We will not enter into an argument about which book is better - paper or electronic. Both have a lot of advantages and have their disadvantages. However, an e-book has two important options, which, alas, never a paper book:
- The first is the ability to customize the size and appearance of the font for yourself.
- The second is the ability to store thousands of books "under one cover" at once.
If you are interested best e-books of 2018, then before the start of the autumn-winter sales, it's time to look for suitable options. We studied popular offers on Yandex.Market, as well as recommendations from experts from PCmag and Hookedtobooks, and compiled the top e-books. We hope one of them will become your faithful friend at home and on trips.
10. Amazon Kindle Paperwhite
The average price is 8,590 rubles.
- e-book 6 ″
- E-Ink Pearl, backlit
- touch input
- resolution 1024 × 768
- 16 shades of gray
- Wi-Fi
- memory cards are not supported
Paperwhite is one of the most popular Kindle readers. There is an important reason for this - improved features over the older Basic version.
The most noticeable improvement in the Kindle Paperwhite is its excellent resolution. Higher pixel density translates into much crisper and easier-to-read text. The fast and responsive touchscreen works without freezes or lags.
Four built-in LEDs allow you to read in the dark without disturbing anyone with the rustle of turning pages. An important feature of the built-in LEDs is that they shine evenly on the page, and not directly into your eyes, as is the case when reading from a smartphone or tablet. But the backlight cannot be turned off completely, even if you set it to zero, the dim light is still visible.
The battery guarantees up to 6 weeks of operation if you use the device for 30 minutes a day and with the wireless network turned off.
The disadvantages of the Kindle Paperwhite are: lack of water resistance, headphone jack and support for fb2 format.
9. Kobo Aura H2O
The average price is 17,990 rubles.
- e-reader 6.8 ″
- E-Ink Carta, backlit
- capacitive touch input
- resolution 1430 × 1080
- 16 shades of gray
- Wi-Fi
- microSD memory cards, microSDHC
If you are going to one of the cleanest sandy beaches in the world or just want to read a book while lying in the bathroom, take the Kobo Aura H2O with you. This is the best e-book of 2018 in terms of water resistance.
The device boasts one of the largest E Ink touchscreens on the e-reader market. It also has a uniform white backlighting, which makes the screen look as close as possible to a white book sheet. And thanks to many small settings (from fonts to line spacing), you can make the text not only interesting, but also pleasing to the eye.
Cons: no Russian menu out of the box, folders are not supported.
8. Kobo Clara HD
The average price is 13,990 rubles.
- e-book 6 ″
- E-Ink Carta Backlit
- 16 shades of gray 16
- Built-in memory 8 GB
- USB interface
- there is wifi
One of the thinnest and lightest modern e-books. Its main advantages are an excellent screen in an elegant body and a long battery life. The reader can last about a month on one charge.
Clara HD LED lighting can be changed from blue to soothing yellow.It can also automatically change depending on the time of day. The user interface looks like Ubuntu for e-books. It's very simple. You can place your books in collections linked by titles.
When reading, you can choose from 10 different fonts with a wide range of sizes. Click on words in the text and you can highlight or annotate them, or share quotes on Facebook.
Unfortunately, this device is not waterproof.
7. Kobo Aura ONE
The average price is 22,990 rubles.
- e-reader 7.8 ″
- E-Ink Carta, backlit
- touch input
- resolution 1872 × 1404
- 16 shades of gray
- Wi-Fi
- microSD memory cards, microSDHC
“Are you out of your mind? Slip me an e-book that costs more than nice chinese phone! ”, - you may be indignant. And we will answer: “Do not rush. Take a look at the merits of Aura ONE and you will understand that the high price sometimes still means high quality. "
For many people, the big screen of an e-book is the factor that makes them say: "I take it!" Aura ONE has a screen closer to the size of a physical book, but has all the convenience of a reader. For those who read a lot of PDFs and tutorials, it is without a doubt much more relevant than the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite or Kobo Clara HD 6-inch screen. In addition, the larger screen is also more comfortable for people who like larger font sizes.
The Kobo Aura One comes with nine white LEDs and eight RGB LEDs around the bezel. This is one of the rarest e-books on the market with RGB LEDs. They allow you to provide different color temperatures of the screen depending on the time of day and lighting.
Kobo Aura One is equipped with HZO Protection ™ technology. He can stay safe in the water at a depth of 2 meters for an hour.
And now about the shortcomings: the manufacturer did not put a cover or even a charger in the kit. There is no Russian language in the reader either, although it supports the Cyrillic alphabet, but the built-in dictionaries are only in English.
6. PocketBook 640
The average price is 7,990 rubles.
- e-book 6 ″
- E-ink pearl
- touch input
- resolution 800 × 600
- 16 shades of gray
- Wi-Fi
- memory cards
With a bright, anti-glare touchscreen, this e-reader has features that are truly compelling for many ebook fans. These include:
- pocketbook sync - a service for loading content into a reader "over the air";
- the ability to share quotes from books on social networks
- integration with the ReadRate service;
- availability of cloud storage available through Dropbox;
- waterproof according to IP57 standard (safe immersion to a depth of 1 meter).
Of the minuses, users note tight and low-located control buttons.
5. PocketBook 614 Plus
The average price is 5,344 rubles.
- e-book with b / w screen 6 ″
- E-Ink Carta
- resolution 800 × 600
- 16 shades of gray
- microSD memory cards, microSDHC
This is a very handy e-book both in terms of the case and in terms of firmware. It will be very difficult to miss the elastic buttons, the device lies comfortably in the hand, and the bright screen belongs to the latest generation of E-Ink. It is convenient to read from it, and the eyes do not get tired.
The PocketBook 614 Plus shell allows you to create your own folders, and not store all books in one, it supports the fb2 format and Russian encoding.
Cons: no backlight and no Wi-Fi module
4. ONYX BOOX C67ML Darwin
The average price is 8 490 rubles.
- e-book 6 ″
- E-Ink Carta, backlit
- capacitive touch input
- resolution 1024 × 758
- 16 shades of gray
- Wi-Fi
- microSD memory cards, microSDHC
With a 1700 mAh battery, this e-reader has a very light weight - only 169 grams. In addition, the manufacturer put a beautiful leatherette cover in the kit. Still not enough for you to choose this model? Then here are some more pluses for you:
- a huge number of supported formats for texts, including FB2 and FB2.zip;
- 8 GB of internal memory and the ability to use also memory cards;
- high-contrast screen with a resolution of 1024x759 pixels.
Pages turn over instantly, and you can even play games with a low speed of rendering graphics.
Cons: not a very convenient library that shows all the books in a heap. And to view them in folders, you will have to use the explorer.
3. PocketBook 515 Mini 3.5
The average price is 4,990 rubles.
- e-book with b / w screen 5 ″
- E-Ink Vizplex
- resolution 800 × 600
- 16 shades of gray
- memory cards are not supported
Small, fast and lightweight eBook is perfect for those who need to read notes, technical pdfs with illustrations or other materials that do not require a color screen. Despite the small size of the screen, the text is read very well on it.
A feature of this reader is a convenient note system. You can save the selected lines as pictures.
Of the minuses, we note the branded back panel and tight buttons. And the picture sometimes does not fit the whole screen.
2. Barnes & Noble Nook Simple Touch
The average price is 7,990 rubles.
- e-book 6 ″
- E-ink pearl
- touch input
- resolution 800 × 600
- 16 shades of gray
- Wi-Fi
- microSD memory cards, microSDHC
One of the favorites of Russian users. They love the convenience and display of this model. Thanks to the recess on the back, the device is very comfortable to hold in your hands. And the mechanical buttons on the sides fit exactly under your fingers. The anti-glare touchscreen has enough contrast and is easy to read, even outdoors in bright sunlight.
This reader weighs more than many of its competitors - 212 grams. All because of the capacious 1560 mAh battery, which allows you to forget about charging the device for two to three weeks.
After receiving root access, craftsmen can install a Russified keyboard, Dropbox and Dropsync and many other useful utilities on the reader.
The "reader" has one minus - a small number of formats supported "out of the box".
1. Amazon Kindle Oasis 2017 32 Gb
The average price is 26,590 rubles.
- e-book 7 ″
- E-Ink Carta, backlit
- touch input
- resolution 1440 × 1080
- 16 shades of gray
- Wi-Fi
- memory cards are not supported
If you're shocked by the cost of the Kindle Oasis, then you're not alone. We are all used to the fact that Kindle readers are much cheaper. However, the capabilities of this device made it possible to place it at the top of the 2018 e-book ranking. In the review of the best models, there are other readers with water resistance and good backlighting. However, only the Kindle Oasis has a bulge on the left side of the back cover that helps move the center of gravity to the center of the palm. Thanks to this, your hand will not get tired for a long time. Such a "handle" serves a visual purpose and also imitates a book spine. This is the closest approximation to a real book that an electronic device can get.
- In the 2017 version, the ability to listen to audiobooks through bluetooth headphones is implemented.
- The creators also took care of the physical buttons that are located to the right of the screen and fit exactly under the thumb.
- With its smart design and square shape, the Oasis is by far the lightest and thinnest Kindle device on the market. It weighs 194 grams. For comparison, the Kindle Paperwhite weighs 213 grams.
- Another distinctive feature of Oasis: an automatically rotating screen. It is the only Kindle model that supports screen rotation, so left-handed users can use it.
Cons: high price (although the version with 8 GB onboard is cheaper - about 23 thousand rubles) and an open microUSB connector, which does not fit well with IPX8 water protection.
Summing up: which e-book is better to buy
If your budget allows you, we recommend Amazon Kindle Oasis 2017 32 Gb or Kobo Aura ONE. These are readers with a large screen, smart, convenient and with a wide range of options.
If you need water resistance, coupled with an affordable price, then pay attention to Kobo Aura H2O or PocketBook 640.
If your budget is limited to 5-7 thousand rubles and you want a high-quality reader, choose PocketBook 515 Mini 3.5 or PocketBook 614 Plus.
The rest of the members of our collection are approximately equal in characteristics and quality. Choose the "reader" that you like best in appearance.