Kindle - Does anyone own one?
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free skin care · Sat Oct 25, 2008 5:07 am

Does anyone here own a Kindle? If so, what is your opinion of this e-book device? I am thinking about buying one as a birthday gift for my daughter. Some of her textbooks are available for download at a fraction of the cost.

Sun Oct 26, 2008 9:31 pm

Hello. I just ordered my Kindle and one for my mom as a birthday gift. We haven't received them yet but I will post my opinion as soon as I get a chance to use it. I am sooo excited.

free skin care · Mon Oct 27, 2008 5:05 am

Thanks, Lam. I'm going to go ahead and place my order as well. Are you aware of the $50 off coupon code: OPRAHWINFREY

It's good until November 1st.

Mon Oct 27, 2008 2:28 pm

yes, that's why I ordered the two now...because of the $50 rebate from Oprah. I heard about the kindle from her show....lol Very Happy

free skin care · Mon Oct 27, 2008 3:23 pm

That's funny - I was watching Oprah, too. I had never heard of the Kindle before then. Happy reading!

Sat Nov 08, 2008 11:00 pm

I own a Kindle and I LOVE mine! My husband bought it for me last Christmas when they first came out. I had a feeling I would be hooked when I saw the article in Newsweek:

http://www.newsweek.com/id/70983/page/1

I often read on the weekends while my husband is flying R/C planes - I always take my Kindle to the field with me. It's fantastic because I can bounce between books but I only have to carry this light device with me (I used to bring 3 books most of the time). It looks great in the sun - there's no glare and it's very easy to read with and without sunglasses on.

The battery does last a long time but not as long as I would wish because I am forgetful. I keep the charger next to my bedside and charge it when I go to bed or if I'm reading in bed. It's just like a cell phone, it's a bummer when you forget to charge it and run out of battery life. Although, I've never run out of juice within 2 days of charging. The battery lasts a lot longer if you turn the wireless off, but then again, browsing Amazon for books and reading reviews can be addicting for a bookworm like me.

My favorite feature is the free book samples! You can download a sample of any book available for free and it's usually the complete first chapter. This has saved me a fortune because I don't buy books I don't get sucked into! I must have 20 samples on my Kindle and they remind me of the books I would like to read in the future. Amazon's also good at recommending books that are similar to books you purchase. The downloads are so quick, it's unreal. I've bought books online, went directly to turn my Kindle on and they were there ready to read. If I buy books directly on the device it says I can continue reading while the download is in progress but it's usually done before I get back to the main menu. My husband loves it because I used to drag him to bookstores (something I miss) which he no longer has to endure. It also made it easy for him to buy me my birthday gift (an Amazon gift cert).

There are some little downsides that I don't like. The primary dislike is the liquid paper technology doesn't work well in low light situations. Like I mentioned earlier, it works fantastically in sunlight. If you're reading in doors, you need some good lighting but you would need that for a paper book also. Changing the font size can help if your lighting is poor and you're having trouble seeing clearly.

Another of the main thing is that it's not as easy to jump back and forth like a book is. So if you missed something and want to reread it (or try to remember who a character is), then you might have trouble finding what you're looking for (although you can go to the first page of each chapter). The pages aren't labeled like book pages and I don't understand the system. If you do read a sample that ends on a random page, it would be nice if the book took you to that point when you download the entire thing so you don't have to fast forward through a bunch of pages you've already read. A nice feature is that it always goes to the last page you read in your book unless you tell it to go to the first or the table of contents (this is true for all the books you have saved on the device so you can keep up with multiple books at a time).

The other BIG downfall is that you can't share your books with friends. I do miss swapping paperbacks and it's hard to tell a friend that you just read the best book and you can't lend it to her! Although you never have to worry about not getting your fave novel back that you lent out 2 years ago...

The first book I read on my Kindle was "World Without End" by Ken Follett, the sequel to the Oprah's bookclub pick "Pillars of the Earth." I read most of "Pillars" in one weekend because my Kindle came and I was dying to use it. The first book I read was over a thousand pages long; it didn't take any adjustment time and I didn't feel like I was missing out on anything by not having paper pages to turn. Lots of people are against this item because supposedly it loses the "magic" of reading books. I've been sucked into my Kindle just like I've been sucked into many books. I guess it just takes an open mind to realize reading can be a fantastic experience no matter what the format is.

Just last night I was reading a paperback book a friend gave me and as I was turning the page and holding it with both hands, I realized that I missed my Kindle (which I can read one handed when I lay in bed). (Ironically, I see this thread today. My husband saw me posting and suggested I change my name to KindleQueen when I told him; I'm actually thinking of changing to that too!)

Sorry for such a super long thread! I wish I wasn't the only one posting how awesome this thing is! I hope you're happy with yours and I look forward to hearing what you think about it! Very Happy

free skin care · Sun Nov 09, 2008 8:36 am

Thanks for the awesome review, Rockalilly! I received word yesterday from Amazon that my Kindle has been shipped - just in time for my daughter's birthday. I'm so excited for her as she is a full-time engineering student who loves to read the classics as a diversion from her scientific/math ladden subjects. And she'll be able to reduce the number of books she carries around. I'll let you know what she thinks of it 10 days from now. She knows she's getting a gift she would never expect so we are both excited. I'm hoping she shares it with me Very Happy

free skin care · Fri Nov 21, 2008 5:36 am

What exactly is a kindle? Where I come from it is stuff used to start a fire. Sounds like an electronic device of some sort.

free skin care · Sat Nov 22, 2008 6:57 am

peppy wrote:

What exactly is a kindle? Where I come from it is stuff used to start a fire. Sounds like an electronic device of some sort.

That's what I first thought when I saw this thread, peppy!

It seems to be some kind of electronic library device which can be used to store of read downloads of books.

I don't think they sell it here in the UK, and it would probably be prohibitively expensive if they did. If I can ever find one at a reasonable price, then I'd be very tempted to buy it.

free skin care · Sat Nov 22, 2008 2:37 pm

Kindle is an e-book device. My daughter opened her gift last night and I haven't put it down since Laughing

Seriously, this reading device is FANTASTIC. I downloaded the entire book, "Drowning Ruth" in less than 20 seconds. First I downloaded a sample of the book which consisted of 2 chapters to see if I liked enough to purchase - which I did for about $9.00. My husband downloaded "Call of the Wild" for $.99 My daughter hasn't had a chance to really use it yet since we have been hogging it. This is the most fantastic device. It can store over 200 books, magazines, blogs and newspapers. The mags and newspapers can be downloaded usually before they even hit the newstands. Absolutely one of the best purchases especially since my daughter has gone "green". Now she won't have to lug 2-3 novels around, just this one little device.

free skin care · Sat Nov 22, 2008 6:53 pm

I gave the wrong price for downloading "Drowning Ruth" - it was $7.19

BTW - Whatever happened to the edit button? Wasn't it a feature at one time?

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