The Amazon Kindle is a popular electronic reading device, but is it a tool for missionaries? Brigada participant, Jonathan, says yes. He recently wrote, “If you want to travel light and save some money, take a look at the Kindle. In comparison to the popular Apple and Android tablets, the Kindle is a “poor man’s tablet.” While it cannot do everything a tablet can do, it can do several important things for less money. With a long battery life, e-ink display, Wifi and free 3G, and the ability to read your PDF and Word documents, it is worthy of your consideration.” Read more from Jonathan at…
If you’re looking for a “poor man’s tablet”, go for the Nook Color. It’s basically an Android tablet for $249. In addition to being an eReader, Barnes & Nobel provides an app store that has popular apps, games, music, videos, full featured email & social features.
I’ve got a Kindle 3 and love it. Note that it also does have a few apps available – mainly games, but they add to the versatility, esp given the fantastic battery life. Another tip: you can add multiple addresses that can send to your Kindle, allowing for some creative options (e.g. you could receive newsletters directly to your Kindle). Finally, there are some fantastic free and low-cost deals on Kindle books for new & recent releases, including quite a few Christian books. I monitor http://www.ireaderreview.com for a daily review of Kindle deals, but there are many other sites to choose from.
Regarding the Nook Color, it is probably the best all-around deal on the market for a tablet. You can get a refurb right now for $185 at Overstock.com (with coupon). Awesome deal! But with its highly reflective screen and comparatively short battery life, it cannot compare to the Kindle or the new Nook 2 or Kobo eReaders, all of which use Pearl eInk for a fantastic reading experience even in bright sunlight.
I’ve been using my Kindle in Kenya for free web access to Gmail, corporate Microsoft Exchange, Twitter, Facebook, Tripit and more. It’s slow (EDGE vs 3G), but it’s free. It was also useful while traveling through Amsterdam where I didn’t have a data plan and didn’t want to buy Wifi.