Kindle for PC Review

I rarely write reviews or promote products unless I find them to be top-notch. And while I am easily amused, it takes a lot to impress me to the point of making a recommendation. But today, I would like to talk about Kindle for the PC. I don’t know when it was developed, but I just discovered it*—and it’s free. Free is good. I’m not a cheapskate, but I do like value. In my opinion, the regular Kindle is too over priced. I’d love to have one and if they lower the price to $59 or even $99, I’ll have one.

I hate reading on the computer. I do. I absolutely loathe it. Give me a book or magazine any day. I do most of my research in books and magazines. Knowing this about myself, I’m skeptical of the Kindle and I was skeptical of Kindle for the PC, but I downloaded the PC version. I also discovered a number of free titles at the Kindle store (many are literary classics). I downloaded some of those too. Being the skeptic and hating to read on the computer, I decided that free was the way to go. If I don’t like it, I’ve lost nothing.

I have to admit it’s a nice surprise. The Kindle PC interface is extremely simple—no bells and whistles or distractions. That’s a plus in my book. Being somewhat of an ADHD-Bi-Polar-Paranoid-Schizophrenic, I don’t need anything that distracts me. That’s a joke; I’m not paranoid.

Kindle PC has simple Home, Back, Bookmark and GoTo buttons on the reading page. You can also increase or decrease the font size. My eyes enjoy a good sized font, and I’ve found the default setting to be perfect.

Downloading a book takes less than 60 seconds with a good connection. The books load pretty quickly and you can scroll the pages with your mouse wheel or the arrow keys on your keyboard. I use the mouse wheel; it’s the best thing since—the invention of the mouse itself.

I may never like reading on the computer screen, but in all honesty, Kindle PC is very nice. And since it’s free, you can’t go wrong. After trying several of the free books, and enjoying how easy Kindle PC is on the eyes, I have since purchased several books.

The ability to purchase and download a book in less than a minute is fabulous—it really is. I honestly didn’t think I’d enjoy it, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised. If you haven’t downloaded Kindle for the PC, I highly recommend it. I think you’ll enjoy it immensely. It doesn’t replace the feel of a real book in your hands, but if you don’t mind reading on a computer screen—you’ll love it. If you hate to read on a computer screen, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised too.

*I discovered that I’m not that far behind on the times. Kindle PC was released last month.

Try it out! Kindle for PC

Image courtesy: Amazon.com

Written by Patti Stafford from Patti Stafford
Posted on December 9th, 2009 and filed under Writing
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