Of all of the tech merchandise Amazon provides, Kindle is the one one I’d critically miss if it went away.
I used to be by no means a lot of a e book particular person, however that’s modified as I’ve tried to divert extra time away from social media. Kindle—not simply the e-reader, however the cell apps—are the place a number of that spare display time has ended up.
As such, I’ve been digging deeper into the Kindle software program to profit from it, and utilizing it not only for e-books, however as a hub for every kind of studying. Here’s what I’ve provide you with:
Use the app
If you haven’t learn a e book on a smartphone these days, you may be shocked at how nice it’s turn out to be as cell shows have grown bigger and extra vibrant.
To that finish, the Kindle app on iOS and Android is an effective way to learn e-books, and you don’t want a Kindle e-reader to make use of it. Any Kindle books you buy on-line will robotically sync throughout units, as will your studying progress, so you’ll be able to choose up the place you left off on any cellphone, pill, or e-reader that’s logged into the identical Amazon account.
Personalize your pages
Jared Newman / Foundry
Tap close to the highest of the display on a Kindle e-reader—or wherever on the cell app—then faucet the “Aa” icon to alter varied reader settings, equivalent to font measurement, line spacing, margins, and web page colour.
Personally, I at all times go to the “More” tab and allow “Page turn animation,” which lets me compulsively dog-ear the digital pages whereas studying. I additionally disable “Popular Highlights,” as a result of nothing ruins an amazing quote like seeing it underscored for emphasis. (Too unhealthy Amazon doesn’t sync these settings throughout units.)
Quick studying tweaks
Some Kindle choices don’t require a visit into the settings menu:
- Tap the bottom-left nook to modify between web page rely, location rely, and estimated studying occasions.
- Pinch the display to rapidly alter textual content measurement.
- On telephones and tablets, faucet the bottom-right nook to lock or unlock display rotation. (This works independently of your gadget’s auto-rotate settings.)
- On Kindle e-readers with built-in lighting, swipe down from the highest for brightness controls and different fast settings.
Schedule display heat
Jared Newman / Foundry
If your Kindle has a heat mild setting, you’ll be able to alter it on a schedule to attenuate eyestrain at night time. Swipe down from the highest of the display, then look simply above the Warmth slider and faucet on “Schedule.” Turn the schedule on from this menu, then arrange your timing and heat ranges.
Share your Kindle
Unfortunately Kindle e-readers don’t allow you to swap between a number of consumer profiles, however there are some things you are able to do to arrange a tool for multiple particular person:
- Set up Amazon Household, so that you and one other particular person can share books throughout separate Amazon accounts.
- To view solely your personal books, head to the Library tab, faucet the filter icon close to the top-left nook, then choose “Your items.”
- On Kindle e-readers, activate Kids mode by hitting the â® icon, then choosing “Amazon Kids.” From right here you’ll be able to create a baby profile, add kid-friendly books, and arrange a PIN to get again to the common menu.
Get free e-books
Jared Newman / Foundry
I’ll by no means tire of recommending Libby as a manner to take a look at free e-books out of your library, and it integrates flawlessly with Kindle so you’ll be able to learn throughout your units and e-readers. The Libby app will ask to attach your Amazon account the primary time you obtain a e book, however you can too discover this setting by tapping â°, choosing Settings, then choosing “Read Books With…”
Rename your Kindle
If you’re a longtime Kindle app consumer, you’ve most likely received an unwieldy record of units to select from if you purchase a e book on-line or borrow one from Libby. To make gadget choice simpler, head to Settings within the Kindle app, then choose “Device Name” and choose one thing extra memorable than “Joe’s 6th iPhone.” (On e-readers, you’ll discover this selection underneath Settings > Your Account > Device Name.)
You can even head to Amazon’s Kindle app manager to take away outdated units and set your present gadget because the default.
Email paperwork to Kindle
Got a e book in PDF type or a prolonged Word doc you’ll want to learn? Look up your Kindle e-mail handle—formatted as [email protected]—and ship these paperwork to your self:
- On the Kindle app, head to More > Settings, then look underneath “Send to Kindle Email Address.”
- On Kindle e-readers, head to Settings > Your Account, then look underneath “Send-to-Kindle Email.”
- You can even head to this webpage, click on “Kindle,” then choose a tool. This menu even helps you to set your handle to one thing extra memorable.
While every Kindle gadget or app technically has its personal e-mail handle, something you ship to 1 ought to sync with all of the others.
Save articles for later
Jared Newman / Foundry
With your Kindle e-mail handle in hand, you can begin utilizing it to herald articles from elsewhere.
My most well-liked methodology is Instapaper, a free service that permits you to save articles on the internet for studying later. With Instapaper’s Kindle integration, you will get weekly or each day digests of unread articles delivered a single e-book.
Here’s tips on how to get began:
- After creating an Instapaper account, head to the settings menu, and replica down the e-mail handle within the Kindle part.
- Sign into Amazon’s device preferences page, then click on “Personal Document Settings.”
- Scroll down and click on “Add a new approved email address.”
- Paste within the Instapaper e-mail handle you copied earlier, then hit “Add Address.”
- Back in Instapaper settings, enter your Kindle e-mail handle, then allow “Kindle Automatic Delivery.” Set a supply frequency, and hit “Save Kindle Preferences.”
Once you’ve set this up, you need to use Instapaper’s bookmarklet, browser extension, or mobile apps to avoid wasting articles, they usually’ll present up in your Kindle app or e-reader in digest type. (The paid version of Instapaper additionally helps you to ship articles to Kindle instantly.)
More Kindle studying choices
Instapaper isn’t the one solution to ship articles to your self. Here are a number of others:
- EpubPress lets you choose tabs out of your internet browser and ship them to Kindle in digest type, although I’ve discovered that it truncates some articles.
- Amazon has its own Chrome extension for sending internet hyperlinks to Kindle, although it additionally has its points with truncated articles.
- KTool does an amazing job saving the total textual content of articles, although it requires a $5 per 30 days subscription to avoid wasting greater than 20 articles per 30 days. Its $7 per 30 days Premium tier additionally helps newsletters and RSS feeds.
- Newsletter to Kindle robotically forwards emails to your Kindle, however prices $5 per 30 days to ship greater than 25 e-newsletter points per 30 days.
If any of those articles are including an excessive amount of litter to your library, simply faucet â® on any article, then hit “Permanently delete.” After all, it’s not really a studying record should you don’t neglect a minimum of a few of it.
This story first appeared in Jared’s Advisorator e-newsletter. Sign up to study new tech methods each week.