Tag: e-reader

Kindle App on the iPhone 5

Kindle App on the iPhone 5

Posted on by Jack

I had previously written about the Bluefire Reader e-reader on my iPhone so I thought I should also tell you about the Kindle App on the iPhone 5.

I have a Kindle which is several years old and really like it. I often use it to read the books I review on this website. More about that in my Bluefire link above.

The iPhone 5 screen is bigger that the old iPhones so that might make a difference in the experience but I suspect it would not make all that much difference. Any iPhone screen would be much smaller than a Kindle.

So if you are reading with similar size fonts the main difference is that there is less on each page. On the Kindle you have buttons to advance the page, but the app changes the page when you touch with screen at the side. Or you can also use the swiping action if you like that.

With the Kindle you have a bunch of buttons available to do various things but with the app those functions are hidden most of the time but reveal themselves when you touch the top or bottom of the screen. I haven’t checked to see if all functions on the Kindle are also on the app but those I use are there.

My Kindle is Wi-Fi only (no 3G) so if I am in the presence of Wi-Fi, the app and Kindle can synch so I can go back and forth between reading a book on one and then the other and my place carries over.

I usually read on the Kindle when at home. But the app is great if I am waiting somewhere and want to read my book for a while. I usually carry my phone when we go anywhere and carrying the Kindle around is not hard but now it is unnecessary.

I also use the app at home if my wife wants to use the Kindle so we don’t have to be a two Kindle family. Also sometimes I just use the app on my phone because I feel like it.

Note added:

I forgot to mention that the app is free from the Apple store. So if you have an iPhone and a Kindle account, you have nothing to lose by trying this. You’ll probably like it!

Bluefire Reader ereader on my iPhone

Bluefire Reader ereader on my iPhone

Posted on by Jack

You may have noticed that in some of the posts on this site I review books I have read recently. Quite a few of these are e-books from Netgalley, service that allows book publishers to make their Advanced Reader Copies (ARCs) available electronically for book reviewers, book sellers, librarians, and so forth.

I usually request copies compatible with my Kindle. However a few weeks ago I had requested book and was approved but sadly there was not a Kindle option. The available option was the Adobe Digital Editions which does a fine job but my only experience with it was reading a book on a laptop computer. It works but it is a bit inconvenient to fire up the old laptop and actually keep it in your lap as you read. A bit big and clunky for me.

I had read Kindle books on my iPhone with the Kindle App on the iPhone and liked it so I looked for something that could read Adobe Digital Editions files on the iPhone. I found Bluefire Reader, which was highly rated e-reader in the Apple store. So I installed it and gave it a try.

Since I already had Adobe Digital Editions on my main computer and laptop, I already had an account and just had to authorize another device (Bluefire Reader), download the book, and I was set.

Bluefire Reader was easy to use and did a great job in allowing me to read on my phone. Bluefire Reader is a wonderful e-reader for the iPhone.

Sine I have found myself posting about computer, software, and technology in general as I go about writing about genealogy, books, or other issues, I am adding a tech category to cross reference those posts. I’ll go back and add that category as appropriate. I guess, it is appropriate too that I have written this first post in the tech category with my Chromebook.