[Katsunami]

The strange thing is that running a big company is kind of a paradox.

"We want to create devices that our users will like."

vs.

"We want to create devices that create the least problems."

Those two things are often mutually exclusive, as the first statement means that a device has to be open, free, has lots of options, huge configurability and so on, while the second statement means that a device should never need support, and therefore must be as closed as possible, have not too many options, can't be modified, and can't be used in a different way than the manufacturer intended.

Compare:

Kobo - Kindle

The Kobo is quite open, has a lot of options and customizations, but it has many problems. The Kindle is quite closed, has a lot fewer options and customizations, but doesn't have any problems... as long as you use it as Amazon intended it to be used (and that is, with Wifi on, if you want to use collections).

Linux - Windows - Mac

Linux is most open of all. You can change and customize EVERYTHING. The flipside of the coin is that you can break EVERYTHING just as easily. You'll need support / start searching for solutions as soon as you even touch Linux on a desktop. Windows is in the middle: many people can install it, install drivers and software, and customize it (as far as it can be customized). Hardware almost always works, if it and the Windows version you're using are not like 10 years apart. Mac OSX is closed. You can't use it on any other computer outside of a Mac, but as long as you buy stuff from Apple, and use it the way Apple intended it to, it always works. Customization is something OSX never seems to have heard about. If you want something that is not available on OSX, you're SOL.

Android - iOS

Android is open; it can be rooted easily, you can install applications by sideloading them, but this openness means that you can break your phone if you don't know what you're doing. Because there are so many versions, not all phones from all manufacturers get updates. If you have a Nexus device, it's a bit like like Windows: one manufacturer provides the hardware, Google supports the software with direct updates. iOS is like a Mac. It runs on one phone type of phone only, you can't customize it (officially), you can't sideload stuff, but normally, it works. If you use it as Apple intended it to be used.

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I have a feeling that Amazon is moving more and more towards Apple: closed Kindle, their own format, their own store, and so on. Maybe the Kindle won't start streaming books, but I wouldn't be surprised if some day, it will come with 256MB of flash memory (enough to load even the biggest omnibus I know, 145 MB as of today), and no USB port. Maybe there will be a "USB Port", that only has the power lines for charging, but no data lines. Kindle for PC/Mac might be thrown out the window.

The intention would be that you either buy books directly from the Kindle, or from the Amazon store using a computer, and the only way to get them onto the device would be to download them from the cloud through Wifi or 3G. Obviously, Amazon will give every Kindle a secret key, only known to them, so it's not possible for a PC or smartphone application to "impersonate" a Kindle in order to download books. (This is how Kindle for PC works atm: it's registered as if it's a Kindle downloading from the cloud. Maybe there will be a "hardware jailbreak", Frankensteining a USB port onto the device so the key can be retreived, but that's not sure to happen and not easy to implement for most.)

The day something like this happens will be the day that I'll not even look at a Kindle anymore, and obviously won't buy any books at Amazon anymore.