My Kindle Stuff

This morning I was greeted by the below email from Amazon:

Dear Kindle User,

We’re sending this note to remind you about proper attachment and use of your Kindle cover and about Amazon’s Kindle warranty. You can view instructions and illustrations here:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200390460

ATTACHING THE COVER

To install the Kindle, open the cover and lay it on a flat surface. Then insert the bottom attachment hook on the cover into the bottom slot on the left edge of the Kindle. Rotate the Kindle to insert the top attachment hook. Then slide the switch down slightly to lock the cover attachment hooks in place.

Be sure to place the Kindle flat on the cover during installation. Do not tip the Kindle at an angle during installation, as that may cause the cover attachment hooks to bend.

USING THE KINDLE COVER

When using your Kindle with the cover, be careful to open the front cover only. If you open the back cover and pull the cover away from the Kindle, that may cause the attachment hooks to bend and could result in cracking or other damage to the Kindle.

THE AMAZON KINDLE WARRANTY

Your Kindle is covered by a One-Year Limited Warranty you can view here: http://www.amazon.com/kindlewarranty

If the attachment hooks on your cover have become bent, or your Kindle has developed cracking or other damage near the location where the hooks connect to the Kindle, please contact Kindle Support by phone or email regarding warranty replacement.

You can reach us via phone or e-mail through our website by clicking the Contact Us button on our help pages at http://www.amazon.com/kindlesupport or directly by calling one of these numbers:
Inside the United States: 1-866-321-8851, Outside the United States: 1-206-266-0927.

For more information, please see the Warranty Service section of the Kindle Return Policies Help page:

http://www.amazon.com/kindlereturnpolicy

Oooookay.  Well, I totally knew that little problem.  It was reported by Kindle users months ago.  It’s also one of the reasons that I use M-edge Covers.  They have two elastic bands on the top and bottom right corners that prevent you from opening the cover the wrong way and damaging your Kindle.  They also have a variety of cover types: flip top, GO! (like Amazon covers in color) and ones that hold their booklight.

So Kindle users take care.  And if you don’t have one, grab a M-edge cover today.  For other Kindle accessory suggestions, check out the images below and take a look at this post that shows all the goodies I got for my Kindles.

My Kindles

My Kindle and laptop w/ Gelaskin Bookshelf skins (Kindle on iZel stand)

My Kindle in M-edge cover w/ Decal Girl skin

Kindle 1 & iPhone in matching Decal Girl Skins and M-edge cover

Stuff for the Kindle lover in your life (doesn’t exclude buying stuff for yourself )

1. New Kindle – good gift for your Kindle 1 friends, or DX friends who want more portability. Also good for those relatives and friends thinking about an eReader and either won’t be getting one before Xmas or don’t realize how much more expensive their books will be if they go with another (gasp!) vendor.
2. Kindle Kits – These are really cool.  There are car Kits, cleaning kits, International Kits, etc.  I may be picking up one of these because I’m using a combo of iPod connections and messy USB stuff in my car.  I also want an extra power cord for my car so I always have one on-the-road while leaving one at home.
3. Kindle Covers & Cases – Okay, I admit, I have about 4 covers for a single Kindle.  I have the Amazon one which is kinda yucky but gets the job done.  I have a M-edge GO! cover just because, a M-edge Prodigy cover cause it also holds the booklight; its my day-to-day cover and will soon get a replacement as I have gotten it super grimy due to a coffee spill.  I also have a Kroo cover that fit my Kindle 1 and Kindle 2.  I think I’ll be sticking to
   M-edge, but if you’re going for beauty, take a look at the Oberon covers (they get rave reviews on Kindleboards).  There are also a lot of cases and purse-like Kindle covers.  This one may be tricky as gifts. I got my sister and daughter skins and covers, but could just as easily have bombed on the colors combos.
4. Kindle Accessories – Take a look here for accessory options and don’t forget my ‘must haves’ for Kindle list. There are a lot of accessories for the Kindle, I think the only one that I really need, but don’t have is an extra power cord. I know, not very sexy, but it would be a great gift since I don’t have one. If you have a Kindle/iPhone friend, the izel stand is a winner. If your Kindler does audiobooks–grab some headphones or if your Kindler travels or just reads everywhere, the M-edge cover with the addition of their booklight is an awesome gift. Do NOT forget to head over to DecalGirl or GelaSkins for Kindle skins.  DecalGirl’s skins fit around ach key on the Kindle keyboard, Gelaskins has a rectangular space around the keyboard (which leaves a lot of white space) either is a good option and I’ve used both (you can see them in my must haves link above). I do have to say that DecalGirl seems to ship faster, but they both offer Gift Certs as well.
5. Gift Certificates – You really can’t go wrong with these. Trust me, if you’re not sure what to get, a big fat Gift card is appreciated by everyone. Amazon GC are available in stores, and online. You can email, snail-mail or just give em away. Unfortunately, they also are the only way to ‘gift’ Kindle books. Amazon has a new Kindle graphic
   gift certificate which I really hope is just a prelude to actually being able to gift a book one day.

New Kindle
Get your Kindle 2i (International Version) before it sells out.  Shipping starts Monday, October 19th.  Being that this model was released prior to the holiday shipping period, I have a feeling it will probably sell out just like the previous models (although the DX was only sold-out for a short time).  Amazon is pushing to get their device in your hands before all of the other new ereaders are released AND ahead of the new Barnes and Noble announcement next week.  U.S. customer and not sure which one to get?  See here.

New Shipping Options
U.S. customers in one of 7 cities can now get SAME DAY DELIVERY.  Amazon Prime members add only $5.99/item for this service.  Prime members who place free 2-day shipping order on Thursday will get Saturday delivery for free.  The cities are New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Washington DC, Baltimore, Las Vegas and Seattle.  See here for complete details.

U.K. customers will receive free Super Saver Delivery on all qualifying items no matter the price through their holiday period.  See details here.

New Kindle DX Accessory
M-Edge has added a funky new stand to their lineup with the release of the FlexStand .  It holds the DX by all four corners so it can be viewed in landscape or portrait mode.

Reminder
Don’t forget about the Amazon Wish List contest.  Week 4’s (10/26-11/1) prize is Kindle Love where you can win 10 Kindles, covers, other accessories and books.  My fingers are SO crossed for that one.

Those of you that love those luscious, beautiful skins from GelaSkins Inc., but were waiting for them to cover the front of the device–your wait is over.  Gelaskins has finally opted to cover the front of the Kindles.  While I’d be happier if they also just had cut-outs for the individual keys–I’m looking forward to getting the Bookshelf skin.  Yes, they’re a little pricey, but I can’t pass that one up and I already shelled out the bucks for my laptop, so they might as well match.  I also checked out their skins on the Amazon site, and it does NOT look like they’ve been updated and the price is cheaper so I suspect Amazon will be getting all the old stock while the Gelaskins site sells the new stuff.  They are also offering a new service where you can design your own skins.

I'll be getting the Bookshelf skin

Well, its been awhile since I’ve talked about all the good Kindle accessories out there in one post. I’ve been using tools, skins, accessories–software and hacks. I think that I’ve really maximized and customized my Kindle about as far as it will go.

My recommendations

Hardware:

If you want a good general device that is ultra-portable, I recommend the Kindle 2. It is small enough to fit in an average sized purse and definitely small enough to fit in a backpack. Unless you have to have .PDF compatibility or the portrait-to-landscape capability, save yourself some money on the Kindle DX and stick with the Kindle 2. It’s harder to carry around, felt more easy to damaged in my hand. Although its hard to find, and you cannot get one new, both my sister and my daughter still use and love their Kindle 1. They won’t be giving them up until they no longer work.

Cover:

Whether you get the K2 or DX, I recommend a cover if only to protect the Kindle screen when not reading. You can get the Amazon cover, but although it is one of the smallest as far as adding any size to the Kindle, the black is pretty boring to me. Also, the Amazon covers don’t have anything keeping the outer edges of the Kindle secure. That lack has caused some users to crack their devices because of opening the wrong way. I originally got the Amazon covers, but quickly shelved it in favor of something with some color.

I have some other recommendations depending on whether you’ll use another accessory.

If you just want a basic cover but with some color–try the M-Edge GO! Covers. They are a simple flap cover that uses the Amazon hinge technology which, in my opinion, is the best system for securing your Kindle. It is similar to the Amazon cover in size, but has the corner additions so you won’t be in danger of cracking your Kindle.

If you want a good cover that accommodates a booklight then any of the other M-edge covers is the one for you. A booklight can be stored in the cover and to be flipped up when you need to use it (GO! cover won’t hold the booklight). This is my favorite configuration because I have my booklight with me (at no extra storage) all all times .

If you want protection for your Kindle, but want to use it without a cover, I recommend one of the slip case covers. I used this cover, and found that it fit my Kindle 2 and DX. It fit tightly over the devices but becase of the softness of the cover, doesn’t provide as robust protection as the hard covers.

Booklights:

I recommend two. I originally purchased the Mighty Bright flex light. It uses a clamp so cannot be used comfortably on a Kindle that isn’t in a cover. It has a flexible neck and two brightness settings. In my experience, this is the best all-round booklight for widespread general use.

I currently use the M-edge e-Luminator 2 booklight. I LOVE this light! I take my Kindle with me everywhere (yes, I’m a Kindle geek) and you’d be surprised how much reading you can do waiting for your husband to bring the popcorn when in a movie theater.

Holder:

I’ve only used one holder, but also recommend it because it also can be used for my iPhone or iPod. It’s also small and can be carried flat in my purse or any other bag. I use the iZel Stand and suggest you at least take a look at it.

Skins:

I recommend skins for your Kindle if only to keep off the dirt. Being white, the Kindle can get grimy even with clean hands; and a skin adds a lot of personality. I use DecalGirl and GelaSkins. GelaSkins has some of the most beautiful skins for any device but DecalGirl has skins for the front as well as the back of the Kindle (Update 10/1/2009 – GelaSkins now cover the front of the Kindle, but not between the keys like DecalGirl. I got the Bookshelf skin again.). I can’t make up my mind so I switch back and forth between skins from both companies. For those of you with other devices to skin, be sure to check out iPhone and laptop skins to match. See here for a picture of my Kindle 1 skinned with matching iPhone and my Kindle 2’s 1st skin.

If you want to see many other Kindle accessories, check out the Kindle 1, Kindle 2 and Kindle DX Accessory pages.

Previously under my ‘Maximizing your Kindle’ post, here is a list of My Kindle Stuff: