Thoughts about kindle e-reader ?

[SMB]

Paperwhite for me, find it indispensible now for the backlight and ability to read it in bright sunlight.

 

[Deleted34567]

Well folks,
Looked and read about the different models.
My kindle arrived from Amazon today, looks great and charging overnight.
Bought the paperwhite after reading reviews and advice from here.
Will be interesting to see how I "get along" with it.
Will report back.
Thanks everyone for the input.

 

[Langtoftlad]

Bemused as to why people think its either or.
Books are low tech but perfectly functional in the modern age. E-Readers are (almost) perfect tech for a low level function.
To use one doesn't preclude using another...

 

[angelaa]

I love my paperwhite. Had it 2 years with no problems. Also there are plenty of free books on the kindle books page. Because there are so many free books I find I am trying different types of books. If you don't like them you just delete them, and because they are free you've not lost anything. You can read the paperwhite in any light. Brilliant.

 

[Allanm]

That report from the BBC sounded credible till I read this bit.
"The light emitted by most e-readers is shining directly into the eyes of the reader, whereas from a printed book or the original Kindle, the reader is only exposed to reflected light from the pages of the book."
Surely, to see anything, the light from said object needs to shine directly into your eyes.
I have a Paperwhite, backlight is low, just like a book, and I generally fall asleep while reading it.
Allan

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[StitchesnFluff]

Highly recommend paper white for weight, memory and battery life

 

[Pikeman]

Up-graded to paperwhite - superb!

 

[Judge Mental]

l loved my original kindle...then friends slob fat cat lay on my bag and killed it.
l niw use my phone to read while l choose what kindle to buy.

l looked at paperwhite but they do not have an ability to make collections so not getting one. The thought of paging through 1000 of books with no easy structure to find what l want..no thanks.

Also they seem to lack voice ability not used often but have used it.

Interesting post, the ability to make collections on a kindle would be welcome , as I find it haphazard and frustrating not being able to have things in order. By author would be useful!

After reading your post had a look at new stupidity expensive adventure model. This seems to have the ability to create collections, but using the kindle cloud? I just want to put books in order myself and not worrying about Internet etc...

If anyone has an adventure model could explain I would be grateful....

 

[StitchesnFluff]

Yes you can place books in folders and name the folders as you wish

 

[gibbon]

We bought the old model with the keypad & side buttons for turning pages etc. Came with an extremely durable case attached, all for £45 off ebay.
It's even got internet connectivity , crude but occasionally useful when we have no wifi.
Love it!

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[Bartyfixedit]

It's my birthday next edit month and the Kindle voyage is on my list of one item. I'll report back when I get it.

The article about blue light is a load of codswallop. I get really cross when I see papers trying to sensationalise an article by applying a title that is misleading. The title says e-readers but when you actually read the article the research was done using iPads which are not e-readers they are tablets. If you turn a tablet on in a dark room it's like a torch, a backlit e-reader is much much dimmer which might explain the massive difference in battery life.

 

[Judge Mental]

Will wait for this with interest Barty...

 

[Ockerron]

I disagree with that research. I have a back-lit one and I guarantee that I'm asleep within ten minutes of opening it

I'm with you on that one Jim. I use the Kindle app on my iPhone every night just to get to sleep. If I don't read for a while I simply can't switch off at all and have a terrible night's sleep. And the sleep/alarm app shows that I have a better night's sleep.

 

[robnchris]

Another vote for the paperweight, we both have one, so much easier than carrying a bag of books on holiday and as everyone says reading in bright sunlight isn`t a problem, battery life is excellent.
I used to use my iPad but the screen was useless in sunlight.
Being a couple that love the feel of a reel book we said we would never own a kindle, common sense and convenience made the choice for us.

 

[Hymie]

I was going to upgrade from the original Kindle to a backlit model , got a text from Argos, Nook backlit for 49 quid as opposed to 119 quid for the Kindle.

Bought the Nook, did a batch conversion on my Kindle formatted books, no problem.

The Nook, IMHO, is every bit as good as the kindle and much more reasonably priced.

Hymie.

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[Madwife]

I have a very basic Kindle which I bought from Amazon last April. I bought it because I found hat I couldn't read on the mini IPad in bright sunlight plus the battery on the iPad does not last very long. I used it a bit and although found it easy to use kept trying to 'swipe' the pages rather than using the forward/back button. After buying and downloading lots of books on amazon in preparation for our trip I forgot to pack it :-( and only discovered my error about 200 miles from home!

However a trip to a nearby retail park from the Gourmet meet (thanks Brewery Dave for the loan of your car) and a stop off at a KFC for free wifi saw me back on line with a new kindle paperwhite. I am very impressed with it and like that I can 'swipe' the pages forward and back and thanks to the sinc with Amazon could download all the unread books from my account. The battery life is excellent and although have read 20 books so far this trip have only had to charge it up twice.

Kath

 

[Deleted34567]

I was going to upgrade from the original Kindle to a backlit model , got a text from Argos, Nook backlit for 49 quid as opposed to 119 quid for the Kindle.

Bought the Nook, did a batch conversion on my Kindle formatted books, no problem.

The Nook, IMHO, is every bit as good as the kindle and much more reasonably priced.

Hymie.

Is the nook compatible with the kindle library ?
Have to say I love the paperwhite (only have it a couple days) but my wife now wants to buy one.... was looking at another paperwhite but now you have us wondering about the nook !

 

[Wildman]

try this for an even better bargain
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NOOK-SIMP...=UK_iPad_Tablets_eReaders&hash=item5d542a8cd9

 

[Hymie]

Is the nook compatible with the kindle library ?
Have to say I love the paperwhite (only have it a couple days) but my wife now wants to buy one.... was looking at another paperwhite but now you have us wondering about the nook !

I downloaded a free programme called Calibre, this lets you change the Kindle format to many different file types.

you can also do Batch conversions, I did mine in groups of 100 at a time as I have almost a thousand yet to read.

Wildmans link makes it even more attractive.

Hymie

 

[joncris]

I've got a FREE Kindle app from Amazon on my Tablet so no need for an actual Kindle

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[Gromett]

It's my birthday next edit month and the Kindle voyage is on my list of one item. I'll report back when I get it.

The article about blue light is a load of codswallop. I get really cross when I see papers trying to sensationalise an article by applying a title that is misleading. The title says e-readers but when you actually read the article the research was done using iPads which are not e-readers they are tablets. If you turn a tablet on in a dark room it's like a torch, a backlit e-reader is much much dimmer which might explain the massive difference in battery life.

They are quite clear in the content of the article I read.
"They found it took longer to nod off with a back-lit e-reader, which led to poorer quality sleep and being more tired the next morning.
Original Kindle readers do not emit light so should be fine, say experts"

It is not the brightness of the light it is the wavelength. The kindle e-readers with the light also use the same led's as causes the sleep problems. I suffer from insomnia and can confirm that I have no chance of sleeping until about an hour after I have switched off the computers LCD screen. My sony ebook without a backlight I can read until I nod off.

I posted the original warning mainly to let people who have sleep difficulties know.

If you don't believe me read the original article.
http://hms.harvard.edu/news/e-readers-foil-good-nights-sleep

 

[EzeeRider]

Bought the latest E-Reader for the wife for Christmas and have had a little play with it myself, I'm impressed. It will make a great way to store guide books, so easy to search for information then.
Ezee

 

[JockandRita]

The Nook on Roger's link is "Grade A2 refurbished", with only a 3 x month warranty.

If you don't like the sound of that, or don't do Ebay, a brand new one (same as Hymie's) is still to be had at Argos for only £0.04p more.
Broken Link Removed

I am also one of those who falls asleep as soon as I start to read.

Cheers,

Jock.

 

[Hymie]

I am also one of those who falls asleep as soon as I start to read. ]


Me too Jock, 3 hours is a good nights kip most nights, but I do nod off fairly quickly when reading on the Nook, just doesn't last very long unfortunately.

Hymie.

 

[musson]

Hi wife had the one with buttons and now has a paperwhite she finds it spot on and would not be without one now only thing she says is she would buy the 3 g one for the bit extra because when internet has a problem you cannot down load also when we are away in MH it would be easier than loading all books before we leave.

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[Bartyfixedit]

They are quite clear in the content of the article I read.
"They found it took longer to nod off with a back-lit e-reader, which led to poorer quality sleep and being more tired the next morning.
Original Kindle readers do not emit light so should be fine, say experts"

It is not the brightness of the light it is the wavelength. The kindle e-readers with the light also use the same led's as causes the sleep problems. I suffer from insomnia and can confirm that I have no chance of sleeping until about an hour after I have switched off the computers LCD screen. My sony ebook without a backlight I can read until I nod off.

I posted the original warning mainly to let people who have sleep difficulties know.

If you don't believe me read the original article.
http://hms.harvard.edu/news/e-readers-foil-good-nights-sleep

I stand by what I said even after reading the Harvard article. The research alludes to e-readers i.e. the Kindle but the study was carried out with the subjects reading an e-book on an iPad.

An iPad is a totally different screen to that used on any of the Kindle stand alone readers. Obviously the Kindle fire has the same technology as the iPad but the Kindle paperwhite and voyage do not.

 

[Gromett]

The LED backlight on the iPAD and the Kindle Paper white put out light at the same frequency and it is emitted light not reflected.
I stand by what I said as well . If you have problems sleeping it is not worth the risk in my opinion.

 

[Emmit]

SWMBO has got a Kindle 8 for her Birthday.
We got around to loading it today with a couple of books. So far, so good, even for this pair of Techie hicks. (I apologise to all those on here named Hicks)
Anyway, the screen is not bright at all and despite Amazon's online help pages stating that the device's "Quick Actions" icon should be pressed (we did) in order to get a Brightness slider immediately below the trio of symbols representing 'Aircraft mode', 'Synch my Kindle', and 'All Settings,' we don't get a slider, therefore the screen is a bright as a NAAFI candle.

Has any Bright Spark (sorry!) got any suggestions?

PS Sorry for the Hijack.

 

[Hils and Glenns]

I have the original Kindle keyboard with 3g. The 3g is brilliant. I can download books anywhere without wifi and at no extra charge. You can even access the internet on it if you have lots of patience. The screen is much easier on the eyes than using a tablet or phone. That's the good stuff.
The downside is mine is black and white and I don't see the book cover so I find I forget the title of the book I'm reading. It just isn't memorable without the colourful cover. After years of use my battery doesn't last as long as it did. I feel tied to buying books from Amazon and as discussed in another thread there is a lot of free rubbish on there. I like to download books from the library and I can't do that on the Kindle. I know about Calibre but have never managed to work it. My sister bought a 2nd hand Kobo from ebay and she likes it. The Kobo has a lot more flexibility in where you can get books from. So I'm thinking of looking at different makes of e reader.