Should I buy a kindle?

Publish Date: Oct 30 '18

10 24

Namaste folks,

Over the past one year I have picked up on my reading habit. Reading up fiction, non-fiction, self-help and sometimes technical books. I have collected over 20 books which are kept in boxes, not taking up much space (yet).

The other day my friend suggested me to buy a kindle since I read 3 books at a time sometimes(pdf format included).

I am confused whether I should invest in a kindle?

I am sure many of you must be already using it. Please help with your inputs. Open for any comment!

Comments 24 total

ShashiOct 30, 2018

Have been a Kindle user for almost a decade. Cant imagine my life without it. The only challenge is the new kindles do not allow upload of MOBI/EPUB formats from outside. Luckily I have the original Kindle PaperWhite which allows that.
- Gregory SequeiraOct 30, 2018
  
  Is that a deal breaker though? (the unavailability of MOBI/EPUB upload ) Doesn't sound like it .
  - ShashiOct 30, 2018
    
    Not all all. Since a lot of material (like PDFs etc) are/may not be available on Amazon ideally you should be able to download it from anywhere and push them to Kindle. Inability to do that is the limit. Else there is nothing stopping you from buying content directly from Amazon.
    - rhymesOct 30, 2018
      
      Even with Calibre?
      - ShashiOct 30, 2018
        
        As I said, i think the Kindle version matters. When I tried to push content from Calibre to my wife's Kindle Fire it wouldn't allow it. Gave us lock errors. We tried several hacks but didn't work.
        
        Calibre works for my first version PaperWhite no problem.
        
        Wonder if this has changed.
        
        rhymesOct 30, 2018
        
        I have a Kindle pre-PaperWhite and I'm going to hold on to it then ahahahah
        
        ShashiOct 30, 2018
        
        hahaha. Yep! :)
        
        jess unreinOct 31, 2018
        
        I have a paperwhite - I think it's maybe a year and a half old - and you can send pdfs and independently acquired .mobi files as "documents" that get sent to your Kindle via email. They don't whispersync, but other than that they work fine on my device. I think you can also drag and drop files to your kindle if it's plugged into your computer via usb.
        
        .ebub files need to be converted to .mobi or .pdf to work. Calibre makes that pretty easy though.
        
        I've never used a Kindle Fire, but I haven't heard many good things about them. It's a poor example of both a tablet and an ereader because it's trying to do too many things.
        
        Definitely recommend the paperwhite, though. It's maybe one of my favorite things that I own, especially since my local public library has a great ebook selection.
Felice ForbyOct 30, 2018
I love using kindle for books because you don't need physical space to store them and it makes it easier to carry around (especially if you move a lot, like me). The biggest problem for me, though, is that it's much harder to look things up, which is really important for reference books. It's much, much easier to find things by flipping through real pages!
- Gregory SequeiraOct 30, 2018
  
  So would you recommend it 10/10 ? or less?
  - Felice ForbyOct 30, 2018
    
    Well, I wouldn't recommend it if you plan on using it for reference books (unless, again, you move a lot), because like I mentioned before, it's difficult to go back and look things up and there can be some formatting issues with code blocks, etc (not so much with newer books). But for everything else, it's great!
    
    If you do buy a reference book (or any book, for that matter) and you experience issues with the formatting, there is an option to return the book for a full refund if you return it within 1 week.
    - Gregory SequeiraOct 31, 2018
      
      Thanks! I don't plan to read technical books on the kindle anyway.
- ShashiOct 30, 2018
  
  Agree. Plus its amazing how much is NOT available in Kindle format via Amazon. So I guess it really depends what one needs the Kindle for. If it is for purely academic purposes (not reading for pleasure) then an alternative more compatible tool can be used IMO.
rhymesOct 30, 2018

You could start with the Kindle app on your phone, see if you like it and if you like the content that's available on Kindle and then commit to the physical device.

I like switching from the device to the app (the last read page is synced across devices) whenever I'm around and left the Kindle home.

If you commute on public transportation to an office a Kindle (or an e-reader in general) is a precious thing. You're already likely carrying a computer in your backpack, why add a 500 pages book :D ?

Last but not least: the true value of a Kindle manifests itself whenever you have to move from an apartment to another :P
- Gregory SequeiraOct 30, 2018
  
  Clever comment :P . Thanks!
- Gregory SequeiraOct 31, 2018
  
  Update:
  
  I took your suggestion and tried the Kindle app on my phone. I had a prime subscription, turns out I get a lot of free reading with my prime account. Guess, I'll be investing in a kindle soon.
  - rhymesOct 31, 2018
    
    Nice!
Ross HendersonOct 30, 2018

Kindles are great, but require a little bit of adjustment. I really like the feel of reading a book, but frankly, the portability and convenience of the Kindle just blow it out of the water. But it does take a little bit of getting used to.
Edoardo CeccarelliOct 30, 2018

YES!, do invest in a Kindle it is going to become your reading companion and you will love it, bear in mind though that this is a device that focuses on making you enjoy novels, so if you are thinking of using it for tech reading, books for programming or books to learn stuff in general then it might not work (as it didn't work for me)

currently my 5th gen (non paperwhite) holds one, max two novels at a time and a few books I like to read or re-read once in a while, plus I am constantly trying to transfer into it stuff I find online, through services like readitlater or pocket but it never worked well for that: web reading usually needs accompanying images and they don't show up nice on the kindle.

PS: PDF experience on the classic models is terrible: you need to scroll left and right while reading, if your main format is PDF you need to investigate about it
Fen SlatteryOct 30, 2018

I really recommend getting an ereader if you're already reading lots of digital books! I've found that there are some things I prefer to read on my Kindle Paperwhite, like fiction novels and short stories, but other things I prefer to read in physical book format.

If you end up getting an ereader, I recommend looking into your local library's ebooks! I'm able to borrow a ton of ebooks for free at my library, and I know that a lot of libraries, in the US at least, have a relationship with ebook borrowing companies.
smuschelOct 30, 2018

I did have a Kindle (with keyboard) until I accidentally dropped it. Display's now black and white only (top half black, bottom half white). There's a lot of things I liked about it, most of them have already been mentioned. What I never liked was the PDF reader function. PDFs were hardly readable on the 6" display and zooming in and out was useless. Also I never liked to use it for technical books. For example code blocks in IT books were displayed as images, which wasn't really usable. But for all other books it's been a great device. Nowadays I'm using the app on my phone (and physical books from a public library).
jess unreinOct 31, 2018
I love my Kindle so much for fiction and narrative nonfiction. I do not recommend ereaders in general for the following use cases:
- Anything with illustrations
- Anything you plan on reading bits and pieces of, but not all the way through
- Anything where you plan on jumping back and forth where you'll have to rely on navigation links.
Those are much easier to read on your computer, and a huge pain on an ereader. But if it's something that you plan on reading front to back, Kindles are great. Also, the new Paperwhite is water resistant!
- ShashiNov 1, 2018
  
  Agree. I tried loading some DC and Tintin comics on the Kindle. BAD idea. Not only was the rendering awful, it just crashed the device. I had to pick and remove those files before it got reboot and breathe again. Since then for comics I use either the tablet or just a laptop.
  - Gregory SequeiraNov 1, 2018
    
    Yes. I have read that elsewhere too. Not a comic book fan though.

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Gregory Sequeira @gregorys100

Should I buy a kindle?

Comments 24 total