I've been using my Kindle for about four days now. Like any relatively new piece of technology, its presence on my person has generated some curiosity among the baristas and restaurant staffers in my neighborhood; a happy development given that my former, Kindle-less self never generated the slightest hint of curiosity or conversation. It's like a puppy for recluses and lonesome bastards who are too cowardly to initiate human contact without the aid of props. Additionally, it has the added benefit of being an expensive luxury item which holds little interest for potential thieves (thievery and literacy being unlikely bedfellows.)
As for the specifics of design and functionality, most of the other reviews are correct. Anyone who is considering buying a Kindle probably won't be too taken aback by what they end up getting – so long as they've taken the time to read about the device's pros and cons. Nevertheless, there are a few things that I expected but was nonetheless surprised by:
- There are buttons all over the damn thing and you can't treat it like other reading material; it requires delicacy and nimbleness to use.
- The default typeface is tedious. If you want a rich experience with a well-designed piece of text, buy a book from a publisher who takes pride in their craftsmanship. The Kindle delivers content, not graceful textual design.
- The library of available texts from Amazon.com is pathetically small. They currently boast "more than 120,000 books available." Don't be fooled. That's a shit selection. Check it out. There are some good titles, to be sure, but if you read a great deal you'll quickly find that what you want is often not available. While there are free (or extremely cheap) copies of digital texts available through other sites, it's a safe bet that the integrity of those texts will be compromised.
- The absence of page numbers is more problematic than I had anticipated. Although there are features to compensate for this, intra-textual references are hidebound to print. Even those that aren't are sometimes difficult to navigate. One of the books I'm currently reading is Bad Money by Kevin Phillips, which constantly references tables and charts printed in locations throughout the text; locations that would be easy as pie to flip to in the print edition but nearly impossible to find on a Kindle without accessing the "search" feature. (Tables and charts, incidentally, are readable but barely so.)
On the positive side, I enthusiastically endorse the following:
- Easy and unimpeded access to Wikipedia. This is an excellent function, especially for those of us who are addicted to supplementary reference sources.
- The dictionary. While all computers have this, it's something that no book does – and I've already accessed it repeatedly. Look up a word immediately without seriously interrupting your reading. Awesome.
- The search feature is universal – it will search your entire Kindle for all instances of a word or phrase. Again, this is a way of life for computers, but a substantive improvement over my actual physical library. Plus, you can cut and paste passages from the Kindle for later use (e-mailing, blogging, reference, etc.).
- I have been pleasantly surprised by how much more I enjoy short-form content on the Kindle. Generally speaking, I'm a huge fan of big books (I love the value implicit in paying $14.95 for over 1,000 pages of text). However, the Kindle is ideal for essays, speeches, articles and other short works. I uploaded digital versions of Moyers on Democracy by Bill Moyers, and the May issue of The Atlantic - both are perfect fits for this device.
I have no idea if this is just a blip in the history of technology, or whether I'll still be using it a year from today, but right now I'd recommend it as a fun experiment. Especially if you really like to read.
ADDENDUM: The Future of Reading (A Play in Six Acts) via Crooked Timber.
