I was looking through my old Evernote notes seeing what I had noted and what I needed to keep and what could go. One notebook had some blog article ideas, one of which was entitled:
Why I didn’t get a Kindle for Christmas
This made me smile, as at the time (March 2010) I was dead set on getting an iPad and did not think I would ever use a Kindle. Another factor that convinced me I didn’t need a Kindle was the thing about having to buy it from the American Amazon, and buy American Kindle books. This was something I thought I probably could cope with, but would the average person really feel comfortable with this. So though I liked the Kindle I couldn’t see myself buying one.
Well…
Things change…
In July, Amazon announced that they would be released a UK version of the Kindle that would be lighter and smaller, and they also announced a UK version of the Kindle store.
As I was doing lots of stuff around e-books I decided that even though I had my iPad, I would order and buy a Kindle.
It arrived just in time for ALT-C where I was presenting a symposium on e-books and e-book readers. I loaded it with some free books and I even bought a few too.
Now a couple of months later where am I with the Kindle?
Well I am not using it as much as I would like to, but when I do, ir works for me. I find it easy to read, just as easy as paper and much easier than reading on the iPad, though I do like the fact that I can read my Kindle books on the iPad. I like the fact that I don’t have to charge it up all the time. I really like been able to buy books on demand and download them really quickly. I like been able to download sample chapters for free, really nice way of getting free reading. I like how I can buy a newspaper on my Kindle.
Anything I don’t like?
No backlight! I know that’s the reason I don’t have to charge it up so much, but does make it difficult to read in poor light.
It’s not quite there for reading complex documents, but for simple text it really can make it easier to do work, typing on the laptop and reading on the Kindle.
A thoughtful post James. I think that both the Kindle and the Sony PRS600 are fine examples of tech that do exactly what it says on the tin and little more. Too often, tech suffers from feature bloat.
To pick a little at the things you “don’t like” – the lack of a backlight is one of my favourite features of my eReader. Part of the reason I invested in one is that the backlit screens of my laptop and iPhone were giving me a headache during prolonged reading sessions.
I read a lot online so love the fact that I can save it all to Instapaper and then export it to my eReader. This means I can read it all in one go if I choose but without the chance of getting a headache in the process.
Moreover, having to turn a lamp on then to read the screen of my eReader in the evening does not bother me one bit. In fact it brings me a sense of joy – as here I am holding a fabulous piece of technology, capable of holding a plethora of different documents – articles, blog posts, books, essays etc – but the experience is the same as if I were reading from a paperback book.
It’s almost a nostalgic experience which is ironic considering their is not a shred of paper to be seen.
Hi James – I have now read a whole book on the free to download version of Kindle for PCs and the book was free too! Despite my protestations at ALT-C that I don’t read so well online as I do away from the PC I found it just as absorbing as a book and very easy. I didn’t lose my place once either. This makes me think it is the content and the style of writing of the material I usually try to read online that I struggle with rather than the medium. Hmm, note to all report writers …
It’s on my Christmas list – just hope I’ve been good enough this year!