My Kindle Stuff

Update – The update is for all Kindle 2 users and can be updated manually from Amazon by downloading here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200324680

1. Wireless battery extended
2. PDF support added
3. Page orientation added (manual)

Amazon must want to save on wireless delivery of the update as it has gotten to the update page much quicker than has been usual for either the Kindle 1 or the Kindle 2.

Update 2 – If you update, you will NOT be able to use the Font or Screensaver hacks any more, but you’ll get:
Two new screensavers – Ralph Ellison, some fish similar to the birds on twigs.  Also the Kindle screensaver w/ definition is now the guy under the tree

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I was going thru my Kindle books online when I noticed a new Users Guide (4th Ed).  I downloaded to my PC and was skimming thru it when I noticed that it mentioned native PDF support and portrait orientation..WHAT?  I quickly went to my account to see if I had inadvertently ordered a DX or if there was something screwy with my account.  No DX order, no new Kindle order….so I went back to the user guide for more info.  There it was clear as day in the technical specifications–6″ model.

THen I went to the Amazon Kindle Support page and found nothing!  I figured they were consolidating user guides or something and thought no more of it.  I had started an email to Len Edgerly of the Kindle Chronicles, but felt so dumb that I deleted it an continued on with my day.  Now I feel silly for NOT sending it because a couple of hours later, here comes a press release from Amazon:

Kindle Now Lasts up to Seven Days on a Single Charge with Wireless on, up from Four Days, and Displays Native PDFs in Their Original Form

SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Nov. 24, 2009– Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) today announced two new enhancements to the latest generation Kindle—85 percent more battery life and a native PDF reader. Kindle now has battery life of up to seven days even with wireless turned on, a significant improvement from the previous battery life of four days. Battery life with wireless turned off remains at the previous level of up to two weeks. Battery power management for portable wireless devices is a complex technical area, and the battery life improvement announced today is the result of a six month firmware improvement and testing program.

Amazon also announced today that the 6-inch Kindle now has a built-in native PDF reader that enables Kindle customers to read professional and personal documents in their original PDF format without conversion. Kindle is in stock and available for immediate shipment today at www.amazon.com/kindle.

“Kindle, already the #1 bestselling, most wished for, and most gifted product on all of Amazon.com, is now even better—with 85 percent more battery life and a built-in PDF reader,” said Ian Freed, Vice President, Amazon Kindle. “These two significant enhancements are available now.”

To read their personal or professional documents, Kindle customers simply email PDFs to their Kindle email address or move them over using a USB connection. Customers that prefer to have their PDF documents converted to the Kindle format simply type “Convert” in the subject of the e-mail when sending documents to their “@kindle.com” address.

Amazon also announced today that previous purchasers of the new Kindle will also receive the 85 percent battery life improvements with wireless on, and native PDF support via a firmware update automatically delivered via Whispernet wireless. Native PDF support will also be available for some earlier versions of Kindle via an automatic Whispernet wireless firmware update.

Well, I’m getting rid of my screensaver hack to see if  ’new Kindle’ only means the International version or if it will apply to the original Kindle 2 owners.

Update – Non-U.S. user from KindleKorner notices that the Gift Certificate workaround traditionally used by international customers no longer works.

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For those of you waiting for a Kindle that can travel with you outside of the U.S., your time has come. I’m happy for our overseas friends and kindlers in the U.S. that struggle with how to download their books outside of the U.S. I only have two complaints on this so far – no coverage for US Military servicemen in Iraq and Canada got the shaft (again!). Check the International Coverage guides and country specific information on the Amazon site. See this page on my site as well.  I’m keeping an update of # of books and whether wireless and browser features are available.

Other than that, there are a few caveats that you’ll need to remember and updates to look for in the future.

BOTTOM LINE -Even though this Kindle gets wireless outside of the U.S., if you live in the U.S. save yourself some money and get the U.S. only version.

The specifics on the 3 Kindle models can be seen here.

General -

Books, Subscriptions and Personal Documents -

• It looks like the bestsellers are $11.99 compared to the U.S. $9.99
• Blogs are NOT available to Non-U.S. Customers and some content from newspapers/magazines may be missing. Not sure what here, nor why.
• U.S. Customers will incur a hefty $1.99 fee for each book  downloaded from Archived Items or individual newspapers/magazine downloads and $4.99 per week for subscription content (this looks like a bulk thing, not $4.99 per subscription) downloaded abroad.
• The personal document charge increases to $.99 when overseas.
• The fine print here is that if you have a subscription attached to your Kindle, you’d better keep the wireless OFF. Otherwise you’ll face that charge everytime your latest newspaper/magazine is uploaded to your device.

All, in all, a good move for Amazon ahead of the Sony wireless eReader release.  A few missing details has me wondering whether this Kindle release was pushed a bit.  I’m sure the complaints will start coming fast and furious, but I’m pretty happy with the overall job that Amazon is doing with the Kindle (still waiting for folders though!). I also hope that non-English books will become available for any Kindle version.  I don’t see a true international Kindle version with non-English menus and keyboard anytime soon, but there’s always hope.

Considering the clamor for Kindles overseas, I’d pre-order now cause I’m betting they’ll sell out for the holiday season.

Kindle DX – $489

Kindle 2 – $259

Kindle 2i (International) – $279 

Refurbished Kindle DX – $399

Refurbished Kindle 2 – $219 (Good price as still under Amazon warranty)

Refurbished Kindle 1 – $149

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

I don’t usually deal in a public argument, but I guess I’ve read one Kindle-Killer article/post too many.  Then when I saw this on Twitter, I just couldn’t resist.

People who own Kindles and who are book readers are fully aware of all of the Kindle’s shortcomings and limitations.  One thing that they realize after owning/using the device for a while is that the Kindle is not a netbook.  Its (as advertised) a book reader. It emulates reading the mass-market or trade paperback reading experience using technology.  It’s better in some cases (finishing a book with no backup) and worse (page numbers, sharing) in others.  It’s got a basic browser, but doesn’t deal elegantly or swiftly with many web pages and even though it has an MP3 player, I don’t think it’ll replace my iPod anytime soon.

But for reading books, it does what it is supposed to do and does it very well.

With that said, I’d like to rebutt the blog post Kindle will be history within a year, from The Downside web site.

• Holds up to 3,500 books, periodicals, and documents - Amazon downplays the fact that this is only 4GB of storage, a pathetic number for any modern netbook.
  • Maybe for a netbook, but a Kindle is an computerized eReader, not a computer

• Beautiful Large Display: 9.7″ diagonal e-ink screen reads like real paper; boasts 16 shades of gray for clear text and sharp images - Are you kidding me?  16 shades of gray?  Sure, that’s better than the Newton, but this isn’t 1992, guys.  Any modern netbook offers 32 bit color, giving millions of colors.  If I want to read a text book or a blog post on my Kindle DX, you better believe I want color.
  • It’s a fact that textbooks or blogs containing color don’t display as well on the Kindle, but backlit color screens are very hard on the eyes.  Flipping the script, I don’t want to read a book on my pc either. I have dozens of textbook pdfs where I stick to paper format because the pc doesn’t do books justice.  Before going green, I printed because it was so much easier to read; since going green, I just don’t bother to use them.

• Auto-Rotating Screen: Display auto-rotates from portrait to landscape as you turn the device so you can view full-width maps, graphs, tables, and Web pages - We’re only down to the third bullet point, and this is the best you can do?  This is truly trivial, and easy to do on a netbook. 
  • See above point

• Built-In PDF Reader: Native PDF support allows you to carry and read all of your personal and professional documents on the go - PDF readers are free to download on any PC.  Just because this is better than the original Kindle doesn’t make it cool.
  • See above point, again.  Also note that PCs aren’t really portable.

• Wireless: 3G wireless lets you download books right from your Kindle DX, anytime, anywhere; no monthly fees, no annual contracts, and no hunting for Wi-Fi hotspots - if you really need to download a book while you’re outside of wi-fi range, apparently this is the device for you.  If you don’t have a Kindle, just download the book to your smartphone, then transfer it to your PC.  
  • I’m beginning to understand that this author is not a real ‘reader’.  Nuff said

• Books In Under 60 Seconds: You get free wireless delivery of books in less than 60 seconds; no PC required - You can also download an ebook to your netbook in less than 60 seconds, no Kindle required.  Fail.
  • Okay, now I’m laughing.  How many times does it need to be reiterated that a Kindle is NOT a netbook?  Or that no one really reads on a computer?  Dude!  The Kindle is a replacement for carrying around a bunch of books.

• Long Battery Life: Read for days without recharging - Who reads for more than a couple hours at a time, anyway?  Non-problem solved.
  • Well…..readers many times read for more than a couple of hours at at time.  Ever hear of someone staying up too late to finish a book?

• Read-to-Me: With the text-to-speech feature, Kindle DX can read newspapers, magazines, blogs, and books out loud to you, unless the book’s rights holder made the feature unavailable - Now you can have A Brief History of Time read to you in the author’s own voice.  Awesome! 
  • Actually, it is pretty awesome.  I have my books read to me on my drive home from work every day.

• Big Selection, Low Prices: Over 275,000 books; New York Times Best Sellers and New Releases are only $9.99, unless marked otherwise - This has nothing to do with the device and will surely be available on any PC very soon.
  • You think?  Wanna place a wager? (Have you seen the Sony Store prices?)

• More Than Books: U.S. and international newspapers including the New York Times and Wall Street Journal, magazines including The New Yorker and Time, plus popular blogs, all auto-delivered wirelessly - Again, I have a PC and a cool new thing called a “web browser” for this. 

The only things that make the Kindle superior to a PC for the purpose of reading are:

• It’s lightweight with a super-compact form factor
• Um…that’s about it.  I guess this isn’t much of a bulleted list.
  • I agree