Best Reader/Tablet for color comic books (cbr and cbz)

[astrangerhere]

I posted this over in the Android subforum to very little effect, so I'm trying here. I am looking to get my partner a device (yes, i know probably a tablet) to read comic books on. I am looking for specific suggestions and perhaps some user experience. The reivews on many of the tablets are really vague and varied, so I wanted to see if anyone was actually doing this with a tablet.

So if you read cbr or cbz on your tablet, I'm interested in knowing WHAT you have and how it works. Can you zoom in and out, whats you're ease of navigation, etc etc.

This didnt work out as a Christmas present, so I'm shooting for our anniversary here. Please, no ipads. I am not made of money.

[WillysJeepMan]

I use both an iPad and a Pandigital Novel (w/Droid Comic viewer) for reading comics. The Novel is a reasonable solution (if you can buy it for under $100). Otherwise I would recommend a nook color and unlock it to install Droid Comic Viewer.

[Gadget_girl]

I too am looking for a device to read colour comics on, like the original poster. However, I'm open to all suggestions and reviews. It would be my son purchasing it with his money, so cost isn't an issue, but knowing how it works, ease of sideloading comics, ease of navigation, page size, text size etc. Since I'll be the one setting it up, I'd like to know what I'm getting into. What do you think is the best option for reading comics?

[jocampo]

astrangerhere,

You can get an iPad 1 for very low right now, you don't need a lot of money or being rich for that. And it's awesome for comics with tons of applications for that.

The Galaxy Tab wifi is coming as well. Not as big as iPad which can be good or bad, depending of your perspective, but is a bit cheaper and could work. I own the Galaxy Tab 3G and is a nice device, with full Android Market, no need to root and lighter and more portable than iPad.

[Pato]

Is 8.9 inches screen good enough to read manga or comics? If it is, I might opt for the Galaxy Tab 8.9 this coming summer.

Right now I'm using 7" device and the need to zoom in and zoom out to read smaller text really make me fed up.

Currently, I'm seriously thinking of getting an Ipad 1 though i never use any Apple product before.

[dapriuk]

I use the Advent Vega (aka WSL XVision) with Droid Comic viewer, Aldiko and Adobe Reader to read cbr comics, epub and PDF documents. Zooming works just like with any other app using the Android nerve pinch.

It has a 10" colour LCD display, supports micro-SD cards and runs a restricted version of Android 2.2 though I have updgraded it to use the MoDaCo firmware to full Andoid and so access the Market apps.

The viewing angles are a bit narrow, it has WLAN but not 3G cellular, and the charge lasts aroound 10 hours but it is good enough for what I need it for which is to read documents. It costs £250 in the UK but I don't know what its availability or cost is elsewhere.

I did ponder getting an iPad as I feel the 4:3 format display is more suited than the now prevalent widescreen format to documents, but the SD card support, the straightforward way of managing document files and the open nature of the environment and apps convinced me to go with the Android tablet

Good luck finding something.

[Noah98]

It all depends on your price range. I personally think the ipad 2 is the best, but it is expensive. If you could get an original ipad cheap (Apple sells a refurbished one for $350), that would be great too. If not, the following would work:

Asus eee Transformer $400 (still expensive)

Samsung Galaxy Tab WiFi $350 (great device, but it has a 7" screen)

Nook Color ***Must be rooted to work with .cbr/.cbz*** (A cheap $250 option, but might not be worth the hassle)

Anything else just wouldn't be worth it. I would stay away from the super cheap options like the Pandigital Novel, Pocketbook IQ, and Velocity Cruz. They are too slow, and the screens do not render comics too well, although you could get by.

[murraypaul]

If you are considering an iPad, and are concerned about the ease of getting the comics on it, I'd recommend the Bookman app. It includes an ftp server, so you can upload books directly from your PC via WiFi without needing to use iTunes, and you can create whatever directory structures you like.

[Sweetpea]

I find 7" too small to read comics. I personally wouldn't go much below 10".

[Caesius]

Originally Posted by Gadget_girl

I too am looking for a device to read colour comics on, like the original poster. However, I'm open to all suggestions and reviews. It would be my son purchasing it with his money, so cost isn't an issue, but knowing how it works, ease of sideloading comics, ease of navigation, page size, text size etc. Since I'll be the one setting it up, I'd like to know what I'm getting into. What do you think is the best option for reading comics?

I totally agree with Sweetpea on the 7" PDN size. It is likely too small for most. And while I can read it just fine at "fit to screen," the command bar at the bottom does not go away (I've tried all settings). And instead of making the screen even smaller, it obscures what is beneath the bar (the bar I speak of is the standard Back, Home and Settings bar).

So, there are likely plenty of other options that would work better for you at displaying comics -- the best will depend on the other variables, all specific to your needs.

I am willing to deal with the issue noted because I like the portability and functionality of my 7" PDN. I hadn't even considered comic books until recently. I was simply revisiting the original Phoenix Saga (as much as I could find) from when I was a teenager. The entire John Byrne run would be ideal, but it was never a priority. The books, net access and amount of memory has been my focus.

[JSWolf]

The best tablet could possibly be an iPad 3.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

The best tablet could possibly be an iPad 3.

+1 if the rumors regarding retina display is correct. The advantage of the iPad is it's the most supported platform when it comes to official distribution of digital comics.