Today I am writing to you from Greece, and between sipping frappes and laying on beaches, I promised myself that I would do as much writing as possible during My Big Fat Greek Family Vacation.
If you know anything about Greece…it’s really hot here, and truthly most of the day we are not really able to do much because the sun is too intense. So during a handul of hours in the middle of the day, we are left to nap, read, write, or do whatever we want that requires as little effort as possible. I have already finished 1 book and I’ve barely been here 48 hours! Which brings me to our topic of today…
Is buying a Kindle worth it?
I do have to mention that the Kindle I have was gifted to me by a lovely friend who knew I was on the fence about spending the money, but knew I needed to join the Kindle team.
I won’t even lie to you here, I’m completely biased now that I have a Kindle, and truthfully don’t have many cons to share but I’ll do my best to share my honest thoughts.
Pros
Compact and simple design
Kindles come in a limited array of styles and (sort of) sizes, but on the whole they are very compact and easy to carry with you. No matter what style of Kindle you choose, you will definitely get one that has a very easy interface to maneuver, and can fit in virtually any work bag, purse or backpack. It’s ability to be with you at all times makes for easy and convenient reading on the go, which I think is the best feature of Kindles. I barely take a trip to the grocery store without mine, ya know, just in case!
New features to solve all problems
Kindles now have so many new features to them, that likely solves a wide variety of issues readers may face. Reading in the dark? No problem, you can do that now without a booklight. But what about eye strain? Well night mode adjusts the lighting of the Kindle to sway yellow, protecting you from eye strain, and you can also shift from reading on light and dark mode, much like your phone does. Aren’t sure what that word means? You can also highlight words and dictionary search them right on the device, or highlight entire phrases to refer to later. What if you always need to buy books with a large font? Well no problem either, because you can adjust the font size of any book, at any time, even down to the very font style if you aren’t vibing with it. Books are now more than portals to new places, they can look exactly how we want them too as well.
Endless reading options
I’m kind of hoping this one is obvious…but you can quite literally read everything and anything on here, as long as it comes in an ebook format. With Amazon books, Kindle Unlimited memberships, hell you can even loan books from your local library on your Kindle. The options are trully endless for you. If you know that you read a ton, Kindle Unlimited might be worth the $12/month for endless bliss. You can buy books as desired, download samples if you aren’t sure, return books you don’t like and everything is organized exactly how you want it to be.
Endless decorating options
I have yet to fully join the Kindle case designing club (I have seen every tiktok though for inspiration), but as long as you have access to craft supplies or your favorite Kindle case sites, you can have a fun, colorful (or not), completely personalized Kindle case to showcase your individual personality and reading flavors.
Easy to reset and regift
If you find that the Kindle life really isn’t for you, Kindles make great options for regifting if you have friends that won’t stick their nose up to a preloved item. Like most electronics, you can wipe the memory and storage of the device back to factory settings, and pass along your unwanted Kindle to the next person to give it more love. You can also resell it if you want! There are lots of people willing to buy a used Kindle on sites like EBay.
Cons
Like anything…it’s an investment
Kindles are often at realtively decent price points, but like anything it’s an investment. Within a certain amount of time you can return your Kindle for full price, but if for some reason you can’t, you have to eat that cost. Even with the convenience, Kindle Unlimited is a monthly investment unless you cancel. So for all the positives of owning a Kindle, you really just have to determine if that cost is worth it to you.
Doesn’t have that awesome book smell
Listen, I told you that I would do my best to find a fault in owning a Kindle, and the best I could do it tell you that it will never have that book smell we all know and love. It’s a small hunk of plastic, we can’t expect everything from it!
Now that I’ve joined the strong and mightly Kindle collective, I’ll never be able to leave. Trust me, my physical book list is just as long and I enjoy my physical books at home, but when it comes to commuting to work or travelling, I’ll pick my Kindle every time. I’m sure there are even more aspects of the Kindle that I could go into, but the technology behind it doesn’t matter to me as much as how it fits in my life and preferences. My Kindle has my heart, and if you’re ever on the fence of deciding to go for it, I suggest that you do! Or if you have friends and family that are gift givers, put this at the top of your list and cross your fingers.
Happy reading, and I hope everyone has a good weekend. I still plan to post regularly during my travels, but while in Greece, you never know what will happen 🙂
A Series of Observations 