Do you find yourself overspending with your Kindle? - Page 4

Sporadic · 03-11-2009, 06:44 PM

I recieved my Kindle 1 on the 7th....and I already spent $60 on books

Of course that should slow down after I get the majority of my wants out of the way but it's been hard to tell myself to actually read the books I have before buying more.

NavyDad6 · 03-11-2009, 06:54 PM

The Kindle marketing guys at Amazon are all getting bonuses...

Alisa · 03-11-2009, 08:44 PM

So I'm curious. Why are so many people buying books without reading the samples first?

badgoodDeb · 03-11-2009, 08:56 PM

Old habits die hard? That's how we are USED to book shopping. (no, not me. I've learned to not buy till I'm ready for the 2nd chapter of the sample I started to read.)

Alisa · 03-11-2009, 08:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by badgoodDeb

Old habits die hard? That's how we are USED to book shopping. (no, not me. I've learned to not buy till I'm ready for the 2nd chapter of the sample I started to read.)

I guess so. When my cousin first got her Kindle, she immediately started buying her favorite books. She had them in paper copy. It never would have occurred to me to do that but she's more of a collector type than I am. She wanted to build a collection of books even if it wasn't something people could physically see on the shelf.

fugazied · 03-11-2009, 11:34 PM

A little bit, mainly because purchasing with it is so easy.
I have quite a backlog of books to read now, so I guess when I hit 20 books on my todo list I'll slow down!

proust · 03-12-2009, 08:33 AM

I have about 40 titles on my Kindle, and only 2 of them are from Amazon. If you go to Feedbooks, or other public domain repositories, you'll find great books (and interesting oddities) that are free. Right now I'm in the middle of Moby Dick, a book I never read in school (already knew how it ended.) I wouldn't want to read most of the Amazon best seller list, but if Amazon does digitize all of its stock (including my little book) I will certainly be spending more there. Until then, it's back to the classics. At least now I know where the name "Starbuck" came from...

kevindorsey · 03-12-2009, 07:36 PM

I don't see a point in buying the books again if I have them in papercopy. I think I enjoy reading a good paperback as much as the kindle, but I like the convenience of kindle and how it allows me to read it in different situations and places.

desertgrandma · 03-12-2009, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by proust

I have about 40 titles on my Kindle, and only 2 of them are from Amazon. If you go to Feedbooks, or other public domain repositories, you'll find great books (and interesting oddities) that are free. Right now I'm in the middle of Moby Dick, a book I never read in school (already knew how it ended.) I wouldn't want to read most of the Amazon best seller list, but if Amazon does digitize all of its stock (including my little book) I will certainly be spending more there. Until then, it's back to the classics. At least now I know where the name "Starbuck" came from...

Welcome to MobileRead, Proust.

Did you know we offer an extensive library for free here? Over 10,000 books as of today......Click the little "e-books" tab.........

NavyDad6 · 03-12-2009, 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alisa

So I'm curious. Why are so many people buying books without reading the samples first?

The books that I have bought from Amazon are ones that I held off on buying until my Kindle 2 arrived. I had already flipped through them at Borders and was sure that I wanted them.

Although the sample feature is nice, I don't want to waste my time on reading the first couple of chapters of a book that I won't finish. I would rather peruse a bookstore and find what I like and see if Amazon had the Kindle version available.

rixte · 03-12-2009, 09:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sirbruce

Download lots of free books you want to read. It's harder to spent $10 on a new book when there are 100 old books you want to read just sitting there...

I wish that was the case for me! I'm loving the luxury of having so many books immediately available after I finish a book - but I still want to add more and more to that pile.

So at best I'm trying to make mini-pacts with myself - that I won't buy anything new until I've read xyz books already on my Kindle.

And I have about 10 on my fictionwise wishlist right now I'm probably going to buy before the weekend is up.

rixte · 03-12-2009, 09:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alisa

So I'm curious. Why are so many people buying books without reading the samples first?

I do send a lot of samples to my Kindle, but I'll buy books outright based on either the author or by trusted recommendation. I prefer that to the actual sample, actually, because for me, the first 10 pages or so *might* warn me if I'll absolutely hate and detest the book, but not if I'll enjoy it.

But I do the sample thing if I am just browsing. More than anything else, I use it as a wish list feature.

Alisa · 03-13-2009, 03:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NavyDad6

The books that I have bought from Amazon are ones that I held off on buying until my Kindle 2 arrived. I had already flipped through them at Borders and was sure that I wanted them.

Although the sample feature is nice, I don't want to waste my time on reading the first couple of chapters of a book that I won't finish. I would rather peruse a bookstore and find what I like and see if Amazon had the Kindle version available.

I don't feel obligated to finish samples. I only keep reading if I like it. When I'm in a book store, I might read a couple pages. I've found many samples where I've read a couple pages and and then found out 20 pages later it was tiresome. I would have bought the book had I been reading it in book store and regretted it later. The beauty of the sample for me is that it's much longer than I would read at the store since I can read it at my leisure. Months can go by before I read it. I'm not limited by how long I want to read standing in the aisle of the store with a limited time to shop and thinking about other books I want to check out while I'm in shopping mode. I just send myself samples and the next time I'm between books I pick whichever looks most interesting. I read until I decide I don't like it, or I don't want to read it now but may want to later, or I like it and want to read it. Sometimes that's a paragraph. Usually it's a few pages just like it is at the store. But even if I think I like it and will almost definitely buy it, I keep going to the end of the sample. I'll jump off early, but I leave the commitment until the last second. Unless I'm leaving the country and will be out of Whispernet range, there's no reason to buy early. It just increases the chances of a regretted purchase.

stoogeswoman · 03-13-2009, 12:24 PM

I think I found a way to curtail my spending - open a separate checking account (with check card/VISA) (either at your own bank or at an online one like ING direct) and make that your payment option for your Kindle stuff. Of course, for it to really work, you would have to delete all your other active payment options, so Amazon won't just default to one of them; also remember to keep the checking account balance at whatever their minimum is.

But still - it just might work! Whaddya think?

stoogeswoman · 03-13-2009, 12:26 PM

I think I found a way to curtail my spending - open a separate checking account (with check card/VISA) (either at your own bank or at an online one like ING direct) and make that your payment option for your Kindle stuff. Of course, for it to really work, you would have to delete all your other active payment options, so Amazon won't just default to one of them; also remember to keep the checking account balance at whatever their minimum is.

But still - it just might work! Whaddya think?

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03-11-2009, 06:44 PM	#46
Sporadic Banned Posts: 427 Karma: 2690 Join Date: Feb 2009 Device: Kindle 1	I recieved my Kindle 1 on the 7th....and I already spent $60 on books Of course that should slow down after I get the majority of my wants out of the way but it's been hard to tell myself to actually read the books I have before buying more.

03-11-2009, 06:54 PM	#47
NavyDad6 Reading is FUNdamental Posts: 233 Karma: 1516 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: WA state Device: Kindle 2	The Kindle marketing guys at Amazon are all getting bonuses...

03-11-2009, 08:44 PM	#48
Alisa Gadget Geek Posts: 2,324 Karma: 22221 Join Date: Aug 2007 Device: Paperwhite, Kindle 3 (retired), Skindle 1.2 (retired)	So I'm curious. Why are so many people buying books without reading the samples first?

03-11-2009, 08:56 PM	#49
badgoodDeb Grand Sorcerer Posts: 8,550 Karma: 64462893 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Harrisburg outskirts Device: Palms, K1-4s, iPads, iPhones, KV, KO1	Old habits die hard? That's how we are USED to book shopping. (no, not me. I've learned to not buy till I'm ready for the 2nd chapter of the sample I started to read.)

03-11-2009, 11:34 PM	#51
fugazied Wizard Posts: 1,305 Karma: 1958 Join Date: Jan 2009 Device: iPod Touch	A little bit, mainly because purchasing with it is so easy. I have quite a backlog of books to read now, so I guess when I hit 20 books on my todo list I'll slow down!

03-12-2009, 08:33 AM	#52
proust Junior Member Posts: 1 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2009 Device: Kindle 2	I have about 40 titles on my Kindle, and only 2 of them are from Amazon. If you go to Feedbooks, or other public domain repositories, you'll find great books (and interesting oddities) that are free. Right now I'm in the middle of Moby Dick, a book I never read in school (already knew how it ended.) I wouldn't want to read most of the Amazon best seller list, but if Amazon does digitize all of its stock (including my little book) I will certainly be spending more there. Until then, it's back to the classics. At least now I know where the name "Starbuck" came from...

03-12-2009, 07:36 PM	#53
kevindorsey Evangelist Posts: 488 Karma: 258 Join Date: Mar 2009 Device: kindle	I don't see a point in buying the books again if I have them in papercopy. I think I enjoy reading a good paperback as much as the kindle, but I like the convenience of kindle and how it allows me to read it in different situations and places.

03-13-2009, 12:24 PM	#59
stoogeswoman Zealot Posts: 149 Karma: 492 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Reseda, CA Device: eBookwise 1150 and Kindle 1	I think I found a way to curtail my spending - open a separate checking account (with check card/VISA) (either at your own bank or at an online one like ING direct) and make that your payment option for your Kindle stuff. Of course, for it to really work, you would have to delete all your other active payment options, so Amazon won't just default to one of them; also remember to keep the checking account balance at whatever their minimum is. But still - it just might work! Whaddya think?

03-13-2009, 12:26 PM	#60
stoogeswoman Zealot Posts: 149 Karma: 492 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Reseda, CA Device: eBookwise 1150 and Kindle 1	I think I found a way to curtail my spending - open a separate checking account (with check card/VISA) (either at your own bank or at an online one like ING direct) and make that your payment option for your Kindle stuff. Of course, for it to really work, you would have to delete all your other active payment options, so Amazon won't just default to one of them; also remember to keep the checking account balance at whatever their minimum is. But still - it just might work! Whaddya think?