I am looking to get a Kindle for my husband for our 10th anniversary. Is Kindle the best or do you have another favorite? Do you have to buy a wireless connection or does it have it's own? Or do you have to connect it to a computer? Is there any other cool gadget that I should buy to go with it?
Replay I am looking to get a Kindle for my husband for our 10th anniversary. Is Kindle the best or do you have another favorite? Currently Kindle 2 is the best. Do you have to buy a wireless connection or does it have it's own? Or do you have to connect it to a computer? No, kindle has wireless built in. You can buy books wirelessly. That's why it's better than the Sony's e-reader Is there any other cool gadget that I should buy to go with it? Buy a book light to go with it, it doesn't have a backlit screen.
The big drawback to the kindle (and the ONLY reason I don't own one) is that it is a major pain in the butt to put your own content on the device. You have to do all sorts of work arounds, emailing to amazon, they convert and resend, etc. When it is plug and play to upload my own files, I will get one because they are pretty nifty.
Barnes & Noble has a free e-reader for download to iPhone, iPod, Blackberry, or laptop ... http://www.barnesandnoble.com/ebooks/index.asp
Author Piers Anthony reviews the Kindle vs. the Sony equivalent in his news letter from last month: http://www.hipiers.com/09aug.html
The kindle rocks, I owned 3 iphones and I hate reading on them. You can't read novels on a iphone, the screen is too small and it hurts your eyes after a while.
I am still confused about the Sony. :wub: So you have to plug it into a computer to download it but then you can take it anywhere to read, correct? But with a Kindle, you do not need a computer. molly...what type of your own content are you referring to? Books you already own on hardcover? Newspapers?
My own document files, pdf files, school notes, ebooks from non-Amazon sources. You CAN get most of these things on there, just not conveniently. I use my ipod touch as an ereader all the time and it doesn't bother me, but I can see how most people would not be able to tolerate it. I can't read on my laptop screen. Amazon has a program where you can contact a kindle user in your area or workplace. You could try that? Maybe tell us how he would use his device? Would he only use it to buy and read things from Amazon? If so, a kindle would probably be great.
It is also almost $500 and too large to be truly portable. I just get tired of this seeming trend towards closed source/content devices. I just bought an Apple TV, and experience using it after hacking it is 1000000000% better because now I can play any media format that I want on it instead of just using it as a glorified iTunes store interface. For now, that is what I see the Kindle as--a super easy, convenient way to buy books from Amazon (and the prices on kindle books mostly seem pretty good). But what happens in 5 or 10 years when formats have evolved? This is one reason why the closed content format really bothers me.
Funny this should pop up in conversation! I have a Kindle 2 that I honestly don't use. I'm considering selling it for $250 along with the case and plug (it's going for $299 on Amazon). If anyone is interested, PM me!
I am a total booky - HAVE to read everyday. I am also a tree hugger who aims to reduce my carbon footprint, so I was thinking about a Kindle to reduce my consumption. However, I worry that I will miss the medium of the book - actually holding it in my hand, turning pages etc....thoughts from a Kindler?
It's amazon's e-book reader. You can read books right off of the thing. If you look at one of my previous posts, the author Piers Anthony and his wife review the Kindle and it's Sony equivalent in his august newsletter (Just hit ctrl and f and search for Kindle). They say the pros and cons of each. Its a useful opinion, since if a 78 year old can get used to it and sort of like it, then most people should be able to
Sounds good. I will probably do like his wife and use it but still buy certain books. It will prob be great when travelling. Now someone send me three hundred bucks!!!!!!
Yeah, if I had the money to blow on a Kindle, i'd probably do the same. Having the book in your hands is just so nice.