Amazon Kindle e-reader: 3 premium alternatives

If you’re just getting into the e-readers, look no further than Amazon’s $100 Kindle or $140 Kindle Paperwhite—both are excellent e-book readers with a lot to offer.

However, if you’re looking for something a little extra from your e-book reader, there’s a decent and growing selection of non-Kindle, non-Amazon devices that offer features and performance the Kindle family can’t match.

Here’s a trio of unique, nicely-outfitted Kindle alternatives to consider.

Kobo Libra 2

It’s got buttons! Buttons! While Amazon’s early Kindles came standard with page-turn buttons—rather than making you tap the screen to flip the page—you’ll have to pony up for the $250 Kindle Oasis to nab such a feature today.

The Kobo Libra 2, on the other hand, sports page-turn buttons and costs a reasonable $190. Plus, it features quadruple the storage of the baseline Oasis while evenly matching just about every other spec—including being waterproof.

If you find your current e-book reader to just be a smidge too large for comfortable one-hand reading, look no further than the phone-shaped Onyx Boox Palma.

At $280, this is an investment, to be sure. But this is no ordinary e-book reader. Aside from adopting the same form factor as modern smartphones, it also borrows some very smartphone-ish features as well.

To wit: It runs Android, which means you can load full-fledged phone apps on it. It’s also got a whopping 128 GB of storage, which should be enough for more books than you’ll ever be able to read in a lifetime.

It’s also got a monstrously fast (for an e-book reader) processor and a built-in camera for document scanning.

Color E Ink has come a long way over the years.

Case in point: the PocketBook InkPad Color 3, a $330 e-book reader with a big, beautiful 7.8-inch screen capable of displaying 4,096 colors.

It’s also got 32 GB of storage—more than enough for just about everyone—and is safe to use by (or in!) the pool or bathtub.

Best of all, the battery lasts up to a month before needing to be recharged. If you’re into comics or just looking to add a little color to your e-reading experience, check this one out.

If you’re just getting into the e-readers, look no further than Amazon’s $100 Kindle or $140 Kindle Paperwhite—both are excellent e-book readers with a lot to offer.

However, if you’re looking for something a little extra from your e-book reader, there’s a decent and growing selection of non-Kindle, non-Amazon devices that offer features and performance the Kindle family can’t match.

Here’s a trio of unique, nicely-outfitted Kindle alternatives to consider.

Kobo Libra 2

It’s got buttons! Buttons! While Amazon’s early Kindles came standard with page-turn buttons—rather than making you tap the screen to flip the page—you’ll have to pony up for the $250 Kindle Oasis to nab such a feature today.

The Kobo Libra 2, on the other hand, sports page-turn buttons and costs a reasonable $190. Plus, it features quadruple the storage of the baseline Oasis while evenly matching just about every other spec—including being waterproof.

If you find your current e-book reader to just be a smidge too large for comfortable one-hand reading, look no further than the phone-shaped Onyx Boox Palma.

At $280, this is an investment, to be sure. But this is no ordinary e-book reader. Aside from adopting the same form factor as modern smartphones, it also borrows some very smartphone-ish features as well.

To wit: It runs Android, which means you can load full-fledged phone apps on it. It’s also got a whopping 128 GB of storage, which should be enough for more books than you’ll ever be able to read in a lifetime.

It’s also got a monstrously fast (for an e-book reader) processor and a built-in camera for document scanning.

Color E Ink has come a long way over the years.

Case in point: the PocketBook InkPad Color 3, a $330 e-book reader with a big, beautiful 7.8-inch screen capable of displaying 4,096 colors.

It’s also got 32 GB of storage—more than enough for just about everyone—and is safe to use by (or in!) the pool or bathtub.

Best of all, the battery lasts up to a month before needing to be recharged. If you’re into comics or just looking to add a little color to your e-reading experience, check this one out.