Confession: My already cramped apartment is overflowing with books. The space doesn’t quite resemble an episode of Hoarders (yet…), but the fact remains that I currently don’t have enough shelf space for all the books I own.

As a lover of both physical media and reading, owning hundreds of paper copies of books isn’t too surprising for me. What might come as a surprise is the fact that I also actively use my Kindle. While I thoroughly advocate for the advantages that physical books offer, that doesn’t mean I’m above reading content in a digital format.

I may love books that are actually printed on paper. Regardless, a Kindle isn’t devoid of appeal. Even for an unofficial physical media ambassador, an e-reader can still serve certain valuable purposes.

My Kindle addresses the issue of limited space

Ebooks don’t take up storage space in my physical environment

Let’s get the obvious out of the way first: A Kindle or other such e-reader is useful for book nerds who only have limited space in which to store their books. As I’ve already established, this is a problem with which I’m thoroughly familiar. Sometimes, when I want to purchase a particularly large volume, unless the physical copy boasts unique characteristics that simply aren’t available with a digital download, I’ll opt for a digital version to avoid adding to the clutter.

This is also why I use a Kindle when I travel. When I have a trip planned, I try to schedule my reading so that whatever I happen to be reading during the trip is something I have on my Kindle. Being able to access thousands of titles via one slim device is still helpful when you’re on-the-go.

A Kindle can be a great PDF reader

You can email PDF documents to your Kindle for free

There are many reasons someone might regularly read fairly long PDF documents. Personally, as a cinephile who never completely gave up on his dreams of having a screenplay produced, I often find myself downloading PDFs of scripts and reading them to learn the craft.

I also find that trying to read extensive PDF documents on my computer, phone, or even a tablet can be less comfortable than reading them on a Kindle. Luckily, emailing PDFs to your Kindle is a fairly easy process.

Amazon provides thorough instructions for those interested in learning the official step-by-step way to send PDFs (and numerous other file types) to their Kindle devices. Basically, all you have to do is visit the Manage Your Content and Devices section of your Amazon account. From there, access Preferences, then Personal Document Settings, and you’ll find the email address associated with your Kindle. Just email the file to that address, and it will appear in your Kindle library.

A similar process may be available for other e-readers. Naturally, you should only email a file to your Kindle if you’re confident doing so is safe.

Kindle books may be less expensive

Sometimes a Kindle edition is a bargain that’s too good to pass up

I can’t stress enough just how much of a confirmed physical book lover I am. Part of accumulating such a massive collection of titles involves knowing how to find bargains. I scour library book sales, used bookstores, vintage shops, and anywhere else I can think of to find books at much lower prices than what I might pay for a new copy at Barnes and Noble.

This actually highlights another reason I sometimes still opt to read on my Kindle. For example, maybe I want to buy a book that’s just been released. Finding a used copy anytime in the near future is unlikely. Yes, I could probably find one online, but maybe I don’t want to wait for it to ship. In this case, I could spend the full price on a new print copy of the book, or I can immediately download a Kindle edition that will often be substantially less expensive. Unless I have a specific reason for wanting a physical copy of this particular book, the choice is clear in these circumstances.

Using a Kindle to save money is also an option when a book is quite old. In some cases, I want a book that’s out of print. A used physical copy of such a book can be expensive if it’s rare. However, sometimes, a Kindle edition is available at a much better price. Similarly, depending on how old a book is, it might be in the public domain.

This means a Kindle edition could be virtually free. I’ve found that these inexpensive digital versions of public domain works often lack the formatting and additional features of some digital books, but they make up for this by costing next to nothing. In addition, you can get temporary free books on Kindle via a library membership.

You don’t always want people to know what you’re reading

A Kindle offers privacy when you’re not proud of your reading habits

Readers often want people to know that they’re readers. In fact, when we think what we’re reading says something about us (“Oh, he’s so intellectual,” etc.), we read in public. I’ve spent plenty of subway rides hoping someone would catch a glimpse of the volume in my hands and make some flattering judgments about me accordingly.

That’s not to say I’m always proud of the book I’m currently working my way through. Hey, listen, my guilty pleasure is the kind of self-help books that you might be embarrassed just to think about buying.

I certainly don’t want anyone seeing me reading those books. Still, I also don’t want to feel like I have to hide away in my apartment to indulge in them when I might prefer to do some reading on a park bench. With a Kindle, I can “enjoy” these titles without having to worry about anyone’s judgment. Being able to download them directly to my device means I don’t even have to worry about a cashier knowing how much I’m into the law of attraction.

My Kindle has its place

My love of physical books doesn’t mean I see no value in e-readers

It’s easy to adopt tribal mentalities when debating the virtues of physical books vs. digital books. But maybe it’s not necessary to choose one over the other.

My apartment vaguely resembles the library from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast. Still, I like to think even Belle would understand the appeal of a Kindle. As cozy as paper books can be, there’s something to be said for being able to access more books than you could read in a decade, all on a single device.