Recently, there was news that Amazon Kindle e-readers will support Kindle, PDF, and many other types of documents, as well as the popular EPUB file formats for books.
If you think “well, that’s good news”, you’re right-EPUB is a very popular file format for digital books, and many publishing industry groups send it ebooks. Think of it as the format of choice for. Besides, many websites and libraries use it. In short, you can now use more books on your Kindle.
But in reality, there’s another big reason why EPUB support is big news for the Kindle. It all depends on Amazon’s e-reader and its market position.
Standard format
Not only do many online digital book repositories use EPUB files, but many other ebook companies also use them.
Google Play Books uses EPUB files, just like Kobo and Onyx devices, and their respective smartphone apps. This is the standard for this type of digital file.
Amazon Kindle has adopted this format so that all devices on the list of the best e-readers can read and understand the format. This is great for switching devices.
Switching device
The main reason people are discouraged from switching technology ecosystems is the data they can lose. If you switch from an iPhone to an Android device, your App Store purchases will not be carried over. You will have to pay for the same app again.
Previously, this was the case with e-readers. If you have a Kindle and all its proprietary files, don’t consider moving them. The reverse is also true. But that has changed.
Now, if you have a Kobo but want to buy a Kindle, it’s much easier to transfer the entire library. You don’t have to convert each file individually. Not only the Kobo app, but also the “Send to Kindle app” is easily available and you can use them to easily send your entire collection of books to your new device.
This update really helps Amazon in that regard and removes one hurdle in convincing fans of e-readers to get one of their devices.
That said, the benefits to the user cannot be exaggerated. Support for EPUB files means that there are far more digital books available on your Kindle. So this is good news for everyone. Unless you have a Kobo or Onyx device, that’s right.