I recently acquired a Kindle. And I own thousands of books. I like the Kindle for several reasons, not the least of which is 1) the portability of a large quantity of books 2) the amount of books that are available for free 3) the ability to acquire a book at 4:30 am, which seems to be when I’m most interested in reading these days.
There are a vast number of books that to me are “throw away” books. I will read them once, and then never pick them up again. I will not refer back to them for any reason. I may lend them out, but I never want them to find their way home again. For this type of reading, the Kindle is perfect.
The other nice thing about the Kindle is the consistency of the font size and that it’s a sans serif face. It seems that every paperback version of a classic that I own is in a serif face in 8 point font, with a tight line spacing. It’s almost impossible to track across the page in a paperback. I like that it comes with two dictionaries, and that you can make notes as you read.
I love that it’s not backlit. I use Google Scholar and Books a lot, and reading on a backlit screen is miserable. I tried reading on an iPad, and found the weight and size disconcerting, as well as the lighting.
I don’t think it’s a one or the other choice.