Kindle
 

I am low vision and am unable to read like I used tdo do. I am thinking about Kindle, but need to know how much you can enlarge the text. Can someone help me with this please.

I would recommend a Kindle Ereader, not a Kindle Fire. The largest font size is 14 which has about 3 words per line on a 6-inch screen. I have the Kindle Oasis, which is a bit pricey, but it has the highest resolution. I think the most popular model is the Paperwhite.

Thank you for your immediate reply. Thankfully I do not yet need to get to three words on a line, so lI am sure I can adjust to my needs.

Can I have another question??? Where do people get their reading materials. Books, newspapers, podcasts etc. What would be the best source of infiormation.

I have a 6" e-reader (nearly antique, probably predecessor of the paperwhite) and an 8" Fire. The largest font I can get on the e-reader is labeled "14" and, as retiredguy wrote, gives about three words per line with six lines on the screen. The Fire doesn't tell me a font size but at the largest setting it also has six lines on the screen. The only difference is the Fire screen is a little larger than the e-reader.

The screen on my e-reader is ideal for reading in the sun, the brighter it is the more contrast the screen has. With the Fire, the brighter it is the harder it is to see the words. Of course the opposite is true too, the Fire works well in the dark and the e-reader is unreadable. The new paperwhite models might work better.

If you want to get books from the Sumter County Library then make sure the device can run their app. Books from the Sumter Library do not come in Kindle format. My Fire can run the necessary app but my antique e-reader cannot. If you know you can get books in Kindle format then this is not a concern for you.

I use my Fire as a tablet too. I get email, read news, look at ToTV, and manage my calendar from my Fire. If you want to do something like that then you'll want to make sure the device has those capabilities.

Books:
- We still have access to our library where we moved from
- Amazon Prime has access to a limited collection
- Each month Amazon Prime allows access to one book from their larger, Amazon Unlimited collection
- We have access to the Sumter library but due to the need to use their app, we rarely borrow a book from there

Newspapers:
- I usually read these on my laptop
- There are some apps that run on my Fire that I can use when I don't have my laptop with me
- The Sumter library provides access codes for WSJ and NYT

I only use my Kindle for reading books. Mostly, I buy them on Amazon, but I also use the "Libby Overdrive" app to borrow books from the Lake County library. If you want to borrow free books, I would highly recommend getting a Lake County library card. As the other poster said, the Sumter County system does not have Kindle formatted books, but Lake County does. Also, you cannot use the Libby Overdrive app on a Kindle ereader. You must borrow the book using a computer, tablet, or smartphone, but the book will automatically be transferred to your ereader. The newer Kindle ereaders will work fine in the dark. The Kindle Fire is nothing more than a tablet computer. So, you can use any tablet to read Kindle books by just downloading the free Kindle app on the tablet. No need to buy a Kindle Fire. I hope this makes sense.

Can I get a Lake County Library card even if I live in Sumter? It would be great if I could but I assumed I could not.

Thanks for the info on being able to use the newer ereaders in the dark.

I get my books from Amazon. I subscribe to Kindle Unlimited. Pay for two years in advance for a nice discount. Allows you to “borrow” up to ten books at a time. Not all of the bestsellers are available but there are millions of titles and I never have an issue finding something that I want to read.

Sumter County residents can get a Lake County library card, but there is $40 per year fee. Although, Lake County residents can get a Sumter County card for free. Go figure. Apparently, Sumter County is too cheap to use the Libby Overdrive app which is way better than the AXIS 360 app that they currently require.

Can I have another question please? and this is a really stupid question ........... do I download the Libby app on my cell or is there somewhere on the Kindle for downloading apps.

So, of course, as soon as I asked you my stupid question I remembered Google is my friend and got all the information on Libby that I needed.

Thank you to everyone who took the time to help me, I appreciate it more than you will ever know.

Hoola
 

Sumter County also supports the Hoopla app with the Kindle Fire (or any tablet). Hoopla has a vast library of e-books, audio books and videos for streaming. Font size is adjustable from about 15 words to about 3 words across the screen. Apps are downloaded from the Amazon AppStore onto your tablet or smartphone. The AppStore comes with a Kindle Fire. You do not need to be a prime customer to use, but need to register your device with Amazon. You can also download the AppStore and Hoopla apps to your smartphone using Google Play Store or IPhone App Store.

The problem with Hoopla is that it does not deliver books to your Kindle E-reader, because the books are not in the Kindle format.
With Libby, you can load your library card into the app, browse the available books, and then instantly transfer the Kindle formatted book to your Kindle E-reader or multiple E-readers. Easy peasey. I don't know why Sumter County does not allow the use of the Libby app. They should.

And you might consider audio books, use with or without headphones, earbuds etc. WSJ offers audio translation of articles etc.

Yes, and you can get audio books for a Kindle E-reader, and listen to them using bluetooth.

You can check ebooks ( and specifically Kindle books) out of the library for free. The public library--not the Mark Twain library. That's where I get most of mine. Any book I hear of on NPR or the TV that I want to try is usually available from the library or will be soon. There is a library app on Amazon.com, so if you look up a book on Amazon, an app comes up on the right side that tells you if it is available at any library you designate. I have mine set to check Sumter, Lake and my up-north library. That way I know where to go online to check it out.