…that is the question. And a question that I’m having great trouble answering. Now, although I’m a Web Developer by trade, I’m not a big “gadget girl” in general. I know, I know, it’s hard to believe. Although I will admit that I LOVE my iPod touch! But that’s not what I want to chat about today.
I’ve been an avid reader since I was a tiny tot. My mother would take my brother and sister and me to the local library and we’d come home with stacks of books, literally. I’ve always had my nose in a book, and most days at lunchtime, you’ll find me engrossed in my latest read.
But the problem with books is…well, after a while they start to take up a LOT of space, folks. Truly. And I have such a love for books, it’s hard for me to part with most of them. Though this past year, I started using a website called Bookmooch.com, where you can mooch used books for free, and other people can “mooch” your books and you only have to pay the postage to send a book to someone. It’s a fantastic system, and at least kind of keeps the space rotating, and helps me follow the “one in, one out” rule of decluttering.
But then I thought I’d take it a step further, especially with a baby on the way. I thought getting an Amazon Kindle would be a great solution to the space dilemma. And in that respect, it’s a wonderful invention. But I have to admit, I’m having a real problem completely converting over to Kindlemania. And here’s why:
Kindle Pros
- You can store thousands of books on your Kindle, and never take up any extra room. This is a fantastic feature, especially when traveling, or if you live in small space.
- Kindle is fairly lightweight–it weighs just 10.2 ounces, according to Amazon. This is wonderful considering some of my books are 700 pages and can be very bulky and heavy to lug around.
- You can download a book onto the Kindle in a matter of seconds. This has to be one of the greatest selling points of the Kindle for me, because I’m definitely of the Veruca Salt mentality (”I want it NOW”) when it comes to music and books and movies. Hence why I love iTunes as well–I don’t have to drive to the store and buy the CD, I can download it immediately–and with Kindle and Amazon I can download that latest book immediately and start reading.
- Kindle doesn’t kill as many trees as it takes to print/produce thousands of books, plus you cut down on the resources required to distribute all the printed books (think trucks that require gas/oil to transport).
- With the new text-to-speech feature, Kindle can read newspapers, magazines, blogs, and books out loud to you–this is a phenomenal feature, especially for those who may be handicapped, or if you’re on a long drive.
- The cost of books is much less than a regular, printed book. Typically you’d pay about $9.99 per book.
- Amazon sends popular read emails and the latest Kindle downloads, which is nice to have. Also there are almost 300,000 books to choose from, and you can do a quick search right on your Kindle which is also a plus.
But, there’s always a flip side.
Kindle Cons
- You can’t “recycle” a Kindle book, like with Bookmooch. I keep my books immaculate and I like to pass them on to friends or family. Sorry, guys, I’m not passing on my pricey Kindle to you.
- You have to remember to keep your Kindle charged. With an old-fashioned book, I don’t have to worry about that.
- Not practical to take Kindle to the beach or to the tub to read. A little too pricey to risk getting it full of sand or dropping it in the bathtub. Yikes!
- If your Kindle malfunctions, you’ll be SOL. And at some point, most electronic items do malfunction. This part doesn’t thrill me.
- There’s something exciting about touching and holding a book, and seeing the coloful cover. This is rooted to my days of reading all the time–just going into a bookstore is exciting to me. I don’t know that I can ever fully give this up.
- There’s also something really exciting about receiving a book in the mail from Bookmooch or anywhere else. Opening the package…knowing there’s a whole new world in there, just waiting for me to discover it. I just don’t get the same feeling from my Kindle.
- Is Kindle really more environmentally friendly? Space wise, yes. Not killing so many trees, yes. But I haven’t been able to find statistics about what it takes to manufacture a Kindle, and of course, you have to use electricity to charge it (albeit the battery life is pretty long, so this one might not be an issue). Also, hopefully people will do the right thing when disposing of them at some point, and not let them pile up in the landfills. Books can biodegrade, Kindle cannot. So this one is a toss up for me.
- Because Kindle prices are lower than a regular printed book, authors are making less money from Kindle sales. (But, on the flip side, will this make the books more easily accessible to readers, and even things out in the long run by more readers buying the book?) And as a note, passing books on (like with Bookmooch) definitely takes money out of authors pockets.
- Be careful not to leave your Kindle somewhere! This is something I’m definitely afraid I’ll do in an absent-minded moment. With a regular book, it’s not as devastating since you might end up $10-15 out of pocket and can easily get a replacement. But your Kindle…with a pricetag of about $350 plus whatever you’ve spent on the downloaded books…not so good.
So…I continue to sit on the fence about my Kindle. I like it, but I don’t think I’ll ever totally switch to solely using it instead of printed books. I will most likely use it for some books that I know I don’t want to keep in my collection, or books I “must have” immediately. I think it’s a great invention with a lot of promise, but my early years and love of books–not just the stories–is too far embedded to ever be replaced by a thin sliver of technology.
Love your Kindle? Would never use one? Would love to hear what you think!
