Apple iPad Tablet Review

The iPad as a Book Reader

The iPad has been widely promoted as an eBook reader. As you might expect, this is done as an app. When you start the iBook app, you are presented with your books on a wooden bookshelf, shown in Figure 13.

Figure 13: The iBook bookcase.

Reading a book on the iPad is pleasurable. Using the iPad’s accelerometer, you can view the book either vertically or horizontally. Not only can you increase the size of the text, but you can choose to display it in several different fonts. As shown in Figure 14, you simply swipe your finger to turn the page and you actually see the page turning.

Figure 14: Turning a page.

Text is crisp and clear on the iPad, but the e-Ink technology used by other digital reading devices like the Kindle is easier on the eyes. However, the iPad has an ambient light sensor and also offers the ability to dim the brightness, so you may be able to adjust the screen to suit your eyes.

The iPad also has some other nice features for book reading. Tap any word and you get a definition, the chance to bookmark your spot, or to look up that word on Google or Wikipedia.

The iPad supports the popular ePub digital book format. If you download ePub books to your computer you can drag them into iTunes and sync with the iPad, as long as they are unprotected. There is also a protected ePub format. That is what Apple uses for their bookstore. So books purchased from the Apple store can only be read on the iPad.

The Apple book store is in its infancy. There are about 60,000 titles right now. The prices seem to be either in line with those in the Kindle store or a little higher. You can purchase a book directly from the iPad.

There is an app available that lets you read Kindle books on the iPad. Like the iPhone app, it will even keep track of where you have left off reading between the two devices.

The large color screen on the iPad will be great for books that support it. The only thing we noticed in reading a book on the iPad is that it is heavier than the Kindle, but then it is still lighter than a hard cover book.