Kindle - Page 4 - Clubhouse

Running Rodent

10/07/2011 at 16:09

Boing.

I'm considering getting a Kindle but I'm not sure whether to get a wifi one or cough up for 3G. I'm in temporary accommodation at the moment and don't have wifi at home, so I'd have to go to somewhere like Starbucks and use theirs - can anyone tell me how easy that is to do? If it's a pain in the neck I might just go for 3G but it is quite a lot more expensive.

IronCat5 in the Hat pirate

pirate

10/07/2011 at 17:14

The WIFI is fine so long as you can enter the password when setting up the connection (as you would at home). Whenever I have had to visit a webpage to enter a username/password (hotspot-wise like in a hotel or coffee shop) it fails miserably.

I'm glad I have the 3G.

Tikka

10/07/2011 at 17:22

It's very unlikely anyone will know the answer to this but I thought I'd ask anyway....

My sister lives in France. I'm considering buying her a Kindle for her birthday as she's a bookaholic. The Amazon.fr site redirects to Amazon.com for details on the Kindle. Does anyone know if she will be able to download English language books via Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk?

Running Rodent

10/07/2011 at 20:36

CITH - that's exactly the sort of thing I was wondering about. May be worth the 3G just to save the grief. Plus I'll save money on coffee...

IronCat5 in the Hat pirate

pirate

10/07/2011 at 21:02

RR - That was my point of view when I got it. I travel a lot with work and have been able to download books very easily over 3G when I need to.

Tikka - it may not be relevant, but I imagine they will come from Amazon.com like the American Kindles. The UK ones you can register in either the US or the UK. It may also depend on whether the publisher allows the English laguage book to be sold in France.

anon

10/07/2011 at 23:39

I couldn't live without my Kindle and 3G

Kindle with wifi is £111 I think

Kindle with 3G is £152 I think. It's worth paying the extra £41 and getting 3G.

If you buy it at Tesco you'll get clubcard points, which effectively reduces the price.

There are loads of free books in the Kindle store which you'll come across if you hunt around. Also books for 46p, books for 86p, etc. (low prices) You don't have to spend a fortune.

A great thing about Kindle is that you can download a sample of your chosen book, which will be the first however many pages (5, 15, 30, 60) are included in the particular sample. The sample will give indications of whether the book is worth buying or not, and therefore save you buying crap books.

It's handy to be able to read all your books/newspapers at the same print size and in the same typeface.

Yes you should buy a Kindle. It will change your life. There are no downsides.

Sprint for the line

11/07/2011 at 08:18

The kindle is a very good device, I still buy new and used books off Amazon that cost less than an e-book version sometimes, but I'll buy most new books on the kindle now.

Ironholgs

pirate

11/07/2011 at 10:46

Love my kindle, I'm an avid reader and I think it's THE best piece of kit I own ( well apart from my race bike, which isn't allowed in the bedroom, unlike the kindle )

Buy one you won't regret it.

Emmy H

11/07/2011 at 11:17

Hiya - i love my kindle cannot rate it highly enough! It comes everywhere with me and just allows me to escape (especially when travelling).

Thinking back on it - i would definitely have gone for the 3G over just the wifi... it just makes a lot more sense when i'm out and about and want to go to the kindle store. With 3G it also means that you can access certain website all of the time (e.g. wikipedia). For £41 -it's nothing.

@TIkka - A colleague has had the same issue. She'll need to buy it from amazon.com and then register the account to .fr. It's a tad annoying and i'm hoping that they start accommodating the central european market too. She can buy any of the books she wants from .com or alternatively from .fr

jogblog

11/07/2011 at 11:18

If the Kindle format was always cheaper than the paperback, I'd always buy the Kindle one (except for things like cookbooks or reference books), as it's just so easy to use and for some reason, I concentrate better on it, than with a 'real' book.

jogblog

11/07/2011 at 11:33

And if you damage the screen (for example, by falling off your bike when you're cycling home drunk at 1am), Amazon will send you a replacement for free and send a courier for the damaged one. I rang Amazon at 5:15pm and the replacement was with me at 8:30 the following morning.

Emmy H

11/07/2011 at 11:42

I had the same thing Jogblog. Fantastic replacement service and very quick - no questions asked!

gingerfurball pirate

pirate

11/07/2011 at 19:45

I have yet to have a Kindle/book emergency....wifi is all I need.

Running Rodent

11/07/2011 at 20:56

OK, 3G it is (sorry GFB - didn't see your post till it wasd too late). I think what swung it for me was a vision of being stuck at Gatwick airport for a 4 hour delay and no wifi. Fair point about Tesco anon, but I have some Amazon vouchers to use. So here goes.

Hallam Blue

11/07/2011 at 21:04

All I would say is if your eyesight is half decent, Kindle on my Android Smartphone is fine to read, and of course has a lot more functionality.

anon

11/07/2011 at 23:06

Best purchase you'll ever make, Running Rodent.

Barkles

12/07/2011 at 09:56

I got one for my Birthday... never thought I'd need one. Have 14 books loaded in for my hols, total cost well under a tenner, and have reduced my luggage weight by a couple of kilos at least...

Flat Foo..ted

12/07/2011 at 10:06

Another very happy Kindle customer here too......bought the 3G one and living in London can always find wifi.

Slugsta

12/07/2011 at 10:49

Mr S is hankering for a kindle, I am thining of getting him one for his birthday. This thread has been really helpful, thanks.

gingerfurball pirate

pirate

12/07/2011 at 12:17

Don't worry about it RR - the 3G is the one I really wanted and my kids bought me the wifi so I couldn't really complain lol....I have 30 something books in mine plus some stored in virtual storage.

I usually take a bunch of books away when we travel and it's saved me a fortune (and my back lol) in luggage fees!