For kindle readers - do you prefer it to physical books?

[Bennifer]

I bought a kindle recently. I had a stack of physical books to read, so it took me a while to get round to reading a book on my kindle. I've just finished Never Let Me Go, and I was surprised at how much I enjoyed reading it on a kindle. This might sound daft but the act of not turning pages (among other things I think) I really liked the reading experience.

I see Kindles as complementary to physical books and I'll be still going to libraries and book shops.

How have you found the act of reading on a kindle compared to a book?

yes, I like the forward button too
I also have a gorgeous cover for it (Econique Hemp) - really enjoying my Kindle

I like the physical act of browsing bookshops with physical books, picking them up, looking at their covers, but for reading, I'll have to see. Interesting to see what others have found

I find the act of reading very pleasurable - especially now I can't turn pages or hold a book with my left hand.

Theres just not enough text at a time for me, but thats my high reading speed

I like reading all the free books, and I love the way I can sample a book for free, but it is complementary to physical books, as I will also buy books, I guess I feel that if I break my kindle, then I've got to get another one before I can read my books again.

Its great for reading whilst commuting as it is smaller and lighter than most books - and it doesn't wreck your bag! And, if you don't feel like reading one book, there should be something else you can read.
I like fiction on Kindle, but for biographies or anything containing pictures/diagrams, a book is much better.

hmm, I do love my kindle

but I don't like it when it loses power half-way through a book

trying to find a previous passage is cumbersome

wish it was in colour for covers and pictures

but I do like being able to change text size and love reading on it, so light

I do like it, especially when I went away for a few days, and being able to read larger text but miss the smell of paper and the act of flicking through ( I've book club reputation for reading the end to decide if it's worth it! )

I've also developed a bit of a habit of downloading more than I can possibly read, especially as downloads feel cheaper than parting with pound notes iykwim

I love my Kindle. Ds2 has a habit of running off with my bookmarks (don't have to worry about that!!). I have loads of books on there - most of which are free. I have discovered new authors that I wouldn't have been able to read otherwise (a lot are self-published on Amazon), and I never have to run out of books when I'm on holiday!!

I still go to the library - I can't resist the draw of free books you see, and I still look round book shops - except now, if I like a book from the cover, I'll write down the name, go home and find it on amazon!

For me, it was the best Valentine's present EVER!! Far better than a bunch of flowers.

I love my kindle, and tbh, much prefer it to books. Which is sad, because I have hundreds of books! Have read so many new books since getting it for Christmas, it's cost me a fortune! But I love that I can take hundreds of books wherever I go, and read anything I want, anytime.

I love my Kindle. I think I still prefer 'real' books though, for the variety of font and page size and so on - the way a book looks is important to me, for some reason. When they are all there on the Kindle looking completely the same, I find it hard to be tempted to read them if I'm not already, iyswim. It's also easier to skim through the pages of a real book if you're looking for something specific.

The Kindle has a search function, though, which is lovely if you know what to search for. And I've used the dictionary so much that I'm vaguely annoyed when reading paper books because I can't just look up a word there and then. And it's really, really great that you can underline things without 'destroying' an actual book, and if you're unhappy with your marks, you can just delete them again. I suspect DH also may be sighing with relief that at least some of the books I buy don't take up any physical space in our one-bed flat

I don't know if it's a good thing or not, but it's incredibly easy to buy books on this thing It's bad for my wallet, that's for sure

and you cant log onto MN from a book. am typing this from my Kindle . grin.

oh yes, the dictionary is handy

I love mine more than I expected. I like the lightness and feel of it and the ability to change print size.
I agree with a couple of criticisms. I never realised how much I speed read until I found myself changing pages on the kindle. I also like to re - read the blurb on the bookcover, especially in the first chapter or two.

I love my Kindle far more than I ever expected to. It's just so comfortable to hold and I can make the print larger when my eyes are tired, which is a godsend.

I was also given an insane amount of pirated free books by a friend and have now read 75 books on it since I got it in March. :)

I love my kindle... But have found I keep licking my fingers to turn the non-existent page.

I love mine. I especially love how light it is compared to a paperback. Much better for the handbag. You can also download large books like Vanity Fair and The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes for free which would take a strong shoulder if you had to carry the paper versions!

I'm very happy with mine although I never thought I'd see the good side as I adore books - the feel and smell of them and I love seeing bookshelves full of 'em. But ... I've had to downsize twice and ended up having to give away a lot of books. So, the Kindle enables me to keep books which I'll re-read for pleasure and to save my limited bookshelf space for especially beautiful books with illustrations.

The convenience for travel and fitting in the handbag is a major plus too. Also lots of free books available and many kindle versions are cheaper even than paperback on amazon.

Drawback ... not all books available for Kindle yet.