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 absolutely love my kindle, reading “real” books and going to the library in equal measures. The kindle is wonderful for holidays, popping in your bag for reading on a journey, instantly getting the next one in a series to read. I like the fact that you get recommendations based on your reading history.
One important point. If you are left handed the older ones including my 8 year old paper white are right hand biased. I’ve got used to it now though. Apparently the new oasis models are able to be used left or right handed.

Agree with a pp about the word wise function, I get so much more from classic fiction now I can just click on an unfamiliar word to learn the definition.

If anyone is missing flicking to the end, use the 'go to' option on the top toolbar. It lets you click on the part of the book you want eg contents, last chapter etc - it's brilliant for recipe books when you need a particular section, like the index (and indexes are all hyperlinked so no page counting!)

When we last moved house over half our removal boxes were books, so now we only buy physical books if the author signs them or if they aren't available on kindle. Last year I sold over 200 of our books to make a bit more space! I prefer kindle reading now because of the lighter weight of the device and the adjustable font size.

As you get older and long sightedness creeps in, it is so lovely just to make the font size bigger.

@FindingMeno

As you get older and long sightedness creeps in, it is so lovely just to make the font size bigger.

But then you only get a few sentences to a screen, because the Kindle screen is so small.

It doesn’t have to be either or! I have a kindle but I also have hundreds of books. I will never get rid of real books, but the kindle is great for travelling and also reading at night when DH wants the light out. Some books can also be much cheaper on the kindle.

The physical books I buy now are those I know I will want to reread, plus things like cookery books or books with lots of photos as these don’t show up well on the kindle (although what I do here is read the book on my kindle then go to the kindle app on my tablet to look at the photos). I don’t like reading on the kindle app on my tablet because of the backlit screen but it’s fine for just looking at a few photos!

I love my kindle. I'll totally admit I was a right ridiculous snob about e-readers until DH bought me one after DC2 was born . I find it great. What I love is that depending on my current humour I can read something totally frothy and silly or find something more serious to read without having to physically look through books and plus the space saving situation is a major plus. After DC3 bizarrely I got a weird hankering to read Jilly Cooper. I hadn't touched any of her books since my teens. I was able to download them and since they are not actually on a bookshelf in my house no one needs to know I read them all 😀😀.

The physical books I buy now are those I know I will want to reread, plus things like cookery books or books with lots of photos as these don’t show up well on the kindle (although what I do here is read the book on my kindle then go to the kindle app on my tablet to look at the photos)

Thank you for this suggestion @ChessieFL. I've had a kindle for 10+ years and it has never occurred to me that I could look at illustrations on the app on a larger screen!

I forgot another benefit of a kindle. If you read on public transport it's nice that nobody can see the book cover, so you don't need to feel embarrassed about your low brow guilty pleasures, or reading something political that might attract disapproval.

@savethecactus I love that no one can see what you’re reading! What a bonus!

I love my paperwhite. I tend to buy books that are 99p, and I also read books from the library (print books, I don't like the library app as I can't get it to work on my kindle). Often, new books are more expensive than 99p, so I order them in from the library for free.

Kindle convert here. I resisted for years as I love my book shelf but after buying one, I have to say I tend to read a lot more books because of it.

Also love the fact that if I wake up at 3am and cant sleep, I dont wake my partner up if I want to read for an hour.

My kindle gathers dust, I'd rather read the kindle app on my phone as I can lie on my side in bed and the phone is smaller to hold and so easier to 'turn' the pages.

@Kgutdfn

My kindle gathers dust, I'd rather read the kindle app on my phone as I can lie on my side in bed and the phone is smaller to hold and so easier to 'turn' the pages.

I lie on my side in bed and read my Kindle. Hands free as it has a case that means I can just stand it up on the mattress. I often turn the pages with my elbow 😂😂

After breast-feeding dc1 whilst trying to balance large books nearby and manage to turn the pages without disturbing them, I got a kindle. Bf'ing dc2 was much easier as I could hold the kindle in one hand and easily turn the page (plus, I didn't lose my place as there was no tempting bookmark to remove and play with). I love knowing that I'll always have something to read - I used to read on the train, and if I was getting towards the end of a book, would always want to pack another one, which took up lots of space, but saved that antsy feeling about having time to read but no book.
Kindles are great, but they are not perfect. I hadn't realised how much I use the cues of covers and titles to remember a book by. If I want to re-read something, I can usually picture the cover colour in my head, which makes it easier to find when searching the bookshelves, or you can easily read the blurb on the back yo check if it's the right book. Every time you pick the book up, you're reinforcing that association. With kindle, you can't do that. Half the time, I've finished reading something and can't even recall the title. Plus, they don't last forever. I'm on my second kindle, and organise my kindle books into folders. When my old one died and I got the new one, I had to go back into my amazon account and select each book to download to the new device. You couldn't copy across entire folders in one go. It is hugely time-consuming and annoying.
I have a paperwhite now - the back-lit screen is really good, but find when I'm tired or in low-levels of light, it's quite a faff to get the levels right.

@Chrestomanci3 I always had the same issue with forgetting kindle books because I didn’t see the titles and covers, but I’ve just discovered you can set it so that the cover of whatever book you’re currently reading shows as your screensaver so you see it every time you open the kindle up.

I was anti and resisted for a long time, but have now had one for years. Well... actually I don't have an actual Kindle any more, since my very old one died. I just use the Kindle app on my phone. I thought I might find the phone screen too small to read on, but it doesn't bother me at all.

I have a couple of kindles but for me the joy of books is the physical form, I’ll read digitally if there’s no alternative but my presence is paper.

Another bonus about the kindle... only need to charge it once a month or so. it's e ink so battery usage is per page not the time you are on it.
Whispersync is great as you can send your book to the kindle wirelessly. There are a lot of free books available.
Top tip... don't bother buying brand new. I got my paperwhite off ebay for £20 with a cover. Factory reset and it was like new :)

[quote ChessieFL]@Chrestomanci3 I always had the same issue with forgetting kindle books because I didn’t see the titles and covers, but I’ve just discovered you can set it so that the cover of whatever book you’re currently reading shows as your screensaver so you see it every time you open the kindle up.[/quote]
I think that must be only on newer ones. I tried looking for it on mine when this came up on a previous Kindle thread and the option isn't there unfortunately.

It is really personal, but I personally hate Kindles. I bought a paperwhite last year and really didn't enjoy it. Books didn't feel real enough to me. I ended up buying buying and forgetting I had them, and then not fancying them and buying more. I have enough screen time with work, TV and my smart phone. I know it isn't the same, but my kids would see me with another device in my hand and it would be all the same to them and psychologically similar to a screen to me too.

I tried to sell it back to amazon through their buy back scheme but they wouldn't take mine as it was too new! Can't figure that one out except maybe they want you to buy more kindle books before you get rid of it. I sold it elsewhere and either use our library or buy secondhand books and donate or sell when finished. I'm quite minimalist with what I keep in the house, so I don't collect books. Have a very small number of keepers.

All that said, others love it. I don't care if people can see what I'm reading. It's interesting to see what other people read on the train etc too sometimes.

#teampaperbackforever

I have a kindle but I only reach for it if the book I want is too expensive in real form. Although they’re convenient I find them soulless. I love the tactile feeling of a real book. I love being able to pass books on to friends and to borrow from friends. I love book marks and book plates and little notes in the margins. I love perusing book shops and libraries. I’ve just been in a second hand book shop with some great 1960’s cult fiction. You’re never going to get those stories with those amazing covers on an E-reader. I don’t want efficiency really. It’s like vinyl and downloads…everyone predicted the death of vinyl when CDs came on the scene but there are still plenty of people around who would chose vinyl and keep that scene alive.

I was anti kindle to we moved abroad and didn't have quick access to English language books (and only had 13m³ of shipping for a family of 4 for clothes, toys, bedding, towels, crockery etc so couldn't take them all with me).

Both have their advantages.
Kindle is lighter, quicker and can be used in the dark.
Books... easier to swap with friends, second hand and can't crash.

But the words are the same.

A mix of both. It doesn't have to be either / or.

I prefer paper, but ebooks are great for when you're in a queue or reading at 3am.

I have a kindle that sits in a basket in the bedroom. And it's my second kindle! The old one, hardly used except for long haul holidays, broke and I had so many books on it I thought I'd replace it wth a paperwhite which I might be more likely to use. Nope.

I'm not a very gadgety person however I find my iPhone very intuitive to operate so I think I just haven't devoted enough time to getting really familiar with the kindle; how to store and organise books etc. The dictionary function would be very useful when I'm reading in French I know.

I do prefer a real book and I suspect I always will.

Kindles are great!

I used to think I would always only like physical books, but I use my kindle all the time now. I still do read paper books, but I have a combination, if I don't think it's worth buying the physical copy or don't want it to take up space on the shelf, I get the e-book.

If you get one, just go for the cheapest. It's honestly just as good and the pricier ones are gimmicky unless you want to read in the bath/ drop it in water.