Quote:
Originally Posted by zetareticuli
What's unbelievable is that most of the neat things we want from an ebook reader such as the Kindle DX can be improved with software and Amazon has done nothing about that. As far as the hardware items such as SD card support, Bluetooth, and USB, there is nothing for the current Kindles there. However, I think Amazon is likely to introduce at least some of these in the next line. Even without a next generation of Kindles coming out any time soon, a software updates that adds killer PDF support, folder/file management, custom zooming options, simple apps, games, etc, would make the existing Kindle a great device to own.
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The folder/tags support is said by Customer Service notices on Facebook and the Amazon forum to be coming before summer. They've been working on the organization problems of the Kindle.
Coincidentally, last night Amazon announced it's opening up the Kindle for developers to add apps and make some $$.
I'm afraid the PDF support we want for editing depends on Amazon paying Adobe for the Digital Edition full license and they're competitors at that level.
I wish they would just at least get ePub non-DRM support going, especially since they own Lexcycle.
But this new Kindle apps-thing starting a limited beta in a month with late 2010 as a goal is more than interesting. This really changes the entire picture. Revenue to the developer will be about 70% minus cost of delivery of the product.
Since Amazon customers don't pay for wireless access (except for personal document delivery to the Kindle), apps would need to include ongoing charges for wireless access -- unless they're tiny apps (less than 1M) with less than 100KB/user/month use of wireless data (which is nothing) and these would qualify for the free-apps category.
If not a free app but the app is larger than 1MB and the wireless data used is still less than 100KB per user/month, there'd be a one-time charge for purchasing the app.
And anything beyond that would involve monthly charges to cover wireless costs.
I copied most of the salient facts from their pages minus the usual PR to my blog entry at
http://bit.ly/kwamznkdk
What's your take on this? Very different from apps for a smartphone where data plans are already being paid for by the customer.
- Andrys