At first I told my husband that I could never get a Kindle. I wasn't willing to give up my wonderful paperbacks. I loved the feel of them; I loved having one in my purse at all times; I even loved the smell of them. Then I started saying, "well, maybe I'll get one at some point...but not now." Soon, I decided I wanted one for Christmas. When I got it, I figured that I would still carry regular paperbacks around sometime. However, almost a year later, I have become quite addicted to my Kindle. It is probably my favorite electronic device. Why? Well here are some of the top reasons I believe the Kindle to be absolutely amazing:
1. Book Storage
I used to love having a paperback in my purse because I never knew when I would want/need something to read. With the Kindle, I have the ability to carry literally thousands of books with me. And I get to choose which one I want to read while I am out and about. The Kindle has the ability to store thousands of books. No matter what mood I am in, there is something in my Kindle that will suit me. It also allows for me to read some books that I would otherwise put off reading simply because I did not want to carry them around. I do not mind reading extremely long books, but it is not always convenient to carry huge books around with me when I am traveling. For example, I always wanted to read Jane Austen's Emma, but the copy I have was huge. When I got the Kindle, I read Emma and absolutely loved it.
2. Battery Life
I have the Kindle cover that has a built-in LED book light. And I have a tendency to read a lot at night before I go to bed. Even using the Kindle to power the book light, the battery still lasts for a few weeks before I need to charge it. Also, since the Kindle uses micro USB to charge, I don't always need to have the specific Kindle charger with me. I can use the charger for my phone or my husband's phone, since all use micro USB. It is extremely convenient.
3. Sample Chapters
I love the fact that Amazon lets you download sample chapters to the Kindle. As is often the case, I tend to read a lot of books from the same authors. So if I see a book that I have never read, then I can download the sample and get a taste before I decide to buy it. Also, Amazon suggests books I might like based on what I have already downloaded. So I can download the sample chapter of those books before spending money on something I may not like in the end.
4. Ability to Search in the Book
It is great to be able to take a book, perhaps for a class, and search for a specific passage. Sometimes, if you have to write an essay, there is a certain part of the book that you know would be perfect for a quote. But if you are not sure exactly where the passage is, it can be quite difficult to find. But with the Kindle's search feature, it is nice and easy. All you have to do is remember some kind of key word in the passage and you're all set.
5. Free 3G
I bought the Kindle that was a little more expensive, but included 3G. And you do not need to pay for it each month, like you do with the iPad. Granted, using the Internet on the Kindle is not exactly easy or fun most of the time. However, the most important use of Internet on the Kindle, in my opinion, is the ability to buy more books from the Kindle store. Obviously that was Amazon's thought as well, considering this is where most of their money is made with the Kindle. Although the 3G is not amazing for surfing the web, it works extremely well when it comes to launching and browsing the Amazon Kindle Store. No matter where I am, I can get onto the Kindle Store and find new books to download. For me, that is worth spending the extra money to have 3G capability.
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