Canada ebooks Reader can be a source of frustration.
In the U.S., digital ereaders may yet save trees as their popularity grows. In Canada, not so much.
That’s because you just flat-out can’t get half of them – without jumping in the car and driving a long way.
But there is good news. The two that I regard as the best of the bunch can be bought in Canada. The Amazon Kindle, widely regarded as the ereader you should buy anyway, is available on online for delivery here and the Kobo is Canada’s own answer to the Kindle and a very good one too.
On this site, I introduce you to a Canada ebooks Reader from each of four leading manufacturers, with information on how to buy one. Here’s the situation:
You CAN buy online :
- The Toronto-based Kobo Touch
, the new popular kid on the block which is excellent value. There is a review of the Kobo Canada, here.which is marketed by Chapters
- The Kindle Canada, which I’m happy to say you can now get with greatly reduced hassle. You can not get the full line in this country but to see what you can get, go directly to the Canadian Kindles here.
And if you have not bought a Kindle before, be sure to read our page “How to Buy A Kindle Canada” which will walk you through the process.
- The new Sony Reader Wi-fi
- Sony Canada has trimmed its line-up to one, and pre-Christmas the PRST1BC was available on the Sony Canada website for $149, which is $20 off.
You CANNOT buy online :
- The Nook from Barnes and Noble, often reviewed as a close competitor to the market leading Kindle. I’ve included a description of The Nook on this site because many Canadians live within driving distance of a B&N store and may want to check it out
You CAN buy online but I don’t know why you would :
- The Apple iPad. This now turns up frequently in ereader reviews but I can’t imagine holding a 1.5 pound (680 grams) tablet for a couple of hours on the beach, so I exclude it. (All of the others weigh in around 8 ounces (220 grams) which is the weight of an average paperback.)
The ebooks reader segment is developing very rapidly, any model with the E-Ink display technology is worth a look, and prices have comes down a lot. The Kobo Touch this past June has made it a tough choice — before that it was pretty much all Kindle.
I urge you to read my recent post Kobo Touch Compare to New Kindle 4 in Canada. It is one of the most comprehensive comparisons of the two contenders for top Canada eReader.
Please leave a comment if you have hands-on experience for good or bad on any Canada eReader. It will help other visitors who are trying to choose.
Against my own instincts, have picked up a Kindle Wi-Fi with keyboard from The Source as a gift.. (didn’t want the keyboard but that was the only option above the basic model which requires a computer intermediary to function.) Wish I had seen this review before the purchase.
From my research here are a few points worth repeating. There is the Amazon Kindle who uses proporietary AZW format and hence does not speak to the rest of the world(ROTW) and the ROTW which uses EPub format which is not compatible with Kindle.
Nook, highest rated by Consumer Reports is not available in Canada. One very important point is that Kindle is not supported by the Canadian library system so you can not borrow books from the library(works in the USA)
I have seen conversion software (Calibre) mentioned but don’t know how well it works.
For the internet/computer savvy, an open source model would seem to be the way to go however, Kindle is probably simplest since your browsing is confinded to Amazon.
I feel that proprietary hardware/software models like Kindle are doomed to be overpowered by open source in the end but with Kindle that won’t happen soon.
I think this review is very well done and it confirmed why I wanted to buy a Kobo, but then I read some Kobo Touch reviews complaining about many problems with the USB port and poor customer service. It is only good if it is working. Any comparisons on this?
Not sure about the hardware but I can vouch for sub-par customer service from Kobo. Thanks for reminding me Dianne. This is definitely an issue in the decision-making.
Amazon has suberb customer service — as do most of the leading US retail organisations. They really work hard at this.
Thanks for posting this. It looks like there are many people trying to make up their minds about which ereader to get. I have American friends who swear by the Kindle, but the Kobo is in all the bookstores in Canada. In the end, I think I will go with the Kobo because of its open format.
I’m Kindle Lover, So Now When Kindle can be shipping to Canada with cheapest prices only $139 USD. Order for others will seem stupidness !!!
Kindle Touch Lighted Leather Cover isn’t really leather, I think. It’s some sort of plastic that looks like leather. Generally speaking, I like it a lot; it is much better than the older lighted cover for the Kindle 3. The light now sits in the middle of the unit and so it’s able to illuminate the device more evenly. The Kindle Touch is now wrapped by a rubbery case and it feels very solid. It’s not cheap, but it’s highly recommended! because if you buy it together with your kindle touch canada you will get discount special prices around $10 USD
I bought Kindle Touch Canada last weeks, Compare to My old Kindle 3g Keyboard Canada
In my opinion,
Really accurate and responsive screen
Page turn speed is slightly faster than K3
The battery lasted me about 3 weeks
But around 1 week and a half for a friend who likes listening to mp3 while reading
The only downside is it is touch screen, therefore you won’t find the normal page turning buttons on the side of the kindle like the previous versions.
I own too many readers and what I like about the Kindle as compared to the Kobo is:
1. Dictionary – Kindle has one the Kobo doesn’t. Even reading modern popular fiction I find myself looking up all sorts of words that I wouldn’t if I had to use a paper dictionary.
2. Whispernet – If the dictionary doesn’t give me enough info then I can go to Wikipedia. I can also quickly and easily download Amazon content from anywhere I have coverage and you don’t need 3G.
3. Navigation – Don’t overlook this, especially if you read periodicals or feeds. The five-way controller stick allows me to jump from article to article or quickly navigate to a TOC.
On the other hand:
1. Kindle does not support ePub (which IMO is a superior format than mobi/axw). Converting DRMed ePub for the Kindle requires removing the DRM. Once it’s set up on your PC it’s trivial to remove but the setup takes a bit of research and loading of programs. Converting nonDRMed ePub is trivial with Calibre.
2. The Kindle costs $100 more than the Kobo.
3. The Kindle is bigger and heavier than the Kobo but not by a whole lot.
With either you are *not* tied in to any bookstore especially if you read books without DRM.
A few of the problem needs you to definitely considercarefully For Canada Ereader Coices is what type of consumer and readers you might be:
Are you currently an individual who:
– Appointments the actual collection and features a collection cards, however want the ease associated with electronic reading devices for the collection publications — such as totally free publications and forthcoming brand new writers?
– loves to purchase and obtain publications from the number of resources.
– currently features a collection associated with epub publications?
– is fairly more comfortable with a pc and also the side-loading procedure?
– features a massive collection associated with livros digitais, or even loves to type and arrange publications — maintain your your local library arranged upon micro-SD credit cards and masse all of them within your electronic book reader
After that obtain the Kobo Touch. It can versatility along with document types, capability to be lent collection publications, as well as touchscreen (to create reading through really feel much more organic within what ever place you set your own hands)
however…
Are you currently an individual who:
– Never already been in an exceedingly collection, as well as sees it will be a lot of trouble to obtain a cards anyhow?
– Is actually choosy as to what a person go through, preferring best seling writers — Purchases your own publications anyhow, as well as does not thoughts having to pay top dollar at this time ( in this instance, e-book costs will frequently give a cost savings on the corner associated with actual physical materials)
– Loves the ease associated with couch-potato purchasing (buying which guide you simply noticed examined within the speak display through the ease of your own sofa)
– Is not concerned about sideloading — since you tend to be purchasing all of your publications anyway.
– Is not really pc experienced and certainly not concerned about burning DRM — you might not understand what which means, and do not actually want to possibly.
Then your Kindle Touch is perfect for a person. It can 1 quit buying within a fine handy package. Amazon.com offers among the biggest areas for the book-buying enjoyment, the actual display screen is equally as readable since the Kobo, however it really does absence the actual contact capacity.
For Amazon Kindle in Canada, It charged you an extra $2 Whispernet fee to Canadians on non-freebie purchases of Kindle ebooks (only skipped on those $0.00 promotional or public domain titles), Which the Sony and Kobo ebooks stores in Canada doesn’t charged you (usually the same price as the US customers pay, except in cases where different publishers sell the same book).
Hi all,
I’m Karolina From Toronto, Canada
I want to buy an Ereader and i’m on the process of searching for the information Which one i should buy in Canada?
My choices Now are choosing between Kindle Touch ($139), the Kobo Touch ($119), and the Sony Touch PRS-T1 ($119).
Features that i want for my ebooks reader are:
- French Dictionaries ( May be both English and French but mainly French )
- French Translator ( Mainly for French to English )
- Easy to use interface and software
- Handy and Comfortable for Hold in one-hand
- Responsive Touch Screen
- Fast speed ebooks page turning
- Good selection of English and French books in the associated ebooks store.
- E-ink Screen quality (although I think all three have the same E-Ink Pearl so it doesn’t seem to be an issue)
And i’m fine To Use any Conversion software to be able to read some Non-DRM books on Kindle.
And I don’t know how’s a problem to buy the Kindle Touch in Canada?
Thank you all!
For The Kindle Touch, Now it Can ship to Canada directedly with prices $139 USD without problems.
Your book selection will be smaller than if you had a US Amazon account, but that’s an unfortunate byproduct of geo-restrictions, and will be the same for any device. OTOH, if it’s a problem, it’s fairly straight-forward to create a US Amazon account and use that — it’s what I do. And I keep a Canadian Kobo account for those few books that are available in Canada, but not in the US.
You’ll need to format shift between ePub and Mobi/Kindle formats if you buy from a store that isn’t your native store for the device. Doing so involves stripping DRM (legal for personal use in Canada at this time) and then converting with Calibre. (There is a Mac version.) All in all, a very minor nuisance, especially since you’ll likely find Calibre a “must have” application for managing your books if you have very many of them.
I don’t think that any of them will translate phrases for you. The Sony has integrated dictionary support with five languages supported (French, Italian, German, Spanish, and Dutch) for translation to and from English. There are also two English language dictionaries that provide definitions. Double tap on a word and a little window pops up at the bottom of the page with the definition. Tap anyplace on the page outside the window and the window goes away. Tap inside the window and you get the full dictionary page.
The Kindle is, I believe, the only one to which a “proper” French dictionary can be added. It doesn’t ship with one as standard, but you can buy one in the Amazon Kindle store.
If you need a French dictionary don’t get the Kobo, at this time they only have and English one.
Personally, I think that the Kindle and Sony both have better software than the Kobo. For the Kobo and the Sony, you can buy ebooks from anywhere except B&N, Apple, and Amazon. http://www.inkmesh.com is a good way to see where specific books are offered. Before Agency pricing, it was also a good place to find bargains. As CRussell said, it’s quick and easy to remove DRM and then use Calibre to convert to the format of your choice. If you’re willing to do that, then you can buy from anyplace but Apple.
For the points of Page turning speed, Responsive Touch screen, and E-ink screen quality are virtually identical for all three ereaders. All E-ink Screen ereaders have flash light when you turn to other pages, but for New technology, you don’t notice that any more than you notice the pause as you turn the page in a paper book.
Staples and The Source’s are local Canadian Store that available for many Ereader such as Kindle, Kobo, Sony ereader and more…
For the one who doesn’t really know what ereader you should buy in Canada, You can go to store and try demo about each ereader on your own to decide which one that you like.
So, For Canada Ereader Here is my own aspect….
1. B&N Nook is not officially available to Canada and can’t be shipped outside the US (at least, not without involving one of those reshipping services), but if you make a cross-border shopping trip you can get one. However, the B&N e-bookstore is also not available to Canadians and you’ll have to fake using a US billing address to buy stuff from them. But you can buy books from other stores in Adobe Digital Editions ePub & PDF format, as well as DRM-free e-books. B&N also use a slightly different ePub DRM-scheme for their own books, and thus you technically have access to the broadest variety of stores to shop from.
2) The Kindle is available to Canada. All New Kindles have to be ordered via the Amazon.com and shipped up here to Canada, The Model available Now are Kindle 4 wifi, Kindle Touch wifi, Kindle keyboard 3G, Kindle DX. Similarly, you buy your ebooks from them at the US store Amazon.com, in US dollars.
Kindles use a proprietary format, and while you can get DRM-free Mobipocket books (and convert DRM-free other format e-books to work on the Kindle), for anything that’s copy-restricted (like bestsellers from the major publishers), you’ll either have to buy them solely via Amazon or learn to break and remove the DRM (still not illegal in Canada, despite the efforts of our current Conservative government, though I wouldn’t count on that lasting much longer).
3) The Kobo is a pretty nice deal for Canadians, especially now that they’ve updated it to use the new Pearl e-ink screen. You can go in and try them at Chapters/Indigo stores because it’s localy in Canada.
The Kobo store charges in Canadian dollars and you can use Chapters gift cards to pay for your purchases, as well as use discount coupons to take the price down on much of their e-catalogue though sometimes even after coupon, the price will still be cheaper elsewhere.
You can also shop at any ADE-DRM or DRM-free ebookstore, such as the Sony Reader Store.
Kobos do have this flaw where the current firmware does not support following inline links, so if you read e-books with footnotes (academic nonfiction, for example), you’re kind of screwed. But hopefully they fix that in the new firmware that goes with the Touch models. They also have this thing where the built-in dictionary can’t be used with non-Kobo purchases, but again that’s something they’ll hopefully fix soon.
4) Sonys are kind of pricey but have nice features if you want a higher-end model. I have no personal experience with them, but as with the Kobo, you can shop at any ADE-DRM or DRM-free store.
Personally, as a Canadian myself, I think that either the New Kobo Touch or the New Kindle 4 Touch Screen would be best. And I’m leaning slightly in favour of the Kobo, which offers a good feature set at a good price, and the convenience of being available directly within Canada.
With the international released of Kindle Touch 3G to Canada, Can you comparison all ereader in Canada included this new model of Amazon kindle touch 3G?
Hey, Vancouver Man.
Sure i will Reviews and comparison all for you, Just waiting – Now i’m gathering data about it.
This is the good news for French speaking Canadian because New Kindle Touch wifi and 3G international model now support French, German, Italian, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, American or British English. The support languages are in the interface, Notes, book titles, & search.
So, Canadian that using French language now can enjoy new French interface in Kindle Touch.
And Amazon available over 75,000 French ebooks now !!!
That’s great support
I saw the sources store available kindle touch wifi model online in canada $139.99 CAD, But when i ordered it – it’s say product not available. So i decide to get one from amazon.com