EReader Vs Tablet PC: Which Should You Buy?
It’s a hotly debated point right now, raised by the selling power of devices like the Kindle and iPad. Should you buy an eReader or choose a tablet? Which one is worth spending your money on?
What will you mainly use it for?
To begin with, let’s make one thing clear. An eReader is just what it says it is: it’s for reading electronic books. It may have other capabilities, depending on the manufacturer, such as note-taking, dictionary lookups, an MP3 player, and sometimes a very basic web browser. But at the end of the day it only has one purpose: to read e-books.
On the other hand, we have the tablet PC, which is designed to be a very portable computer. You can connect to the Internet, send and receive emails, watch movies, listen to music, play many games, and use thousands of applications that can allow you to do much more.
So when you’re trying to decide between an eReader vs. tablet PC, you must remember that they have different markets. The eReader is made for bookworms: people who read a lot and love to read. It is designed to make reading as natural and simple as possible using “e-Ink”, the closest you will get to “real” ink and paper on any digital device. On the other hand, the tablet is not as comfortable to read as it uses its screen more like a computer, but it can perform many more functions and display color illustrations.
What is your budget?
In the eReader vs. tablet PC war, the eReader certainly beats the tablet PC on price. E-readers are much cheaper than the vast majority of tablets. Granted, you can get a tablet for the price of an eReader, but it’s going to be a lower-end option that runs much slower and has less impressive features overall. You certainly won’t get anything like the iPad for under $500, which is a lot of cash if you’re not really sure if you need one.
On the other hand, an eReader can be easily found for less than $100 even for the best models. They are very simple to use and the battery can last for weeks (compared to 10 hours for a tablet). This simplicity and battery life is due to the fact that they only have one function.
Perhaps in the end it will revolve around a simple question: “How much do you like to read and how much do you plan to do?” If you’re a true bookworm and plan on reading every day, then you should definitely consider an eReader: the reading experience is far superior to using a tablet screen.
However, if you prefer to have a device with the flexibility to do a lot of other things too, then the tablet has to win the eReader vs. tablet debate.