Anyone here got a Kindle?

[Velvet-Tongue]

I want one but the price tags scaring me off. is it worth it?

[Aza]

I don't have one yet... but I want one more than I remember wanting any toy I ever begged for when I was a kid! Plus, they just came out with the Kindle 3, so they've had two whole incarnations to work out the kinks. The price tag does make me cringe a bit though.

[Raza]

Awhatnow?

Whatever it does, I bet I can do it better for under 5 bucks.

[Ajax Knucklebones]

My wife does. I bought her the Kindle 2. She LOVES it! LOVES it! Super quick book downloads too and great prices. The price is steep, but I swear, she's always reading from it.

[Amelia G]

Awhatnow?

Whatever it does, I bet I can do it better for under 5 bucks.

In a sense, you almost certainly can do it for under 5 bucks, but not regularly. The Kindle is Amazon's portable book reader. It has a more paperlike view and booklike shape than a laptop and makes carrying around tons of books lightweight and easy. It is sort of like an Ipod for books I guess.



My brother has one and looooooooooves it, but he splits his time between Los Angeles and New York, and likes to have a bunch of books he is reading with him, wherever he happens to be. He used to find carrying them back and forth on planes a drag.

The Kindle reader strikes me as pricey, but Kindle books cost less than regular books, so I think it probably ends up with the Kindle being way cheaper pretty fast, if you buy a lot of books. And I buy way too many books.

If I put all my books in storage (instead of just some of my books) and bought a Kindle and stopped buying new physical books, it would certainly save a lot of living space. I think I hold off partly because of the initial price point, but mostly because I really like books. I feel an emotional attachment to books and enjoy turning the pages. And I like to read in the bath.

Then again, I didn't want to publish on the internet originally because I really like magazines, and I came around on that one. So I'll probably get a Kindle eventually.

[Velvet-Tongue]

Now I'm all excited. Just read that you can download books anywhere and it's connected to wikipedia 24/7. Wish it was in color though. Maybe if it had the option to switch between color/gray. Theres alot of osprey history books etc that're mostly photos I wanna get.

[Ajax Knucklebones]

Now I'm all excited. Just read that you can download books anywhere and it's connected to wikipedia 24/7. Wish it was in color though. Maybe if it had the option to switch between color/gray. Theres alot of osprey history books etc that're mostly photos I wanna get.

Yeah, you don't have hook into anything to download. Has it's own built in wi-fi.

[Morning Glory]

Normally I'd be in favor of this sort of thing because it just makes a lot more sense from a practical function and resource management perspective... But there's just something about the physical quality of a book that is explicit in it's enjoyment, on a level that is not the same as something like music or movies that aren't changed in the way that you interact with them just because the sensory information is removed from it's carrying case (cd's and dvd's.)

[Amelia G]

Normally I'd be in favor of this sort of thing because it just makes a lot more sense from a practical function and resource management perspective... But there's just something about the physical quality of a book that is explicit in it's enjoyment, on a level that is not the same as something like music or movies that aren't changed in the way that you interact with them just because the sensory information is removed from it's carrying case (cd's and dvd's.)

I totally feel the same way about books strongly.

I actually feel a bit like this with CDs vs. just the songs on their own.

For DVDs, I am totally indifferent to the packaging. I don't currently have a membership, but, when I've used Netflix, it never bothered me to get DVDs without the packaging.

[Morning Glory]

I actually feel a bit like this with CDs vs. just the songs on their own.

I can understand that POV from vinyl aficionados, but I don't see the advantage of lugging around a case of CDs instead of a pocket mp3 player. I mean the album artwork and lyrics sheets are cool, but the shiny discs don't do anything for me.

[Amelia G]

I can understand that POV from vinyl aficionados, but I don't see the advantage of lugging around a case of CDs instead of a pocket mp3 player. I mean the album artwork and lyrics sheets are cool, but the shiny discs don't do anything for me.

Except for in the car, I've never been inclined to be mobile with music. I might bring a book to a waiting room but not headphones. I think if I liked to travel with my music, then I would be way more into the MP3 player thing.

I like the CD booklets when I am home and listening to something. I liked the art on vinyl sleeves way better than CDs, but I prefer the CD listening experience in terms of skipping to the song I like or putting a song on repeat and such that CDs beat vinyl pretty instantaneously for me.

[Morning Glory]

I wouldn't mind giving the Kindle a try and that portability is something that might be real useful. I can have my home library and then when I'm out of town I don't have to fill my suitcase up with 50 pounds of reading material.

But I'm not really one that has to have tech toys, so unless I got a screamin deal, I doubt I'll have the opportunity to play with one anytime soon.

Of course, now that I think about it, one good thing about out of town is going to new bookstores, so that really wouldn't help me much there on the return trip.

[Raza]

Mrweh. I was gonna keep making fun of you guys for reinventing a more expensive wheel, but far more than the ability to carry the content of a bunch of books with you in the space of a single exceptionally fragile one, 24-7 wikipedia access seems immensely convenient. Although, don't modern cellphones already do this? I imagine you pay a recurring fee for kindle's network, too?

[Amelia G]

Mrweh. I was gonna keep making fun of you guys for reinventing a more expensive wheel, but far more than the ability to carry the content of a bunch of books with you in the space of a single exceptionally fragile one, 24-7 wikipedia access seems immensely convenient. Although, don't modern cellphones already do this? I imagine you pay a recurring fee for kindle's network, too?

At least for the moment, Amazon pays for the wireless access and just makes its dough from books purchased from them, rather than a recurring fee. Convenient on one level, although, of course, if they get a monopoly and Kindle becomes the Ipod of books, then who knows what might happen to the pricing or what books are available, in the same way iTunes limits the sorts of content available through their systems.

[Amelia G]

I wouldn't mind giving the Kindle a try and that portability is something that might be real useful. I can have my home library and then when I'm out of town I don't have to fill my suitcase up with 50 pounds of reading material.

But I'm not really one that has to have tech toys, so unless I got a screamin deal, I doubt I'll have the opportunity to play with one anytime soon.

Of course, now that I think about it, one good thing about out of town is going to new bookstores, so that really wouldn't help me much there on the return trip.

I love exploring out of town bookstores

[Mr Karl]

I'd like one of those ibooks but I can hold off a while.....................the libraries still free, and most books I read read once

[HeadlessBill]

[Rockwulf]

Do they read .cbr files? If they do, that'd be the one thing to change it from another gadget I kind of want to a "must-have"

[mystoo]

I don't have one, don't plan on getting one. I love books. I love hunting them down in dusty old used bookstores, I love the smell of them, the feel of paper is nice too. This kindle thing seems convenient and all but it's not for me.

[Amelia G]

xkcd rules. I did not think of that, but it's perfect! Thanks for posting it.

[KessM]

wouldnt your eyes hurt after reading on a screen for so long?

[Morning Glory]

I don't really see the appeal of 24/7 access to wikipedia. I guess I've just never been anywhere other than already on a computer when I felt the relevancy to go to the site.

-while scuba diving: "man, I wish I was reading a wikipedia entry on the bends right now."

[Vix]

I just love visiting an older aunt or gran and fumbling through the book shelves and finding an absolute winner!!! Its the smell of old books, the pages, the memories, the history of it that appeals to me.
Tbh I am not interested in an "ipod" for books... its not like i need to carry several at a time. Who ever thought " yeah i can carry a whole liberary now" I mean wtf?

[Amelia G]

wouldnt your eyes hurt after reading on a screen for so long?

Supposedly the most important difference between a Kindle and a laptop is that the screen actually works with a sort of electronic ink display, so it is like reading paper you can fine tune the brightness on. So your eyes should theoretically hurt less than from normal book reading.

[Rockwulf]

I just started a new job where basically 12 hours on, 12 hours off, I sit at a desk and do fuck-all. So I was considering getting a kindle but when I brought a book to work, I read until I was so tired of reading that I physically couldn't read another page. Then I looked at my watch and still had 8 hours left on my shift.

For the price of a Kindle, you can get a very nice laptop that doesn't just read books but surfs the web, plays movies/tv shows/games, etc. while allowing you to adjust brightness/contrast settings (like every monitor anywhere ever has done btw) and I'm not tied to any subscription services or monthly plans.

Aside from the fact that the kindle is (slightly) smaller and (slightly) lighter, I don't see a single advantage to it. I'll be putting my first paycheck or two into a laptop for sure.

[mollycase]

I have a Kindle and quite like it. It is much easier to read on than even the nicest laptop.