Kindle vss IPAD

I bought a Kindle about a year ago. I have had some people ask me from time to time: should I but a Kindle of an IPAD?

My answer: how much money do you have? Kindle is between $114 and $189. IPAD between $499 and $829. With the money you save on books, you can pay for a Kindle in a year. With the money you pay for an IPAD, you could have a laptop.

That might be a better comparison: IPAD or laptop? They are priced about the same. Laptop has a bigger screen, faster processor, more memory, full keyboard, DVD drive. . . need I go on?

The Kindle is built from the ground up to be a reader. Not a computer. Not a video watcher. It doesn't make ice cream. It is a reader. Take a look at the video about a third of the way down the screen on this page. Here are some key points.

• The Kindle is light. You can easily hold it on one hand as you would a paperback book. Next time you are in Best Buy, pick up a Kindle and pick up a IPAD. Ask: which would you rather hold for an hour or two reading. While you are at it, pick up a Nook and see how it feels in your hand.
• It is not backlit. It is like a book. You have to have a light to read it. This always strikes people as odd at first because we are so used to back lit screens. Bezos points out it is easier on the eyes for long term reading. If you are just reading for a few minutes, reading on a back-lit screen is fine. After while, it is like staring into a flash light.
• FREE 3G on the $189 version. What this means is you can buy a book any time, anywhere that has cell service. You don't pay a monthly fee, you only pay the cost of the books. Warning: they make it crazy easy to spend money.
• Searchable. This and the next one are the two favorite things about a Kindle. How many times has this happened to me. I remember some great story that could be used in a sermon. I can't remember who wrote it or what book it is in. With the Kindle, it is easy to find. Truth is, I don't even have to remember the story. I did a sermon recently on the man Jesus healed at the pool of Siloam. Just do a search for the word Siloam and walla!  Stories by Beth Moore, John Piper, John Ortberg, Max Lucado. What a time to be alive! I don't think you can do this on either IPAD or NOOK.
• Copy and Paste. To be honest, they have not yet perfected this feature. It is a little clumsy, but it does work. To be able to copy and paste great quotes from the great books written by world-class writers. . . this is the best!  Good Questions Have Groups Talking are better than ever because of the ability to include quotes from world class writers.

What about a NOOK?

I must say the Nook color looks pretty cool. It looks as cool as an IPAD but is smaller like a book. The price is in between the Kindle and IPAD. I head someone say the other day, "It is like a computer." I think what they meant was that it has a browser and Wi-Fi. I even read where there is a hack you can install a Kindle app on the Android operating system and read Kindle books on the Nook.

What I don't know about the nook is how the searching, marking, copying and pasting work. This is the key benefit to me. Best I can tell, you can't copy and paste with the Nook. That would be a deal-killer for me.

My wishlist

Someday I will be able to search all my Kindle books on my PC. I can do it on the Kindle itself, but it would be much faster if I could use the power of the PCs processer. Plus the whole clumsy copying and pasting thing would be improved.