Sunday, February 8, 2009

Why My Kindle is Going to Bankrupt Me

I love my Kindle. Let me say that again…I LOVE MY KINDLE!! I love my Kindle but it is going to bankrupt me.

How you might ask? It is too easy to download a new book…anytime…anywhere. I already have my Amazon account set up and so all I have to do is click Buy on any book I want. $6 here, $8 there… It’s starting to add up.

In the long run my Kindle should actually save me money. Books are much cheaper in Kindle format, especially if you are purchasing a brand new book. Titles are never more than $9.99, even when they are $20 on the shelf. Most classics you can download for free on the internet, or really cheap on Amazon (less than a dollar).

Sometimes, however, I pay more for a title in Kindle format than I would if I bought it used on Amazon. Take the series I am currently reading. They are costing me $6 on Kindle, but can be bought used for around a dollar. With shipping, that usually adds up to somewhere around four bucks. However, I like reading books on my Kindle and I have some OCD issues when it comes to reading a book that other people have read. I don’t know what kind of germs might be on used books. Gross.

The big problem is accessibility. One night I downloaded the next book in the series I am reading at two in the morning. I don’t have to wait to go to the story or wait for an online purchase to arrive in the mail. In less than one minute, I have a brand new book ready for me to read. I love that! And that is what is going to bankrupt me. I am buying more books than I would normally buy.

On the flip side… I spend well over a hundred dollars at Barnes and Noble alone every year. I have a membership and when I get in that store, I am libel to spend close to a hundred dollars on books that just speak to me. “Take me home” they say. I don’t know how many coffee table books I have bought over the years that I won’t read. I find them in the bargain aisle and just can’t walk away. I don’t even have a coffee table anymore. I think I’m going to let my B&N membership run out (I really only use it on Starbucks a few times a year now that I have my Kindle), and try to stay away from the bargain aisle!

So, I don’t know… You tell me.

2 comments:

Holly said...

And this is the number 1 reason I'm not buying a Kindle. There is just no way I could control my spending if it was THAT easy to buy books.

Gifts of Nature said...

I'm really bummed because they just came out with the new Kindle2 today and I'm stuck with the old version. Maybe I'll be ready for a new one when they come out with Kindle3 in a few years...