Twelve or so questions about the Kindle 2

[enarchay]

Question(s) 1. How exactly do you get blogs unto the Kindle 2? Is there only a narrow selection of blogs - and does it cost money to subscribe to them? Can you subscribe to your own favorite blogs on the Kindle 2, and if so, does the Kindle 2 auto-add new blog posts like an internet browser? If the blogs must be converted, how do they look afterward? (I've heard something about calibre helping in this area, but I don't totally understand. Explain if you can.)

Question(s) 2. How is the battery life? Some people said it lasts for up to two weeks when the wireless function is off, but I’ve heard other people claim that even with the wireless function off, it lasts about four days. Are there any problems with the battery? I’ve heard some people complain that their batteries stopped working after about a month of use. Do many people have this problem?

Question(s) 3. How do you replace the battery if it stops working?

Question(s) 4. Does the 2gigs of space make up for the lack of expandability?

Question(s) 5. What happens when you run out of space on the Kindle 2? Can you delete books or move them off the Kindle to make room for more space?

Question(s) 6. How much space do Bibles typically take up?

Question(s) 7. How is the keyboard? Is it intuitive? Do you find it easy to take notes? How does it compare with a touch screen?

Question(s) 8. How does exporting notes work?

Question(s) 9. How does the Kindle 2 generally handle books with images? What about PDF books or DOC files with images after conversion?

Question(s) 10. How does the Kindle 2 compare with the Sony PRS-505 or Sony PRS-700? Which would you recommend and why?

Question(s) 11. If you use your ereader to read a lot of DOC, HTML, and PDF files (short articles, blog posts, books, etc.), do you find this to be a hassle with the Kindle 2?

Question(s) 12. If the Kindle 2 goes down in price once the DX comes out, do you think amazon will give recent Kindle buyers a refund? (I ask because if I was going to buy the Kindle 2, I was going to do it soon.)

Question(s) 13. How does the search function work? I've heard that it doesn't actually search for full words or something like that, but I'm not totally sure.

Question(s) 14. Can you highlight text and take notes with post-converted PDF and DOC files? Or are those features limited to only certain formats?

Question(s) 15 Does viewing the Kindle 2 in sunlight screw up the screen?

Question(s) 16 Why does it seem like more peoples' Kindles have broken than Sonys? Is it just because more people buy Kindles than Sonys?

Question(s) 17. Is the extended warranty truly worth it?

Question(s) 18. Is there anything else important (good or bad) I should know before buying the Kindle 2?


I'm considering buying the Kindle 2, but I want to know more about it first. Most of the reviews I've read didn't go into much detail. (If I can think of more relevant questions that I haven't been able to find an answer to, I'll add them in a reply.)

[sirbruce]

1. You buy them in the store and updates are delivered wireless to your Kindle throughout the day. There is only a narrow selection of blogs, but Amazon recently added the ability for anyone to add their blog to Kindle. Amazon sets the pricing; typically $1 - $2 a month. You can't auto-subscribe to any blog on the net; you have to wait for it to be offered through Amazon. Calibre has it's own thing where you can turn any RSS feed into a periodical for your e-reader; however, now that Amazon charges $0.15 + $0.15 per MB over 1 MB for wireless emails this may no longer be a desirable alternative to wirelessly deliver of blogs via Calibre. (Blogs delivered by Amazon are not subject to that charge.)

2. It depends entirely on how much you read per day, how fast, and at what font size. Power is used on page turns, so if you prefer a larger font you'll use more power reading the same amount of text. Typically, it's 2 days with wireless on, and 7 days with wireless off. But you could see up to double that. Actual reading time with wireless off, 15 - 45 hours? I have not had a problem with the battery not working but as with all electronics that can happen.

3. If it's under warranty, you send it back to Amazon and they replace it for free. If it's not under warranty, you send it back to Amazon and they replace it for $45.

4. It's only 1.4 GB of useable space, but that's enough for 1,500 books or so, which is more than enough IMHO. It can be cramped holding more than one or two audiobooks, though. People who miss the SD Card slot mainly do so not because of space concerns but because they could use their cards to organize their library since the Kindle doesn't have folders yet.

5. The Kindle may crash if it runs out of space, but it comes right back. You can delete books, or move them off via USB. If they're books you bought from Amazon, you can redownload them again at any time from Amazon. If you bought them from someplace else you'll want to keep a backup copy on your computer.

6. The three Bibles I have are 5,793 KB, 5,790 KB, and 1,764 KB. (Not sure why the last one is so much smaller.)

7. I like the keyboard, but most non-alphanumeric characters can only be accessed from the special symbol key, which is annoying because there's a shift key right there but shift-2 won't make a @, for example. I find it too easy to make errors (you can type faster than the Kindle can register at times) so I don't use it much. No opinion on how it compares to touch screen.

8. It's pretty primitive; they are stored in text files you have to copy to your computer via USB.

9. Books with images are nice quality but the images are usually too small to really enjoy on the Kindle 2. Kindle DX should be less of a problem. I haven't used Amazon's own conversion service with PDF or DOC files so I can't say how well it handles images in those.

10. The devices are very similar in look and feel, but with Kindle 2's wireless support to download books, plus the ability to easily add books to it via USB without special software (it works on Windows, Mac, etc.), means that there is really no comparison between it and the Sony devices.

11. I don't, but I would find this a hassle with Kindle 2. Kindle DX will make reading PDF files much easier. DOC and HTML have to be converted; with Calibre that's easy.

12. Absolutely no refund will be offered, and I very much doubt the price will go down, and if it does, probably by no more than $50. So if you're waiting on price, don't bother.

13. You'll absolutely want a cover of some sort (basic Amazon cover, $30) and the 2-year warranty (covers one accidental breakage, $65), so be sure to factor in an extra $100 to the price tag. If you drop it and break it (easy to do) without the extended warranty, Amazon will charge you $200 to replace. If you plan to read the Kindle 2 in direct sunlight, be advised that some Kindle 2s have an issue where the screen fades during page turning in direct sulight, making the text difficult or impossible to read. Amazon will usually replace such a defective Kindle 2 for free, but you may have to go through several returns to get one that doesn't have this issue. Some Kindles have had creaky or misaligned buttons; again Amazon will usually replace it for free. Amazon will ship you a new one overnight and then you can send the defective one back in the box they send. Within 30 days of initial purchase you can get a full refund of your money; after 30 days you'll only be able to exchange for another Kindle if you still have a defective one.

[enarchay]

the 2-year warranty (covers one accidental breakage, $65), so be sure to factor in an extra $100 to the price tag. If you drop it and break it (easy to do) without the extended warranty, Amazon will charge you $200 to replace.

Is the 2-year warranty really worth it when better ereaders will probably be available by that time?

Do you think the Kindle 2 would easily break when dropped in a leather case (like the M-Edge)?

[Sporadic]

I don't have a Kindle 2 but I can answer a few of your questions.

The Kindle 1 has 256MBs of memory. On mine I have 107 books (and a few collections count as 1 book such as the complete works of Edgar Allan Poe, William Shakespeare, H.P Lovecraft and the complete short stories of Ernest Hemingway), 5 magazines, and 2 samples. I still have 41 MBs free.

Books are surprisingly small and even so, you can redownload any book you purchase from Amazon any time you want. I usually move the books I finish to my computer for backup since there is no real reason to carry around my entire library.

I have three free bibles I got from Amazon:

Holy Bible, Today's New International Version, TNIV = 5.65 MB
Holy Bible, GOD'S WORD Translation (GW) = 1.72 MB
The Holy Bible English Standard Version (ESV) = 5.65 MB

With the Kindle 2, I'm pretty sure you have to mail it back to Amazon and they will replace the battery for $60

- edit If you want expandable memory and a user replaceable battery, you may want to look into a used Kindle 1

[sirbruce]

Originally Posted by enarchay

Is the 2-year warranty really worth it when better ereaders will probably be available by that time?

If you're not going to be upset if you break your Kindle in the next year or two and instead are willing to pay $200 for a replacement or $300+ for a new ereader, then it's not worth it. Everyone I know who has broken their Kindle seems to get pissed about it, though, and further pissed that they're expected to pay $200 for a replacement.

Originally Posted by enarchay

Do you think the Kindle 2 would easily break when dropped in a leather case (like the M-Edge)?

I've dropped it without a case from 3 feet onto concrete and it didn't break. Other people have dropped it with a case from 3 feet onto carpet and it did break. It's more likely to break than your cell phone.

[enarchay]

Originally Posted by sirbruce

If you're not going to be upset if you break your Kindle in the next year or two and instead are willing to pay $200 for a replacement or $300+ for a new ereader, then it's not worth it. Everyone I know who has broken their Kindle seems to get pissed about it, though, and further pissed that they're expected to pay $200 for a replacement.

Well, like most people have done by going from the Kindle 1 to the Kinde 2, I'll probably keep up with the technology. So I'm not sure it's worth spending more money on an already expensive item when in a year I might be buying a new ereader anyway. You said under the 1-year warranty, it does not cover if the ereader falls and breaks?

I've dropped it without a case from 3 feet onto concrete and it didn't break. Other people have dropped it with a case from 3 feet onto carpet and it did break. It's more likely to break than your cell phone.

I see. Are ereaders in general that fragile, or is it the Kindle 2 in particular?

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by enarchay

I see. Are ereaders in general that fragile, or is it the Kindle 2 in particular?

It's the screen that's really fragile, it uses a thin glass substrate (all eInk readers use basically the same screen). That said I've never had a problem with the 505 (over a year) or the K2 (since release day), but I don't tend to drop my stuff, although I have a couple times.

[emellaich]

Originally Posted by sirbruce

1. You buy them in the store and updates are delivered wireless to your Kindle throughout the day. There is only a narrow selection of blogs, but Amazon recently added the ability for anyone to add their blog to Kindle. Amazon sets the pricing; typically $1 - $2 a month. You can't auto-subscribe to any blog on the net; you have to wait for it to be offered through Amazon. Calibre has it's own thing where you can turn any RSS feed into a periodical for your e-reader; however, now that Amazon charges $0.15 + $0.15 per MB over 1 MB for wireless emails this may no longer be a desirable alternative to wirelessly deliver of blogs via Calibre. (Blogs delivered by Amazon are not subject to that charge.)

Sirbruce, can you help me understand this? I don't use calibre to deliver blogs, but I thought you would either deliver the blog by a USB connection, or by a web connection -- doesn't Calibre have the capability to allow you to set up a personal web server somehow???? Does Feedbooks.com provide another alternative for reading blogs?

Anyway, on all of these alternatives I thought the message delivery was via the web, and I thought the new charges were for emails only. If so, then I would think these were still free. Comments?

I really don't know on this since I don't read blogs or use feedbooks.com. I'm just trying to educate myself and clear up my confusion.

[susan_cassidy]

11) Free software is available to convert HTML, Doc, and PDF for the Kindle (Mobipocket Creator, publisher edition, or Calibre). You can also use Amazon's conversion service and email a file or files to them and either have the converted output sent wirelessly to your Kindle (.15 per megabyte fee) or to your normal email address for free. I do the conversion myself - it's very easy.

13) The Search seems to do a string search. From the User's Guide: "You can limit a search to only what you are currently reading. You enter your search term or phrase and Kindle searches in the body of the text. You can alternatively search all the reading material that you have stored on Kindle, including books, newspapers, magazines, and other items. You enter your search term or phrase and Kindle searches in the body of the text, in the metadata (for example, the title or author), and in your "My Clippings" file."

14) The User's guide is available online. I suggest you read it. Go to Amazon.com, to the Kindle Support page. You can read it online or download it. You might browse through some of the questions on this forum, or the one on Amazon.com, too.

[enarchay]

Another question:

Question(s) 15. Can you highlight text and take notes with post-converted PDF and DOC files? Or are those features limited to only certain formats?

[enarchay]

Another three questions.

How exactly do table of contents work on Kindle? Do all of the books you buy through amazon come with a table of contents, or how do you navigate the books? For example, I don't want to have to do a million page flips to get where I want. Moreover, when you convert PDFs, does it retain the table of contents or automatically add one or what? Is there a way to skip ahead by more than one page at a time? (I heard something like this is available for the Sony. See this post.)

Can you view files in landscape mode?

[sirbruce]

Originally Posted by enarchay

Well, like most people have done by going from the Kindle 1 to the Kinde 2, I'll probably keep up with the technology.

Well honestly I think a lot of Kindle 1 owners stuck with their Kindle 1. If they got a Kindle 2 they usually gave the Kindle 1 to someone else in the household. But I can certainly see your point of view.

Originally Posted by enarchay

So I'm not sure it's worth spending more money on an already expensive item when in a year I might be buying a new ereader anyway. You said under the 1-year warranty, it does not cover if the ereader falls and breaks?

Correct, it does not. Amazon will replace it for $200 (almost half-price), though.

Originally Posted by enarchay

I see. Are ereaders in general that fragile, or is it the Kindle 2 in particular?

They're all that fragile; it's the screen that's the primary problem.

[enarchay]

Another question (in addition to the above).

I've heard that reading the Kindle 2 in sunlight sometimes screws up the screen or something like that. Is this true?

[sirbruce]

Originally Posted by emellaich

Sirbruce, can you help me understand this? I don't use calibre to deliver blogs, but I thought you would either deliver the blog by a USB connection, or by a web connection -- doesn't Calibre have the capability to allow you to set up a personal web server somehow???? Does Feedbooks.com provide another alternative for reading blogs?

Kindle comes with a free browser. You can use it to read blogs in "realtime", so to speak, like any page on the Internet, if you want. But that's somewhat slow, since you load each page over the Internet.

Amazon has a subscription service where you read blogs directly as files *on the Kindle itself*. Basically, whenever the feed updates, it sends the update wirelessly to your Kindle, and deletes the old ones off the end. The RSS entries are like a series of articles in a "magazine". It's basically a way to get blogs in a convenient package that downloads automatically; you don't need to go web-surfing.

Calibre has a feature where it can turn RSS feeds from blogs into a "magazine" just like Amazon does. Obviously you need Calibre running on your computer to do this. Now, you can simply download the resulting files from your computer via USB for free. In this way you can read the blogs in a non-realtime manner. For example, before you go to work every day, boot up your computer, run Calibre, download blog entries, USB them to your Kindle, take your Kindle to work, read them at work.

You can also, with Calibre, use a feature to email these blogs wirelessly to your Kindle via Amazon. Amazon charges for this service as I stated before. This has nothing to do with blog subscription fees and is purely an email fee due to the way Calibre is trying to simulate what Amazon does. When it was free, this made some sense; now, I don't see much advantage in it.

Originally Posted by enarchay

I really don't know on this since I don't read blogs or use feedbooks.com. I'm just trying to educate myself and clear up my confusion.

I don't read blogs on my Kindle so I really can't explain the fascination in it.

[sirbruce]

Originally Posted by enarchay

Question(s) 15. Can you highlight text and take notes with post-converted PDF and DOC files? Or are those features limited to only certain formats?

13. What Susan said.

14. What Susan said.

15. Conversion turns everything into AZW format (or MOBI if you do it yourself with Calibre). You can highlight and take notes post-conversion; the original format doesn't matter.