Kindle the Flame
Posted on May 29, 2008
Just got off the phone with my brother who was waxing wildly about his newest pet device, the Amazon Kindle. Seems he bought himself one for his birthday next week (note to self - don’t forget card)!
At originally $399 and now $359, the Kindle leaves a lot to be desired from the bargain hunters point of view. It just seems hard to fall $400 in love with a device which appears to be primarily a glorified electronic book. And that it is, for sure. How else in this age, do you justify that it is totally monochrome, not a stitch of color anywhere?
What is it the Kindle does? Well, there have been a number of portable book readers before but about the best they could do is download material from the Web to the reader via the computer. This is where Kindle shines. It is a wireless unit that needs no PC. Ordered material is downloaded directly to the unit. So whether it’s books or magazines, or whatever, if it’s available from the Kindle store, it can be downloaded directly and there are no extra charges for a cell contract or the like.
Here are the bullet points from Amazon on this thing.
- Revolutionary electronic-paper display provides a sharp, high-resolution screen that looks and reads like real paper.
- Simple to use: no computer, no cables, no syncing.
- Wireless connectivity enables you to shop the Kindle Store directly from your Kindle—whether you’re in the back of a taxi, at the airport, or in bed.
- Buy a book and it is auto-delivered wirelessly in less than one minute.
- More than 120,000 books available, including more than 98 of 112 current New York Times® Best Sellers.
- New York Times® Best Sellers and New Releases $9.99, unless marked otherwise.
- Free book samples. Download and read first chapters for free before you decide to buy.
- Top U.S. newspapers including The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post; top magazines including TIME, Atlantic Monthly, and Forbes—all auto-delivered wirelessly.
- Top international newspapers from France, Germany, and Ireland; Le Monde, Frankfurter Allgemeine, and The Irish Times—all auto-delivered wirelessly.
- More than 300 top blogs from the worlds of business, technology, sports, entertainment, and politics, including BoingBoing, Slashdot, TechCrunch, ESPN’s Bill Simmons, The Onion, Michelle Malkin, and The Huffington Post—all updated wirelessly throughout the day.
- Lighter and thinner than a typical paperback; weighs only 10.3 ounces.
- Holds over 200 titles.
- Long battery life. Leave wireless on and recharge approximately every other day. Turn wireless off and read for a week or more before recharging. Fully recharges in 2 hours.
- Unlike WiFi, Kindle utilizes the same high-speed data network (EVDO) as advanced cell phones—so you never have to locate a hotspot.
- No monthly wireless bills, service plans, or commitments—we take care of the wireless delivery so you can simply click, buy, and read.
- Includes free wireless access to the planet’s most exhaustive and up-to-date encyclopedia—Wikipedia.org.
- Email your Word documents and pictures (.JPG, .GIF, .BMP, .PNG) to Kindle for easy on-the-go viewing.
- Included in the box: Kindle wireless reader, Book cover, Power adapter, USB 2.0 cable
While a lot of people are dismayed that this thing isn’t color, doesn’t show video, and can’t play the latest games, they miss the point. This is a dedicated device for avid readers. A true niche product. Not perfect, this is the first release you know. But the few little glitches or dislikes that some people have will be addressed in the next version, no doubt.
According to my brother, he’s glad he went ahead and got his now. With only a few days to play with it, he’s definitely enamored.
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