Six months on, my Kindle thoughts
It’s been around six months since I stopped reading paperback books and moved to the Kindle. My reasoning for doing so was not so much environmental concerns (I’m sure an electronic reading device isn’t exactly green to produce and keep charged) but convenience and, hopefully, a better reading experience. It means having all your books with you, being able to synchronise your place with other devices (phone, tablet) for those occasions when you forget your Kindle but want to continue your book, and being able to adjust the text size.
Wi-Fi-only would have been enough
I opted for the more expensive 3G option, thinking I might take advantage of the free 3G to browse the web or buy books when I was out and about. I have rarely needed or wanted to do this. When I’m at home I can use the Wi-Fi; the same goes at work. When I’m on holiday, there’s usually no shortage of Wi-Fi available (in Lisbon even the tour bus had free Wi-Fi!). In those situations where there is no Wi-Fi, frankly I can wait a few hours before purchasing the next book. Oh, and the web browser isn’t particularly useful—not when you have a smartphone in your pocket, at least.
A better reading experience
In all honesty, I can say that the Kindle is a more enjoyable reading experience than a normal book. Yes, it lacks that woody aroma, and you never get to see the cover artwork in its full-colour glory, but as someone once said, you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover anyway. Being able to make the text bigger and control the line spacing really helps. Some books that were 900 pages long with an 8 pt text size would have put me off in the past, but with a Kindle you don’t really notice how “fat” a book is; all you see is that percentage indicator gradually creeping up. The built-in dictionary makes it so easy to look up words that I actually learn a lot by looking up words I didn’t know instead of simply inferring what the meaning might be.
It’s still a gadget
Of course, there’s no getting away from the fact that these things cost a lot of money, and the books themselves aren’t really that much cheaper than their paper counterparts (thanks somewhat to UK VAT laws, which mean digital books are subject to VAT, but traditional paper books are not). Taking an expensive gadget everywhere isn’t always an option, and you’ll probably want to buy a case for it. Oh, and please don’t do what I did and put the Kindle in the same bag as a bottle of sunscreen (yes, the case was a good investment!). That said, I think the benefits outweigh the negatives, and my Kindle has survived trips to the beach. I’d definitely recommend a Kindle.