Our current Kindle is one of the original ones. They’re called Kindle Keyboard 3G now, but when we bought it this style was the only one available.
After many years this Kindle [who I never named – missed opportunity there] has gone wonky. I think we overused the poor baby because she can no longer ante up all of her pixels. Whole horizontal rows of pixels have bugged out.
The result is a screen that looks sort of like the handwriting practice writing paper we used in first grade. Do you remember that paper? It had one solid horizontal line all the way across the top of the page. Then a dotted horizontal line below it. Then one solid horizontal line below that. The last two lines were then repeated down the entire page until the bottom.
That’s what this screen resembles.
Now add to this dodgy-looking screen words in any font size— and you have my first grade writing assignments. Complete with words above, below, through & on the lines. Marginally readable.
Cute? Yes. But not all that desirable on an e-reader. Rather annoying to be honest.
So I suppose that it’s time to buy a new e-reader. A Kindle Paperwhite 3G perhaps? Or maybe a Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight? I think I’ll let Santa take care of that decision.
And in the meantime until Santa decides what to buy next, I’ll go back to reading good ole paper books with words printed clearly between the lines. As if second grade me had printed them. 😉
[Hello FTC! Just talking about my experience here. Nothing more than noting what happened with this product. No one is paying me, or us, a cent or dollar to say this. No compensation whatsoever here. We good, my friend?]
THE SPECTACLED BEAN 
I’ve become kind of dependent on my Kindle. It’s not that I don’t still love real paper books, but they’ve started to feel funny in my hands. And then there’s that instant gratification of when I finish a book and I must have the next book in the series right now. I’m curious about the paperwhite and if you get it, I want to know if the brighter page is bothersome or helpful but I probably won’t be replacing it until it dies. Unless I get a Fire.
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Zazzy, I’d like to know the same thing about the Paperwhite. The problem is [as always] that you have to buy and use these techie gadgets before you know if you like/need these techie gadgets. That being said, whichever device we get I’ll write a review of it.
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Have to admit, Kindle hasn’t caught on yet in the Polly household. I love books, the look and feel of them, the weight of them, the smell of them, the way you can flick back and forth and hold several pages between your fingers. All that is missing with a Kindle. I also find it difficult to read a large amount on screen. However, I can see the appeal of a Kindle, in that once you have finished a book, all you have to do is dial up another, no need to lug two books around in your bag. My friend has a leather case on her Kindle and it gives her the feeling that she is holding and reading a real book (it opens like a book), which appeals slightly more. Clearly I’m still a bit 20th century! Funny you mention the handwriting exercises, my little man is just starting on something similar. Hope Santa is good to you.
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We’re not 100% convinced that we like e-readers. They are useful in certain situations where waiting and/or walking with extra weight are considerations. We have a black leather case with ours so it does seem more like a book.
BUT when you come down to it an e-reader is just another screen. And as such it doesn’t charm me the way paper books do.
Plus I don’t like to read books in a linear fashion & e-readers force you do this. No peeking ahead. No seeing the photos or diagrams ahead of time. Just a straight march through the book. *meh*
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I think ereaders have their time and place. If I traveled a lot, or spent a lot of time waiting for things, they would be great. Also love the idea of wanting a book and getting it right that minute. I’ve read two books now on my husband’s Nook. Meh. I still prefer regular books.
As to not being able to try out the ereader before you buy, don’t they have Kindles at Target and Best Buy? You might be able to play with one there and see if it suits your fancy. 🙂
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J, great idea. I forgot that they sell Kindles in stores now! That’s exactly what I’ll/we’ll/Santa will do before we commit to another one. When we got ours before, they were available only online through Amazon. But now…
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Hope those elves are doing their research – so may options.
Still reading print here ( like the flipping back and forth in pages), but suggested elves consider something – books are so heavy to carry when traveling – and they charge now for bags and get sticky about bag weight. Good thing I don’t sell books anymore – my bags were always stuffed with samples!
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philosophermouse, Kindle is a delight for travel– just for the reason you mentioned. But as for everyday reading, I’m still lukewarm about it. Of course, maybe with one of these newer models my opinion will change.
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I prefer books but do have an e-reader which is great when travelling and when reading in bed if you don’t want to interrupt you spouse’s sleep. I chose a Nook because Kindles are not compatible with my state library system. I chose the Nook Color because it allows me to download the books I borrow or buy directly into the e-reader. You can’t imagine how much easier that makes things. Of course you need wireless internet to do this. I also bought a case for mine because it makes it easier to hold the reader the way you do when you read a real book and it protects the reader when it is closed. I never thought I would become an e-reader fan but I do use mine more than I thought I would.
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la p, a friend has a basic Nook and she likes it. I have no idea why she chose it over the Kindle. Will have to inquire. I like the idea of a cover of some sort to protect whatever device we end up with. As I said, Santa really needs to get himself working on this project. 😉
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I love reading on my tablet, but tend to gravitate toward books. (unless I’m traveling and then it’s a reader all the way!)
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Margaret, I agree that for travel there’s nothing better than an e-reader. Don’t know much about tablets, but do know that paper books are always a win.
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