Can I read eBooks on my Android smartphone? And can directly evoke the eBook reader via the Android browser?

ePub, pdf, txt, and eBooks

Well, let us firstly talk about eBook formats. Some people say that txt files and pdf files are eBooks in the same sense like epub files. But txt files can't manage artwork. And pdf files have a fix page size which can't be adopted at our smartphone screen.  The ePub format on the other hand fulfills such requirements of mobile devices. It will become the epublishing standard - no doubt: many companies and publishers already offer such encoded electronical books.

Hence speaking about eBooks should be a talk on ePub reader. And I'm now considering two alternatives:

The ePub Reader Aldiko

A very comfortable eBook reader is Aldiko: it has a very nice intuitive user interface, includes already large catalogues for buying eBooks - namely those of O'Reilly. Positive reviews itemize these facts . Additionally the program allows to import locally stored epub files. But unfortenuately this app seems not to be free open source software, it's only free in the meaning of freebeer. For installing the application use the standard way:

  • search aldiko or epub in the market application,
  • click the entry
  • let the app being installed automatically.

The ePub Reader fbreader

On the other hand the fbreader is a really free open source application: it fulfills all requirements and can easily be used although its user interface isn't as nicely filed as that of Aldiko. But there is another advantage: the fbreader is additionally offered as Linux desktop application. And so I can read my books on my mobile phone and on my destop computer. For installing the Android application you can use the same the standard method like that for aldiko.

At least one alternative should be mentioned which is developed to handle other formats than ePub: the iReader for Android "... is an e-book reader application for txt, chm, umd, palm pdb format"