Saturday, October 10, 2009

Should I get one? Kindle experiences.

Until now, I haven't had to think about this. Kindle and other readers were not available in Denmark (or Europe for that matter). Yes, I guess there has been some readers available, but none has really been advertized - and if they have been available and/or advertized, people have had bad experiences with them. So, last night I get an e-mail from Amazon.co.uk telling me, that Kindle is now available in Europe. I am immediately tempted. I will never stop buying books (I think), but the thought of being able to take a ton of books with me when I travel instead of just two or three is appealing. Very appealing. The fact that I also love gadgets (but don't necessarily know how to use them) is also a huge factor here. A Kindle is quite expensive (at least to me) though, so I am not rushing out there to get it. I want to think more about it.

So I am asking you, do you own one/have tried one, and how do you like it? No doubt we all like the feel and smell of new books and the look of a towering TBR-pile. So this is not so much a question of whether "the book is dead or not" as it is a question of how you like Kindle. Also, if you haven't got one, would you consider it? The look of the new Kindle is lovely ;-) although the image is of the first generation Kindle. The new one is slimmer, but I could not find an image of it, perhaps because it is not being released until October 19.

The image is from The Same Rowdy Crowd.

10 comments:

Carsten said...

I think I'm going to a Kindle when it is released in Europe, and I will post a review when I have tried it.

I think I have the same approach as you: I LOVE gadgets, but at the same time I just LOVE the smell of paper and the book as an object in itself. But i'm really curious to see this gadget in action :-)

Beth F said...

I don't have a Kindle, but I do have a Sony Reader and I love it. I don't use it all that often, but I like to travel with it. It doesn't have wifi, but it will work with U.S. libraries for digital dowbloading. I'm not ready to give up my print books, but I'm glad to have the reader.

Hannah said...

I think I would get a Kindle but I'm not sure - I think I can get books on my phone anyway and so would I really want to carry my phone, my iPod and a Kindle around with me - at least if I lose my paperback on the train or leave it behind some where it's only £5-7 rather than £270 or however much it is.

Krissi said...

I have a couple of friends who have bought them and they love them. However, I have had a chance to look, hold, and fiddle with them and I feel like I am jumping ship on real books. But the day is coming that we will do most of our reading in a non-traditional way so I think eventually all book readers will end up investing in electronic reader. Just my two cents.

Heidenkind said...

You should read some of Sarah's posts about this at Monkey Bear Reviews. She lives in Switzerland and has been putting up some good posts on book availability in Europe, cost, etc.

Louise said...

Thanks all for your comments. I still haven't decided yet, but since it is too expensive to buy right away, I know that the want for one has now been planted...Maybe for Xmas?

Anonymous said...

I don't have one (and have no plans to get one), but I'm anxious to know what your final decision will be!

Unknown said...

I have never been tempted to get one, but I got the chance to play with one yesterday and it did appeal to me a bit more after that. The sony e reader I tried had a really good, matt screen. I still won't get one (until they get a lot cheaper) but I can now see the appeal.

Eva @ One Swede Read said...

I have a Sony eReader and I like it, but I find that I'm never eager to pick it up. I'm just too fond of paper-books, I guess.

Suzanne Yester said...

OK, I love my Kindle! There I said it... I hate to admit it sometimes, but I do. I still love the feel of a nice hefty book in my hand, but boy is it nice to curl up in bed with my Kindle! The Kindle 2 is ergonomically enjoyable! Nice to hold in your hand, easy to turn the pages on either side. I do still buy books. But I do find that I read a little faster on the Kindle because I guess I'm concentrating more on the words in front of me.

My hubby, who read but not too much, is now a voracious reader! He loves his Kindle and will not buy paper any more!

Amazon does have a 30 day return policy too, so you can try it out for the price of shipping and a book...

If you get a chance, here are 2 posts I did about buying the Kindle... the first was when I just bought my first Kindle... But it's the comments that are really helpful as the debate is always a good one!

http://chickwithbooks.blogspot.com/2009/03/paper-or-plastic.html

http://chickwithbooks.blogspot.com/2009/05/is-bigger-better.html

Have a great day! And good luck with your decision! It's nice though, that you have a choice now!
Suzanne