More e-books bought with a Kindle?

[desertblues]

Since I've got my Kindle, I've bought and download more e-books than before.
My first e-reader was an iLiad and I bought some books, but it was rather expensive, so I downloaded lots of free classic books.

But now, in the evening, I often sit with my iPad; look at the guy under the tree in the Kindle apps; night is falling, stars appear. Then I go to ' Shop in Kindle Store' and there it is: it welcomes me ' hello, Desertblues' , we have recommendations for you'.

I know, it is marketing, but hard to resist. So I look at the recommendations: yes, there's one I want. Hm, under 10 dollars, even less in euros; here I go----one click away from book-bliss. …..and again and again.

I try to keep a check on things and will download a few free books; also recommendated. When downloading these, I feel very sensible.
The expensive ones go on my wish-list.

But in all, in spite of the low book-prices of Amazon, I find me spending more money on e-books than before (not to mention the Oberon-covers) and I wonder: am I the only one? What are your experiences? Can you all keep a hold on yourselves ?

[jgumphress]

I know what you mean Desertblues. First of all I thought I never needed, or wanted, a Kindle in the first place. But when I was offered a deal I couldn't refuse on a DX I bought it. Now I have over a hundred books in it, manny of hich I may or may not ever read. But ther're all mine and I love my Kindle.

[Wasabihound]

Hi Desertblues

I sympathise. For a while the idea of even replacing my paper books with e-books went (very briefly) through my mind.

Hitting that BUY NOW button is very tempting.

I used to order my books from the UK (I live in Australia and it is still cheaper to get them from half-way across the world but that's another story). Now at the click of a button I get a book delivered straight to my Kindle (and I can read the same book on my iPhone and Mac), and the books are generally cheaper than Australian ones (still) esp at the moment with the strong Aussie dollar - a $10 US E-book is half the price of an Australian paperback.

Now I put things in my wishlist and feed my urge to buy books by ordering sample chapters instead...a bit like taking a shot instead of drinking the whole bottle.

One day at a time, one day at a time.

[Josieb1]

I had two Sony ereaders before my Kindle, in the 18 months I owned them I probably bought 40 DRM free books (I read fan fiction so I already had a ready supply of PDF's to read) but since I have had my Kindle, which is only two months i have bought over 135 Kindle books.

Initially it was replacing a lot of my paper backs and now I put books on my wish list and buy them when the price drops, my impulse buy price is around £3.00 now.

But worse than that is the fact that I bought a wifi Kindle first, then bought a second one, a 3G! And I also have two lighted covers!

And I want an oberon cover as well....................

[reech]

Yup - more books bought in my first month of Kindle3 than in 6 months of Sony use. Pre-order is the thing for me - I can pre-order my books - and they have appeared the day of release.

I was overjoyed when the most recent 'Thomas Covenenat' book turned up early the other day!

[desertblues]

Originally Posted by Josieb1

I had two Sony ereaders before my Kindle, in the 18 months I owned them I probably bought 40 DRM free books (I read fan fiction so I already had a ready supply of PDF's to read) but since I have had my Kindle, which is only two months i have bought over 135 Kindle books.

Initially it was replacing a lot of my paper backs and now I put books on my wish list and buy them when the price drops, my impulse buy price is around £3.00 now.

But worse than that is the fact that I bought a wifi Kindle first, then bought a second one, a 3G! And I also have two lighted covers!

And I want an oberon cover as well....................

What you say: I've been thinking about saving for a Kindle -DX for my PDF's, with an Oberon-cover Black Wild Roses.

edit: I just love Thomas Covenant; must have read these books a dozen times over the years. Like Frank Herberts; Dune.

[mldavis2]

I've, so far, resisted the temptation to load up on books I'll never have time to read. I tend to be a 'collector' and I'm aware of the tendency to hoard things I never use, so maybe I'm using a bit of over-compensation.

I've only had my K3 a week now. Read Mary Shelley's 'Frankenstein', Bram Stoker's 'Dracula' and looking to switch to Sci-Fi for a change of pace. I'm also working on the complete works of Poe, off and on.

But my wife still reads paper, and the new books she buys are reducing the eBooks I read. Next up is the new book by Condelezza Rice "Extraordinary, Ordinary People" which will take me away from the K3 for a day or two.

I guess I don't (yet) see the point of having 3,500 books in my Kindle when my life expectancy isn't long enough to read that many based on my yearly totals. I'm never far from either my laptop or desktop computers, so what's the rush to download? Grab a bargain, sure, but accumulate loads of titles to impress my friends? Don't think so....

[Mike L]

Originally Posted by desertblues

Since I've got my Kindle, I've bought and download more e-books than before.

What would be really interesting is to know if you buy more books now than you did back when books were only available in paper? In other words, has owning an e-reader meant that you are reading more than before?

It has for me. Because it's so much easier now to obtain books, I'm more diversified in what I read. I've discovered many authors I didn't know before, and have generally improved the range of my reading.

[mldavis2]

For me, it should increase my purchases. I am now retired with far more time to read. Also, using the K3 has increased my reading speed. I'm not sure why -- perhaps a combination of page turning speed and the flat screen legibility instead of handling a book with a stiff binding. As others have said, it has also brought me online and exposed me to many authors of potential interest that I never would have considered in paper.

[desertblues]

Originally Posted by Mike L

What would be really interesting is to know if you buy more books now than you did back when books were only available in paper? In other words, has owning an e-reader meant that you are reading more than before?

It has for me. Because it's so much easier now to obtain books, I'm more diversified in what I read. I've discovered many authors I didn't know before, and have generally improved the range of my reading.

I've always bought far too many books and still do, even with e-books. I'm afraid that hasn't changed. Always read a lot.
But I think I have to watch my books-budget more carefully, as with the system of ' one-click' , no actual money seems to change hands.

As for diversity: Mobile Read and Feedbooks guides of free public domain books have a lot of classics that I didn't know yet. And I also have rediscovered a lot of the classics I knew; the ones I read at 17 years of age have another meaning to me, now when I'm a bit older.
If I were sensible (which I'm not), I would stick to these books, because where else can one get free classic books?

[OakIris]

Originally Posted by desertblues

I've always bought far too many books and still do, even with e-books. I'm afraid that hasn't changed. Always read a lot.
But I think I have to watch my books-budget more carefully, as with the system of ' one-click' , no actual money seems to change hands.

As for diversity: Mobile Read and Feedbooks guides of free public domain books have a lot of classics that I didn't know yet. And I also have rediscovered a lot of the classics I knew; the ones I read at 17 years of age have another meaning to me, now when I'm a bit older.
If I were sensible (which I'm not), I would stick to these books, because where else can one get free classic books?

This seems to be my pattern, also. I have always been an avid reader - my one true addiction, I guess (oh, that and beer ) so I can't say that the Kindle has influenced me to read more than before. I have hundreds of paperbacks/hardbacks that I haven't yet read, and now I am collecting books on my Kindle.

The Kindle makes collecting even easier because most, though not all, of the books I've been getting are free. (I don't even want to think of all the money I have spent on paper books during my life. ) Like desertblues, I find myself revisiting classics I read long ago, or picking up those that I never got around to because they're free and "should" be read.

Holly

[emalvick]

Have I bought more books? Yes and No. To an extent I have bought more books, but in line with others I have been a hoarder (I still have paper books to read), and that Kindle Store is very tempting.

However, I have also learned to discipline myself a bit. Besides an initial infuse of books and a gathering of a lot of freebies (classics, promos, etc), I am learning to use a wishlist to control my spending, especially on books over $5. It isn't that I won't buy them, it's that I am forcing myself to read what I own before buying unless I am really in the mood or just need to read it right now.

Those darned $2.99 books, though, might just keep me from ever getting to that wish-list. I need to start adding them to the wish-list, too.

I do find I read more and faster with the Kindle. I'm not sure why, but with paper books, I found it was always making me sleepy, and reading was a bit of a chore, even when I liked the book. Now, I seem more energetic, and I look forward to reading.

[JeremyR]

Less for me.

The majority of the books I bought were re-prints of old public domain books.

For newer stuff, I use the library. Heck, I'd probably use it for older stuff as well, but they don't really have anything before 2000 anymore, much less books from the 20s and 30s.

Besides, being poor, I simply can't ever afford to buy something on impulse. Every time I buy from Amazon it's either because I stop and buy a gift card, or trade in my change at a Coinstar for Amazon credit (no counting fees)

[cuteseal]

As you say, Amazon makes it very compelling and easy for one to buy books - the recommendations based on your browsing history, past purchases etc. and 1 click purchase is just superb. Also, there is a wealth of reader reviews which gives you great confidence what the book will be like.

I also love the huge community and discussion boards - filled with recommendations, many from indie authors. The whole indie community is another bonus - there are a lot of quality books priced very affordably, and you can often pick up a few good reads for less than the price of a cup of coffee.

Finally, it's amazing how Amazon keeps giving away the promotional freebies - it's a great lure to bring you back to their site again and again, which will lead to incidental purchases.