6″ Inch Ebook Reader Comparison Matrix
The amount of new ebook readers cropping up can be overwhelming, therefore we have created comparison tables which compare the models like for like.
Below are the most popular six inch ebook readers, available in the market today in the UK. As more ebook readers become available we will add them to this list.
2012-2013 Ebook Readers
| Brand | Amazon | Amazon | Kobo | Nook | Sony | Bookeen |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model | Kindle Paperwhite 3G | Amazon Kindle (4th gen) | Kobo Glo | Nook simple touch with glow light | Sony reader wifi PRS T2 | Bookeen odyssey HD |
| Picture |  |  |  |  |  |  |
| Dimensions | 169 mm x 117 mm x 9.1 mm (6.7" x 4.6" x 0.36") | 166 mm x 114 mm x 8.7 mm (6.5" x 4.5" x 0.34") | 114 x 157 x 10 mm (4.5" x 6.2" x 0.4") | 127 x 165 x 119 mm (6.5x5x0.47 ”) | 110 x 9 x 173mm (4.3" x0.35" x .6.8") | 166 x 120 x 9,4 mm (6.5" × 4.7" × .37") |
| Weight | 213g (7.5oz) | 170g (5.98oz) | 185 g (6.5 oz) | 197g (6.95oz) | 162g (5.9oz) | 180g (6.35 oz) |
| Display | (90 × 120mm) 6" 758 × 1024 pixels, 212 ppi E Ink Pearl (high contrast) | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi E Ink Pearl (high contrast) | (90 × 120mm) 6" 758 × 1024 pixels, 212 ppi E Ink Pearl (high contrast) | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi E Ink Vizplex | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi E Ink Pearl (high contrast) | (90 × 120mm) 6" 758 × 1024 pixels, 212 ppi E Ink Pearl (high contrast) |
| Backlight | Paperwhite backlight | no | Glow function | Glow function | no | Glow function |
| Grey Levels | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 |
| Touch Screen | yes | no | yes | yes | yes | yes |
| Power | Likely Li-Polymer 1750mAh | Likely Li-Polymer 1750mAh | Likely Li-Polymer 1750mAh | Likely Li-Polymer 1750mAh | Likely Li-Polymer 1750mAh | Li-Polymer 1600mAh |
| Battery Life | 8 weeks with wireless off | 1 month with wireless off | 1 month with wireless off | 1 month with wireless off | 2 month with wireless off | Weeks of battery life, even with activated FrontLight |
| CPU | 800 MHZ ARM CPU | Freescale i.MX31L (ARM1136JF-S core, 532MHz) | 1 GHZ ARM CPU | unknown | unknown | Cortex A8 Texas Instruments OMAP3611 (800 Mhz) |
| Memory | 512MB RAM, 2GB Flash (~1.4GB user accessible) | 2GB Flash (1.4GB user accessible) | 2GB Flash Supports micro SD up to 32GB | 2GB Flash Supports micro SD up to 32GB | 2GB Flash Supports micro SD up to 32GB | 2GB Flash Supports micro SD up to 32GB |
| Connections | International 3G, Wifi | wifi | Wifi | wifi | Wifi | Wifi |
| Supported Formats | Kindle (AZW), PRC/MOBI (non DRM), PDF, PDF (non DRM), HTML, DOC, TXT, JPEG, GIF, PNG; | Kindle (AZW), PRC/MOBI (non DRM), PDF, PDF (non DRM), HTML, DOC, TXT, JPEG, GIF, PNG; | EPUB, PDF, JPEG, GIF, PNG, TIFF, TXT, (X)HTML, RTF, CBZ, CBR | ePub, PDF, JPG, GIF, PNG, BMP | ePub, PDF | EPUB, PDF, Adobe DRM, HTML, TXT, FB2 ,JPEG, PNG, GIF, BMP, ICO, TIF, PSD |
| Supported DRM | AZW and TOPAZ (Kindle only) and PDF password-protected PDFs | AZW and TOPAZ (Kindle only) and PDF password-protected PDFs | DRM and non-DRM EPUB files | DRM and non-DRM EPUB files | eReader (EPUB/eReader), Adobe ADEPT (EPUB/PDF) | Adobe ADEPT (EPUB/PDF) |
| Font Sizes | 8 | 8 | 24 | 7 | 6 | unknown |
| Search / Dictionary Functions | Search using virtual keyboard, built-in dictionary using touchscreen | Search using virtual keyboard, built-in dictionary | Search using virtual keyboard, built-in dictionary using touchscreen | Search using virtual keyboard, built-in dictionary using touchscreen | Search using virtual keyboard, built-in dictionary using touchscreen | Search using virtual keyboard, built-in dictionary using touchscreen |
| Notes / annotations | Yes, using touchscreen | Yes, using buttons | Yes, using touchscreen | Yes, using touchscreen | Yes, using touchscreen and stylus | Yes, using touchscreen |
| Text To Speech | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| Services | Amazon Kindle Whispernet. Sync Kindle ebooks across multiple devices. E-mail conversion of DOC, HTML, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP and PDF | Amazon Kindle Whispernet. Sync Kindle ebooks across multiple devices. E-mail conversion of DOC, HTML, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP and PDF | Kobo Wifi Store | Barnes & Noble bookstore | Sony store | Web browser built in |
| Release Date | October 2012 | October 2011 | October 2012 | April 2012 | September 2012 | June 2012 |
| Price | WiFi:£109/$119 3G: £169/$179 | £69/$69 | £104/$350 | £109/$118 | £129/$134 | £140/$250 |
| Where To Buy | Amazon.co.uk Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk Amazon.com |
Archived 2010-2011 Ebook Readers (For Reference)
| Brand | Amazon | Sony | BeBook (Endless Ideas) | BeBook (Endless Ideas) | Barnes and Noble | Bookeen |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model | Kindle 3 (3G+Wifi) Graphite | Sony Touch Edition (PRS-650) | BeBook Neo | Bebook Club | Nook | Cybook Orizon |
| Picture |  |  |  |  |  |  |
| Dimensions | 190 mm x 123 mm x 8.5 mm (7.5" x 4.8" x 0.34") | 168 x 119 x 9.6 mm (6.6" x 4.7" x .38") | 196 x 121 x 10.5 mm (7.7” x 4.7” x .4”) | 196 x 121 x 10.6mm (7.7” x 4.7” x .4”) | 196 x 126 x 13 mm (7.7" x 4.9" x .5") | 188 × 118 × 8.5 mm (7.4" × 4.7" × .3") |
| Weight | 247g (8.7oz) WiFi: 241g (8.5oz) | 215g (7.6oz) | 284g (10oz) | 278g (9oz) | 343g (12.1oz) | 245g (8.6oz) |
| Display | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi E Ink Pearl (high contrast) | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi E Ink Pearl (high contrast) | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi E Ink Vizplex | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi E Ink Vizplex | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi E Ink Pearl (high contrast) | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi SiPix E Ink (high contrast) |
| Grey Levels | 16 | 16 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 16 |
| Touch Screen | no | yes | yes (wacom) | no | Separate colour touchscreen (480x320) | yes |
| Power | Li-Polymer 1750mAh | Li-Polymer 940mAh | Li-Polymer 1600mAh | Li-Polymer 1600mAh | Li-Polymer 1530mAh | Lithium polymer ? |
| Battery Life | 1 Month (10 days with 3G wireless on, 3 weeks with Wifi) | 10000 pages (2 full weeks of reading) | 7000 pages | 12000 pages | Up to 10 days with wireless off | 10'000 pages |
| CPU | Freescale i.MX35 (ARM1136JF-S core, 532MHz) | Freescale i.MX31L (ARM1136JF-S core, 532MHz) | Freescale i.MX35 (ARM1136JF-S core, 532MHz) | ? | Samsung® S3C6410 (ARM1176JZF-S core, 667MHz) | ? |
| Memory | 256MB RAM, 4GB Flash (~3.3GB user accessible) | 2GB Flash (1.4GB user accessible) Memory Stick™ Duo Pro and SD Card (up to 32GB) | 128MB RAM, 512MB Flash Supports SD/SDHC up to 4GB | 128MB RAM, 512MB Flash Supports SD/SDHC up to 4GB | 256MB RAM, 2 GB Flash Supports MicroSD/SDHC | 2GB Flash Supports MicroSD/SDHC |
| Connections | International 3G, Wifi | none | Wifi | none | Wifi. 3G (USA only) | Wifi, Bluetooth |
| Supported Formats | Kindle (AZW), PRC/MOBI (non DRM), PDF, PDF (non DRM), HTML, DOC, TXT, MP3, Audible (format 4, Audible Enhanced (AAX)), JPEG, GIF, PNG; | BBeB (LRF/LRX), PDF, EPUB, TXT, RTF, JPG, BMP, GIF, PNG, MP3, AAC | PDF, EPUB, MOBI, FB2, TXT, PDB, HTML, CHM, JPEG, BMP, PNG, TIFF | PDF, EPUB, MOBI, FB2, TXT, PDB, HTML, CHM, JPEG, BMP, PNG, TIFF | PDF, EPUB, eReader, PDB, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, MP3 | PDF, EPUB, FB2, HTML, TXT, JPEG, GIF, PNG |
| Supported DRM | AZW and TOPAZ (Kindle only) and PDF password-protected PDFs | Marlin DRM (BBeB), Adobe ADEPT (EPUB/PDF) | Adobe ADEPT (EPUB/PDF) | Adobe ADEPT (EPUB/PDF) | eReader (EPUB/eReader), Adobe ADEPT (EPUB/PDF) | Adobe ADEPT (EPUB/PDF) |
| Font Sizes | 8 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 12 |
| Search / Dictionary Functions | Search using keyboard, built-in dictionary using 5-way | Built-in dictionary and search using touchscreen | Yes / Built in dictionary | Yes / Built in dictionary | search using touchscreen keyboard, built-in dictionary | yes |
| Notes / annotations | Yes, using keyboard and 5-wa | Yes, using touchscreen | Yes, using touchscreen | No | Yes, using touchscreen | yes |
| Text To Speech | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
| Services | Amazon Kindle Whispernet. Sync Kindle ebooks across multiple devices. E-mail conversion of DOC, HTML, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP and PDF | Sony CONNECT | BeBook Wifi Store | n/a | Barnes & Noble store | n/a |
| Release Date | September 2010 | September 2010 | January 2010 | October 2010 | November 2009 | November 2010 |
| Price | WiFi:£109/$139 3G: £149/$189 | £199/$229 | £229/$350 | £149/$189 | 3G $199 (US only) WiFi $149/£149.99 | £192/$220 |
| Where To Buy | Amazon.co.uk Amazon.com | Waterstones.com | BeBook.com | BeBook.com | PurelyGadgets.com | Pixmania.com |
Archived 2009 Ebook Readers (For Reference)
| Brand | BeBook (Endless Ideas) | Sony | Amazon | Bookeen | COOL-ER | Elonex / Borders |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model | BeBook One | Sony Touch Edition (PRS-600) | Kindle 2 | Cybook Gen 3 | Cool-er Classic | LNX-EBOOK-600EB |
| Picture |  |  |  |  |  |  |
| Dimensions | 184 × 121 × 10 mm (7.24" × 4.74" × .39") | 175 x 122 x 9.7 mm (6.9" x 4.8" x 0.4") | 203 x 135 x 9 mm (8" x 5.3" x 0.36") | 188 × 118 × 8.5 mm (7.4" × 4.7" × .3") | 188 × 118 × 8.5 mm (7.4" × 4.7" × .3") | 187 x 117 x 9mm (7.4" × 4.7" × .3") |
| Weight | 200g (7.05oz) | 285g (10.1oz) | 289g (10.2oz) | 174g (6.13oz) | 174g (6.13oz) | 180g (6.3oz) |
| Display | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi E Ink Vizplex | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi E Ink Vizplex | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi E Ink Vizplex | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi E Ink Vizplex | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 167 ppi E Ink Vizplex | (90 × 120mm) 6" 600 × 800 pixels, 170 ppi E Ink Vizplex |
| Grey Levels | 4 | 8 | 16 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Touch Screen | no | yes | no | no | no | no |
| Power | Li-ion 950mAh (Nokia Phone battery) | Li-ion | Li-ion 1530mAh | Li-Polymer 1000mAh | Li-Polymer 1000mAh | Li-Polymer 1000mAh |
| Battery Life | 9000 pages | 7500 pages | With EVDO: "4 days", without: "up to two weeks" | 8000 pages | 7000 pages | 8000 pages |
| CPU | Samsung® S3C2410 (ARM920T core, 200MHz) | Freescale i.MX31L (ARM1136JF-S core, 532MHz) | Freescale i.MX31L (ARM1136JF-S core, 532MHz) | V1, V2: Samsung® S3C2410 (ARM920T core, 200MHz) V3: Samsung® S3C2440 (ARM920T core, 400MHz) | Samsung® S3C2440 (ARM920T core, 400MHz) | Code9 ARM 400MHz CPU |
| Memory | 512MB, Internal 2M NOR Flash, 512MB SD Card included Supports SD/MMC up to 4GB | 128MB RAM, 512MB(NAND) Flash (~420MB user accessible) Supports MMC/SD/SDHC, Memory Stick Pro Duo | 128MB RAM, 2GB Flash (1.4GB user accessible) (No upgradeable memory options available) | V1: 16MB RAM, 64MB Flash V2: 16MB RAM, 512 Flash V3: 32MB RAM, 512MB Flash Supports SD cards | 128MB RAM, 1GB Flash Supports SD up to 4GB | 512 MB Flash SD Card Slot Expandable up to 4GB |
| Connections | none | none | EVDO EVDO / 3G* (International version only) | none | none | none |
| Supported Formats | PDF, TXT, RTF, EPUB, LIT, PPT, WOLF, DOC, CHM, FB2, PRC/MOBI, HTML, DJVU, MP3, TIFF, JPG, GIF, BMP, PNG, RAR, ZIP | BBeB (LRF/LRX), PDF, EPUB, TXT, RTF, JPG, BMP, GIF, PNG, MP3, AAC | Kindle (AZW and TOPAZ), PRC, Limited MOBI (non DRM), TXT, MP3, Audible (format 4, Audible Enhanced (AAX)), MP3; | OEB-XHTML, TXT, HTML, PDF (non DRM), PRC/MOBI, JPG, GIF, PNG, MP3 | PDF, EPUB, FB2, RTF, TXT, HTML, PRC, JPG AND MP3 | TXT, PDF, HTML, ePub, BMP, JPG, PNG |
| Supported DRM | Wolf and MobiPocket or Adobe ADEPT (EPUB/PDF) | Marlin DRM (BBeB), Adobe ADEPT (EPUB/PDF) | AZW and TOPAZ (Kindle only) | MobiPocket | Adobe ADEPT (EPUB/PDF) | Adobe ADEPT (EPUB/PDF) |
| Font Sizes | 3-5 | 5 | 6 | 12 | 8 | ? |
| Search / Dictionary Functions | Yes / Built in dictionary | Built-in dictionary and search using touchscreen | Search using keyboard, built-in dictionary using 5-way | MOBI dictionaries using D-pad | no | no |
| Notes / annotations | No | Yes, using touchscreen | Yes, using keyboard and 5-way | bookmark menu | bookmark menu | bookmark menu |
| Text To Speech | No | No | Yes | No | No | no |
| Services | iStation, ReadMan | Sony CONNECT | Amazon Kindle Whispernet. E-mail conversion of DOC, HTML, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP and PDF | n/a | n/a | |
| Release Date | August 2008 | August 2009 | February 2009 | October 2007 | July 2009 | June 2009 |
| Price | £199 / $160 | £249 / $200 | $259 | US$290 / 190€ / £207 | US$249 / £189 | £169 |
| Where To Buy | MyBebook.com | Waterstones.com | Amazon.com | Pixmania.com | Firebox.com | Borders.com |
