Kindle vs. Nook

[Laura Gardner]

I need some quick assistance if possible! My district is considering purchasing me some ereaders for use with a book club at my middle school. At first they were thinking Kindle, but apparently Amazon won't accept a purchase order as payment? Now they're thinking Nook. Here's my questions:

*I know it's possible to purchase an ebook and put it on 6 Kindles. Is it possible to share an ebook between multiple Nooks? (the sharing option on the Nook expires after 2 weeks, I believe).

*Also, how many of you have students who regularly use the Text to Speech option on the Kindle? I know it's not available on the Nook.

Thank you!! I really appreciate quick answers on this. The district is looking to spend the $$ very soon.

Laura

[Will DeLamater]

Laura, the sharing is an issue only if your plan is to purchase books with DRM on them. This would include most trade books for independent reading or class sets, but not classics or other texts with no DRM. I am not a huge fan of the text to speech for kids who need a modeled fluent reading; it might be more confusing for strugglers, however cool it is. I prefer the Kindle but a lot of folks are buying Nooks and really like them. For the basic function, reading, they are both good.

[Laura Gardner]

Thanks for responding! I had to look up what DRM means and I think I understand what you're saying, but I want to be clear. Can class set type books (like Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson, for example) not be purchased and put on multiple Kindles because of DRM? Is it possible to ever share books between Nooks the way you can with Kindles? Please forgive me as I'm a newbie at this and it's all a bit confusing. :)

[Will DeLamater]

You have it right in your initial post. Amazon requires that "account" with credit card to register the Kindles to, so there is no way around it to my knowledge, if you want to use Kindles. Send member Kathy Parker a message and see if she has any ideas.

Laura Gardner said:

Thanks for responding! I had to look up what DRM means and I think I understand what you're saying, but I want to be clear. Can class set type books (like Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson, for example) not be purchased and put on multiple Kindles because of DRM? Is it possible to ever share books between Nooks the way you can with Kindles? Please forgive me as I'm a newbie at this and it's all a bit confusing. :)

[Kathleen Parker]

HI Laura,
Yes, Amazon does accept purchase orders as payment. We are planning on purchasing almost 85 Kindles in June and we're going to use a purchase order because it's grant money we're using. Look under Corporate Accounts - pretty sure. There you set up your account and purchase order is an option.
Let me know.
Kathy

[Linn McDonald]

Just to update those who are still comparing Kindle to Nook. A purchase order may be used to buy the device(s) and accessories themselves, but a purchase order may NOT be used to purchase ebooks. Herein lies the challenge for school management. In order to circumvent the problem of ordering ebooks using a credit card, gift cards may be purchased, but gift cards cannot be purchased on Amazon using a purchase order. I did read somewhere that Amazon will accept American Express gift cards, and AE gift cards may be purchased using a purchase order. I'm not sure if I am remembering this correctly.
Our school district is still comparing the two ereaders, but it seems very cumbersome to purchase ebooks as a school library from Amazon. So....we are now leaning towards the Nook. Why? Because ebooks for Nook may be purchased with gift cards, and B&N gift cards may be purchased using a purchase order. I also found out during a visit to my local B&N that starting in November, Nooks can be enabled with a password that must be entered before purchasing any ebooks. This is wonderful for schools because it makes managing the Nook easy; no more removing the credit card from the account and then adding it later when purchasing.
Members, please feel free to add any other info or correct any misconception I may have. I love Amazon and the Kindle, but managing a large number of ereaders and ebooks seems to be much more involved for Kindle than Nook. Having a Nook representative in each store for customer support is also a big plus.

[Laurie Aldern]

Hi Linn,

You can share 1 book with 6 NOOKs. It's the Lending feature that expires after 2 weeks...you can loan a book to a friend with a NOOK, (or with the NOOK app - say on their iPhone or computer-) they can read it for 2 weeks and then it returns to you. But as far as books you've purchased, you can have 6 NOOKs on every account, and each of the 6 can share a single title forever.

You've already read my post on using MP3 audio books in conjunction with eBooks, but for the good of the masses, here it is again:

I wanted to add a thought about using NOOK as a text reader... You can load both the eBook and the MP3 version of a book onto your NOOK for read-along capability. The great thing about the MP3 versions is that they're read by humans rather than computer generated, so you get inflection and emotion.

If you'd like to test it out, start by loading a free eBook and audio book. I recently added Dickens' The Christmas Carol to my NOOK and found it was quite easy to follow along and turn pages in sync with the recording.

You can access free books on your NOOK, or there are public domain books here:
http://www.booksshouldbefree.com/genre/Children

It's also possible to create your own audio books if you have the right recording software. A Google search turned up quite a few results for free MP3 recording software. Imagine younger kids following the text while their mom's voice reads the book!

[Laurie Aldern]

Regarding DRM, as I understand it (and according to the friendly B&N e-support hotline), an Educational DRM applies to eTextbooks, and allows one title to be downloaded up to 2 times. You might want one on your NOOK, and one on your PC. The Standard DRM applies to eBooks, which do not have the 2-download restriction. Class sets of common reading material (not textbooks) would be Standard DRM. I'm sure Will can shed more light on the subject!

Will DeLamater said:

Laura, the sharing is an issue only if your plan is to purchase books with DRM on them. This would include most trade books for independent reading or class sets, but not classics or other texts with no DRM. I am not a huge fan of the text to speech for kids who need a modeled fluent reading; it might be more confusing for strugglers, however cool it is. I prefer the Kindle but a lot of folks are buying Nooks and really like them. For the basic function, reading, they are both good.

[Will DeLamater]

Laurie, thanks for the inside scoop on the difference between Education DRM and standard. It really sounds like there is better publisher support for trade books on multiple devices than for textbooks--not a big surprise. It is important to remember that the publisher makes these restrictions, not B&N. Regular trade books (Al Capone Does My Shirts, for example) don't have the "special" restrictions.

[Kathy M Burnette]

I wanted to let you know that BN let me put 12 Nooks on one account! Also, you CANNOT purchase egiftcards with a purchase order! You have to bring a check!

[Laurie Aldern]

Just an FYI for NOOK users, it is possible to purchase ebooks with a purchase order through bn.com. Our regional office has us refer schools to ?
.
Kathy M Burnette said:

I wanted to let you know that BN let me put 12 Nooks on one account! Also, you CANNOT purchase egiftcards with a purchase order! You have to bring a check!

[Linn McDonald]

Kathy, I spoke with our local B&N Nook sales rep yesterday and he told me that their regional manager approves gift card purchases using purchase orders for schools. He then brought over the store manager, who confirmed this. The manager said that this is a fairly simple process.

[Laurie Aldern]

Sorry - that last message wasn't complete. To use purchase orders online, you can apply for an account at https://btobsecure.barnesandnoble.com/deferredBilling/index.asp?

Laurie Aldern said:

Just an FYI for NOOK users, it is possible to purchase ebooks with a purchase order through bn.com. Our regional office has us refer schools to
Kathy M Burnette said:

I wanted to let you know that BN let me put 12 Nooks on one account! Also, you CANNOT purchase egiftcards with a purchase order! You have to bring a check!