Kindle Review by a book lover

SanAntone · 11-20-2007, 11:14 PM

I received my Kindle today and I thought I'd share my thoughts for those of you waiting for your Kindle or trying to make a decision.

First, Amazon clearly took a page from Apple. The packaging was very clever. The box looked like a book and everything was clean and neat. What really was amazing to me, and it made me feel like the Kindle was mine right away, was that right after I turned it on it showed Michael's Kindle at the top of the screen and I had a letter from Jeff Bezos addressed to me waiting on the book. It must have come across as soon as I turned it on, but it was a clever and thoughtful way of helping someone gain ownership of a new product.

The Kindle looks a lot better in person than in the initial FCC pictures. The Amazon site does a good job of giving you a good look at what it really looks like.

The interface is where the Kindle shines. The Kindle store is fantastic and very quick to browse...much like Amazon (which it is). It is easy to find books by using the keyboard or looking up the Top 100. It even has recommendations for you once you start purchasing a few books.

Delivery is almost instant (less than a minute for a book). I've subscribed to several newspapers and blogs and the blogs are updated throughout the day.

The screen is obviously fantastic, much like the Sony 505. The slider wheel is what you use to navigate and it is really unique and clever looking. It has a shiny silver icon that changes size based on the item you are selecting. You do almost all of your navigating with this clever wheel.

There is a home button and a search button on the keyboard that will jump you to the most used pages (home and search). It is quick.

The most important part of any ebook reader is the experience while reading. You do disappear into this reader just as you would a book. The page turner is most of the right side (or part of the left side) and is very easy and intuitive to use. Easier than turning a page of a real book.

There have been lots of complaints about the look and ergonomics but I'll tell you that once you use it, you'll realize that the Kindle is highly functional and it really grows on you.

While I am enjoying reading a book on the Kindle, I really love the newspapers, magazines, and blogs. I've had other ebook readers before but I'll use this one probably 10x as much due to the other content that is updated regularly.

I really like the feature that you can try any blog, newspaper, or magazine for free for 14 days to see if you like it. It is also very easy to cancel your subscriptions on the Amazon account page.

Another great feature is downloading the first chapter of a new book. What a great way to avoid disappointment!

There are so many things to like about the Kindle. The only thing I don't like is it's cover. It's ok, but not great.

kovidgoyal · 11-20-2007, 11:48 PM

Not too rain on your parade, but you realise that Amazon is charging you for free content when it comes to newspapers like the new york times. You can read the new york times (and others) for free on the sony reader. Of course, once I get my hands on the kindle you'll be able to read it for free on the kindle as well :-)

Mikou · 11-20-2007, 11:49 PM

Thanks for the review! The Kindle video on Amazon.com is very tempting. Since I have 2 readers (Ebookwise and Sony PRS-500) I think I can wait until I see how well the Kindle does and how likely it is too stick around. I do have some concerns about the new format, but it's good to hear that it does have several positives.

SanAntone · 11-20-2007, 11:53 PM

Kovid,

Looking forward to what you'll do for the Kindle!

My problem with the Sony Reader is that I am a Mac user. I don't want "work arounds" or want to expend any effort to get content onto my reader. I'll gladly pay a few dollars a month to get a paper delivered wirelessly to my reader without me having to sync with my computer before I read it. I will enjoy going out the door in the morning with my reader in my hand having expended no effort to load anything on it!

Charbax · 11-21-2007, 12:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kovidgoyal

Not too rain on your parade, but you realise that Amazon is charging you for free content when it comes to newspapers like the new york times.

Actually if you read NYT on the Internet, it's paid for by the advertising, which don't show up in the paid version of NYT on the Kindle. And you are also paying for the EVDO bandwidth service. I think being able to pay for just one issue at the time is reasonable. I'd like to be able to pay for just one article at the time, something like a few cents per article adds-free and for free if specially ebook formatted ads can pay for the service.

kovidgoyal · 11-21-2007, 12:26 AM

Well sure, if you can afford it, the price markup is certainly worth the extra convenience. I'm just ticked off at amazon for charging for this service when it is really, really easy to implement and has no real cost.

kovidgoyal · 11-21-2007, 12:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Charbax

Actually if you read NYT on the Internet, it's paid for by the advertising, which don't show up in the paid version of NYT on the Kindle. And you are also paying for the EVDO bandwidth service. I think being able to pay for just one issue at the time is reasonable. I'd like to be able to pay for just one article at the time, something like a few cents per article adds-free and for free if specially ebook formatted ads can pay for the service.

Actually the ads dont show on the aggregated version on the sony reader either. As for bandwidth, they could charge for that, but I still don't think they should charge for the content itself.

Charbax · 11-21-2007, 01:56 AM

Well I think it's ok they charge for the content as long as that is what the publisher wants. But the publisher should also have the choice to have the content ad-supported, for example Amazon could figure some way to show ads at the bottom 5th of the Kindle screen for example. And there should also be some micropayment possibillity so users don't need to subscribe to the whole blog just to read one blog post.

astra · 11-21-2007, 08:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kovidgoyal

Actually the ads dont show on the aggregated version on the sony reader either. As for bandwidth, they could charge for that, but I still don't think they should charge for the content itself.

Sorry for silly question, but how can you read NYT for free on Sony?

Nate the great · 11-21-2007, 08:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by astra_lestat

Sorry for silly question, but how can you read NYT for free on Sony?

web2lrf

I think it already has settings for the NYTimes.

dugbug · 11-21-2007, 08:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the great

web2lrf

I think it already has settings for the NYTimes.

and is the problem with the kindle at the moment that the lrf format is unsupported? Ill code something supported when I get my kindle

-d

astra · 11-21-2007, 09:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the great

web2lrf

I think it already has settings for the NYTimes.

Thanks!
Where can I download it?

Nate the great · 11-21-2007, 09:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by astra_lestat

Thanks!
Where can I download it?

It's part of libprs500. I'm surprised you don't have it already.

rflashman · 11-21-2007, 10:04 AM

web2lrf for reading the NYT was a major pain. Tool works, but is nowhere near release quality. It's just a developer's raw tool at this point. Even on my dual-core system took a while converting it and the results were less than perfect. I played with it a while, but the results where not ideal.

I am getting my Kindle today, to replace my Sony Reader, for that one simple key feature: automated delivery of my newspapers. I would have been ok if I had to sync my Sony Reader every morning if Sony had bothered to fulfill their promise of newspapers, but they never did.

I signed up for Time too. May do the Washington post. I will report how it goes.

astra · 11-21-2007, 10:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the great

It's part of libprs500. I'm surprised you don't have it already.

I see.

I don't use it. I use Connect to put a book on my reader and I use BD to prepare books.
I will have a look at it, though.

11-20-2007, 11:14 PM	#1
SanAntone Connoisseur Posts: 60 Karma: 34 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Texas! Device: Kindle/Rocket ebook	Kindle Review by a book lover I received my Kindle today and I thought I'd share my thoughts for those of you waiting for your Kindle or trying to make a decision. First, Amazon clearly took a page from Apple. The packaging was very clever. The box looked like a book and everything was clean and neat. What really was amazing to me, and it made me feel like the Kindle was mine right away, was that right after I turned it on it showed Michael's Kindle at the top of the screen and I had a letter from Jeff Bezos addressed to me waiting on the book. It must have come across as soon as I turned it on, but it was a clever and thoughtful way of helping someone gain ownership of a new product. The Kindle looks a lot better in person than in the initial FCC pictures. The Amazon site does a good job of giving you a good look at what it really looks like. The interface is where the Kindle shines. The Kindle store is fantastic and very quick to browse...much like Amazon (which it is). It is easy to find books by using the keyboard or looking up the Top 100. It even has recommendations for you once you start purchasing a few books. Delivery is almost instant (less than a minute for a book). I've subscribed to several newspapers and blogs and the blogs are updated throughout the day. The screen is obviously fantastic, much like the Sony 505. The slider wheel is what you use to navigate and it is really unique and clever looking. It has a shiny silver icon that changes size based on the item you are selecting. You do almost all of your navigating with this clever wheel. There is a home button and a search button on the keyboard that will jump you to the most used pages (home and search). It is quick. The most important part of any ebook reader is the experience while reading. You do disappear into this reader just as you would a book. The page turner is most of the right side (or part of the left side) and is very easy and intuitive to use. Easier than turning a page of a real book. There have been lots of complaints about the look and ergonomics but I'll tell you that once you use it, you'll realize that the Kindle is highly functional and it really grows on you. While I am enjoying reading a book on the Kindle, I really love the newspapers, magazines, and blogs. I've had other ebook readers before but I'll use this one probably 10x as much due to the other content that is updated regularly. I really like the feature that you can try any blog, newspaper, or magazine for free for 14 days to see if you like it. It is also very easy to cancel your subscriptions on the Amazon account page. Another great feature is downloading the first chapter of a new book. What a great way to avoid disappointment! There are so many things to like about the Kindle. The only thing I don't like is it's cover. It's ok, but not great.

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11-20-2007, 11:48 PM	#2
kovidgoyal Creator of calibre, Ph.D. Posts: 8,821 Karma: 37450 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Albuquerque, NM Device: PRS-500/505/700, K2, BeBook	Not too rain on your parade, but you realise that Amazon is charging you for free content when it comes to newspapers like the new york times. You can read the new york times (and others) for free on the sony reader. Of course, once I get my hands on the kindle you'll be able to read it for free on the kindle as well :-)

11-20-2007, 11:49 PM	#3
Mikou Enthusiast Posts: 27 Karma: 15 Join Date: May 2007 Device: Sony Reader, Ebookwise-1150	Thanks for the review! The Kindle video on Amazon.com is very tempting. Since I have 2 readers (Ebookwise and Sony PRS-500) I think I can wait until I see how well the Kindle does and how likely it is too stick around. I do have some concerns about the new format, but it's good to hear that it does have several positives.

11-20-2007, 11:53 PM	#4
SanAntone Connoisseur Posts: 60 Karma: 34 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Texas! Device: Kindle/Rocket ebook	Kovid, Looking forward to what you'll do for the Kindle! My problem with the Sony Reader is that I am a Mac user. I don't want "work arounds" or want to expend any effort to get content onto my reader. I'll gladly pay a few dollars a month to get a paper delivered wirelessly to my reader without me having to sync with my computer before I read it. I will enjoy going out the door in the morning with my reader in my hand having expended no effort to load anything on it!

11-21-2007, 12:26 AM	#6
kovidgoyal Creator of calibre, Ph.D. Posts: 8,821 Karma: 37450 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Albuquerque, NM Device: PRS-500/505/700, K2, BeBook	Well sure, if you can afford it, the price markup is certainly worth the extra convenience. I'm just ticked off at amazon for charging for this service when it is really, really easy to implement and has no real cost.

11-21-2007, 01:56 AM	#8
Charbax Zealot Posts: 121 Karma: 577 Join Date: Mar 2007	Well I think it's ok they charge for the content as long as that is what the publisher wants. But the publisher should also have the choice to have the content ad-supported, for example Amazon could figure some way to show ads at the bottom 5th of the Kindle screen for example. And there should also be some micropayment possibillity so users don't need to subscribe to the whole blog just to read one blog post.

11-21-2007, 10:04 AM	#14
rflashman Zealot Posts: 107 Karma: 408 Join Date: Jul 2007 Device: Amazon Kindle, Archos 605 Wifi, & Sony PRS-500	web2lrf for reading the NYT was a major pain. Tool works, but is nowhere near release quality. It's just a developer's raw tool at this point. Even on my dual-core system took a while converting it and the results were less than perfect. I played with it a while, but the results where not ideal. I am getting my Kindle today, to replace my Sony Reader, for that one simple key feature: automated delivery of my newspapers. I would have been ok if I had to sync my Sony Reader every morning if Sony had bothered to fulfill their promise of newspapers, but they never did. I signed up for Time too. May do the Washington post. I will report how it goes.