Quote:
Originally Posted by Alisa
I really doubt unlimited cellphone calls would be allowed in their partnership deal with Sprint. I can't imagine any carrier offering that at a price where they could absorb that in the cost of 12 ebooks especially when you figure they're likely taking a loss on the $9.99 bestsellers. That certainly all sounds like an attractive package for the consumer, of course, but they're a business, not a charity. I'm not a sheep, by the way. I just understand the cost of doing business in the real world.
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Actually, on my Nokia N800 you can make all the calls I want with Skype, Gizmo and SIP clients...all over wifi. In my case I have an UNLIMTED EVDO Rev A data plan via Millenicom over the Spint/Alltel network for $50/mo and associated hardware to allow connecting on the go to the EVDO network. I stream video/audio too (mostly on my laptop becuase the N800 is very FUSSY about video) and average around 150-180gb data/mo. So a good deal on that option is not out of the question.
The key to something like that though is the CPU/DSP in the device. Bandwidth is low no matter what service...56k of available bandwidth is all a person needs for a call. But as of now the Kindle does not have the processing power to make calls.
Perhaps adding VoIP to the device might, and I mean might, justify the fact Amazon is NOT going to drop the price. I could see Amazon offering an LCD version of the Kindle that is more tablet PC like which integrates with Amazon Unboxed video.