Are e-readers any good for programming books?

The format matters a lot. A book made for an e-reader, such as an EPUB or a Kindle edition, can reflow text and is usually much easier to read on a small screen than a fixed-page PDF. Code formatting still needs to come through cleanly, so check a sample if one is available.

For PDFs, especially pages laid out for print, a small e-reader can mean constant zooming and panning. A larger screen is much more comfortable for that kind of book.

If you mostly want to read chapters and follow examples, an e-ink reader can work. If you expect to copy code into an editor, search around quickly, or keep the book and your coding tools open side by side, a tablet or computer is more practical.

So I’d decide based on what you’ll do with the examples, not just whether the device can open the book.

For a big technical PDF, I’d prioritize screen size over the e-reader brand. On a compact reader, code lines and diagrams may be awkward to inspect, even if the text itself is readable. If the book is available as a reflowable ebook, smaller devices become a more reasonable option.

A regular tablet is worth considering if you already use PDFs or want more flexibility. It can handle technical documents and other apps, though the screen may feel different from e-ink for long reading sessions. There isn’t one best choice here. The source file and your preferred reading setup make a big difference.