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NEW Prime benefit: Prime Reading -- different to KOLL

4K views 26 replies 12 participants last post by  Ann in Arlington 
#1 ·
Looks like there's a 'new' benefit for Prime members . . . called

Prime Reading

Best as I can tell, KOLL is gone . . . . and this is the new Prime benefit. Only shows about 1,000 titles, all of which are KU titles as well, but there's apparently no restriction on how many can be borrowed at a time. AND, you don't need to have a kindle device -- an app on a phone or tablet is good enough.

Hoping they'll add more titles . . . . . I had planned to not renew my KU subscription in December when it's finished, figuring I could read the books I still have on my list via KOLL . . . . . I'll have to do a bit of research to see how much overlap there is between what I have as TBR and what's in this program.

edited to correct thread title as it seems that KOLL is not gone, though it may be on the way out . . . .
 
#2 ·
Interesting. Although no more restriction of 1 a month, the select at present if much smaller. I still have KU prepaid until July 2017, so it will be interesting to see how it develops. Where will the cutoff be when its not worth anymore to pay extra for KU. I guess they wouldn't want to lose the KU subscribers. Probably evens out if they keep getting prime subscribers though with all the extras they are throwing in.  ;D

I know some were using KOLL in our HR thread in the book corner and at least they could pick from a larger selection.

I briefly looked and what is interesting is that its like a curated list of titles, unlike KU which might have a lot in it, but also has a lot of scams and garbage in it. Maybe this is a way for them to start having a curated KU overall over time. Just me thinking out loud. 8) I see lots of amazon imprint titles. I haven't checked yet if its going to be one of those things where you get the 1st in a series in prime reading and then either have to get KU or buy them for the rest. Off to check on that now.


eta" and look at that, all the kindles but the Oasis are on sale for prime members today. Great sale too with Voyage at 149.
 
#3 ·
I share my account with my mom, and this is much easier than KOLL, for me to tell her to go ahead and read whatever she wants (without worrying about "returning" a book if I'm still reading it). It seems like fewer books than in KOLL, though.

I'm trying to remember, as a publisher, only books enrolled in Select were in KOLL, I think. Our one book that is in Select (and I believe was in KOLL) is not in Prime Reading...
 
#4 ·
I don't think the KOLL has gone away.  I borrowed my October KOLL book this morning and it is not listed in the 1,000 or so Prime Reading books and magazines.  The KOLL help pages remain exactly the same on Amazon.

I believe this may be an additional limited selection borrowing program for Prime members who do not have a Kindle device, but read on apps or PC.  I do wish Amazon would be more clear when they roll out new programs.
 
#7 ·
crebel said:
I don't think the KOLL has gone away. I borrowed my October KOLL book this morning and it is not listed in the 1,000 or so Prime Reading books and magazines. The KOLL help pages remain exactly the same on Amazon.

I believe this may be an additional limited selection borrowing program for Prime members who do not have a Kindle device, but read on apps or PC. I do wish Amazon would be more clear when they roll out new programs.
Ah! That makes sense, actually . . . . I haven't been able to see KOLL books specifically since I've had KU. But if KOLL is hanging around, that and this Prime Reading will be all I need. I definitely won't renew my subscription when it expires in December.

Also, it occurs to me that the availability of magazine issues could make this really valuable . . . assuming you can read the new issue each month under the program. The selection is not extensive, but is fairly varied. I can see me dipping into some of these periodically if they're free . . . whereas I don't want a subscription and probably wouldn't even pay for a single issue even if there's something covered that I find interesting. I'll have to look more closely at them.

Atunah said:
I briefly looked and what is interesting is that its like a curated list of titles, unlike KU which might have a lot in it, but also has a lot of scams and garbage in it. Maybe this is a way for them to start having a curated KU overall over time. Just me thinking out loud. 8) I see lots of amazon imprint titles. I haven't checked yet if its going to be one of those things where you get the 1st in a series in prime reading and then either have to get KU or buy them for the rest. Off to check on that now.
That's a very good point! KU has over a million titles but a good percentage of those are scammy. There are also lots of shorts and bundles, neither of which I care to read. These do look curated -- which is a Good Thing!

eta: I see it says this when I go to the Magazine page:

Every month we choose a selection of top magazine issues for you to borrow as part of your Prime membership.
So it sounds like they will be offering current issues each month, but it might also not be of all the same titles.
 
#8 ·
I read in some tech blog this morning that they'll have a constantly revolving list of titles.  I think that was on liliputing.com.  He tends not to say things if he isn't sure so it's probably so.  So even if there aren't that many titles if they're constantly changing them that sounds pretty good.

I've never used KOLL much and I'm not sure I"ll use this but who knows!

I prefer to buy my books so I can read them on my phone in Moon+ when I'm away from home.

Barry
 
#10 ·
Eltanin Publishing said:
So, if you're reading something that revolves OUT of the free/available books, will you still be able to read it?
I would assume, that if its on your device or in your account, it will stay there until you return it. Like KU. You can only have 10 PR titles out just like KU at the same time, you you can only hog so much. I hog at times if I am made aware something I wanted to read is being taken out of KU. I'll use some of my slots for that. I have some stuff that has been out of KU for months, couple of books. But they are still in my account and on my kindle. I plan on reading them this month.
 
#12 ·
It states, if you go to your Prime Library (after borrowing a book) that you can borrow up to 10 books/magazines at a time and states that "You can always get another by returning one that you currently have."

As long as they regularly add new books and magazines to the list of books you can borrow,  this would definitely be an added bonus over paying to have the Unlimited instead, especially since most of us are already Prime Members.
 
#13 ·
MLPMom said:
It states, if you go to your Prime Library (after borrowing a book) that you can borrow up to 10 books/magazines at a time and states that "You can always get another by returning one that you currently have."

As long as they regularly add new books and magazines to the list of books you can borrow, this would definitely be an added bonus over paying to have the Unlimited instead, especially since most of us are already Prime Members.
That makes sense. So, it's kind of a Prime member's KU, with fewer books (though that could change), but with a changing, probably curated catalog that includes magazines.

I suspect most people who use their phones or tablets are not power readers like many of us here ::) ;) and this will be great for them. If they're already Prime members, it's a great new benefit. If they're NOT prime members, it's one more thing to entice people to get with the program. :D

These are people who probably wouldn't have paid the $10 a month for KU because they don't read all that much. But they might want to pick up a book or two for a vacation -- or a travel guide or magazine with a specific feature. Now they can do that without spending anything extra.
 
#14 ·
Amazon is not doing a very good job of explaining how Prime Reading works.  I click on Prime Reading in the Amazon app and get a list of books with most designated as KU books.  If you click on a specific book in that list and want to download it to read there is only the option of KU and no box to check for Prime Reading.  I do have KU but it will expire at the end of November.  How long can a person keep a Prime Reading book?  As long as it is in the PR library or until you decide to turn it in? 
 
#16 ·
Yeah, I don't see anything prime read since I have KU. Any book I borrow, even if it was in PR, would show under my KU checkouts. My prime checkouts stay blank. KU membership overwrites PR. It makes sense as what would be the point if I already have KU. I had the same thing with KOLL. Don't see those either. Just all KU.
 
#18 ·
etexlady said:
Amazon is not doing a very good job of explaining how Prime Reading works. I click on Prime Reading in the Amazon app and get a list of books with most designated as KU books. If you click on a specific book in that list and want to download it to read there is only the option of KU and no box to check for Prime Reading. I do have KU but it will expire at the end of November. How long can a person keep a Prime Reading book? As long as it is in the PR library or until you decide to turn it in?
If you have KU, as others have said, it's the controlling factor. Negates the 1 borrow a month with KOLL as well.
 
#19 ·
Ann in Arlington said:
If you have KU, as others have said, it's the controlling factor. Negates the 1 borrow a month with KOLL as well.
The Hooded Claw said:
It does seem to be a struggle to find stuff for Prime Reading. I had a little more success with KOLL.
They'll both still exist, though, right? I mean, We'll still get the 1 KOLL book a month -- which is from a much larger catalog -- as well as being given access to a smaller but better curated selection through Prime Reading.

I'm assuming the list for Prime Reading will change with the First of the month . . . . . I plan to keep an eye on it to see what happens.
 
#20 ·
I definitely got a KOLL book in early October after Prime Reading was announced, and I'm pretty sure I saw a book or two available on KOLL when exploring around with my Kindle recently to see if an old mystery series I've been reading over KOLL was also on Prime Reading, though I can't swear my memory is correct on the second.
 
#21 ·
The Hooded Claw said:
I definitely got a KOLL book in early October after Prime Reading was announced, and I'm pretty sure I saw a book or two available on KOLL when exploring around with my Kindle recently to see if an old mystery series I've been reading over KOLL was also on Prime Reading, though I can't swear my memory is correct on the second.
You can let us know after Tuesday. :D
 
#22 ·
Ann in Arlington said:
You can let us know after Tuesday. :D
The race has been hard-fought and tight, the tension is palpable, and polls uncertain, but the final results are in....KOLL is still alive, I borrowed a new book from it this evening!
 
#26 ·
Ann in Arlington said:
Sure. Go to Amazon and type "Prime Reading" in the search bar. That page includes all the books in the program, but some others as well. For a more accurate list, click the 'Prime Reading' link at the top of that page.
Thanks Ann,

is there any way to view magazines on my Kindle Voyage???

I downloaded Time magazine, it showed up on my two Kindle Fire's but didn't show up on home screen of my Voyage...
 
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