Amazon releases Kindle
Kindle: Amazon’s New Wireless Reading Device
- 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 130,000 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
July 14th, 2008 at 12:51 pm
I have been wanting a Kindle for almost 2 years now. It’s on my wish list, and maybe I will grab one for myself this xmas
July 14th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
P.S My comment was cut off so I will leave a second comment to continue that last sentence.
I was hoping to grab myself a Kindle this xmas as the whisper is that Amazon have plans to make it available internationally. It depends on the telco in Australia.
December 14th, 2009 at 1:10 pm
I spent the last month trying to decide whether I wanted to purchase a Kindle or a Nook. After significant examination of merit and shortcomings of both, I chose the Kindle. I’m sure that I couldn’t go to far wrong with any decision that I made. But, I feel that I made the right decision for me. The purchase and set up was a cinch! I purchased a platform type case and really appreciate hands free reading in bed!
The big pluses of the nook were not important to me. I don’t have a need to share books for two weeks. Although an Android operating system opens the door to other applications, I wanted an ebook reader, not a Blackberry or “grocery list maker”,etc. The epub format for nook vs the proprietary format of the Kindle was an issue that I thought about. Kindle has a wealth of free books,including a lot of classics that are out of copyright. So, access to that material isn’t a problem. However, for copyrighted material, I feel that a proprietary format(Kindle) might be more secure and appealing to publishers.
I compared a list of about 30 books that I wanted to read. About 14 were not available either as an ebook on Amazon or BN. Three were available on BN and not Amazon as an ebook. Seven were available on Amazon and not BN.The others were available on both. These were not the best sellers that I knew would be available, but rather, more obscure titles.I did see a few big price differences eg.- New York by Rutherford -9.99(Kindle version) 14.99 (BN ebook) Clinton Tapes 9.99(Kindle)28.00 (BN ebook).
Finally, I looked at the way both companies handles electronic delivery of “peeks” or “samples”on their websites. I have always found the Amazon method more fluid and less time consuming. To me, that says a lot about their ability to understand electronic dessemination for the reader. With all that in mind, I chose the Kindle -keyboard and all!- and I am really pleased with my purchase!