Ereaders are great devices for any bibliophile. I mean, we love physical books, but there comes a time when you have books pouring out of your cupboards and having an ereader means you have an entire library in the palm of your hand. But with so many to choose from, which are the best ereaders?
The market is made up of The Big Three: the Amazon Kindle, the Rakuten Kobo, and the Barnes & Noble NOOK. If one of these giants had to fall, it would probably be the NOOK. In 2016 they made some changes and no longer sell digital content outside the United States, so the NOOK is not as useful outside of that country. Their ereaders are still good, but they don’t easily compare to the Kindle or a Kobo. But without further ado, let’s look at the best ereaders you can buy.
NOOK Glowlight Plus
Of the B&N devices, this is the superior one, and if you’re married to the store this is your guy. Although you’ll be limited to the NOOK store, it is compatible with ePub and PDF files.
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Price
This is one of the more expensive ereaders, with a regular price of $199.99. You can get a small discount if you’re a Barnes & Noble member, but it’s still more expensive than the competition considering its standard features.
Features
This ereader has a clear e-ink, 300 dpi display, and 7.8” resolution screen, which are a bit better than other entry-level ereaders. Its plastic body has page buttons on both sides of the screen, plus it’s waterproof. The screen itself is glare-resistant so that you can read outside, and it has an automatic light temperature adjustment. It has a standard wifi connection and charges with a micro-USB charger.
Memory
The Nook Glowlight Plus only has 8GB of memory, which will let you download about six thousand books depending on the size, which is quite the extensive library.
Kobo Nia
This is one of the more affordable entry-level ereaders. It’s nothing fancy, but it does its job well. It doesn’t have any ads and has an extensive catalogue in the bookstore. The great thing about Kobo is that you can also borrow ebooks from public libraries with OverDrive.
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Price
This is a cheaper ereader at $99.99. It’s more expensive than the entry-level Kindle, but some of the features are a fraction better.
Features
The Kobo Nia has a 6” display and a 212 ppi screen, giving you a decent resolution. The screen is quite smaller than the actual device, so the reading space isn’t the best. It’s the smallest of the ereaders with a glare-free screen and adjustable brightness. There’s a lot of customizability in fonts but the best thing is that it supports 15 formats! Unlike other ereaders. It also supports several languages and has standard wifi and micro-USB charging. It has a touch-screen so you can turn the pages while you read.
Memory
The Kobo Nia only comes with an 8GB memory option.
Amazon Kindle
The 2019 Kindle is the device’s tenth generation. It’s the entry-level ereader that Amazon offers and it’s quite a good basic model. The only thing is that you have to pay extra to remove the ads that appear in the lock screen, and the display isn’t the best quality. You can have a lot of books in a Kindle because it has one of the biggest online store catalogues. Plus, you can purchase Kindle Unlimited, which lets you borrow books from another catalogue. Although it supports less formats than a Kobo, so you’re limited to their store.
If you have a smaller budget though, this is definitely your guy.
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Price
The price of the Kindle varies a lot. You can find it with a discount (or offer) and with or without ads. The prices are:
$59.99 with a deal and ads
$89.99 without a deal and ads
$109.99 without a deal and without ads
$79.99 with a deal and without ads
Features
The Kindle has a glare-free 167 ppi display, which isn’t a great resolution for an ereader screen. It has a handy tool that allows you to highlight passages and look up definitions in a dictionary. It’s about the same size as the Kobo Nia (6.3”). One of the downsides is that features like the screen reader are only available in English. You can customize the font and get it in black or white colors. Like the other ereaders, it works with wifi and charges with a USB 2.0 cable. The screen is tactile so you can press it to change pages while reading.
Memory
This Kindle only has the 8GB memory option.
Kobo Forma
The Kobo Forma is the biggest competition to the Kindle Oasis. It has the same asymmetrical body and larger screen, but it comes with the advantages of any Kobo ereader (like supporting many more formats). The larger screen can be a pro or a con though, depending on how portable you like your devices. It’s a more expensive ereader but the features make the price worth it if you can splurge.
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Price
The Kobo Forma is a pricy ereader at a cost of $249.99 for the 8GB and $299.99 for the 32GB option.
Features
The Kobo Forma has an enormous 8″ display with 300 ppi (which means better resolution). It supports 14 file formats and has adjustable screen temperature so you can read in different light conditions. Like other Kobo ereaders, you can customize the font and language of the device. Other than the standard use of wifi and a micro-USB cable, it has excellent waterproofing that stands up to 60 minutes under 2 meters of water. As with the other big ereaders, it has page-turn buttons.
Memory
This ereader comes in 8GB and 32 GB memory options.
Kindle Oasis
This is a great ereader, make no mistake, but it comes at a high price. Even with the sleek design and aluminum body, it still feels overpriced. The big screen is great, and the resolution is amazing, but it’s still an investment.
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Price
The Oasis has different prices depending on the version you want to buy. It’s the priciest ereader on this list. Here are the standard prices of the different versions of the Kindle Oasis:
$249.99 with ads and an 8GB memory
$279.99 with ads and a 32GB memory
$269.99 without ads and an 8GB memory
$299.99 without ads and a 32GB memory
$349.99 for the 32GB, free cellular connectivity version
Features
This is a bigger Kindle with a 7″ and 300 ppi display. It is the only ereader that isn’t made of plastic, but of aluminum. It uses wifi, Bluetooth, and a USB 2.0 charger. The Oasis supports the same 8 formats the other Kindles do and has the same screen reader, highlighter, and dictionary that is standard to those ereaders. You can customize the font and the light color of the Oasis for easier reading. Plus, it auto-adjusts the brightness depending on the light. It also allows you to adjust the blue light that comes through (to avoid eye strain, yay!). The Kindle Oasis is waterproof too, and it comes in two colors: Graphite and Champagne Gold.
Memory
This Kindle comes in 8GB and 32GB memory versions.
Kobo Libra H2O
This is a great ereader. It has great screen resolution and the design makes for comfortable reading with the page-turn buttons. If you want a waterproof ereader this is definitely your guy. The big screen also makes for a comfortable reading experience, as you can hold it in one hand and still be comfortable.
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Price
The Kobo Libra is cheaper than some of its big ereader counterparts. It has a cost of $169.99.
Features
The Kobo Libra has a 7″ display with 300 ppi, which give a great resolution to this ereader. Like other Kobo devices, it has an adjustable color temperature, font customization, and it supports several languages. This one also supports 14 file formats and is waterproof as the name suggests. It uses wifi and micro-USB charger, and it comes in black and white (it’s the only Kobo with color options). The body comes with page-turn buttons for an easier reading experience.
Memory
This Kobo only comes in an 8GB memory option.
Kindle Paperwhite
This is a great ereader. It’s reasonably priced and it comes in different colors. It has a small and portable body (this page says it weighs about three Snickers bars) so it’s easy to hold when you’re reading. It’s a simple ereader that’s easy to use and won’t leave a hole in your wallet.
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Price
Although you can often find it with a discount, the standard prices of the different versions of the Kindle Paperwhite are as follows:
$129.99 with ads and 8GB memory
$149.99 without ads and 8GB memory
$159.99 with ads and 32GB memory
$179.99 without ads and 32GB memory
$249.99 for the 32GB, free cellular connectivity version
Features
The Kindle Paperwhite is a small and portable ereader with a 6″ and 300 ppi screen display, which means a super sharp resolution for a small screen. It supports the usual Kindle formats (still no ePub). It has font customization, plus a great front light that changes depending on the outside light. Besides the wifi connection and the USB 2.0 charging cable, it has Bluetooth. The Paperwhite is also waterproof, so it will survive quick dunks. The touch-screen makes page-turning quite easy while reading. The cool thing about this one (if that’s your thing) is that it comes in four colors: Black, Plum, Sage, and Twilight Blue.
Memory
This Kindle has two memory options. You can buy the 8GB version or the 32GB version.
Kobo Clara HD
This is the best alternative to a Kindle you can find. It’s affordable, with great quality and it gives you a great reading experience. It’s a great ereader overall and it’s a favorite not only because of the quality-price relation, but because it gives you all the tools for getting books outside its own store. It is the best ereader you can buy.
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Price
The Kobo Clara is a great, affordable alternative to a Kindle, with a cost of $119.99.
Features
The Kobo Clara HD has a smaller screen, with a 6″ and 300 ppi display it rivals the sharpness of the Paperwhite. It’s not waterproof, but it has a special ComfortLight PRO tech that reduces blue light for nighttime reading. You can customize the fonts and change the language, as with the other Kobo devices. It uses wifi and a micro-USB charger.
Memory
The 8GB memory of the Kobo Clara can hold about 6,000 books, which is quite the extensive library!
If you want to know more about ereaders you can read about how to recycle them or the amazing covers you can get for them. We also have an article on the best tablets for reading!
