Text to speech + 3g questions

[RedNara]

So which formats can the Kindle read text to speech? Is it only mobi? Also if I already have a few epub books, can I convert them with calibre to mobi and then do text to speech?

+ How good is calibre converting epub books to mobi, does it ever mess up? Or does calibre make both things look exactly the same.

Also if I purchase a Kindle 3g, is the web going to be free forever? Is there ever going to be any charge, or is kindle ever planning on killing it?

Plus how good is Amazon with Kindle updates? I'm sure the Kindle 3 has a few bugs here and there, I know B&N released 1.5 for them, is the Kindle well supported as well?

Is 4gb really enough? Because I was planning on storing some audio books as well...

How is the overall dictionary in the Kindle? Does it support like different languages? For instance if I had a spanish ebook, can I somehow look up words in english?

Do you have any big regrets with getting the kindle? or is there even a reason to choose the sony 650 over the kindle?

Thanks so much guys! I'm planning on picking up the kindle in the next 2 days... Just had to know.


P.S. Anyone had a kindle 1 or 2, or even 3... Do these device tend to fail often? Can I see myself having this device in the next 5+ years, or is there going to be something wrong with the device within the next 2-3 years? I mean I'm sure I'm going to be picking up something new in the next 3 years; however, should I pick up a warranty for this or no?

[TheKindleWorm]

A lot of questions Will try to answer as many as I can.

Q: So which formats can the Kindle read text to speech? Is it only mobi? Also if I already have a few epub books, can I convert them with calibre to mobi and then do text to speech?

A: Well a Kindle will not read epub files so you would need to convert them to mobi so they work on the Kindle. Calibre mostly does a good job with converting from epub to mobi - you need to make sure the file does not have any DRM protection before converting btw. Text to speech should work on books you've converted. For books you buy from Amazon, some have text-to-speech enabled and some don't - this is decided by the publisher and not Amazon.

Q How good is calibre converting epub books to mobi, does it ever mess up? Or does calibre make both things look exactly the same.

A: Calibre pretty much does a great job. The problem is that I think epub files can contain some fancy formatting that the mobi file cannot. Most of my books have converted fine.

A: Also if I purchase a Kindle 3g, is the web going to be free forever? Is there ever going to be any charge, or is kindle ever planning on killing it?

Q: Can't speculate on what Amazon will do in the future. The web browser is called Experimental on the Kindle but I think there would be an uproar if Amazon suddenly got rid of the free 3G.

Q: Plus how good is Amazon with Kindle updates? I'm sure the Kindle 3 has a few bugs here and there, I know B&N released 1.5 for them, is the Kindle well supported as well?

A: I'd say Amazon are better than most with updates for the Kindle. We've had about 3 already with the new Kindle with a rumoured 4th on the way soon.

Q: Is 4gb really enough? Because I was planning on storing some audio books as well...

A: It should be good enough for most people. Certainly for storing books, it's plenty. I have a mix of music and hundreds of books on my Kindle and I've only used just over 1GB. You don't actually get 4GB, I think you get around 3.5 GB of usable space as the rest is needed for the Kindle to operate.

Q: How is the overall dictionary in the Kindle? Does it support like different languages? For instance if I had a spanish ebook, can I somehow look up words in english?

A: You have an option to use different dictionaries for your Kindle. You can purchase Kindle compatible ones on Amazon. I just use the bog standard dictionary that mine came with - think I had the option of an American or English one. You would need to purchase a dictionary to cover other languages.

Q: Do you have any big regrets with getting the kindle? or is there even a reason to choose the sony 650 over the kindle?

A: No none. I had a Sony 600 before I had a Kindle and I didn't get on with the Sony at all - did not like the touchscreen plus wasn't helped as mine had a lot of glitches. It almost put me off ereading devices altogether but I got a Kindle 2i and now a 3G and have never looked back. Not sure why you would pay more money to buy a Sony - perhaps if you wanted to read library books as the Kindle does not support that.

Q: Anyone had a kindle 1 or 2, or even 3... Do these device tend to fail often? Can I see myself having this device in the next 5+ years, or is there going to be something wrong with the device within the next 2-3 years? I mean I'm sure I'm going to be picking up something new in the next 3 years; however, should I pick up a warranty for this or no?

A: This is my second Kindle (had 2i first) and it has been exceptionally reliable for me. The only issues were when I first got the 3G and had problems with it restartig and freezing - this was solved very quickly with Amazon providing a bug fix for that. No problems since.

I didn't bother with a warranty because with the price they are now I could just buy another if this one died. It's covered for the first year anyway.

I would recommend getting a cover/case as the vulnerable part of any ereading device is the screen which can be broken if you drop from a height or if real pressure is applied to it. People have broken these devices from carrying them around in rucksacks unprotected.