[Sigma2021]

I just use the Kindle app on Android. One device, easy life.

---------- Post added 12-11-21 at 02:42 AM ----------

I just noticed they sell versions with and without ads. If you turn off WiFi does that kill the ads anyway?

You going to stuff it with ebooks and not ever going to speak to the network again? Seems like the ads would be loaded on connection. I had an Amazon tablet w/ads, they (the ads) displayed on the lock screen.

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Last edited by Sigma2021; 12-11-2021 at 01:44 AM.

[stevejo]

The big advantage of a reader is that in the UK you can hook up to a local library and borrow a book (download it). You get to use it for a couple of weeks and can usually extend if no-one else is waiting for it. They don't have everything, but usually a very good selection. You often have to reserve popular books (it just appears on your device when it becomes available). The result is that I am never short of a read even when travelling on our boat. I do still like a real paper book from time to time though. I use Kindle & Borrowbox (for library books) on an iPad.

[Sigma2021]

The big advantage of a reader is that in the UK you can hook up to a local library and borrow a book (download it). You get to use it for a couple of weeks and can usually extend if no-one else is waiting for it. They don't have everything, but usually a very good selection. You often have to reserve popular books (it just appears on your device when it becomes available). The result is that I am never short of a read even when travelling on our boat. I do still like a real paper book from time to time though. I use Kindle & Borrowbox (for library books) on an iPad.

Interesting. In the US, I use the Libby app on Android. It links to a local library. Borrow ebooks and audio books (saves me money on an Audible subscription, since most books are a single listen) for 14-days at a time, and can extend if the book is not reserved.

Libby allows for library books to be read in the Kindle app, or the apps native reader.

[ThorSanchez]

and I wonder, are you guys reading on ebook readers or it must be good old paper?

IMO, paper still feels the best, and one of my childhood's dream was to have a huge house with room filled with bookcases Naturally, it didn't happen.
So... I bought my first Kindle (the second Paperwhite edition) years ago, and started to appreciate its convenience. Much better read experience than a computer/tablet/phone screen. Easy to read in low light, and it beats good old paper here. Exceptionally small, as it can contain the electronic version of an entire library. I don't like not actually owning the book, though, and why are prices so close to the paper versions?
There will always be room for some special (paper) books, but for most of them I prefer the convenience of the electronic version.

Last month I decided to upgrade my ebook reading experience and bought the new Paperwhite 2021. It was quite a jump - larger, better screen with amber light; more storage (though I've gone with the Signature Edition, for "32GB" which are more like 27); and significantly faster than the old one (let's not forget I jumped some generations).
I'm now finishing the Expanse series on it - the 9th book, Leviathan Falls.

I got a Kindle when my kids were 3-4 years old and they still required much bedtime attention to go to sleep. So I'd sit with them i the dark while they fell asleep and could read on the Kindle. Of course that wouldn't have been possible with paper unless you had some kind of clunky light that would distract the kid.

That experience showed me that I didn't need to greatly expand my already overflowing bookshelves in my home office. I will occasionally buy a paper book or be given one, but almost everything I read now is electronic. I haven't tried a Paperwhite-style display, probably should. But I'm fine with the normal LCD on the Kindle, no issues with eyestrain or falling asleep.

In general I've switched my lifestyle to content over collecting. You don't impress anyone with shelves and stacks of stuff all over the house. It's been over 15 years since I ripped my CD collection to mp3s, and all of the CDs have been in boxes in the garage since we moved into our house in 2008. Stopped the paper newspaper subscription a decade ago. Photos are viewed on big monitors (or, yes, cell phones) 95% of the time. I'm in the middle of putting together my 2021 family photo book that we print and distribute to family and it's nice, but my goodness... that thing has become $50 a copy and while I enjoy looking through the old ones once in a while that's expensive even just for close family.

[slartibartfast01]

I got a Kindle when my kids were 3-4 years old and they still required much bedtime attention to go to sleep. So I'd sit with them i the dark while they fell asleep and could read on the Kindle. Of course that wouldn't have been possible with paper unless you had some kind of clunky light that would distract the kid.

That experience showed me that I didn't need to greatly expand my already overflowing bookshelves in my home office. I will occasionally buy a paper book or be given one, but almost everything I read now is electronic. I haven't tried a Paperwhite-style display, probably should. But I'm fine with the normal LCD on the Kindle, no issues with eyestrain or falling asleep.

In general I've switched my lifestyle to content over collecting. You don't impress anyone with shelves and stacks of stuff all over the house. It's been over 15 years since I ripped my CD collection to mp3s, and all of the CDs have been in boxes in the garage since we moved into our house in 2008. Stopped the paper newspaper subscription a decade ago. Photos are viewed on big monitors (or, yes, cell phones) 95% of the time. I'm in the middle of putting together my 2021 family photo book that we print and distribute to family and it's nice, but my goodness... that thing has become $50 a copy and while I enjoy looking through the old ones once in a while that's expensive even just for close family.

Does the standard Kindle have a backlight? My old one didn't so it was impossible to read in low light.

[ThorSanchez]

I just noticed they sell versions with and without ads. If you turn off WiFi does that kill the ads anyway?

I always pay the $10-20 up front to avoid the ads. It's worth it to have a space in your life where you're not bombarded with commercials.


One of the reasons I've become more of a soccer fan is you get a 45-minute block without any commercial interruptions. With baseball/basketball/football 45 minutes means 5, 6, 7 commercial breaks. I'm so done with that.

---------- Post added 12-11-21 at 07:30 AM ----------

Does the standard Kindle have a backlight? My old one didn't so it was impossible to read in low light.

Yes. I thought they all did, excepting perhaps the early e-reader/e-ink types. The display on mine is like a standard cell phone or tablet.

[slartibartfast01]

I always pay the $10-20 up front to avoid the ads. It's worth it to have a space in your life where you're not bombarded with commercials.


One of the reasons I've become more of a soccer fan is you get a 45-minute block without any commercial interruptions. With baseball/basketball/football 45 minutes means 5, 6, 7 commercial breaks. I'm so done with that.

---------- Post added 12-11-21 at 07:30 AM ----------



Yes. I thought they all did, excepting perhaps the early e-reader/e-ink types. The display on mine is like a standard cell phone or tablet.

I thought they were all still E-ink, even my Paperwhite (with backlight) is E-ink. Mine are 9 or 10 years old though. E-ink is easy to read in bright sunlight where phones and tablets struggle.

[Kunzite]

I just noticed they sell versions with and without ads. If you turn off WiFi does that kill the ads anyway?

Probably not?
Anyway, this page describes the differences (on the relatively recent Kindles): Differences Between Ad-Free Kindles and Ad-Supported Kindles (Video) | The eBook Reader Blog

I bought the ad-free version to avoid the hassle.

[slartibartfast01]

Probably not?

Anyway, this page describes the differences (on the relatively recent Kindles): Differences Between Ad-Free Kindles and Ad-Supported Kindles (Video) | The eBook Reader Blog



I bought the ad-free version to avoid the hassle.

Mine is so old it didn't have ads

[Kunzite]

Yes. I thought they all did, excepting perhaps the early e-reader/e-ink types. The display on mine is like a standard cell phone or tablet.

They introduced front-light on the basic Kindle in 2019, so it's recent stuff (Paperwhite had it from the first edition).
I don't know about others, but I can notice the difference between a Kindle's front-light and a cell phone/tablet's back-light. The latter is not always uncomfortable. The former is always comfortable.

The front-light works by having LED light reflected by the e-ink screen and to your eye, in a similar way light would get reflected by paper. Back-light, in comparison, shines some LEDs through the LCD display directly into your eyes.

[Sigma2021]

I'm in the middle of putting together my 2021 family photo book that we print and distribute to family and it's nice, but my goodness... that thing has become $50 a copy and while I enjoy looking through the old ones once in a while that's expensive even just for close family.

Try creating a Zine. It will be a lot cheaper. And more unique, than a traditional book format.

[Kunzite]

Mine is so old it didn't have ads

They weren't invented back then

[Kunzite]

How long does it take to charge fully?

It took a while to discharge the battery (even if I hurried things a bit), but now I can answer that.

The Kindle (the new Paperwhite Signature Edition) was discharged down to 1% (but it didn't shut down itself); was kept turned on but not used (I only opened the cover a few times to take a glance at the battery indicator), WiFi active (no BT). I've made sure to use a capable charger (a Huawei Supercharger power bank, actually) and a good cable.

So, from 1% to 95% (when the LED turned green) took about 1h 15min. Very very good IMHO.
After that the charge slowed down, charging the remaining 5% in almost 45 minutes - making for a total charge time of almost 2 hours.

[BigMackCam]

It took a while to discharge the battery (even if I hurried things a bit), but now I can answer that.

The Kindle (the new Paperwhite Signature Edition) was discharged down to 1% (but it didn't shut down itself); was kept turned on but not used (I only opened the cover a few times to take a glance at the battery indicator), WiFi active (no BT). I've made sure to use a capable charger (a Huawei Supercharger power bank, actually) and a good cable.

So, from 1% to 95% (when the LED turned green) took about 1h 15min. Very very good IMHO.
After that the charge slowed down, charging the remaining 5% in almost 45 minutes - making for a total charge time of almost 2 hours.

Excellent. That rapid charge cycle isn't much longer than a bigger phone... and the extended time for the last 5% is kind to the battery. 2 hours total is nothing...

[Kunzite]

Excellent. That rapid charge cycle isn't much longer than a bigger phone... and the extended time for the last 5% is kind to the battery. 2 hours total is nothing...

Yeah. And the Kindle didn't get hot, like some phones do when fast charging.