A Comparison of the Best eReaders for Travel

The ereader has emerged as a true friend of the bookworm traveler: they’re useful, entertaining and you can have thousands of ebooks on your virtual bookcase without taking up valuable space. Let’s have a look at the best ereaders for travel.

If you don’t know much about eReaders, consider this a primer. An eReader is an electronic device designed primarily for reading digital books and publications. The main advantages of these devices are portability, readability of their screens in bright sunlight (e-ink technology only), and long battery life. Computers, laptops, netbooks, tablets, and smartphones can also be used to read eBooks.

Tablets like Apple’s iPad break the eBook reader stereotype and offer a touchscreen, color, and wifi and web capability. Other Android platform tablets, such as the Samsung Galaxy, compete with the iPad and offer similar options but without Apple’s proprietary software and hardware restrictions.

The Best eReaders for Travel

It seems every day new devices are either being released or upgraded—so which are the best eReaders for travel? Well, it’s hard to say. Many people prefer the iPad for its versatility and its web and video options.

If you don’t want to go with that expensive a tablet, consider a Kindle. The Kindle is nearly one-half the price of the iPad and is a perfect present for loved ones.

The Kindle Fire, in particular, is capable of running movies, apps, games, and music, and of course, is the ultimate reading platform. It uses Amazon’s cloud-accelerated web browser, Amazon Silk. It’s color touchscreen has an extra-wide viewing angle and it uses a fast dual-core processor, which enables prime members to instantly stream movies and television shows.

It also uses Amazon’s Whispersync technology, which automatically synchronizes your library and the book you’re reading to the last page viewed—and allows for video streaming. Don’t worry about the space needed for the more than 18 million movies, shows, songs, magazines and books available for purchase—Amazon offers the customer free cloud storage of all content not being used.

About the Author

Robin Van Auken, MA, RPA, is the CEO of Hands-on Heritage. She is an anthropologist and registered professional archaeologist (National 15069). She specializes in working with communities, galvanizing individuals to contribute their memories, photographs, and artifacts to develop legacy projects. Through in-depth, sensitive interviews, she learns the important stories that connect people through time and space. Robin especially enjoys the challenge of hunting for historic photographs and artifacts that highlight America’s history. As a professional archaeologist, she has directed multi-year public cultural heritage projects, working with hundreds of volunteers and educating thousands of visitors.

Featured image via Unsplash.