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Yeah, I suppose that's the right way of looking at the advertisement thing ... I was just surprised when I saw that it was a "feature". I never thought about getting an e-reader until a couple days ago and decided to check them out on Amazon. I don't really care about the ads as long as they're not intrusive (like popups are, and ads that freeze or slow down loads). If they're benign, I couldn't really care less.
I probably should have said low enough current instead of voltage. I'll use the lame excuse that I'm not an electrical engineer. If I get a Kindle, I'll probably just charge it via a USB cable to my laptop. I keep the laptop plugged in virtually all the time so if I'm on the golf course, both devices can be charging. Supposedly the battery life is "weeks".
I suppose, philosophically, Amazon is a lot like Walmart ... they might seem to unfairly, or unethically, overtake smaller businesses and (in Amazon's case) local retail. I order a lot from them, but it's almost always things I can't find in a store ... you can find just about anything at Amazon. The recent court ruling allowing states to collect tax on Amazon purchases will help the retail sector, but they still don't collect local city taxes. I wish I'd thought of starting Amazon ....
You can definitely charge via USB to a laptop, and if that works for you you're set.
The reason why I do recommend paying for the charger is that some chargers will show up as "incompatible" with the Kindle and will only charge at something like 500mA, i.e. very slowly. But there's no harm in trying an existing one too before ponying up for the $20.
The "weeks" claim is based upon an hour a day I believe. So your mileage may vary depending on how much you read and if a lot of it is at night. Nonetheless "days" is certainly applicable no matter what.
I ordered a Kindle PaperWhite, so we'll see how I like it. Also got a leather cover for it. I'm sure it'll take a little getting used to. I'll use my computer USB to charge, or use a wall adapter. I have more than one, but the Apple one I use for charging my FitBit is 10W, and the Amazon one is only 5W. I'll have to see if the Kindle can handle a 10W input without hurting anything (or maybe someone here will know).
I ordered a Kindle PaperWhite, so we'll see how I like it. Also got a leather cover for it. I'm sure it'll take a little getting used to. I'll use my computer USB to charge, or use a wall adapter. I have more than one, but the Apple one I use for charging my FitBit is 10W, and the Amazon one is only 5W. I'll have to see if the Kindle can handle a 10W input without hurting anything (or maybe someone here will know).
It will only draw what it needs, so a bigger charger won’t hurt it.
I ordered a Kindle PaperWhite, so we'll see how I like it. Also got a leather cover for it. I'm sure it'll take a little getting used to. I'll use my computer USB to charge, or use a wall adapter. I have more than one, but the Apple one I use for charging my FitBit is 10W, and the Amazon one is only 5W. I'll have to see if the Kindle can handle a 10W input without hurting anything (or maybe someone here will know).
I have a Kindle Paperwhite (WiFi only with no ads), about 3 years old. I get about 15-20 hours from a full charge, with brightness at half, more if I shut off WiFi. I bought the charger, but usually plug into a USB rather that using the adapter in an outlet. I have charged it with a phone charger when I misplaced the one I bought.
I have a Kindle Paperwhite (WiFi only with no ads), about 3 years old. I get about 15-20 hours from a full charge, with brightness at half, more if I shut off WiFi. I bought the charger, but usually plug into a USB rather that using the adapter in an outlet. I have charged it with a phone charger when I misplaced the one I bought.
I got my PaperWhite a week ago today, and so far have downloaded several "free" books from Amazon. I think I bought one. I found the link to the freebies here on city-data, in the "books" section I think. They're not the hottest sellers of the day, but not bad either, and they usually have an extensive list to pick from.
Anyway, I charged it when I got it, and now it's still over a half. My wife read one complete novel, and I've read most of one as well as the user's manual (yes, I actually read the darn thing). Plus, I've explored its capabilities quite a bit. I left the brightness on the default setting, which was about two bars below the brightest. I've left WiFi on the entire time.
I used an Apple wall adapter and the supplied USB/micro USB cable, and tried the USB port on my computer (it works fine, but you have to unmount like a flash drive to be able to read while charging). Not sure why their adapter costs $20 because you can buy them anywhere for under $5 (but not the Apple one ... it came with either my MacBook Pro, or one of the many iPhones we've bought over time).
I really like it a lot. It's not exactly like a "real" book in that you can't thumb through it easily, but it pretty easy to operate.
I appreciate all the information I've gotten from posters.
If you are used to reading "real" books, the paperwhite is best IMO. You will need an external light source like a lamp, just like a real book but it's the easiest on the eyes. As mentioned, you could also get some kind of backlighting.
As for the Amazon ecosystem, that's easy to get around. If you want to read epub books, all you have to do is download them from the web, convert them and load them through USB on your kindle. It takes a little knowhow but one can easily learn. If you are more tech savvy there are other modifications you could do but that is an easy one.
If you are used to reading "real" books, the paperwhite is best IMO. You will need an external light source like a lamp, just like a real book but it's the easiest on the eyes. As mentioned, you could also get some kind of backlighting.
As for the Amazon ecosystem, that's easy to get around. If you want to read epub books, all you have to do is download them from the web, convert them and load them through USB on your kindle. It takes a little knowhow but one can easily learn. If you are more tech savvy there are other modifications you could do but that is an easy one.
That looks like an extremely useful link. Thanks. Got it bookmarked.
I'm not very familiar with e-books lingo ... but I think I read that epub is the format for public library e-books?
No, it's just another format, not necessarily for public libraries. It's like PDF and pretty common among e-books. The kindle will also load pdf's, not ideal but it will work.
I think the actual best product is Kobo. But it doesn't work because it is a hassle to put library books on it. Too bad they don't fix that problem. So the one I USE is a Kindle. It's the easiest I have found to put books on.
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If I get a Kindle, I'll probably just charge it via a USB cable to my laptop. I keep the laptop plugged in virtually all the time so if I'm on the golf course, both devices can be charging. Supposedly the battery life is "weeks". 
I found the link to the freebies here on city-data, in the "books" section I think. They're not the hottest sellers of the day, but not bad either, and they usually have an extensive list to pick from. 
