To E-Read or Not to E-Read
I asked for a Kindle for Christmas. This is a gift that various members of my family had been attempting to press upon me for years, but I had held fast to my lovely dead tree books.
Then I became aware of free Kindle books . . . author promos . . . daily countdown deals . . . . NetGalley. I know that some people are not fans of Amazon, but I love them. In the four months I have owned this tiny electronic library, I have accumulated around 350 books that I have about $20 into. I will always adore and horde my beautiful paperbacks and hardcovers, but have been forced to admit that there is indeed a place for ebooks.
Which brings me to my question.
How do you decide which format to buy? A few short months ago, I would have said, "That's easy. If the Kindle version is 0-$0.99, you get that one. Otherwise buy a 'real book.'" But now I find myself faced with difficult decisions like a Kindle sale for $2.99, but I can get a new paperback with Prime for only $6.00 or a used copy for about $4.00. How much more is it worth to have a 'real book'? What if that physical copy is used?
Oh, dear readers, I just don't know what to do! Which stack of hundreds of unread books do I add this latest novel to?
Then I became aware of free Kindle books . . . author promos . . . daily countdown deals . . . . NetGalley. I know that some people are not fans of Amazon, but I love them. In the four months I have owned this tiny electronic library, I have accumulated around 350 books that I have about $20 into. I will always adore and horde my beautiful paperbacks and hardcovers, but have been forced to admit that there is indeed a place for ebooks.
Which brings me to my question.
How do you decide which format to buy? A few short months ago, I would have said, "That's easy. If the Kindle version is 0-$0.99, you get that one. Otherwise buy a 'real book.'" But now I find myself faced with difficult decisions like a Kindle sale for $2.99, but I can get a new paperback with Prime for only $6.00 or a used copy for about $4.00. How much more is it worth to have a 'real book'? What if that physical copy is used?
Oh, dear readers, I just don't know what to do! Which stack of hundreds of unread books do I add this latest novel to?
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Misfit
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Apr 26, 2014 05:47AM
Much as I love dead tree books, I would buy a $.99 ebook over $.01 and shipping any day. Don't forget the tiny font in those older books, plus the effort holding a fat paperback.
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Misfit wrote: "Much as I love dead tree books, I would buy a $.99 ebook over $.01 and shipping any day. Don't forget the tiny font in those older books, plus the effort holding a fat paperback."Oh, paying slightly MORE for the ebook version ~ this is a concept that I had not previously considered! So far, small print does not bother me, though I'm sure my day will come ;-) As for the weight, I will admit the Kindle is wonderful to travel with!
Hah. Shipping for older books is usually $3.99, so the ebook is cheaper and instantaneous. I still check the library catalog first. Overdrive is really starting to carry a lot of these OPs now digitalized.
I like books from Amazon, both in the English page as it's variant in Spanish, I like the initiative to publish new authors to begin his writing career, do something that publishers don't always do it, bet high and generally earn and I found good titles. But frankly, I'm not a fan of the E-Reader, I prefer to keep my books made of tree leaves despite that betray my ecological principles. Is that just me better concentrate on the story, when I read in electronic format tend to sleep, but I reached to read some good titles that I loved. To answer your question, I think you should use the form to see how, if you like it or not, if the fill your expectations or not. :)
I have grown to love my Kindle, but I still have a difficult time paying more than $1.99 for an ebook that I can't admire on my shelf. ;-)
Hi SamanthaTough choices huh? At the end of the day only you can really decide what your main priorities are—I’m not sure this decision is a purely financial one.
For me personally, as much as I like and enjoy paper based books, I’ve switched over entirely to digital ebooks. The only paper based books I now own are older, larger format books not available in digital form.
Why? I simply find the convenience, storage, cataloging and availability of digital ebooks more suited to my lifestyle than storing large quantities of paper based books.
I’ve de-cluttered my life and as painful as it was, I rid myself of the millstone of paper books in favour of digital ones.
I have two e-readers now: a Kindle Paperwhite for Amazon ebooks and a Kobo Aura HD for epubs and I don’t ever see myself going back to paper based books now I’ve made the switchover.
Good for you for decluttering! I continue to struggle with the feeling that I'm not getting as much when I buy ebooks, but I know that many have come to prefer them.
My own strategy is to buy fiction in e-book format, and non-fiction and reference books in hard copy, as it is much easier to refer to an index or table of contents in a physical book. I haven't taken the extreme step of discarding my old fiction books though!
Blair wrote: "My own strategy is to buy fiction in e-book format, and non-fiction and reference books in hard copy, as it is much easier to refer to an index or table of contents in a physical book. I haven't ..."
I completely agree, Blair. I much prefer my nonfiction in dead-tree version. It's so much easier to keep track of multiple places at once and quickly look back to check facts. I can't imagine disposing of any of my beloved books!
Marita wrote: "Our home is filled with literally thousands of books. I now buy fiction in Kindle format unless it is unavailable in that format. Reference books, art books, cook books etc. I still perfer in har..."Marita, it sounds like our homes have much in common ;-)
I have grown to love my Kindle since I received it last Christmas. It is great for travel and reading in the dark.
I love that this blog is suddenly receiving interest several months after I wrote it.
