[smakz]

If you ever tried to actually read on an iPad you would understand why. The glossy screen means you can't read in natural light, and the backlit screen causes eye strain. For long stretches of reading, iPad can't replace books the same way the Kindle can.

Although I'm personally not surprised that books aren't that popular on iPad, but I was curious if people would overcome the above deficiencies with the form factor. Early reports seem to indicate not yet.

[jgerman]

I've been reading on the iPad since release. It's not difficult to read on at all and I have yet to suffer any eye strain. You can read just fine in natural light, direct sunlight is the only real issue...sit under a tree.

The idea that the iPad is difficult to read on has been spread mostly by.. surprise surprise... people that haven't actually read on it.

I'm sure some people may not be able to look at the screen for long. They're the same people that can't look at any computer screen for long.

Yes, you can have glare issues on rare occasion. They're usually solved by shifting the iPad slightly.

Most of us stare at screen over 8 hours a day. I can understand if you want to go home and look at something else but honestly, it has yet to bother me.

The reason so few eBooks have been sold is because the selection is weak. The books I want are almost always in the Kindle store and are rarely in iBooks. However I still use my iPad to read those Kindle books.

Additionally, that's 1.5 books a person via iBooks alone, over a 4 week period, that doesn't count the Kindle purchases. That number seems pretty good to me.

[mike463]

I have an iPad, a Kindle 2 and a Kindle DX.

I prefer the Kindle DX by a wide margin when reading books.

The iPad is not unusable for reading, but the kindle with a bright reading light is much nicer. The Kindle is superior outdoors.

I can read without my glasses with the Kindle DX, but I always need glasses for the iPad.

The iPad is much better for everything else.

[bjelkeman-again]

Having read more than two thousand screens (pages?) on an iPad in iBooks so far I don't think there is a major issue. It is highly unlikely that I would replace the iPad with a Kindle.

My camera is a lot better than my iPhone as a camera, but the best camera you have is the one you have with you. In the iPad I can carry enough of what I need with me without having to carry multiple devices.

I have not bought any books in the iBook store, as the store is not available in my region yet. But I got books from Baen Books, as well as O'Reilly, in ePUB format.

The attraction to me with the iPad is that I have a choice. An open format reader and a choice of books stores. I did buy a book from Amazon on the iPad Kindle app, but haven't started reading it yet, so time will tell.

[krschultz]

I think it depends a lot of where you are reading. I'm sure the iPad would work fine for my commute on the subway. I'm sure I'd rather have a Kindle on the beach. (though I probably wouldn't bring either to the beach since they are going to get stolen or damaged)

[codyrobbins]

I’ve read my iPad at the beach for hours, and I have no complaint whatsoever. It’s actually superior to a book, because the pages of a book reflect too much sunlight for me to look at it comfortably.

[jacquesm]

> In the iPad I can carry enough of what I need with me without having to carry multiple devices.

You'd still need to bring a phone though, as it can not do voice calls.

[jgerman]

Yes it can. It's not a cell phone, but it is capable of VOIP, even on 3G.

[modoc]

I don't have a Kindle for comparison however I've had no issues reading books on my iPad even in direct sun out on my deck. Sure if you angle it JUST wrong, it's useless, but I haven't had a problem finding a comfortable reading angle.

I've only bought one book on my iPad (just got the 3g on Friday), but the reason I haven't purchased more is that I'm still reading the first one. Once I finish that, I'll be another, etc... so I wouldn't count the iPad book sales just yet, I'd look at them over a longer time frame.

[jacquesm]

Exactly. Extrapolation from limited data is bound to be useless, give it 6 months and then let's look at it. By then there will probably be a lot more books available too, publishers will look at the number of ipads sold as a big factor in deciding whether or not to release their content on the medium.

[jacoblyles]

For students, the eye strain might be worth it just to get a decent PDF reader. The eInk readers available are universally horrible at rendering PDFs.

[ugh]

The iPhone’s PDF viewer is pretty crappy, though. It’s pretty much the only thing on the iPhone that feels unbearably slow. I don’t know how much the iPad improves that but at least on the iPhone reading (long, i.e. ten or more pages) PDFs is no joy.

[samps]

I have experienced the same frustration on my iPhone 3G. I can vouch that the speed is greatly improved on the iPad. The PDF viewer is now actually pleasant. (It's amazing what a little clock speed will do.)

[jacoblyles]

The iPhone PDF reading experience is actually better than many 6 or 9 inch eInk devices.

[tzs]

Try GoodReader.

[jsz0]

By natural light do you mean direct sunlight on the screen? That is a problem but otherwise the iPad is usable outdoors in most situations I've found. I used it in a car the other day (no, not while driving) with lots of sunlight coming in the windows and it was usable. Definitely not up to par with an e-ink display but for someone like me who has no interest in a dedicated e-ink device it's certainly good enough. I don't think there's much doubt e-ink readers will be the choice for heavy readers. Of course we also don't know how many iPad owners bought the device with the intention to read books on it. We know about 99% of Kindle owners bought their device for one specific purpose.

[tzs]

"The glossy screen means you can't read in natural light, and the backlit screen causes eye strain"

This is commonly claimed, but I've never seen a cite to any science to back it. All I've been able to find is scientists saying its a myth.

[mike463]

The science: - dilated pupils make focusing harder. - Higher contrast makes reading easier.

So: Reading on a kindle with a bright light closes down your pupils and makes it easier for your eyes to focus on the words without using the muscles in your eyes for focusing. This is especially important for readers over 40 who are starting to get farsighted.

An iPad has a glossy screen, which limits the contrast. (comparing signal to noise, well the reflection is all noise)

An e-ink screen has very high brightness and contrast, even (epecially) in bright sunlight.

I'm not saying it's impossible to read with the iPad or iPhone or a computer. Just realize it may take more unconscious effort for some people.

I have both an iPad and a Kindle and love both.

[Shorel]

Mi old Sony Ericsson P900 replaced paper books for me four or five years ago.

I read the entire robots and foundation Asimov novels in it, and also about 20 of the discworld books.

So, for some people it works, YMMV.