Why I like the buttons on the K3
 

This is a point that I have not seen brought up before - but something I like that would be missing from a touch screen.

I like to read sometimes lying down on my back. When I read on my iPad, the words go all the way down to the bottom of the screen which is practically to my chest, and looking at the last line or 2 of text puts strain on my eyes looking down so far. But with the K3, b/c of the buttons, the bottom of the screen is up a couple inches and I don't have to look all the way down to my chest which is easier on my eyes.

Yes this could be easily fixed by proping the device on a pillow, but still, I like the buttons for this reason.

Never really thought about it that way, but it is something I take for granted.

Ha. I now enjoy the buttons more myself. Keen observation. I lay in bed and prop it up on a pillow on my chest/belly (where one meets the other), and enjoy reading. Thank you buttons!

I'll have to try that tonight. I normally prop myself up on a whole stack pillows when I read in bed.

I have a 650 and if you held it with the the top of the screen in roughly the same place as you hold your Kindle, you would see the words at the bottom in wrought the same place. The buttons/keyboard of the Kindle have nothing to do with this. What you are doing is comparing the larger screen of the iPad to the smaller screen of the Kindle.

The big advantage of a non-touchscreen is the missing touch marks on the screen ;)

+1 :thumbsup:

It's such a minor thing, but I also like that the space taken by the buttons/keyboard raises the screen to eye-level. Granted, I actually use the keyboard to type notes, so I don't find the buttons as useless as some people do. But a little extra eye-ball ergonomics goes a long way in letting the buttons fade to the background when they're not in use.

I get what you're saying. I like that with my classic Nook as well, to have a bit of extra below the screen. Not because of the angle, but because it's easier to "prop up" in my fluffy duvet!
Having said that, when reading on the go I love the small size of my Sony 350. Prtty lucky to have both of them! (Although neither is a Kindle)

I like how the buttons make highlighting very precise. I do a lot of highlights while I read. What bugs me about the touch screen is when the highlight needs to go to the second page, and you have to stop at the end of the page and start another highlight after turning the page. With the K3 buttons, the highlights automatically flow to the next page when you keep clicking to the right.

With a touch screen, when I need to highlight just a small area such as 2 words, it sometimes is hard to get precisely what I want. With the physical buttons, everything's precise. Besides, the K3 cursor moves super fast, so I really can't complain about the many clicks needed to go to a certain passage.

That given said, I still returned my K3. I have to read on an LCD till the K4 comes out. =) I can't wait! I heard the non-touch version of Kindle will be less than $100 with improved features! I'm checking the news everyday to see when it's actually coming out! lol

I totally noticed this when I bought (and subsequently returned) the Nook STR. I found that I was craning my neck and it was giving me headaches. To be fair, it doesn't take much to give me a headache, and I'm sure most people wouldn't have the same experience. Someone pointed out that the Nook Touch has a bit of extra lower bezel that might help alleviate this problem.

Indeed.

I also read in bed and like that the screen is higher up

I just read an article about whether to buy a K3 now or wait for the K4. Basically it said are you happy with the features of the K3 now? If so, why wait for the new one. The K4 will be old after a year anyway. Just buy the device when it has the features you want, at the price you want, and be happy.

For me, all I want to do is read books. I think a 2 month batt. life is more than enough. The contrast is just fine for me. I like the buttons. The page turns are fast enough. etc etc. I think if the K4 comes out and has a 3 month batt life - oh well wont make that much difference to me. If it turns pages just a little faster - who cares. If the contrast is a little darker - doesn't matter, I can read the K3 just fine.

I just bought the K3 and will be happy with it till it breaks, which will hopefully be around the time the K6 or K7 comes out :)

Tim

The only reason I'm waiting for the new one is that the new non-touch version might be cheaper with the same functions I like (or even better). I just don't want to buy it now and hear about its price dropping in a month or so. I know all tech gadgets go obsolete quite fast these days, but still I'd feel better getting something at the beginning of its life cycle. =) I'm also aware of the possibility that I won't like the new version and will end up getting a K3 after all. Who knows~ :)

My view is just get it, you can always upgrade later.

At least once you have it you can start enjoying it.

:)

Yeah, I hear what your saying. Especially when it possibly might be released real soon. One reason I got mine just recently is that I am leaving US in a few days and won't be back for a while, so I could not wait for a new one. But yeah, if you wait a bit, you might save some money if it drops more, although its already dropped quite a bit, but who knows...

I've thought about this issue before and come to the initially conclusion that the marks left behind wouldn't matter because of the fact that you can only see them under the right conditions (angle of light). But after I did a screen cleaning I discovered how much more crisp and clean it appeared. It's just a little thing to notice that you don't have to be able to see the actual finger marks for the screen to be less clear and crisp. :)