It takes me a really long time to buy a gadget. Over the course of months I deliberate whether I really need the device and, if I do, what options I should get. The current object of my rumination is the Amazon Kindle 2
and, right now, the pendulum is on the “not buy” side of the swing. Here are the arguments that are keeping it there.
- I like to share books with my friends and family. The exchange of books can be a nice social experience. You loan or borrow a book and you have at least one person you can discuss it with.
- I buy used books. Used books can be a great deal. I like to browse used book stores and tags sales to find interesting books at a reasonable prices.
- The paper book just may be the culmination of reading technology. More durable than a papyrus scroll, cheaper than liquid crystal, what could be better than paper?
- My personal library is a carbon sink. You see an overloaded book case, I see hundreds of pounds of carbon not released into the atmosphere. A Kindle would be powered by a coal plant on the other side of town.
- I would rather read than talk about my reading device. I have hardly ever seen anyone actually reading a Kindle. Most Kindle owners that I see are too busy getting interrupted by strangers who have an opinion about the future of eBooks. A shy person like myself appreciates the camouflaging qualities of a nice boring looking paper book.
There you have it; those are my reasons. They are working for me right now but, in case you are not convinced, you can click through this Amazon Associates link
and put a little money in my Kindle fund (because that I know that I will eventually cave).
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As I’ve been fence-sitting about getting a Kindle, this post is quite timely. I’ve been a couple of people (airplane, bank line-up) reading a Kindle, and obviously they love it. The biggest draw seems to be the ability to carry around multiple books without adding the space and weight to one’s daily load. For a reader like me, who travels a lot and has a fiction, biography, and a couple of non-fiction texts on the go at any given time, this could be a boon. OTOH, I like my paper texts because I want to be able to keep on my shelves, covered with highlights, bookmarks, and covered with Post-Its. My visual memory cues me to look “about half-way through the book, RH page, top paragraph” for a particular reference.
There is also the consideration that the brain processes reflected light differently than absorbed light – even in a different area of the brain. I wonder how that helps or deters my comprehension by reading on a screen. I haven’t seen any discussion of this, and wonder if it’s a generational phenomenon (as youth reads more on screen, that comprehension mode becomes the norm).
Seth,
My biggest line item in the “Not” column is that you can’t read during take-off and landing on the plane, which is one of my key reading times while traveling.
The other thing I’d suggest is doing a search to see how many of the books you’ve read recently were actually available on Kindle, although I assume that will get better over time.
Jeff
[...] How I Talked Myself Out of a Kindle « Content Here [...]
This site:
http://www.shouldyoubuyabookreader.com/
Accepts a public Amazon WishList link, and will report to you your savings should you switch your print editions to Kindle ones. Soon, it will provide for notifications should you want to know when books become available in Kindle editions.
Let me know what you think.
Most of your arguments make sense to me, but not “My personal library is a carbon sink.”
Or rather, it’s not clear to me that it makes environmental sense. I’d like to see a clear comparison between the environmental costs of printing, warehousing, and shipping books, vs. distributing books wirelessly on-demand and reading them on an efficient battery-powered device. (One would also need to look at the environmental impact of a producing a reader device.)
Something to look into…
Good point Anirvan, I am not aware of any research as to the total carbon emissions that goes into getting a book on a library shelf. A suppose a lot would depend on the type of book and how it got there. When I walk over to my neighborhood used book shop, the carbon footprint is going to be really small. But I definitely agree that manufacturing and distributing new books has a real environmental impact.
OK. I am down to 4 reasons.
I am curious about the brain differently processing reflected light vs absorbed light. Rahel, can you give a source for that information? I’d like to look into it. Your comment talked us out of a Kindle: we both love to read books and don’t care to read on the computer. Aha! Different brain stimulation! Thanks a million. Or more accurately, thanks 359 plus tax.
I absolutely loved my Kindle 1 but I decided to go ahead and get the Kindle 2 due to all of its improvements and because I’m a total gadget geek sometimes! (And yes, I will be selling my Kindle 1) Anyway, I was prepared that when I received my new Kindle 2 to have to skip through the “pages” of the books that I had been reading on my Kindle 1 in order to get back to where I had left off. Well, whoever came up with the online service for Kindle needs to get a bonus from the government for doing their job and going beyond – I take the Kindle 2 out of the box, I turn it on, my name and everything is of course already there and all of my books that I had previously bought are archived, AND it actually saved the last place that I left off in each of my books from my Kindle 1! How geeky is that! If you’re a Kindle 1 owner and you’re like me trying to “justify” buying the new upgraded version I say do it! Consider it as a “bonus” for the sake of rewarding yourself simply because you enjoy reading. You already know from using the Kindle 1 that it’s a great device and the only difference with the Kindle 2 is – it’s improved and you’ll enjoy it even more!
Oh, and I just wanted to add that if you’re looking for a great case/cover for your new Kindle that costs less than $30 and will do the job of securing and protecting your Kindle, try the CaseCrown Double Memory Foam Pouch Case With A Front Pocket For Kindle2 – News Style.
Happy Kindling everyone!
Hmm….Perhaps, if I had read your post a little earlier.