Nokia devices can be used in a whole host of different ways but we're increasingly finding them being used as eReader devices, for making the most of old classics or reading the new blockbuster on the beach. What's more, you can even use your Nokia's MP3 playback to listen to books on the go, too. Read on for apps that will bring a library to your pocket.
As the Kindle, Sony Reader and the Cool-er have demonstrated, people are beginning to warm to the idea of reading books on a screen rather than on paper. Mobile eReading isn't just for those who want to lug a dedicated device around, though - as mobile screens get bigger and clearer, reading books on your phone is now much more practical.
Here we look at the latest and greatest apps you need to turn your Nokia smartphone into the ultimate enterainment device.
QReader
Price: Free
Size: 0.189MB
Download: Symbian Freeware
QReader is a simple-looking, freeware app that does just one thing - reading text files - but does it well. Whether it is a free classic ebook from Project Gutenberg, or just the text from a web page you copied into Notepad to read later, QReader will zip through it and make it searchable and scrollable.You can set bookmarks in multiple books and view in landscape or portrait as well as auto-scroll through the text for effort-free reading.
Nokia Audiobook Player
Price: Free
Size: 0.369MB
Download: Nokia Beta Labs
Nokia's Beta Labs are full of bright ideas, and this Audiobook player and encoder is a corker if you like listening to your reading material. Music files need to fairly big to maintain listenable sound quality, but speech can be compressed much further. The free (Windows based) encoder takes an audiobook CD or MP3 file and drops the bitrate to provide a tiny file that is still fine for spoken word. The Audiobook player app plays the book on your phone with multiple bookmarks and simple controls.
MobiPocket
Price: Free (For reader app. Books £varies)
Size: 1.6MB
Download: MobiPocket
MobiPocket brings some professional gloss to ebook reading - as well as a huge library of new titles. Many bestsellers and classic texts are available for purchase from the MobiPocket store and more are added all the time. The MobiPocket app features bookmarks, different fonts, annotations and a unique dictionary lookup feature that will let you look up difficult words.
EBook Mobile
Price: £8.00
Size: 0.201MB
Download: Nokia Ovi Store
EBook Mobile supports the general-purpose TXT file format but also the more obscure PRC and PDB which were once common on the Palm Pilot. There are loads of PDB and PRC ebooks available just a Google search away, so compatibilty is worth having. You can customise the display colours, set font sizes and search stored texts to your hearts' content.