subject: Kindle Review: What's New With Amazon's Latest EBook Reader [print this page] Kindle Review: What's New With Amazon's Latest EBook Reader
If you don't have a Kindle yet, you may be surprised at what your missing. The latest generation of Amazon Kindle book readers have lots of capacity, up to 3,500 books at a time, built in Wi-Fi and a huge selection of books to choose from, almost 3/4 of a million as of this writing. That's an ample choice for people who like to download books on a regular basis. The Kindle is very convenient for people who love to read and want to save money on their book purchases. The Kindle weighs just over 1/2 a pound, so it's not exactly going to give you a hernia to carry it around! The latest models have a battery life of up to a whole month. Electronic books are not only cheaper, but in many ways more convenient than print books. If you're on a long flight, for example, you may not have time to stop in the bookstore for a paperback, but if your Kindle is stocked with a few titles, you'll never be without a book when you need one. There is, of course, the environmental aspect as well. Books use up lots of paper, and considering most people will only read a book once and never look at it again, it can be considered a bit wasteful to create a permanent format for what's usually a fleeting experience. The latter is not meant to offend bibliophiles, as we all know there are books you treasure and will want to reread many times. However, let's face it: the average bestseller or genre novel is basically made for a single reading. Some people say that electronic books represent the future. This may be a slight exaggeration, as some people, even the most avid Kindle enthusiasts, still like to read "real" books now and then. You'll never persuade a passionate book collector, for example, to dispense with his or her collection in favor of a book reader! No matter. This isn't an "either/or" issue, where you have to choose one form over the other. Electronic books are just one new way to read. You may want to read a book on your kindle one day, a hardcover at another time, and a book on CD or MP3 when you're driving or exercising. It's great to have so many choices!
