[sirmaru]

I've had a Samsung Galaxy S5 now for one week since its release. Now I hardly ever look at my two Paperwhites and my two Fires. Amazon limits us to 6 devices for eBooks and I will soon have to unregister some of those old devices and give them away.

The screen uses a different technology than Amazon or Apple and is super bright and super clear. The Kindle for Samsung app has a font much wider and sharper than any of the Kindle fonts.

The screen is also much larger than any iPhones.

I had to carry any of my Kindles in my wife's pocketbook. I can carry the new S5 in my pants pocket and it is so much lighter to hold.

There is almost no glare in bright sun and is great in dark ambient light.

Plus, it uses 4G LTE for data transfer, the fastest in the nation via the ATT network.

It also has a new innovation, Ultra Power Saving Mode, whereby one can have a 100% battery charge last for 12.5 days. The downside of that mode is that it is in black and white and only runs 6 apps including phone and messaging. I use it every night when I sleep.

I can play Shredder Chess on it and alternate with reading Kindle eBooks. If lost or stolen, it can be instantly found at the Android Device Manager site within 15 meters and then can be made to ring continuously, locked with a new password or wiped clean as the situation requires.

My problem is the last PW and HDX are only SIX MONTHS old. I can't believe the rate of obsolescence with these readers. I have a hunch in 6 months my S5 will also be obsolete. I heard that Apple will introduce a "Phablet" in a few months which may have a larger screen than the S5 and still be light and small enough for a pocket.

Amazon, as well, has a new smart phone which will be offered next October.

Technology is forcing the consumer to spend more and more money for new eReaders every year. I sometimes long for the simplicity of the old print books.