Ever since I heard about the Amazon Kindle, I wanted one. More than I want my next five minutes of oxygen. This probably sounds odd coming from me. When it comes to books, I’m a purist. I never want to see comic books go away and get replaced by any sort of digital reader, after all, and the act of physically holding a book gives me a thrill no laptop can match.
But the thing about the Kindle that appeals to me, the thing that makes this different, is the “electronic paper” screen. It’s not back-lit, which is what strains the eyes and makes it difficult for me to read anything long-form on a computer screen. I’ve tried it before. When Stephen King released his first e-Book, Riding the Bullet , several years ago, I got the download and read it. It was a .pdf file, simple enough to flip through, but even reading this relatively short novella got to me after a while. My eyes started to feel burned out. It’s weird, I still spend a ridiculous amount of time looking at a computer screen each day, but I guess I’m not actively reading any one thing for a long stretch of time, so it doesn’t really bother me. Until I do try it. (This, incidentally, is why I chose the layout for Evertime Realms that I did. I find the color scheme easier on the eyes than black-on-white text if I’m looking at it for a long time.)
So if the Kindle can be read easily, without the eyestrain, that’s a big selling point for me. With that hurdle cleared, let’s look at the other one that made me initially hesitant: Blake As Collector. As you have probably noticed if you’ve been reading this site in the… shoot, almost a year since I brought it back, I collect stuff. Comic books, DVDs, toys… I have the collector’s mentality. And with that mentality comes a heck of a lot of books. Including a great many books that I’ve only read once and likely won’t ever read through ever again. But at the same time, I don’t want to get rid of those books either, because the writer in me can genuinely foresee a day where it will come in handy to be able to access Chapter 14 of the novelization of the 1989 Batman movie by Craig Shaw Gardner.
Yes. I own that book.
So as you can imagine, I’ve got a heck of a lot of books.
Storing those books (well, maybe not that one) electronically would resolve future storage issues. Text files are much smaller than music or video, so even the Kindle’s relatively small 2GB of disc space can hold about 1500 books. And since you can sync it to your computer, you can keep a heck of a lot more there as well. This especially comes in handy when I look at the several websites that offer free Kindle-ready editions of classic novels and books that are in the public domain. As an English teacher, this is a feature I find particularly appealing. I can’t imagine ever abandoning the print book entirely, but I could see myself switching to electronic for books that I only have a casual interest in, saving the precious shelf-space for books and authors I have a true love and affinity for.
Then, yesterday, Amazon.com had a press conference about the Kindle. Rumor had it that a larger-screen version of the device was in the works, and sure enough, that’s what was unveiled. The Kindle DX has a 9.7-inch screen as opposed to the 6-inch screen of the regular Kindle, and is supposedly optimized for newspapers (yawn), magazines (unless it has Comics Buyers’ Guide, I’m not interested) and… textbooks. Now this is brilliant. I’m quite close to finishing the classes I need for my alternative teacher certification, so I know exactly how much a college textbook costs these days. Even if the textbook downloads are twice as much as a standard novel download, the device could still pay for itself by the second semester of college. Plus, I wonder what sort of shape my back would be in today if I had this to carry around instead of the texts I lugged in college. And as a teacher? Yeah — that “my textbook is too heavy to bring to class” excuse will no longer be applicable.
Now, while I think this larger-scale Kindle is a great idea, I don’t want one. I still want the smaller-size version, which will be more suitable for my needs. (Such as when, on my recent trip to Nashville, I read all three books I brought with me and had to buy another one to keep myself occupied on the flight home.) But unfortunately, the Kindle DX announcement did not come with a price drop for the previous model, which I had foolishly allowed myself to hope for. As awesome as the device is, it’s still hard to justify $360 for it all at once. So I’m going to keep waiting, keep watching, and casually inform anybody who’s interested that all I want for my next birthday are Amazon.com gift cards.
And keep reading books the old-fashioned way.
Interesting post. I’ve been thinking about the Kindle and don’t want one. Sure, the price is one thing but like you I’m a collector and won’t all my books on display to show off to people.
Though I am curious to see this electronic paper thing… and kudos for the white text on black design. It works well.
Thanks. Can’t take credit for it, though — someone else designed it. I just picked it out.
That’s true but it takes smarts to know the design means you don’t make reader’s eyes bleed.
I talked about it a thread in the blogging forum of AW once.
If it weren’t for the bits about the trip to Nashville and your teacher certification, I could’ve written this myself. I want a Kindle. I love holding a book in my hand rather than reading on my computer, but mostly because it’s much more portable. Even when I turn the screen brightness all the way down, the wifi off and close all of my other programs, I can still only get maybe 70 minutes of battery life out of my laptop. Which means, if I wanna read in bed I gotta climb under the desk and unplug the power supply and lug it all to bed, and then roast my legs and burn my retinas while I try to lose myself in another universe. Only in the realm of ebooks is a laptop considered to be non-portable, but there you go. Easier to store books, but not easier to read them. That’s why I want a Kindle. Also, ebooks are considerably less expensive than a hardcover, and I don’t have to wait for paperbacks just to save a buck. Plus, the Kindle may be the only legitimate way for the newspaper industry to evolve rather than die. And let’s not forget how much less deforestation and paper waste we would have if newspapers went entirely digital in addition to all of the paper books we will no longer be buying.
I too was waiting for a price drop on the Kindle when the new one was released, but keep in mind what you’re actually paying for. The device is relatively inexpensive to design and produce. But with it you’re getting lifetime internet access to Amazon via Verizon’s cellular network, with no monthly fee. Someone’s got to pay for that; Verizon isn’t giving it away for free. So, that’s the reason for the high price. I am, however, shamelessly copying your idea of asking for Amazon gift cards this year for birthday and Christmas.
Yeah, I tend to forget the wireless access is factored into the price. I’m not saying it’s unreasonable, just that it’s a lot to drop all at once.
Plus — and I can’t believe I forgot to put this in the post — the Kindle has free Wikipedia access. You can now be instantly misinformed from anywhere on the planet! The Kindle truly is the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy 1.0.
I totally forgot the free wikipedia access. Can I get one with “Don’t Panic” on it? I’m actually tempted to get the DX. But you’re right, it’s a lot to drop all at once. When I bought my Zune ($299) I had buyer’s remorse for a while. Great device, totally worth the money, would choose one over an iPod any day of the week, but still felt bad because of the amount of money it cost.
The price of the Kindle2 has dropped from $359 to $299.
Woo-hoo! This is me doing the Snoopy Dance!