What device do you read ebooks on?

[Cabbages and kings]

Hi everyone.

What device do you use to read ebooks?

Also do you have any knowledge on what device or devices most ebook buyers use to read ebooks?

[Simon Haynes]

I didn't vote because I have a Kindle 2 and a kobo mini ereader and use them equally for fiction.

If it's non-fic with images I use the Kindle cloud reader on my PC or one of my two android tablets.

[Cabbages and kings]

Thanks for the reply Simon Haynes.

I added a "Multiple devices" option to the poll, so you can vote if you want.

[TimothyEllis]

I use an Ipad Mini.

It may be the same as an Ipad in terms of function, but I'd never use an Ipad for reading.

If you add the Mini, I'll be able to vote.

[R. C.]

You need another option: Smart Phone (Kindle App).

I read on my smart phone and do not, have never, owned a tablet device for reading.

Cheers,
R.C.

[cecilia_writer]

I've voted Kindle, but actually I almost always read on a Kindle Fire these days which perhaps needs its own choice in the poll (or maybe not).

[LilyBLily]

When in Japan more than a decade ago, I saw that most of the people in the subway were reading on their phones. Not talking; reading. Now Americans do, too. I have read some books on my phone when the Kindle or my desktop aren't conveniently to hand.

[Lynn]

Phone, Fire tablet(s), Android tablet(s), Nook e-reader, computer rarely.

Phone is definitely my preferred device these days. I have small hands and I can carry my entire library in my back pocket when I'm out.

[Maggie Ann]

Mostly my Fire tablet. I read on my Kindle as well and on my phone when I'm sitting outside or stuck in a line somewhere (pre-Covid).

[Hopscotch]

I read on a Kindle Fire and Kindle for Chromebook but I hate/hate reading screens.  Kindle is great for longhaul flights, which prepandemic I took often.  But at home I read proper (meaning printed) books.  And I'm fierce about it.

[Jeff Tanyard]

I've voted Kindle, but actually I almost always read on a Kindle Fire these days which perhaps needs its own choice in the poll (or maybe not).

Same here.  I voted Kindle, but mine is a first-gen Kindle Fire, so perhaps not what OP meant by "Kindle."  But there you go.

[Cabbages and kings]

I use an Ipad Mini.

It may be the same as an Ipad in terms of function, but I'd never use an Ipad for reading.

If you add the Mini, I'll be able to vote.

You need another option: Smart Phone (Kindle App).

I read on my smart phone and do not, have never, owned a tablet device for reading.

Cheers,
R.C.

I've voted Kindle, but actually I almost always read on a Kindle Fire these days which perhaps needs its own choice in the poll (or maybe not).

Thanks for the replies everyone.

I added these to the poll:
iPad Mini
Smart Phone
Kindle Fire

[Post-Crisis D]

Well, there's also an iPad Air and an iPad Pro.  And a Kindle Oasis and Kindle Paperwhite.  You could go back and add in the Kindle DX and Kindle Voyage.  Multiple Nook varieties too.

How specific of an answer are you looking for?  Seems to me unless you're trying to pinpoint specific models, things could be grouped:

Kindle device
Nook device
Kobo eReader
iPad device
Other computer tablet
Computer (laptop or desktop)
Multiple devices
Smart Phone

[Matthew]

Maybe multiple devices is even too vague, but I do primarily read ebooks on Kindle. I still do a lot of reading on my phone when I'm out and about doing errands. I always have my phone with me and it fits in my pocket. Carrying a Kindle around is a bit cumbersome unless I'm going on an extended trip. I could always get a purse. Is it cool for men to have purses yet? 

[Post-Crisis D]

I could always get a purse. Is it cool for men to have purses yet? 

Messenger bag, briefcase, EDC bag, backpack, etc.   

[Cabbages and kings]

Well, there's also an iPad Air and an iPad Pro.  And a Kindle Oasis and Kindle Paperwhite.  You could go back and add in the Kindle DX and Kindle Voyage.  Multiple Nook varieties too.

How specific of an answer are you looking for?  Seems to me unless you're trying to pinpoint specific models, things could be grouped:

Kindle device
Nook device
Kobo eReader
iPad device
Other computer tablet
Computer (laptop or desktop)
Multiple devices
Smart Phone

I'm trying to get a feel for what device (or devices) most ebook buyers like to read on, as you can tailor a cover for it by:
1. Adjusting cover font sizes for legibility.
2. Adjusting cover composition to make it seen and understood better.
3. Making sure your cover looks good in black and white for older eReaders.

J.A. Konrath used to say an ebook cover should look good as a thumbnail and should look good in black and white.

[Post-Crisis D]

I'm trying to get a feel for what device (or devices) most ebook buyers like to read on . . .

You may not get the most relevant answers here.  Even if we are authors and readers, we may not align with readers who are not authors.

For example, I use an iPad for reading.  I have the Kindle app as well as Apple Books.  (Also have the Nook app, but no books in it.)  I also use the iPad for writing.  If I was not an author, would I have an iPad?  Maybe.  Maybe not.  Hard to say.  For me, it's difficult to justify the expense of a device used just for reading versus a device that can do multiple things.

[idontknowyet]

My kindle!!! I've bought several of the same one to ensure i wasn't without if one broke. Sadly in the last couple months i haven't read more than 5 or 10 books :(

[elleoco]

I don't see why author-readers' preferences would be any different than reader-readers' - unless the author only reads to analyze, compare, etc., and it sure seems (from forum posts over the years) like a lot of authors don't read for pleasure. But then most of the general public doesn't either. It seems like everyone I know has some brand of tablet, and most of them don't read books.

For me, I read from 250-300 books a year, and it's always e-ink Kindle unless I can't get a book I really, really want to read in that format or it costs too much. I do get some of those in paper from the library.

[Al Stevens]

iPad indoors with the Kindle app. Kindle Paperwhite outdoors. I can't use my phone because when I get the text large enough for these old eyes, I'm turning pages every two seconds.

For proofing my work, I use the iPad iBooks app with .epub files for e-books and pdfs for paperbacks. Its markup (Notes) feature is more to my liking than that of the Kindle app.

The Paperwhite's e-ink display is good for in sunlight.

[idontknowyet]

I don't see why author-readers' preferences would be any different than reader-readers' - unless the author only reads to analyze, compare, etc., and it sure seems (from forum posts over the years) like a lot of authors don't read for pleasure. But then most of the general public doesn't either. It seems like everyone I know has some brand of tablet, and most of them don't read books.

For me, I read from 250-300 books a year, and it's always e-ink Kindle unless I can't get a book I really, really want to read in that format or it costs too much. I do get some of those in paper from the library.

I actually think it is, because a lot of authors i know dont read more than 30 on the stretch 50 books a year. Whereas most readers i know read 100+.

[Simon Haynes]

Kindle Fire is a special case - doesn't it have an Android-like OS, only it can't access the google play store?  It's been a while, but I did release a version of yWriter for the Fire on the Amazon app store, which tells me you can have custom apps for it.

[The Masked Scrivener]

I like my Kindle Paperwhite, but to be honest, I read on my phone most of the time. It's about convenience for me. I have a Samsung Galaxy A50 with a 6in screen, so it's almost the size of the Kindle. But I can read whenever I get a chance, and I always have it with me.

I would like to get a 10in tablet to read comics on, but I just don't have time to get into that yet. For now I stick to reading indie authors on Kindle.

[Luke Everhart]

I don't see why author-readers' preferences would be any different than reader-readers' - unless the author only reads to analyze, compare, etc., and it sure seems (from forum posts over the years) like a lot of authors don't read for pleasure.

I've seen authors in forums intimate or even outright state they don't read for pleasure. However, I've never heard of a successful author who didn't read for pleasure.

I've read/listenedd to interviews, read bio pieces, and watched talks from quite a lot of authors -- because I'm book nerdy that way -- and I've yet to discover one that is making a financially solid living from their books that didn't read for pleasure. I suppose there must be some successful ones that don't 🤔... maybe? 🤷‍♂️ but I'm quite sure it's very rare; understandably so, as not doing so alienates you from the very experience you're trying to create and sell to others.

As to what device I read on: kindle paperwhite. Though I do also read some printed books from the library, but the vast majority of books I read on my kindle.

[Simon Haynes]

I like my Kindle Paperwhite, but to be honest, I read on my phone most of the time. It's about convenience for me. I have a Samsung Galaxy A50 with a 6in screen, so it's almost the size of the Kindle. But I can read whenever I get a chance, and I always have it with me.

I would like to get a 10in tablet to read comics on, but I just don't have time to get into that yet. For now I stick to reading indie authors on Kindle.

I bought a Galaxy 10.1 in tablet used the other day for $30 (aussie dollars).  It's only got Android 4.1 on it, and Challenger Comic Viewer requires 5.0 and up now, but I side-loaded the app from the developer's website and it works fine.

(I've had a second tablet for years, an Asus ME302C with a 1920x1200 screen, but the glass is cracked and one side of the touchscreen doesn't work. It was going to be $50+ just to get a replacement and fit it myself, which isn't worth it.)

Challenger also loads PDF files, mobi files and epubs.

[Simon Haynes]

I've seen authors in forums intimate or even outright state they don't read for pleasure. However, I've never heard of a successful author who didn't read for pleasure.

I've always been an avid reader. I never considered writing a novel until I was 27 or so, and I hit a patch where I reckoned I could do better than the stuff I was reading.
 
I write scifi/fantasy/horror but prefer to read WWII/Napoleonic war/etc novels.

[djmills]

I prefer paper books to read for pleasure. :-)
I use laptops (Ubuntu or Windows 10) for study, formatting, beta reading, writing, etc but as doc, docx, PDF or ePub.
I have downloaded some mobi ebooks from Amazon, but usually stop about chap 3 as not worth reading (on my smart phone). 

[Vijaya]

I also prefer physical books, esp. for nonfiction, because I tend to flip pages to re-read something that was alluded to earlier, but I can enjoy fiction on my paperwhite, esp. if it's going to be a tome. I also like reading in bed and the paperwhite is perfect for it because I'm not disturbing my husband.

[Anarchist]

95% Kindle Voyage

5% Kindle Cloud Reader

[LilyBLily]

Mostly Paperwhite. Then my desktop computer. Then my iPhone.

When libraries are open, I prefer print books, but many of the books I read will not be purchased by the struggling library system in my state. It doesn't have the budget to buy a lot of ebooks and many of the novels I read are only in ebook format. When I was much younger, the libraries didn't purchase the paperback originals that were the meat of my reading habit, so in that sense nothing much has changed. I'm a genre reader and genre is always in danger of being perceived as fringe.

[Sailor Stone]

I read on a 8" Fire tablet and a Kindle Paperwhite. But I am thinking about getting an iPad mini for all my reading. Although, I guess on the beach I would still use the Paperwhite.