As you know, I’m a ‘late adopter’ when it comes to new technology. I hear about things late; I wait around cautiously to see where something is going; I tell myself how happy I have been for so many years of adult life without this dazzling piece of equipment; I hang on until the price drops a bit further; then – sometimes – I take the plunge. So it was with the Kindle, which I bought about six months ago.
What’s remarkable is how quickly it has become a normal, boring and almost indispensable part of daily life. In many ways it’s incredibly retro, even more so after the Google Nexus 7 comes out – dropping the price and raising the stakes for a decent 7 inch tablet. And I betray my own retro-ness in remembering the tipping point that got me pressing the BUY button: it was when I became convinced that the electronic ink pages really were as easy to read as a paper book.
Why do I like it? More to the point, why is it so normal that I have already forgotten it was ever a buying issue? Three main reasons.
(1) Legibility: I was worried it would strain the eyes, and it doesn’t. I can sit in bed and read the Kindle for 2 hours not noticing that I am reading an electronic screen rather than a book (not that I read in bed that long very often…). In fact it is even easier because you can change the font size.
(2) Portability: It goes in the inside pocket of a light jacket, so instead of taking a shoulder bag or a man bag out with me for the sake of carrying a book, I just take the Kindle. So it’s easier than carrying just one book, let alone a whole library of books and journals.
(3) Versatility: I mean the range of stuff that I am reading, and that slips into my pocket so easily. I knew I would use the Divine Office (from Universalis), and the ubiquitous e-Books – a mixture of freebies and paid for. But I’m also downloading journals and websites. And one of the most helpful features is the way you can email documents to your Kindle that then appear as short texts. There are documents, talks, websites, sermons, etc, that I keep thinking I’ll read one day, but never want to read on the computer screen. So I email them to the Kindle, and read them on the bus or tube. I’m actually catching up on piles of interesting reading without having to make an effort.
I’m sorry this sounds like an advert. I’m just delighted when something does what it says, and does what you want it to do, and also does much more.
My fear now is that my present version of the Kindle will be replaced by a higher spec, and the very reason I like it – it’s simplicity – will disappear. I know they have the touch screen versions, which I dislike, because I’d rather a simple click to turn the page than having to tap the screen; that’s why I bought the Kindle rather than the Kobo [correction: apparently there are clickable Kobos as well!]. My fear is that the ‘Retro’ Kindle (my version), like the magnificent, groundbreaking and never bettered Palm, will be overtaken by smart technology. Strange how technology can regress as well as go forward, or at least lose the simplicity and sophistication of its primary purpose in the search for secondary thrills. I said the Kindle was dazzling, but it’s actually the dullness that I like…
Bridges and Tangents 
mmmmn I have yet to be aroused by it. You cant pick a kindle up and smell the pages!
In fact you probably can . . . . but I don’t suspect they evoke quite the same atmosphere.
I’m with Mags, but somehow it’s not the smell that I like, but the papercuts and the weight of something daunting in my hands. Plus, paper is easier to pass on.
and makes good fire if its not worth the paper it was written on!
Like Mags I too have yet to be tempted by the Kindle. I dare say I will eventually buy one sooner or later. My main concern has been the screen resolution causing eye strain and headaches but you’ve reassured me of my first worry Fr Stephen, so my acquisition of one may be sooner than later!
You nailed it. Exactly why the kindle rocks and my fears for the future.
My husband bought me a Kindle Fire from the U.S for Christmas (he’s an ‘early adopter’). It’s the new tablet version. I use it a lot but to be honest I’d have preferred the original style. The screen is difficult to read in the sun, it doesn’t give page numbers from the book (so it’s difficult to reference quotes) and it doesn’t have text to speech (which my teenage nieces tell me is very good).
I love being able to buy a book and get it immediately. Books are expensive in Australia so it’s cheaper to buy them online from the UK but then you have to wait a week or two for them to arrive.
As a student I often remember reading something but can’t remember where, so being able to search a book on the Kindle is great. I also like the highlighting facility. I don’t like to use a highlighter on a real book.
I like the fact that my Kindle books don’t take up any shelf space at home or luggage space when I travel. Not to mention saving paper and ink printing magazine articles.
If I don’t have my Kindle with me, I can still access my books from the Kindle App on my iPhone and all my bookmarks and highlighting are there.
The things that put me off are: the single page instead of the left and right; the smell and feel of paper; the awareness of the thickness of what’s in the right hand; and the inability to start turning the page three or four lines before the end of the page.
In other words, it’s me: I want to read from books, not computers. Some things, like the Office, work fine on a smartphone (I use Divinum Officium), but the primary focus for the things that work isn’t “reading a book”.
I think it’s an age thing: I’m happy to compartment books, computers and TV.
My kids find this odd.
You hit the nail right on the head. I’m also a priest and have found it wonderful to only have to carry one thing around instead of a huge library of books. I’ve only had my kindle a month but can’t think how I managed before…!
My husband gave me a Kindle the Christmas before last, and I love it. I have always been a reader, and more importantly to me, a “re-reader”. Having all of my books at hand is just wonderful, and if it is possible, I have been reading more! As happens with electronics, the screen started to partially freeze up and white out a few months ago. So with the Kindle App to share all of my books, I started reading on my iPad, so have a good comparison. Comparing apples to oranges now, since the iPad is so much “more” than the Kindle. But for reading, I agree with you Fr. Stephen. The basic Kindle with the click to turn pages is small, portable, easy on the eyes, easy to hold, and you can hold it in any position with no change to the page! I am ready for another Kindle (the basic one) just for reading!
I have been using it for over a year, Great when travelling, especially as the Divine Office for whole year, according to chosen Ordo, can be available via Universalis. Now they have added the Proper of the Mass with readings of the day/feast, plus a good commentary on the saint of the day.
This was very timely, Fr Stephen, as I’d been dithering about buying a Kindle to take on holiday to the US and save on luggage. I’ve now taken the plunge and ordered one – the basic, as you recommend.
My WHSmith weekend-working daughter asks me to point out that there are “click” versions of the Kobo as well, and that these are the cheapest. She asks me to suggest that Kindle readers risk being caught up on a bandwaggon. (She doesn’t like me saying that this is a mixed metaphor.) She suggests that readers of this blog should investigate all options before commiting.
Her father wonders why he ever pointed this post out, but, having promised to put her answer in the combox, he has done so.
Thanks for the correction and warning about being bandwaggoned! I’ve corrected the post too…