Has anyone been using one for a while? Like to hear the good, bad, indifferent. TIA!

Only been using the original Kindle, so I'm not sure whether my comments will be useful. The main advantages of the Kindle for me are you can travel with essentially a library of books, and also can adjust the size of the print thereby dispensing with any need for reading glasses (at least in my case).

For my money, a major disadvantage is it is sold by Amazon, a company I have come to despise owing to poor customer service. However, I'm sure different people have had different experiences with them.

Barnes and Noble just released (or is in the process) of releasing a competing e-reader. Which brings up another potential problem: books purchased from Amazon for the Kindle only work on the Kindle thereby locking you into that machine, at least until you have read all the books you purchased for it. I imagine this is a problem with all the e-readers currently available, although perhaps some will use (or do use) a common format. I suspect though some of this has to do with the licensing agreements with the publishers and will cut across the various available e-readers.

I've been using one for almost a year now. Overall I like it. As LAguy says, the major convenience is the ability to bring a ton of books in a small space. The biggest disadvantage for me is that, living outside the US, I cannot take advantage of the wireless coverage. I just buy Kindle books online and download them to my computer over the internet and then transfer them to the Kindle (not as hard as it sounds.)

Amazon recently came out with an international version of the Kindle which I would be tempted to get if getting books were a hassle. But it's not so there's no reason to throw away that money. BTW, by turning the wireless off I ave had over two weeks of use and still haven't run out of battery.

The downside is Amazon's proprietary format of the ebooks only allows you to read them on the Kindle. I read somewhere recently that they are coming out with a computer program that will read their ebooks. It's probably mostly aimed at college students. I will say that I find their claims of the e-ink being easier in regard to strain on your eyes to be true. A computer version would allow you to get rid of a device that really on

If you do buy one, make sure you get a case for it. I've read horror stories about people dropping them without the case. I opted for the Amazon case that opens like a book over a slip cover and glad I did. It makes pulling it out of my carry-on bad much easier.

Again, I like it. I'm glad I made the purchase. I wish the international version had been ready when I bought mine, but won't "upgrade" as it's not worth it at this time.

EA

Seems you get treated like you treat others. Amazon has fantastic customer service. They have not met my expectations in everyway, they have exceeded them. A great stock to own, especially if you bought it around $38.

As for the Kindle, I am using version 2 in Rio right now. Amazon had originally charged $279 for the international version then decided that they would refund the extra $20 difference between that version and the domestic one.

I had them convert some PDFs for me which came back in about 2 minutes. They are not perfect, but good enough. There is no removable battery and no SD cards. You can transfer data between it and your computer if you need more room. I downloaded the User’s Guide before I bought it and asked a number of people I saw using them how they like it. There are several articles and reviews you can read. Just remember there are a lot of differences between v1 and v2. You also might want to check out the features of the B&N Nook.

Going back to Amazon’s customer service, I had regrettably purchased Around the World in 80 Lays. I returned it with no problems. They even paid the return shipping. Before I left for Rio I bought a special eSATA cable. I had the right one in my shopping cart but at the last minute I switched it for another longer one. They were not the same; the first one was the correct one. I called Amazon and the guy said – so we sent you the wrong cable. Not exactly, I was stupid and bought the wrong one. So the cable does not work. No, I am sure it works fine. It was my fault. You no longer want the cable. I will e-mail you an RMA.

I have noticed that some people have a really tough time accepting that other people are smarter than them, make more money, are more educate. It goes on and on. I am amazed in my travels around the world how many people dislike Bill Gates and Microsoft. Get over it already. The game is over. He won. So much so that before he dies he probably will give away more money than anyone else in history.

(Message edited by Exectalent on October 30, 2009)

"Seems you get treated like you treat others," and other frivolous garbage now and through his history on the board.

Stated like the true asshole Exectalent apparently is.

I use adobe acrobat and limewire/bit torrents, and have a similar portable library to those above at a five finger discount. That can be read on any computer anywhere.

And yeah, I can blow up the print to 2000 percent too...

LAG/EL-P, thanks for the feedback. My main curiosity was whether battery life was plenty for extended trips and if it significantly reduced eye strain vs reading off a computer. Looks like the answer is yes to both!

Exlax- nuff said.

Porker- If you can read novels off a computer without draining batteries and eye strain more power to ya. I can't unfortunately. Also, I like the idea of having a device just for books. Less temptation to look at porn ;)

Laguy -- when it comes to being an asshole, you seem to have a corner on the market. I am just the guy who doesn't tolerate them either on the internet or in the real world.

Exectalent:

In response to your latest flame, my inbox suggests quite the contrary. And although you claim you are not an asshole, let's be clear about who hijacked this thread to start a flame war.

Your history of posts on Club Hombre suggest you think you are the model of super-intelligence and that everyone else is not. This pattern not only evidences a profound lack of intelligence, it pegs you as a real dumb guy.

LAguy, come on leave little old Exectalent alone having a flame war with him is like beating up the blind kid, its not fair. It already seems from his incoherent posts that you have made him cry so leave him alone and stop picking on the little guy.

DM,

Kindle 2 recharges off a micro-USB cable. They appear to be interchangeable and can recharge from your USB port on a computer. As I stated above, before the silly little flame war broke out, battery life has been no problem IF you turn off the wireless. With the wireless on I figure on 3 - 4 days of usage tops.

One other feature, you can email PDF documents to Amazon and they will convert them to the Kindle format free of charge. I've only used it a couple of times and it works well. I've had the documents return to my email within 5 minutes. I think the Kindle DX can read PDF documents out of the box, but you want to double-check on that one.

I haven't subscribed to daily/monthly newspapers/magazines as I live outside the wireless coverage area so don't know how I'd feel about reading them on the Kindle. Magazines might not be too bad (if you can live without color photographs), but I don't think I'd like reading a newspaper on it. Call me old-fashioned, but I still kind of like to have those in my hands. YMMV

EA

(Message edited by el_apodo on October 31, 2009)

Battery life is not a problem, as El Apodo indicates. I agree things like magazines and newspapers would be a bit unwieldy on a Kindle. The large-sized version of the Kindle might help in this regard, but would be a bit more difficult to lug around (and is too expensive IMHO).

I suppose the best recommendation I can make for the Kindle (or comparable e-reader) is that even at home I am now doing much more reading on it than from regular books. And because it uses a special process that mimics ink on the page of a book, it is much easier on the eyes than reading from a computer.

Newer ultra-light netbooks get up to 9 hours battery life. Re: eyestrain, I may have to borrow El Apodo's Kindle to see what the hell the hype is about with that, but shit, don't most of us stare at a computer screen the majority of the day anyway? Like I said, and as everyone knows, Adobe can blow the hell up of the size of the print too...

I downloaded the latest Dan Brown book the day it was released, took 5 minutes, and it was FREE. And, again, I can read it on any computer, anywhere.

Oh, and every month's/week's magazines are easily available for free...

Porker, you know, I used to have 20/20 vision until at the age of about 35 I started staring at a computer screen all day long. Granted that was in the days of green screens, but just the same, I still would rather give my eyes a little bit of variety.

When it comes to reading material, I'm a Luddite. I buy books at the used book store and share them with friends at a cost that's a fraction of the that charged by any of the e-book sellers. Or I get them at the public library for nothing (socialist that I am).

I see a nice advantage to the Kindle and other e-book readers in their portability. You can carry a whole library. But I rarely read more than two books on a trip, and carrying two paperbacks is not such a burden, so I'll probably forego the e-book experience. I also object to being locked into a single format associated with a single supplier. I'm glad to see that Kindle has released a version of the reader software for PCs and will soon do so for Macs, but if you buy "Kindle books" and switch to a different e-book reader you're screwed.

On the basis of cost, ability to share, and flexibility of use, the used bookstore and the public library win. For portability, the e-book readers win, but only when you have need to travel with more than two books, or to travel with books that are large and only available in paperback.

My birthday is coming up next month and I just received a Kindle 2 as a gift. I have been playing with it a today. I have found it easy to down load books and the pricing and selection seem to be not bad. There are even some free and 99c books worthy of a download. The screen is a little small for my taste and I am not a fan of the black and white maps and pictures. I downloaded a Rio guide and the maps are next to useless, I do not know if this was a problem with the original publication or with the Kindle. So far I have found the menus and functions counter intuitive and a little cumbersome, this might change over time I do like the screen quality I find it easy on the eyes. I am a little concerned that the unit might not be rugged enough for travel. And I have my eye out for a travel bag.

I am very thankful for the thoughtful gift but based on my usage so far I don't know if I would have bought one myself.

I assume that you have to download over your computer being out of the states. As you know the newer unit allows dowloading over a wireless network overseas.

The advantages of a Kindle IMHO outweigh the negatives you noted above:

1. Ability to carry tens or hundreds of books with no weight or space loss in your luggage.
2. Reading multiple books at a time: a big non fiction tome while delving into a sci-fi as the mood strikes.
3. Especially on a wireless: finish a book and can immediately download another work by the author or the next in a series.
4. Hear or read about a good book? Grab it now without having to remember it and then find it.
5. Sample the first couple of chapters. How many books do I start and then give up on? This reduces that greatly.

I have been downloading books via computer and its quick and easy...even in africa.

so far I have started reading a few books I find it ok for novels but its not user friendly when it comes to Reference books. I down loaded a rio guide and so far I have found it imposable to use. Can anyone recommend a good Rio guide for Kendel, I want maps of good walking tours and day tours.

Am I missing something? is there a way to improve the picture and map quality.?

I am sure I will grow into the Kendle over time

The Kindle "3" rocks. Looks great, nice improvements over previous gen, and the price puts it at a sweet spot in the market.I'm glad I didn't succumb to iPad-itis (for my use case).

I'm on the waitlist, but should have it in 2 weeks.

I'll probably make the leap to Kindle 3 myself. Especially since I have someone who'll buy my early 2nd generation Kindle.

I've never jonesed for the iPad, but would drool over a Windows 7 based tablet. Asus is rumored to have one coming out early in 2011, but who knows.

Although it is basically a single-use device, I like my Kindle a lot and wouldn't go back.

EA

I love my Kindle 2. Easy access to English language books? I practically haven't taken my head out of it in the last 6 months. And given what it's pulling me away from, that is quite a feat indeed.

You "love" your Kindle 2? Does it give a decent BBBJ?

No. The Kindle is a dedicated e-reader. It is made to do one thing, and one thing well. Which means that I can use my Kindle to read books WHILE receiving an outstanding BBBJ (the provider of the latter being neither dedicated, nor, largely, decent ).

Can you view porn with a Kindle?

If, sir, by porn you mean D. H. Lawrence and Erica Jong, why yes, you certainly can. ;o)

I'm not putting down the Kindle, but I can read DH Lawrence and watch "Pretty Little Latinas" on my iPad ;-)

Yes, but try doing either in the sun and you're pretty well fucked. Makes a good shaving mirror, though ;o) I can read DH Lawrence and watch Pretty Little Latinas on my iPod touch, and with less footprint than an iPad, but it doesn't mean it's my preferred method of doing either. I don't need to watch porn on the subway. What I do need is a great eReader--and preferably one that doesn't require me to use iTunes or jump through hoops to get my own files onto the device... To me, it's like comparing apples and oranges. I made the best choice according to my needs, and I'm quite happy. But make sure you know your needs and the strengths of each device.

(Message edited by gibletpie on August 16, 2010)

I had a kindle for a short while but upgraded to the iPad. For me it was like comparing a black a white basic cell phone to a full color smart phone. IMHO. Sure others will disagree.

So will a Kindle display my porn in bright sunlight. You know, like if I want to jack off on the beach or in a city bus?

It warms my heart to see that IAS has become a convert to safe sex.

Yes, an iPad would not constitute an "upgrade" to me. What I want to do, it does merely adequately (IMHO), and what it excels at, I don't need at all...

I'm with Gib. I read a lot of books and care about that use case + battery life that lasts a week (vs hours) much more then I do color.

No brainer for me which is a better fit.