How practical is iPad for poolside & beach reading?
 

My friends and I are planning our winter grownup getaway. We are avid readers, and typically lug a bunch of heavy books that we read, swap, then leave behind.

Now we all have iPads. We will be spending most of our time out in the sun, poolside at our rental house, & some time at the beach too. I am wondering what your sun/water/sand iPad experience has been, good or bad. Any luck with the anti-glare films? Are any of those silly-looking waterproof sleeves/cases worth the money? Any issues with the iPad getting uncomfortably hot in the sun? Did it stress you out, always worrying about water & sand?

Have heard that Kindles are easier to read in the sun, but we already have iPads, & are not interested in buying more devices. We also have the common sense to know that water & sand are harmful to expensive electronics!

Advice from iPad-owning FTers greatly appreciated - thanks!

iPads are difficult if not impossible to read in direct sunlight. Also, iPads do not work well with polarized sunglasses. Depending on the orientation of the iPad, the screen can be completely obscured.

Stick with the Kindle for sustained reading at the beach or pool.

Disclaimer: I LOVE my iPad for everything else! But sadly it just doesn't work in the sun.

That's the entire kindle marketing against the iPad and other like devices, a guy is at a pool trying to read his and can't see anything, but the pretty girl is having no problems with her Kindle.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGmRKSds9OY

I do not understand why the guy wants to read anything at the pool when there's a pretty girl nearby. (unless he's married, of course... but he can still look, right?)

on a more serious note, it is a supremely bad idea to read anything outdoors(beach, pool, baseball stadium, etc). Even if you wear sunglasses, prolonged exposure of UV lights caused by staring at a book or ebook reader(or laptop screen) is notgood for the health of your eyes. (advice from a retired eye surgeon)

I always buy regular books, even hardbacks regardless of the extra weight. This will always beat trying to read some electronic version of a book when outdoors by a pool...

Is it just me or does reading a book on some little electronic device seem extremely "geeky" so to speak? :)

I also prefer real books for a different reasons. I like to read while doing "business" in the bathroom. I once dropped a Blackberry in the toilet and killed it. I don't think I'm qualified to use iPad or any other e-reader in the bathroom anymore.

Good point. :) You can't "kill" a book by dropping it.

Plus nothing beats the physical turning of each page and reading a book the proper way. ^

Which of course the OP clearly stated they do not own and were not interested in acquiring... :confused:

Regards

The iPad a a book replacement pros: It has a Kindle app and you have the Apple book library. The screen is very clear. The user interface is excellent.

Cons: Its too heavy. Decent if you're seated at a table, not good in bed/laying down. You can't use it outside in sunny conditions.

Overall, IMHO, The iPad isn't a great book replacement device. Kindle is better.

I used to think that too. Then I got a Kindle. ;)

After I bought my Ipad (which I love) I did buy a Kindle for outdoors and when I know I am going to read ahead of time. Its great on a plane when I don't want to risk my Ipad battery dying, even though it does last about 12 hours. I have both, and love both!

On a serious note, how is the kindle compared to reading a regular book?

I'll speak for the Nook, which is about identical to a Kindle as far as reading. It's actually quite amazing. I don't really understand it, but I find it easier on the eyes than a regular book. I can easily spend hours reading (including outdoors, which is nice). It's also easy as a one-hand operation, which isn't always possible with a regular book. I'm pretty well hooked.

I've used a Sony Reader for as long as they have been available (3+ years?). My wife has one, too. We also have iPads.

The Readers have been to many beaches and pool vacations and work great.

The iPad is completely unreadable with polarized sunglasses in portrait mode. Thanks to the touch screen I'd also expect it to get more greasy (sun lotion?) - the Sonys we have and most other dedicated eReaders don't use touch screens.

The iPad has a very good battery life, but an order of magnitude less than an eInk reader. Never any worry I am running out of juice while reading.

I have used my iPad in the sun (backyard) for email and surfing and it is sensitive to overheating. (gives you an on-screen warning).

Sony is coming out with an iPhone (and iPad?) app any day now, so I can access all our books on the iPad (same is already true for Kindle, Nook, ...). That's useful when I go on a trip and dont want to bring along both devices, but for pool/beach vacations I will definitely continue to use the eInk Reader.

What if you're in the shade?

I rarely sit in direct sunlight (redhead's curse of ivory skin that burns like a mofo), but I do love sitting in the shade with a good book.

I agree with all of the above. I love my iPad, and I use it for reading books in places where I can sit it down (planes, sofa, etc) and balance it on its case (I have the bookbook for iPad case, which is spectacular). But it's far too heavy to hold and read like a book.