Slow death of Kindle?

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

I probably won't be, either. I might make an exception if Amazon releases a new Oasis-like model, with buttons; but even then I'd think long and hard, because I dislike both the Kindle software and ecosystem. Otherwise, no Kindles for me ever again.

If Amazon released another Kindle with buttons, would you really want it given that eBooks downloaded to it won't be able to have the DRM removed?

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by cellaris

As long as Send to Kindle exists, I will continue to consider it an open system, at least when it comes to reading e-books. In other areas (such as customisation options), it has always been a closed system. Little has changed since its inception. Perhaps the most positive development was allowing users to install their own fonts, something that happened many years ago. In other respects, it remains faithful to its particular way of understanding e-readers. I find Kindle e-readers attractive because they suit my preferences and I can enjoy a pleasant reading experience without having to do anything extra, but I know that some people keep their Kindles reluctantly. They should let go of their fears and switch to other brands.

Send-to-Kindle does not make the Kindle an open system. It's very much a closed system.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

If Amazon released another Kindle with buttons, would you really want it given that eBooks downloaded to it won't be able to have the DRM removed?

I don't use a physical Kindle for deDRMing.

[kandwo]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Personally, I find that the EInk reading experience has been poorer ever since additional layers were added in front of the E-Ink layer. With a bare E-Ink screen, the 'ink' looks like it's on the surface of the display. With the added layers, it's some small distance 'inside' the display, making it much less like reading on paper. This is even worse with "flush" screens, where there an actual glass sheet in front of the E-Ink display.

I'd love to have an E-Ink reader that used only an infra-red touch screen and no front light instead of a capacitave touch layer and a light layer and a glass cover.

I agree completely!

I read almost exclusively with the frontlight off anyway.

The only device where I really appreciate the flush glass layer and the frontlight is my Bigme Hibreak Pro, which I use as my phone. Obviously, additional protection is great in such cases. But I don't need it when reading at home.

[cellaris]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Send-to-Kindle does not make the Kindle an open system. It's very much a closed system.

99% of the e-books I read come from bookshops other than Amazon. Send to Kindle allows me to conveniently have those books on my Kindle e-readers (obviously removing the DRM beforehand if they have it). I don't care whether it's a closed or open system as long as I can do that. For all practical purposes, it makes no difference to me compared to my other e-readers. I have the same e-books on all of them, no matter how open their system is.

[cellaris]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

That doesn't mean the L/R margins and line height are not too large. They are too large. You have to do some manipulation of KF8 eBooks and use ChareInk7SP in order to get this to a somewhat readable state.

I'll say it again: I have no problem with those margins and line spacing. The problem is yours, not mine. I don't need or want to change the margins or line spacing on my Kindle e-readers. And I don't like the font you mention. I use others.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by cellaris

I'll say it again: I have no problem with those margins and line spacing. The problem is yours, not mine. I don't need or want to change the margins or line spacing on my Kindle e-readers. And I don't like the font you mention. I use others.

The problem is "mine" as well. It's one of the reasons I rarely use a Kindle.

[cellaris]

Originally Posted by rcentros

The problem is "mine" as well. It's one of the reasons I rarely use a Kindle.

Perfect. We don't all have the same preferences. That's why some people use certain e-readers and others use different ones. I use the same margins and line spacing on e-readers where I have Koreader installed (which has countless customisation options) as I do on a Kindle, because those are the ones I like (see attached screenshots). If you or others prefer different margins or line spacing, you will have to look for other options, which is what you have already done. But don't tell me that I have to use the margins, line spacing, or fonts that you like (and I'm not referring to you). Everyone has their own preferences, and it's normal for us not to agree with each other.

If most people buy Kindle e-readers, it's because they prefer them to Kobo, PocketBook or Onyx Boox for whatever reasons they see fit. And those who don't like them have other options on the market based on their preferences. I don't see any problem with that. Those of you who are not satisfied with Kindle say so, and I, who am satisfied with Kindle, say so too. I don't think there's any problem with that either. Everyone contributes their own perspective.

[haertig]

I don't need to sync much, because I always grab my Kindle if I'm planning to read a book. But for the times when I am stuck somewhere out and about, without my Kindle, occasionally I will read on my smart phone or tablet if I have that with me (rare that I would have my tablet but not my Kindle however). But, this does mean that sometimes I benefit from syncing.

I don't let Amazon into my Kindle. Full stop on that. Permanent airplane mode. So any "normal" syncing would be out for me. What I do, is when reading from my Kindle (or other device), I write down a partial sentence from the last page I read in a note taking app on my smart phone (which I always have with me). That note taking app is synced between my devices using a WebDAV server I maintain in my home, not some third party cloud service.

So if I'm ever stuck somewhere, I can grab my smart phone (or tablet) and open that note taking app. I find the partial sentence that marks my current reading location and I do a search for that text string using the devices navigation interface.

Cumbersome? Yeah, you'd probably call it that. I rarely retrieve my reading location from this note taking app, but I update it frequently. After every reading session, unless it was a really short session. It takes me less than 30 seconds to update the note taking app to advance my reading location. That's not a bother to me. And it keeps me covered for "reading emergencies" when I end up twiddling my thumbs somewhere with nothing to do. I can always grab my smart phone and read from there. I don't like reading on a smart phone, but it's better than twiddling your thumbs.

Really, I don't need to sync anything. Since my smart phone is always with me and that's the device where I usually update the reading location on (and also the device I would read from in an "emergency"). I could just keep everything local on the smart phone. But that note taking app is always syncing anyway, for other things besides reading location, so this does give me the option of retrieving my reading location from a tablet, computer, or other device in the even my smart phone battery is dead or something.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by cellaris

I'll say it again: I have no problem with those margins and line spacing. The problem is yours, not mine. I don't need or want to change the margins or line spacing on my Kindle e-readers. And I don't like the font you mention. I use others.

The problem is Amazon's which is why I've never owned a Kindle I've bought from Amazon.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by cellaris

If most people buy Kindle e-readers, it's because they prefer them to Kobo, PocketBook or Onyx Boox for whatever reasons they see fit.

Most people only know about Kindle ereader, and most only buy the books and use only an app.

It's not because they have compared the features.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Quoth

Most people only know about Kindle ereader, and most only buy the books and use only an app.

It's not because they have compared the features.

And they may not like the Kindle layout. But they just have to put up with it.

[cellaris]

Originally Posted by Quoth

Most people only know about Kindle ereader, and most only buy the books and use only an app.

It's not because they have compared the features.

Well, most people could learn about any other brand of e-reader if they wanted to, just as you, I, or any other member of this forum know about them. If they don't, it's because they don't want to, not because they can't. Choosing Kindle without bothering to look at other brands is itself a choice.

But I think you're wrong to assume that they would switch brands if they knew about Kobo, PocketBook or Onyx Boox. There are many people who know about those brands and prefer Kindle. In my country, you can go to MediaMarkt and find Kobo next to Kindle. If you stay there for a while, you'll see that Kindle is the option most people choose. Why? You'd have to ask them or read their reviews to understand. If you only read the opinions on this forum or go by your own experience, you can easily be misled. I've always thought it's a bit presumptuous to believe that people make (bad) choices because they don't know any better.

I like Kindle e-readers for a lot of reasons. I don't know if I prefer them to my other e-readers, Kobo, PocketBook, Tolino, Onyx Boox or Bigme. But I do think they are very good e-readers precisely because I've had the opportunity to compare them.

[cellaris]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

And they may not like the Kindle layout. But they just have to put up with it.

No one has to put up with anything they don't want to. I went several years without buying a Kindle e-reader because I didn't like their models. I went from the Kindle Oasis 6" to the Kindle Paperwhite 5. I wasn't convinced by what came in between, so I didn't buy it (or I returned it).

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by cellaris

If most people buy Kindle e-readers, it's because they prefer them to Kobo, PocketBook or Onyx Boox for whatever reasons they see fit.

I would say that many of the Americans who are purchasing Kindle ereaders never bother to do any research on the available options so they are not even aware that Kobo, PocketBook or any other manufacturer exists. From the comments I've heard over the years, it is almost like listening to the "I'd rather push a <insert car manufacturer of your choice> than drive a <insert other car manufacturer of your choice>" type of thinking. Heck, I've even found many that I have talked to do not realize that most American libraries that supply Amazon format ebooks have a better selection of ePub ebooks.