Is Kindle 3 The Best E-reader

Looking for the best electronic reading device? There are several companies all claiming that their device is the best. This impartial review will help you to pick the best e-reader to suit your needs.

Amazon Kindle and Barnes & Noble Nook are the two serious contenders for the title of best e-reader. There are other electronic reading devices on the market, but Kindle and Nook dominate the scene while the others are fading further into the background. So, this is going to be a straight review and comparison of Nook and Kindle as the two market leaders.

Since the launch of the first models of Nook and Kindle, the enhancements of each subsequent version have brought the two contenders closer. It is harder than ever to make a decision as to whether to buy the new Amazon Kindle or the latest Nook. The two models under scrutiny here are the Kindle 3G (+Wi-Fi) and the Nook (Wi-Fi +3G).

When trying to compare and review Amazon's Kindle 3 and Barnes & Nobel's Nook it is impossible to avoid picking out the features they share. The two e-readers are the same size to within a fraction of an inch. They are the same weight to within a couple of ounces. The battery life of each of them is 10 days of reading.

The way the manufacturers have improved these two e-readers makes it hard to put either one in first place. People looking to buy an e-reader have been swayed first towards the Kindle, then towards the Nook and back again. The competition with the latest Nook and the Kindle 3 is even fiercer than with previous models. It is simply not possible to say that one is obviously superior to the other. So how do you decide on a winner in the Nook vs Kindle battle?

The selection of an e-reader is very much a matter of personal choice. The best way to compare Amazon's Kindle 3 and Barnes & Noble's Nook is to think about the way you intend to use an electronic reading device. How much do you read, what do you read, where do you read? With a clear idea of the way you want to use the reader, you can make a choice on the basis of the following features of each device.

1. International travel. Do you want to be able to download reading matter overseas? The Nook will not work outside the USA. The Kindle 3 enables you to download books in over 100 countries via GSM network. You can, however, use both of them anywhere in the world to read books you have already downloaded.

2. Weight. The Kindle is lighter (and slightly smaller) than the Nook. The difference is only a couple of ounces, but this might be important to you if you travel a lot.

3. Navigation. The Kindle has push button navigation only. The Nook has touch-screen navigation. Which makes you more comfortable?

4. Memory size. The Kindle 3 can hold up to 3,500 books. The storage capacity of the Nook is 1,500 books. (However, the Nook has an expansion slot to expand the memory if you want to.)

5. Color screen. One other notable difference between the Kindle and the Nook is that the latter offers a color screen. While this is not of particular importance in a reader, this feature could be something you would like to have.

Either of these devices will prove to be excellent value for money. The ongoing competition between the two manufacturers has ensured that the quality of the products keeps going up while the prices are kept down. The choice is yours, and you can't lose.