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She may not have the need for all the buttons. I find I use them mostly when I want to spell out a request for a book or play a game.
One great bonus I found was that collections no longer copyrighted and in the public domain are really inexpensive. I got the collections of Mark Twain, Jules Verne, H.G. Wells, The Illiad, Charles Dickens and various others each for about $1.00-$2.99. The small cost according to my librarian friend who gave me her Kindle hand-me-down is just for the amout of effort it takes for someone to transfer the books to the e-reader.
My 82 year old neighbor who doesn't have a computer and doesn't want one got the hang of my Kindle in just a little bit of time when I showed it to her. She will be asking her kids for a Kindle for Christmas this year.
Like your grandmother, I also go through three or four books per week, but I have yet to think about e-readers because I can borrow literally tens of thousands of books from libraries online without cost. (It also helps when you have friends and relatives in different city/states, each with a library card you can use.) At any given moment, I have between 15-20 books downloaded and ready to read.
I started reading e-books 11 years ago and I have not exhausted the amount of books available for me to borrow yet.
I also have 800 GB, close to 1,800 audiobooks saved in my external hard drive, I just copy them to my iPod when I want to listen to them while doing the chores, when I am outside the house, or when I am falling to sleep. They also do not cost me anything.
If your grandmothers have a computer in the house, perhaps she could begin with e-books before advancing to e-readers. To me, that would be a no-cost alternative, and she may feel more comfortable with a computer than any kind of e-readers.
I have a Kindle and love it -- especially being able to enlarge the print and turn pages so easily. I often read while dining out alone, and it's much easier with a Kindle than with a regular book.
I personally don't even like the touch screen on my smart phone, and there is no way I'd want a touch screen Kindle or camera. I have an elderly friend with rheumatoid arthritis who was asking me which type of Kindle to buy. I think for someone like her, it might actually be easier to use the keys, small as they are than to manipulate the touch screen, as she often doesn't have feeling in her fingers (and gets frustrated VERY easily). Something to consider, I think.
I don't know, it takes a lot less pressure to touch a touch screen than it does to press a physical button down so I think the touch screen would respond quicker and more easily than the keyboard. Which would mean she doesn't have to deal with figuring out how much pressure to use when she has no feeling in her fingers. Touch screens usually respond to the lightest touch. My grandmother had rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis and I think she would have struggled to press the buttons down on the physical keyboard, I would have recommended the touch screen.
And personally, I feel touch screens are more intuitive so I think people who aren't very techy might find them easier to use.
Another who is wondering about this for my 87 year old mother. She can screw up her tv remote like no one I've ever known. Never had so much as an atm card.
Questions
1) buttons vs. touch - on the touch..do you touch symbols for things vs. typing the out or what? My Mother has lived in the US longer than Europe, is good with languages, english etc. but still doesnt spell english very well. Selecting icons would be good as it might minimize typing....or not?
2) what is the foreign language selection like? She reads gooks in english voraciously but occasionally I find someone has given her some old book in russian or german and I think for russian authors in particular (Tolstoy etc.) that would be nice for her.
3) how do you browse for books? I believe its a lot harder to find books to read if you don't have something particular in mind.
e-books is perhaps something to consider as well. You can only check them out from your own particular library or? What would be the best device for her to download and read on?
I don't know, it takes a lot less pressure to touch a touch screen than it does to press a physical button down so I think the touch screen would respond quicker and more easily than the keyboard. Which would mean she doesn't have to deal with figuring out how much pressure to use when she has no feeling in her fingers. Touch screens usually respond to the lightest touch. My grandmother had rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis and I think she would have struggled to press the buttons down on the physical keyboard, I would have recommended the touch screen.
And personally, I feel touch screens are more intuitive so I think people who aren't very techy might find them easier to use.
I am very techy, and I don't find them easier to use at all. If I use the touch pad on my laptop for instance, vs. a mouse, I'm forever accidentally shrinking the type size and opening stuff I didn't want to open. It sometimes works too well, if you know what I mean.
You're right, though, that it could be harder for her to press a small key. In my friend's case, I was thinking of her frustration level. She is not computer savvy and has a -5 patience level.
The negative comments I have seen on the Touch screen (which, I admit, are in the minority of comments) are that, compared to the positive feel of the "click" on the button on the side of older Kindles, the swipe on the screen of the Touch has no tactile/audible reinforcement - plus the page change is slower, leaving you to wonder if the swipe "took" for a moment.
The non-English book selection is nowhere near as comprehensive as the English language, but the Kindle supports English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, German and French characters and data sets.
Another who is wondering about this for my 87 year old mother. She can screw up her tv remote like no one I've ever known. Never had so much as an atm card.
Questions
1) buttons vs. touch - on the touch..do you touch symbols for things vs. typing the out or what? My Mother has lived in the US longer than Europe, is good with languages, english etc. but still doesnt spell english very well. Selecting icons would be good as it might minimize typing....or not?
2) what is the foreign language selection like? She reads gooks in english voraciously but occasionally I find someone has given her some old book in russian or german and I think for russian authors in particular (Tolstoy etc.) that would be nice for her.
3) how do you browse for books? I believe its a lot harder to find books to read if you don't have something particular in mind.
e-books is perhaps something to consider as well. You can only check them out from your own particular library or? What would be the best device for her to download and read on?
Quote:
Originally Posted by PhotogGal
I am very techy, and I don't find them easier to use at all. If I use the touch pad on my laptop for instance, vs. a mouse, I'm forever accidentally shrinking the type size and opening stuff I didn't want to open. It sometimes works too well, if you know what I mean.
You're right, though, that it could be harder for her to press a small key. In my friend's case, I was thinking of her frustration level. She is not computer savvy and has a -5 patience level.
I don'tknow what the kindle is like but my GPS is "touch" and I HATE it. Sometimes the letters dont take beacuse maybe you are touching two at the same time. Sometimes it doubles the letters because maybe you left your hand on it too long. Give me a button keyboard anyday.....
My father is in his 60s, but as his eyesight is not the best he likes the ability to change the font with the Kindle. He has been very happy with it so far.
When it comes to touch screen vs. the keyboard I would just go with whatever you think might be easier for your mother-in-law. There are positive and negatives for both so you just have to go with your gut.
I am very techy, and I don't find them easier to use at all. If I use the touch pad on my laptop for instance, vs. a mouse, I'm forever accidentally shrinking the type size and opening stuff I didn't want to open. It sometimes works too well, if you know what I mean.
You're right, though, that it could be harder for her to press a small key. In my friend's case, I was thinking of her frustration level. She is not computer savvy and has a -5 patience level.
A touch pad is not the same thing as a touch screen.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Giesela
1) buttons vs. touch - on the touch..do you touch symbols for things vs. typing the out or what? My Mother has lived in the US longer than Europe, is good with languages, english etc. but still doesnt spell english very well. Selecting icons would be good as it might minimize typing....or not?
Take a look at some of the photos of the Kindle Touch - Kindle Touch: Touchscreen e-Reader with Wi-Fi, 6" E Ink Display
It's mostly selecting icons or text, unless you want to do a search for something, in which case you obviously need to type out what you want to search for.
You may also want to check out some of the demo videos of the Kindle Touch which shows how it works: kindle touch - YouTube
Alternatively, I think they can also be found in stores like Target - sometimes, there is one on display which you might be able to test drive.
Quote:
2) what is the foreign language selection like? She reads gooks in english voraciously but occasionally I find someone has given her some old book in russian or german and I think for russian authors in particular (Tolstoy etc.) that would be nice for her.
You can check it out for yourself at: Amazon.com: Foreign Language Books
There's a good amount of German but no Russian from what I can tell.
Quote:
3) how do you browse for books? I believe its a lot harder to find books to read if you don't have something particular in mind.
On the Amazon website, you can browse by genre and you can also view recently released books or books "coming soon". You can also do a search for a certain subject. And you can sort the search results different ways with the drop down box in the upper right. There are also third party advanced searches such as Advanced Kindle Book Search | eReaderIQ.com to narrow down other options like price or publisher.
Oh and don't forget that Amazon makes recommendations based on your prior purchases so you can browse among the recommendations. And on each book page, there is a section that says "Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought" - these can also be useful to browse among.
I bought my 82 year old mom a kindle and taught her over the phone. It's pretty easy. Make sure you get a cover for it though because it makes it easier to hold onto without constantly hitting the page buttons on the side.
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