Need Some Opinions Please

[cat in a bag]

I am supposed to be ordering myself a new kindle today. But I am having problems deciding! (And, I'm playing around here.)

I have narrowed it down to the Fire HD, at it's new lower price and the Paperwhite. I like the idea of having the added bells and whistles that the Fire is capable of, but I don't really need that. The biggest drawback to the Fire for me is the LED screen. I am worried it will be too much strain on my eyes. I don't really enjoy reading for long periods on my computer.

The Paperwhite has the e-ink and the matte screen which I am really sold on, that is what the kindle I am replacing has. But it has less memory (by half) than the kindle I have. That is the drawback on that model for me. I know everything is kept in a cloud, but I like having everything there.

The price for the 16 GB Fire HD model and the Paperwhite + a cover would be about the same, so price isn't really a factor between the two. Opinions? Comments?

 

[Dana Jean]

I have never even heard of Paperwhite.

 

[Spideyman]

I have the original Kindle Fire( with backlight). As with any LED screen there is a glare when reading outside. I generally adjust the way I am holding it to get rid of the glare. Ck out the reviews for the FireHD and paperwhite. There are many discussion as to glare. Good luck.

 

[skimom2]

I have to read a lot of the books I review on-screen (cheaper for publishers than hard copies, the barstards) and I despise it, so I choose real books whenever possible Still, my daughter has the paperwhite & loves it--says the matte screen and ability to choose font size, etc are really nice on that model.

 

[xkittyx]

I have the Fire HD, and I like it lots. But I use it as my only means of getting online, checking email, as a tablet mostly. Only sometimes read ebooks on it. I agree that the screen bugs the eyes after long periods, just like with a computer, so if you're going to use it just for a reader, I'd go with the Paperwhite

 

[Out of Order]

I have never even heard of Paperwhite.

Paperwhites.........

My kids love their kindles CAT. My daughter really likes to read on hers. They are last year's Fire versions....

 

[Dana Jean]

ooo, pretty

 

[Jordan]

E-ink is much easier on the eyes, easier to read in direct sunlight, and sports a much longer battery life. I personally use a Sony eReader, but the Paperwhite is a good reader. Have you considered the Nook SimpleTouch Glowlight? It's possible to load Kindle books onto a Nook, but you have to do it a roundabout way. Check out Calibre for ebook management, regardless of which ebook you decide upon.

 

[Cowboy]

I still read books....can't help with the fancy schmancy gadgets.

 

[ghost19]

I've got the Nook tablet, very easy on the eyes. There is a free book reader app called Aldiko that I have on my Nook. It allows you to customize brightness and glare on the screen by using the left side of the screen as a slider control, very helpful for reading in a bright room or at night.

 

[fljoe0]

Cat,

I think it just depends on what you want the kindle for. If all you want to do is read books, then I'd go with the paperwhite. If you want the other stuff, go with the Fire. I have the paperwhite and all I really want to do is read books, so I'm fine with that. I do occasionally wish I had the fire so I could download a magazine subscription though. I love the readability of the paperwhite.

 

[cat in a bag]

Cat,

I think it just depends on what you want the kindle for. If all you want to do is read books, then I'd go with the paperwhite. If you want the other stuff, go with the Fire. I have the paperwhite and all I really want to do is read books, so I'm fine with that. I do occasionally wish I had the fire so I could download a magazine subscription though. I love the readability of the paperwhite.

Is the lower memory a factor for you with the paperwhite? I really think I'm leaning that way.

 

[fljoe0]

Is the lower memory a factor for you with the paperwhite? I really think I'm leaning that way.

No it's not a problem. Everything is in the cloud but I'm like you and like to have the books on my device. I still have my old kindle, so I keep a lot of the stuff on that. If you have another kindle, you don't have to deactivate it. You can have as many as you like. Still, there is more than enough drive space on the paperwhite for everything I have. I only have books and they don't take much space.

 

[fljoe0]

Check out Calibre for ebook management, regardless of which ebook you decide upon.

I use that and it is a great program for making your own e-reader documents. Many times if there is a very long article on the internet (like from a magazine site), I will just make a kindle document out of it and read it on the kindle. I can't read long documents on my computer screen.

 

[Autumnlyn]

I used to have the old Nook with e-ink and loved it. I was VERY dubious about getting the new backlit Nook...but now I LOVE IT! No more searching for a clip on light or having the bedside light on. The one drawback is trying to read in the direct sunlight. Good luck!

 

[Walter Oobleck]

Other than having an amazon-kindle, I'm clueless, so I'm not much help. There's issues w/memory? Have had mine for about two or three years now and have...approximately 2-300 stories on it. How much memory do they have? I figured the battery would give out or I'd drop spaghetti sauce on it and foul the buttons long before the memory is full. I'll be wandering the aisle of the mall if you want more advice that isn't advice...just questions. (This is my first post here on the new board...oh la.)

 

[fljoe0]

Other than having an amazon-kindle, I'm clueless, so I'm not much help. There's issues w/memory? Have had mine for about two or three years now and have...approximately 2-300 stories on it. How much memory do they have? I figured the battery would give out or I'd drop spaghetti sauce on it and foul the buttons long before the memory is full. I'll be wandering the aisle of the mall if you want more advice that isn't advice...just questions. (This is my first post here on the new board...oh la.)

Books don't take up a lot of space and the kindles have quite a bit of space. When you plug your kindle into your computer, it will show up as another hard drive and you can tell how much space you are using.

 

[Walter Oobleck]

Books don't take up a lot of space and the kindles have quite a bit of space. When you plug your kindle into your computer, it will show up as another hard drive and you can tell how much space you are using.

Okay, I'm plugged in...didn't realize you could do that. (Probably be less exasperating to you for me to say thank you...) Does that what someone said earlier...something about 16gb mean memory? I think I'll stick w/shovels and my hammer. Looks like I'm charging my kindle over USB now...the little screen tells me so...suggests I eject my kindle from my computer. Like today, earlier this evening? I'm checking the brake fluid on the 150? Have a leak, needs fluid, so on so forth. Lid pops off after I thought I screwed it back on, dropped down into the engine...it is raining. I'm late. The bumper is slippery...have to use the flashlight to see into the engine...used a stick to try to push the brake fluid container lid off the bug chunk of rusty metal? Only...it gets wedged somewhere darker, less accessible. I have to pull out the hi-lift jack from behind the seat...easily imagining the truck falling on me as I crawl in the muck to fetch my lid. Why does life have to be so confusing?

 

[FlakeNoir]

Okay, I'm plugged in...didn't realize you could do that. (Probably be less exasperating to you for me to say thank you...) Does that what someone said earlier...something about 16gb mean memory? I think I'll stick w/shovels and my hammer. Looks like I'm charging my kindle over USB now...the little screen tells me so...suggests I eject my kindle from my computer. Like today, earlier this evening? I'm checking the brake fluid on the 150? Have a leak, needs fluid, so on so forth. Lid pops off after I thought I screwed it back on, dropped down into the engine...it is raining. I'm late. The bumper is slippery...have to use the flashlight to see into the engine...used a stick to try to push the brake fluid container lid off the bug chunk of rusty metal? Only...it gets wedged somewhere darker, less accessible. I have to pull out the hi-lift jack from behind the seat...easily imagining the truck falling on me as I crawl in the muck to fetch my lid. Why does life have to be so confusing?

Scary! Very Halloweenish brake-lube job... (And can't you just envision the movie version?)

 

[hipmamajen]

I ADORE my Kindle Fire HD. I don't have any problems with the screen, and I do have issues with reading on a computer.

I thought all the extras that it comes with would be stupid, but I find myself enjoying them. I can even check the SKMB from it really easily!

I had an earlier Kindle with the e-ink, and it was great, too. But MAN I love the Fire!