multiple reasons that make eReaders a better reading choice in 2018:

• Screen designed for easy reading and less eyestrain
• Glare resistant
• Water resistant (some models)
• Lighter and cheaper than a tablet
• Long battery life (weeks long)
• Book-like feel when reading

The days of Amazon Kindle being the only eReader option are long gone. The market now offers other alternatives, however not as many as we would like to. Given the alternatives available – should you still go for a Kindle or there is a better fit for you?

We have reviewed multiple eReaders and have shortlisted five. Additionally, we have picked the best eReader 2018 has to offer in each category and highlighted their cons and pros. At the end of the article, you will find a quick table summarising eReader features between all five models for easy comparison. All in all, if you are after a Kindle e-reader review or would like to learn about the alternative options – please stay tuned as we have some great content for you.

Best eReader 2018 – Quick Comparison

If you are short on time and not able to go through the detailed description of all the ebook readers in our review, we have prepared a table summarizing the most important aspects you need to know to make your decision. If you need a more detailed comparison, you will find it in the table at the bottom of this page.

1. Amazon Kindle Oasis – The Best Kindle Ever Made

The bump that forms the tapered design serves two purposes. It is your handle for one-hand reading as well as the expanded compartment for a bigger battery. Amazon claims that the battery allows for three weeks of reading given the 1-hour a day reads. Based on our testing, this claims appears to be true.

The Kindle Oasis features the biggest 7″ screen of any other Amazon Kindles. With 300 points per inch, the display quality is crisp and clear. The bigger screen gives you an additional paragraph (on average) per page which results in fewer page flips. It also makes the picture books and comics appear a lot more readable.

It is also the first Kindle made to get an IPX8 certification, which allows it to be submerged (up to six feet deep) in freshwater for up to an hour.

The e-reader comes with a number of fancy yet super practical features. First, it has a physical button to turn pages. Yes, this may be going back in time, yet when your hands are wet, unlike touchscreen, it works like a charm. In fact, after the prolonged use, we found ourselves using the button all the time as it is just so much more comfortable than a touchscreen.

Secondly, it has the ability to listen to your Audible audiobooks, which is simply amazing. I found myself using both as I am one of those readers who doesn’t have a strong format preference and likes switching between e-books and audiobooks. If you are like me, keep in mind that you would also need to have a pair of Bluetooth headphones as there is no 3.5mm jack.

Thirdly, it features the new adaptive 12-LED front light which automatically changes the brightness based on the environment. This is especially handy when reading at dusk or dawn time, indoors or outdoors.

Lastly, the white-on-black view feature which reverses the colors and makes the font white and background black may appeal to some. This is definitely not the feature for everyone, but I can see some people finding it very useful.

The innovative features listed above are actually not that innovative as most of them we have previously seen on Kobo Aura One, we do think however that Amazon has done a great job of taking those features and bringing them into the Amazon ecosystem.

2. Amazon Kindle Paperwhite – Best Value Kindle Ebook Reader

The third generation Kindle Paperwhite has inherited its screen from the Kindle Voyage which uses a 6-inch Carta E Ink HD touchscreen display with 300 pixels per inch density. Compared to the previous generation, this represents twice as many pixels being available on the same screen size, which ultimately results in a sharper and crisper display quality. This is especially noticeable when reading a smaller text size. Despite the Kindle Paperwhite and the Kindle Voyage having the same display, the latter has higher levels of contrast which overall results in a slightly better display quality.

The additional benefit of the new E Ink screen is the improved energy efficiency, which gives Kindle Paperwhite up to 8 weeks of use on a single charge. It also makes it one of the most energy efficient e-readers on the market today. To further push the energy efficiency or to simply adjust your comfort level you could change the level of lightning produced by four built-in LEDs. The backlight, however, is not as evenly distributed as on Kindle Voyage or Kindle Oasis which have 8 and 12 backlight LEDs respectively.

The new Kindle Paperwhite also comes with an updated software including the new Bookerly font. It was specifically designed for use on digital devices with improved character spacing, justification, kerning, hyphenation and capital letter support. It supposedly allows the user to read faster and reduce eyestrain.

Talking about drawbacks, the main complaint with Kindle Paperwhite, and all Kindles for that matter is their total dependency on Amazon’s ecosystem. I still don’t quite understand why Amazon would not make it easy for us and integrate the support for ePub files which would allow reading free books, including the ones from Google. Don’t get me wrong – it can be done by installing a third party application, but should it really be that hard?

3. Amazon Kindle Voyage – Best Ex Luxury Ebook Reader

To further improve the readers’ experience, especially in the dark, Amazon has integrated an adaptive backlight level adjustment into the Kindle Voyage. There is a sensor on the device that takes the external light reading and adjusts the screen backlight level accordingly. You can change the backlight level manually, but the automated system works so well that we never felt a need for it. The backlight is supported by 6 LEDs, which is two more than you get on the Kindle Paperwhite. This results in a more even backlight distribution across the screen.

The battery life has always been a strong side of Amazon Kindles. It has slightly taken a punch due to the backlight being introduced, yet still remains quite solid providing the Kindle Voyage with up to 6 weeks of reading time given it used for 30 minutes a day on average.

It is the lightest Kindle in our review which makes it comfortable to use with one hand.

Unlike its lesser siblings, the Kindle Voyage supports PagePress controls. Those are physical controls that trigger the page flip by applying the pressure on each side of the e-reader. We did find it clunky at first, but within minutes it became a second nature and we have genuinely found them to be practical and useful.

4. Kobo Aura One – Best Featured Ebook Reader On The Market

The Aura One features a 7.8″ screen with simply amazing display quality. With 1872 x 1404 resolution and 300 pixels per inch – it packs more pixels than any other e-reader on the market. The text is crisp whether you use it in the shade or in the sun. Though the screen size may not appeal to everyone, I personally found it to be perfect for my reading experience.

It is also quite enjoyable to use at night time. The Aura One has an integrated backlight which automatically adapts to your environment. Although it works and it works well, I feel the backlight is not evenly spread with more light being available at the bottom of the screen.

One of the newer additions is the night mode, which gives your screen an orange shade to reduce the strain on your eyes. This may not be for everyone, yet some users may find it quite useful.

The user interface is slick, clean and intuitive. The home screen displays the details of the current book you are reading as well as articles that you have saved in your Pocket account. Overall, it feels more user-friendly and informative compared to Kindle e-readers.

The biggest advantage that Aura One has over any Kindle e-reader is the support of open ebook formats such as ePub, PDF or Mobi. It allows you to host all your ebooks in one place irrespective of where they came from.

The areas where the Aura One seems to underperform is actually the Kobo’s ecosystem. It is not as dynamic, offer-rich or complete. it also appears to be less competitive in terms of the price compared to Amazon (at least the books I’ve checked).

In terms of battery life, the Aura One can last up to a month on a single charge. This is not the most outstanding result we have seen, yet more than sufficient for a practical use.

Whilst Kobo e-readers are still making their name in the US, I think they deserve a lot more attention than they currently have. Part of the reason is the dependency on the eco-system which is not as mature as Amazon’s. Before you make a decision to buy Aura One, I suggest you drop by their online store and check the books you are interested in. Make sure that not only the selection is there but also the prices are being competitive. I found some books to be more and some to be less expensive than on Amazon.

5. Nook Glowlight 3 – Best Affordable eBook Reader

The Nook Glowlight 3 features a 300 ppi screen which we have previously seen in Nook Glowlight Plus. The display quality is crisp and has a real paperback book feel. The screen is complemented by an advanced backlight system which has 7 white and 6 yellow LED lights. Not only the 13 LEDs result in an even light distribution across the screen, they also allow the e-reader to change the tone from cool white to warm orange in order to make your night reading experience more pleasant. The tone adjustment can be done manually or you could let the Nook Glowlight 3 seamlessly adjust it for you. It does not have the ambient light sensors to control the tone level, as it uses the timezones and time of the day instead.

The large screen bezel initially looked dated to us, yet we have quickly changed our minds as soon as we have started using it. The thicker bezel has actually allowed the placement of two physical page turn buttons on each side. Tapping the buttons flips the pages forward or backward, whereas double tapping flips the whole chapters. We have actually liked those buttons so much, that despite it being such a simple feature – it made all the difference for us.

The Nook Glowlight 3 also comes with an updated software which improves the user experience. The user interface has adopted a flat design coupled with higher resolution graphics. The book shopping experience has also been improved and became quite robust and clean.

The e-reader has the Barnes and Noble Readouts integrated, which allows the readers to discover new books by featuring author interviews, previews and free content. It also supports EPUB format which opens the door to so many free ebooks out there.

Like any device, the Nook Glowlight 3 has its flaws. Although it supports the PDF format, the experience it delivers is poor and inconsistent. The e-reader takes too long to respond to the zoom commands or sometimes does not even register them. If you are planning to extensively use PDF files, the Nook Glowlight 3 is probably a suboptimal choice.

Detailed Feature Comparison

How to chose an eBook Reader?

There are a number of factors you would need to consider when buying an eReader. Below I have listed some handy tips for you to consider.

Screen Size

It appears that the market has established the 6″ screen size to be the most popular amongst the readers. But don’t worry, if your screen size preferences are different, we have couple more options on our list that we would be happy to recommend.

Outdoor use

If you are someone who likes reading outside then sun glare and the water exposure may be important to you. If you like reading out on a sunny day, then having a screen that is glare resistant is a must. If on top of that you like reading on the beach or next to a pool, then some level of water resistance would be highly recommended.

Connection

Most eReaders these days come with Wi-Fi, so I’d be really staying away from the ones that don’t. The question is more about whether you need the cellular internet connection or not. I personally do not find this feature useful, as I never run out of books to read whilst on the move. In fact, I tend to upload the books on my eReader way in advance. For the ones that do have a need to download books whilst on the go – the cellular internet connection would be required.

Ecosystem

The downside of ebooks is that there are multiple different formats as there is no universally agreed format amongst the publishers yet. This means that your Kindle ebook would not work on Kobo‘s or Barnes & Noble‘s ebook reader devices and vice versa.

There are also free or open formats such as ePub. You may know, but Google, for example, offers over a million of free books in that format. This is great, but if you are a Kindle user – ePub is not supported as Amazon only allows books from Amazon ecosystem to be used. There are ways around it by using a third-party application, yet natively the ePub support does not come with Kindles.

Our suggestion is that you start by browsing the online stores such as Amazon, Kobo or Barnes & Noble to make sure that the types of books you like reading are available there. It is also handy to compare the prices to ensure you are getting a good deal as they vary between the stores.

eBook Apps

If you are planning to read books on multiple devices, such as your phone or tablet then you need to ensure that there is an ebook reader app available for your device.

Price

Although the prices for eReaders have recently fallen, the price range is still significant. There are now eReaders available on the market for under $100, whereas the premium models can get close to $300. As most of the time, the price is driven by the features available, so you need to make sure that you are not buying an eReader that has some cool features that you will never use.

Frequently Asked Questions