Should I ditch the books and get a kindle?

[Sciencebod]

Sorry if this thread is in the wrong place, but I thought book lovers would be the best to advise!
I have run out of space for books and have not got a kindle. Do you recommend, and can a dinosaur like me who likes real books ever be converted?! Please advise how you got on if you are a convert, and which kindle is best (I don’t like glaring screens) Thank you.

I am someone who loves books, love everything about actual physical books, but I got a kindle a year ago for the same reason as your thinking of it, no space, and I can honestly say I prefer the Kindle, I hate to admit it but I do, if I have a choice I always pick a Kindle book over a physical one now unless it's one of my favourite authors then I'll buy the actual book to add it to my bookshelf. Also books can be cheaper to buy as an ebook, can't help with recommending which one to get as I just got the basic one as I wasn't completely sure I'd use it.

I love my kindle, I have a paperwhite (although I believe the cheaper basic one has the same back lighting now). It's brilliant for travelling and reading at night. I still like books too, but I'm happy to have both options in my life!
Reading on a proper kindle is very different to reading on a phone or tablet - I couldn't get on with the kindle app on my phone at all.

I absolutely love my kindle paperwhite. It can hold hundreds of books at once and it's great for reading at night (there is a built-in back-light, and a dark mode that uses black background with off-white font). The only thing I miss is colourful covers, but I have kept all of my favourite paper books for sentimental reasons anyway.

Thanks for your swift responses and recommendations! I’ll take a look and investigate. It’s good news some of you felt the same and have got on well with kindles! I too will have to keep my favourite books but for new ones this seems a good option. It may also prevent me from reading the last page sneakily!!

One note about the new paperwhite - they have the audible option, but it doesn't work how I initially expected. It has to be on wireless headphones, and it doesn't show the book text while you're listening, even if you have both the kindle and audible versions. I was hoping there would be a 'readalong' option but the audible books just show with a normal 'player' screen of play, pause buttons etc. I also find adding too many audible files slows down the overall kindle.

It's still great, but just in case anyone is a bit misled by the marketing like I was

Thanks for that tip. Just looking at them now and the options seem to be 8gb or 32gb - finding it difficult to estimate the number of books!

I have the 8gb one, it's very easy to move things on and off the device, between cloud and downloaded.

I was adamant that I would never get a kindly because I preferred books.

Then my XH got me one for Christmas and I really haven't looked back. The only thing I would say is, that it's very easy to buy 'just this one' and for it to turn into 'oh but look there's a series of them, might as well get all of them'

I do still have a number of my old books though, for sentimental reasons mostly but also because some aren't available on kindle.

I was in the ‘real books are better’ club but honestly my kindle is one thing I’d replace instantly if it lost broke.
It’s light, carries 100s of books (8gb should be fine), can be read one handed, slips in a dressing gown pocket. The backlit paper white saved me during night feeds - light can be dimmed right down and again can read one handed. I don’t think I’d have read anything much those years without it.

Don’t be tempted to get a kindle fire, which is a tablet and shiny and glarey. The paper whites are matt don’t reflect eg sun/ lamp glare and the backlight is gentle.
Enjoy!

Just to give a different (but no more nor less valid) perspective from MomofCritters: I got a Kindle about a decade ago and did manage to read quite a few books on it, but I got it out recently for the first time in a year and it doesn't seem to be working any more. I don't think I'll be replacing it.
Sure it's really handy on holiday when you can load it with a selection of reading but have very little weight to lug around. And it's also nice being able to decide to buy a book and have it on the Kindle just a few minutes later. But ultimately in our house we like the feeling of books too much as physical objects that have a history and can be passed from one reader to another. I also used to find it annoying that sometimes the Kindle book cost would be the same as a paperback, but you don't have the same option of being able to pass it on or sell it later.
And don't get me started on the insanity of trying to navigate guidebooks on a Kindle... admittedly I just had a basic model with no touchscreen though.

I was also thinking of starting a similar thread OP. I love books but could do with something for holidays and commutes rather than drag books about.

It looks like the 8gb paper white might be the best bet, although I don't think I've fully worked out why it's better than a normal kindle. Can anyone advise? Sorry to hijack OP

I honestly never thought I’d have a kindle but I got one for my birthday a couple of years ago and I love it. I have the paper white. It’s even waterproof so I can read in the bath.

I only have the 8gb and it’s plenty big enough. I could off load to the cloud if I needed to but I honestly have tons of space on it

I use an Amazon fire tablet, much cheaper and do exactly the same thing as a Kindle. Hand on heart though, I still prefer books, but it's great if you're going away and sharing a room, you can read in the dark and not disturb anyone

I was so anti kindle.
Now I love it and will replace many of my books with the kindle version over time.

I was a devoted real book person until DP bought me a Kindle 5 or 6 years ago. Now it is one of my most treasured possessions and I would replace it instantly if it stopped working.

I have a Voyage, although I'm not sure if you can get that model any more. It is backlit so fabulous for reading in bed, particularly if DP is asleep and the light is off as it doesn't disturb him.

It fits in my handbag so is great for travelling, doctors waiting room, hairdressers etc... It really comes into it's own on holiday though as I historically would have had 7 or 8 paperbacks in my case for 10 days away and now I can have literally a hundred books to choose from on my Kindle. You can read it in full sun as there's no glare on the screen (unlike tablets etc...)

The only slight downside is that I do miss seeing the full colour book covers but you can now see the cover of the book you're reading in black and white as you open it each time which is an improvement.

Overall I would thoroughly recommend a Kindle.

I just downloaded the kindle app on my iPad and use that.

I like both, but definitely enjoy the kindle more than I thought I would. I buy books int he kindle daily and monthly deals, so rarely pay more than 99p for one.

I'm a big fan of the kindle after having too many occasions trying to decide between shoes and books when packing for holidays.

I'd recommend an actual e-reader such as a kindle over a tablet as I can't get on with the screen glare from tablets or reading on my phone for too long. Personally I think 8gb is plenty unless you're never going to connect to WiFi for unloading.

Also, for those missing covers, you can now "upgrade" to ad free for £10 on your kindle account and choose to have your book cover as your lock screen.

I love my kindle I like it because it has no glare and no distractions but I also like that I can read on my phone or iPad if I forget my kindle, I had an old one years ago which was okay but this one is much better! The back light is good I got a paper white because I wanted the back light but dd now has a cheaper one with a light, £50 on eBay “refurbished”.

But also: don’t forget your local library!

I’m a book fiend with a houseful of books, but I was given a kindle a year ago by my husband, who despaired of getting me to leave the house on time for holidays without being paralysed by indecision about which and how many books to bring. I do really only use it when I’m out of the house, though, because it’s so wonderful to be able to have hundreds of books weightlessly with me when travelling or in hospital. It’s no replacement ime for paper books, though, especially if you, like me, are a very fast reader — you need to turn the pages too often because the Kindle is small. The other time I use it is reading in bed, after I’ve turned the light out.

Oh my life. I'm literally trying out my new kindle now that arrived today.
Is the set up really slow? As in screens take 30s plus to load?
I have the signature paper white one - it feels very small. Am I going to get use to it?? I do love reading.

I have an old kindle, whatever the basic model was 10 years ago. I use it a lot, but I still read 'proper' books too. Anything illustrated or where the fomatting matters (like poetry) is better printed, but novels are fine on the kindle.

The best things about it are: saving shelf space; light and small to carry; can take lots of books on holiday; there are often books I want on 99p deals; it stays charged for ages.

The worst thing is you're tied to using Amazon.

You can get secondhand kindles on ebay for under £10 if you want to give it a try without too much outlay.