Yeah, I suppose it evens out over the long run. It just seems ridiculous to pay $15.99 for an electronic book, when if I wait for a few months I can buy the paperback for under $10.
If the OP buys a Kindle, I highly recommend getting a carrier for it. The Kindle is thin and light and could easily be dropped and damaged. We used a couple of old vinyl/leather zip binders (you know, the small ones that you pick up free at a conference). I put a piece of velcro on the back of the Kindle and stuck it in the binder. Works great and protects the thing from scratches and damage. It also feels more like you’re holding a book.
I just got my Kindle2 on Tuesday. So far, I love it. I have wi-fi at home, so I didn’t see the need for the 3G.
I have downloaded about 60 books so far, and haven’t paid for any. I got the Kindle as a gift, so I don’t have the cover/protector yet. I am afraid to take it on my commute until I get the covers.
I ordered 2 different ones. I ordered both a nylon slip-in case and leather book-like case. Those of you that have the Kindle, which do you use?
I have the leather binder from Amazon. The Kindle latches into it securely. Not only does it protect the Kindle, it allows you to hold it like a book when reading.
I use a padded nylon slip-case for my DX. I don’t need to feel like I’m reading a book all the time. Sometimes I just revel in being alive when books went digital.
I love, love, loved my Kindle, right up to the point where I broke it by not packing it carefully in my carry-on luggage. :smack:
It actually got me to love reading again, because I could read easily in bed. I bought one of those clip-on lights and read for hours. It’s nice to be able to adjust the font to accomodate my eyes getting older.
However, the downside is that it’s not great for traveling. Aside from the fact that it got itself broke, I love to read poolside. However, I never felt comfortable just leaving my Kindle on the chair, or even in a bag, while I went for a dip in the ocean or pool. With a paperbook, theft was never an issue with me. But with a Kindle, I worried about it.
I find the auto-rotating feature annoying as well. It’s too sensitive. I set the orientation manually when I select the book I want to read. Usually, I have it set to portrait, but for technical manuals and PDFs I set it to landscape.
Has anyone found a way to share books on the Kindle? I’m thinking of getting my mother one for her birthday or Christmas, but she said she wouldn’t want one unless she could share books with other people. I know that you can download books to your computer and transfer them to your Kindle - can you do that across multiple Kindles?
I’ll add another one to the “love it more than beer-dispensing puppies” pile. Ebook readers in general are all sorts of kickass so owners will naturally boast about how cool their particular model is but I’ve messed around a little bit with my sister’s Nook (well that’s kinda strange to type…) and I like the Kindle better.
The only real downside I can find with my Kindle (and it’s pretty minor) is the distinct lack of organization. All my books are in one big list and it gets annoying sometimes trying to scroll through them. Yes, I can organize by author or name but if I had my druthers, I’d be able to create my own folders. And a touchscreen would be nice, but definitely not worth giving up the awesome e-ink display.
And the upsides are amazing. Like from CD to ipod amazing. Having all my books on one simple device I can bring with me everywhere is simply priceless. I can’t stand reading a backlit screen for any length of time (goodbye iPad) and I even found the (admittedly crippled) browser useful. The ability to check my email for free from anywhere was super handy when I was traveling and not in immediate contact with internet-enabled establishments. And their free conversion service also gets a big happy thumbs-up from me. Simple, quick and effective. The formatting occasionally leaves something to be desired but it’s a small price to pay for the ability to read books from anywhere.
I basically use my Kindle like an external hard drive. My books are downloaded onto my computer and I copy them via usb. I imagine I could transfer them to friends in the same manner. I also like having my own copy in case Amazon decides to do something stupid with my purchases.
I got my Kindle on a Monday. That Wednesday I saw a commercial for the same thing for $50 less and in graphite, which was a big selling point for me. So I called Amazon, got a Return Authority and sent it back. But during the week I had it, I had an issue with their browser function. I had a trial subscription to a couple blogs, but when I tried to follow the links (which were pretty much the entire content of one of the blogs), I could never find the story I was supposed to find. Is there somewhere that tells me how to navigate the web browser? It’ll make a difference in which version I buy.
You can group your books now with a new feature called Collections. You should have gotten the 2.5 update from Amazon by now, which allows you to organize your books into folders of a sort and give each one a distinctive name. No more single, long disorganized, scrolling list.
Well, it looks like I have pretty much decided on a Kindle. It’s going to be a while before I get it, so I’ll post around then, and let everyone know if I like it or not (which I think I will). Thanks!
I participated in a similar thread about a month and a half ago and made a plunge to buy the Kindle2 (and then the next week they announced Kindle 3…grr!)
Love it- couldn’t live with out it now. Easy to use, portable library. The browser is great too, because I can’t check email at work and now I have a free email reader (although admittedly primitive). My main complaint is the organization is time consuming to set up; I haven’t bothered yet except to mark a few books read. Also, it doesn’t give you the page numbers, which makes it difficult for me to post updates on Goodreads. I also use the audiobook feature, which is something I’ve never bothered with, and it plays great on my tape deck and I’m really enjoying that
I have the 3G version and think it’s well worth the $50 to be able to download books anywhere.
I know I’ve already chimed in at the other thread, but since I’ve only had mine a few days, my impressions continue to build.
While my intention in getting the Kindle was to read more fiction (something I rarely find time for), I think I see now that, for me, it will become a fantastic periodical device. I just subscribed to New Yorker magazine yesterday (something I always enjoy reading at the doctor’s office, and always get called in before I finish a good article), and read it with joy this morning at breakfast. I later fired up Calibre and downloaded a few feeds using their Fetch News feature and transferred those to the Kindle; if those work (by which I mean good content and acceptable formatting), I’ll be in heaven.
