Which ebook reader best suited for scanned PDF books?

raider · 03-26-2011, 07:13 PM

Hi,

I have lots and lots of technical books scanned in PDF format. They are not OCR'ed and so all the pages will be treated as images I believe.

I am looking for an ebook reader so I can carry some of these "books" with me....most of the files are rather large...some are 50MB or so, some are larger.

Was looking at Ipad2 but wanted to know if other tablets are just as suitable for this task.....any recommendations please?

Thanks
raider

nandystam · 03-26-2011, 07:34 PM

Like you, I've been wanting something that will read PDF's well, but something that uses e-ink rather than colour. I think a lot of eReaders simply scale the PDF image up/down, which is going to make reading a pain. So you can rule out most of the smaller eBook ereaders.

What about an android based tablet?

raider · 03-26-2011, 08:06 PM

yes...i am open to android tablets as well...but which one has good support for scanned PDF files? I googled but all seem terrible in this area.

nandystam · 03-26-2011, 08:26 PM

Which ones have you found that a good for reading normal (i.e. non-scanned) PDF's? I'd be interested in something that doesn't involve horizontal scrolling to read a line of text. Then again, it might be necessary in order to have the font at a readable size?

raider · 03-26-2011, 08:40 PM

From what i read, the nook e-ink version is not bad for normal PDF files but i could be wrong.

pxpaulx · 03-26-2011, 08:52 PM

I have the barnes and noble nook e-ink reader (the wifi, non 3g version). I have a couple of pdfs on there, specifically the K5 manual and AF-360 flash manual. Since the K5 manual is newer, it will actually resize the text based on your settings, and is fully searchable. I think it helps that is it a standard vertical 8.5x11 shaped page format.

The AF360 manual is a horizontal manual, and the PDF is likely quite old - some of the pages will properly format, however about 50% of them just display horizontally across the screen and are unreadable. It is likely a combination of text and images that causes the problems, and the older formatting probably isn't entirely compatible with current readers. The K5 manual works properly whether there is an image, text or combination of both.

It also won't scale or zoom like you'd be able to do on an ipad either unfortunately. The nature of the e-ink tech is that everytime there is a change the whole page needs to refresh, making resizing difficult and annoying to get right (the nook has a broswer that is basically unusable for that reason).

Edit: If you've got a barnes and noble in your area - the one by us has someone at the nook stand all the time, if you have a microSD card to put some of the PDFs on I am sure they'd help you out with giving them a try yourself. I just looked up the manual - if you want to do this, make sure to put the PDFs in a top level folder names 'my documents' (i.e. create a folder with that name and put the files in it) - that will allow the in-store reader to find the pdfs.

raider · 03-26-2011, 09:00 PM

I see. I didnt realise an e-ink screen will need to refresh each time the screen content get changed. I think i am ruling out e-ink screen for my purpose. Thanks for that tips.

**monochrome** · 03-26-2011, 09:44 PM

Will the larger version Amazon Kindle DX work? It handles pdf images, 9.7", Has USB transfer, Wi-Fi and free 3g, auto-rotate to landscape, etc.

raider · 03-26-2011, 10:03 PM

I checked that the kindle DX is using e-ink. Will the screen keep refresh if the screen content changed?

gokenin · 03-27-2011, 04:02 AM

what do you mean by changing? are you looking for something that will let you edit the pdf files? the i-ink on the kindle changes everytime you change pages but if you leave the device on the same page it will always be there even if you turn it on and off.

raider · 03-27-2011, 04:51 AM

maybe the term "change" is not appropriate here. But I am not sure what is a better way to describe this except noting that pxpaulx mentioned "everytime there is a change the whole page needs to refresh, making resizing difficult and annoying to get right (the nook has a broswer that is basically unusable for that reason)."

I was hoping to get a tablet which will render the PDF page smoothly

**boriscleto** · 03-27-2011, 05:11 AM

I think you are going to find that your options at the moment are limited to basically the Xoom and the iPad.

raider · 03-27-2011, 05:18 AM

So both the xoom and ipad will render scanned pdf files smoothly? No issues in rendering the image when i zoom in and out?

**monochrome** · 03-27-2011, 07:00 AM

Read the entire Dx description I linked. It specifically refers to resizing pdf pages smoothly.

I don't have one but I've been researching whether to get one.

gokenin · 03-27-2011, 07:27 AM

The experimental category represents the features we are working on to enhance the Kindle experience even further. You can e-mail your PDF or DOCX files wirelessly to your Kindle. Keep in mind that some complex PDF and DOCX files might not format correctly on your Kindle.

Built-in PDF Reader for Kindle DX
Your Kindle DX can display PDF documents without losing the formatting of the original file. Send PDF documents directly to your Kindle (via your @Kindle address) or drag and drop PDF files from your computer to your Kindle (when connected via USB). You can also magnify PDFs by viewing them in landscape mode.

Some features are not currently supported, including annotations and Text-to-Speech. The only Kindle devices supported for PDFs are the Kindle and Kindle DX.

Option to Convert PDF Files to Kindle Format
If you prefer to have your personal PDF documents converted to the Kindle format so you can take advantage of Kindle functionality such as variable font size, annotation, Text-to-Speech, etc., type "Convert" in the subject of the e-mail when you submit your personal document to your @kindle.com address.

Image-heavy PDF files are presented in landscape orientation and don't work with devices that have auto-rotation, so those will be delivered in the Kindle format.

It sounds like the DX might work for what you are looking at.

03-26-2011, 07:13 PM	#1
raider Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Perth, Australia Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,989	Which ebook reader best suited for scanned PDF books? Hi, I have lots and lots of technical books scanned in PDF format. They are not OCR'ed and so all the pages will be treated as images I believe. I am looking for an ebook reader so I can carry some of these "books" with me....most of the files are rather large...some are 50MB or so, some are larger. Was looking at Ipad2 but wanted to know if other tablets are just as suitable for this task.....any recommendations please? Thanks raider

03-26-2011, 08:52 PM	#6
pxpaulx Veteran Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Twin Cities, MN Posts: 2,867	I have the barnes and noble nook e-ink reader (the wifi, non 3g version). I have a couple of pdfs on there, specifically the K5 manual and AF-360 flash manual. Since the K5 manual is newer, it will actually resize the text based on your settings, and is fully searchable. I think it helps that is it a standard vertical 8.5x11 shaped page format. The AF360 manual is a horizontal manual, and the PDF is likely quite old - some of the pages will properly format, however about 50% of them just display horizontally across the screen and are unreadable. It is likely a combination of text and images that causes the problems, and the older formatting probably isn't entirely compatible with current readers. The K5 manual works properly whether there is an image, text or combination of both. It also won't scale or zoom like you'd be able to do on an ipad either unfortunately. The nature of the e-ink tech is that everytime there is a change the whole page needs to refresh, making resizing difficult and annoying to get right (the nook has a broswer that is basically unusable for that reason). Edit: If you've got a barnes and noble in your area - the one by us has someone at the nook stand all the time, if you have a microSD card to put some of the PDFs on I am sure they'd help you out with giving them a try yourself. I just looked up the manual - if you want to do this, make sure to put the PDFs in a top level folder names 'my documents' (i.e. create a folder with that name and put the files in it) - that will allow the in-store reader to find the pdfs. Last edited by pxpaulx; 03-26-2011 at 08:58 PM.

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03-26-2011, 07:34 PM	#2
nandystam Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Melbourne, Vic. Posts: 135	Like you, I've been wanting something that will read PDF's well, but something that uses e-ink rather than colour. I think a lot of eReaders simply scale the PDF image up/down, which is going to make reading a pain. So you can rule out most of the smaller eBook ereaders. What about an android based tablet?

03-26-2011, 08:06 PM	#3
raider Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Perth, Australia Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,989 Original Poster	yes...i am open to android tablets as well...but which one has good support for scanned PDF files? I googled but all seem terrible in this area.

03-26-2011, 08:26 PM	#4
nandystam Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Melbourne, Vic. Posts: 135	Which ones have you found that a good for reading normal (i.e. non-scanned) PDF's? I'd be interested in something that doesn't involve horizontal scrolling to read a line of text. Then again, it might be necessary in order to have the font at a readable size?

03-26-2011, 08:40 PM	#5
raider Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Perth, Australia Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,989 Original Poster	From what i read, the nook e-ink version is not bad for normal PDF files but i could be wrong.

03-26-2011, 09:00 PM	#7
raider Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Perth, Australia Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,989 Original Poster	I see. I didnt realise an e-ink screen will need to refresh each time the screen content get changed. I think i am ruling out e-ink screen for my purpose. Thanks for that tips.

03-26-2011, 09:44 PM	#8
monochrome Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Working From Home Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 26,276	Will the larger version Amazon Kindle DX work? It handles pdf images, 9.7", Has USB transfer, Wi-Fi and free 3g, auto-rotate to landscape, etc.

03-26-2011, 10:03 PM	#9
raider Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Perth, Australia Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,989 Original Poster	I checked that the kindle DX is using e-ink. Will the screen keep refresh if the screen content changed?

03-27-2011, 04:02 AM	#10
gokenin Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: lowell,ma Posts: 1,899	what do you mean by changing? are you looking for something that will let you edit the pdf files? the i-ink on the kindle changes everytime you change pages but if you leave the device on the same page it will always be there even if you turn it on and off.

03-27-2011, 04:51 AM	#11
raider Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Perth, Australia Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,989 Original Poster	maybe the term "change" is not appropriate here. But I am not sure what is a better way to describe this except noting that pxpaulx mentioned "everytime there is a change the whole page needs to refresh, making resizing difficult and annoying to get right (the nook has a broswer that is basically unusable for that reason)." I was hoping to get a tablet which will render the PDF page smoothly

03-27-2011, 05:11 AM	#12
boriscleto Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: North Syracuse, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 16,476	I think you are going to find that your options at the moment are limited to basically the Xoom and the iPad.

03-27-2011, 05:18 AM	#13
raider Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Perth, Australia Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,989 Original Poster	So both the xoom and ipad will render scanned pdf files smoothly? No issues in rendering the image when i zoom in and out?

03-27-2011, 07:00 AM	#14
monochrome Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Working From Home Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 26,276	Read the entire Dx description I linked. It specifically refers to resizing pdf pages smoothly. I don't have one but I've been researching whether to get one.

03-27-2011, 07:27 AM	#15
gokenin Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: lowell,ma Posts: 1,899	The experimental category represents the features we are working on to enhance the Kindle experience even further. You can e-mail your PDF or DOCX files wirelessly to your Kindle. Keep in mind that some complex PDF and DOCX files might not format correctly on your Kindle. Built-in PDF Reader for Kindle DX Your Kindle DX can display PDF documents without losing the formatting of the original file. Send PDF documents directly to your Kindle (via your @Kindle address) or drag and drop PDF files from your computer to your Kindle (when connected via USB). You can also magnify PDFs by viewing them in landscape mode. Some features are not currently supported, including annotations and Text-to-Speech. The only Kindle devices supported for PDFs are the Kindle and Kindle DX. Option to Convert PDF Files to Kindle Format If you prefer to have your personal PDF documents converted to the Kindle format so you can take advantage of Kindle functionality such as variable font size, annotation, Text-to-Speech, etc., type "Convert" in the subject of the e-mail when you submit your personal document to your @kindle.com address. Image-heavy PDF files are presented in landscape orientation and don't work with devices that have auto-rotation, so those will be delivered in the Kindle format. It sounds like the DX might work for what you are looking at.