I heard the iPad may not be as easy to read in direct sunlight. Is that true? Can it be helped?

This is especially true when you consider that you likely paid more than $300 for your iPad Mini. But even though a tablet like the iPad can be used as an e-reader and is often great for that purpose in certain situations, it's not ideal in every situation. Unfortunately, for you and anyone else looking to read a good book lounging by the pool, basking in the sun at the beach, or simply kicking back at the park on a sunny afternoon, tablets are not the best option when you're in direct sunlight.

The reason is simple, the iPad Mini and other tablets use LCD screens, which are backlit. This is great if you want to read in the dark or in low-light. But it's horrible if you want to read sitting in bright sunlight.

It is a little bit better if you're sitting in the shade, such as under an umbrella. But lucky for you, there is a much better and relatively inexpensive alternative to consider. As you mentioned in your question, the Amazon Kindle is a great option for you, since it uses a technology called e-ink, which allows you to read print on a screen that is not backlit.

When you look at a page on a Kindle that uses e-ink, it looks like a page from a book. It works great in the bright sunlight. And personally, I find it much easier to read longer books and passages on a Kindle than a tablet even when I am not in the sun, since it doesn't make my eyes as tired as reading from a tablet's backlit LCD screen.

The other good news is that you can get a Kindle for a relatively cheap price: $69. I don't want to make light of the price of this device.