So, briefly, what do you think about the Kindle now? - Page 2

AintLDS · 11-26-2007, 05:48 PM

I like mine a lot. Some things that could be improved:

1. Case color - make it charcoal grey or black - having a few choices on color would be nice
2. Right side next page button - don't need it or make it half the size
3. Left side prev page button, make it the same size as the next page button
4. Lower volume knobs - put on the front - an Alt+some button like the sleep mode - the way they are now they rattle
5. All books shouldn't cost more than $9.99. Tom Perkin's autobiography is $16 and I'd love to read it, but not at that price
6. I'd love to be able to gift books to other Kindle owners and have them download automagically to their Kindle with a little note
7. A $299 price point would make it easier to justify the purchase to your spouse
8. Need more books - but they are off to a good start
9. Oh yeah, and include a decent sleeve or cover already!

But otherwise, I've had a lot of fun using mine. I hope this catches on!

NatCh · 11-26-2007, 05:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tsgreer

But aren't the Sony Reader DRM books more expensive than Amazon's DRM books?

If I recall correctly, rlauzon considers DRMed e-books to be worth about $1, counting it to be a rental rather than a purchase.

rlauzon · 11-26-2007, 05:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tsgreer

But aren't the Sony Reader DRM books more expensive than Amazon's DRM books?

But places like Fictionwise offer eBooks for less.

Once DRM is on the eBook, it's no different from checking a book out at the library. I can do that for free. For the privilege of getting it early: $1. $10 is overpriced - just not grossly overpriced like at Sony.

NatCh · 11-26-2007, 05:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rlauzon

$10 is overpriced - just not grossly overpriced like at Sony.

Sony (and most of the other e-book sellers) have dropped their prices in response to the Kindle launch. Which is a step in the right direction, anyway.

pilotbob · 11-26-2007, 06:14 PM

I own the Sony reader. If I didn't and I had to choose it would be the Kindle, due to the content available. Yes, I don't love DRM, but you have to take the bad with the good.

That said, I will not be compeled to get one. After spending $350 for the Sony reader (got it when it was first released) I can't see spending another $400 at this point. OF course, if someone outside of my wallet (not wife) wanted to get me one... I would happily accept it!

BOb

Lov2Read · 11-26-2007, 06:48 PM

and have no intention of getting a Kindle. It is too locked down for me, and the price too steep considering how locked down it is. Just not impressed with anything about this Amazon e-adventure. I'll revisit it if and when a newer model comes out

PHugger · 11-26-2007, 07:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tsgreer

Dude, I'm not flaming, but we accept "the offerings of a locked down monopoly - hardware, OS, content, and store" as opposed to um, Microsoft?

Yes Microsoft makes some OSs, some applications, and just a bit of hardware like mice and keyboards. Compare that with Apple who in addition, also makes the actual computer hardware - this is a huge difference. I'm sorry that you can't see this. PCs are mix and match commodities - Apple is take what you get and say thank you Steve. It always amazes me to find people who squawk when Microsoft bundles a browser with the OS and then jump for joy when Apple does the same thing, but worse. I guess I just like choices..... AMD or Intel, Windows or Linux and the ability to avoid DRM. Apple is very good at locking their customers into the Apple family and keeping them there - iPod, iTunes, iTunes store, or iPhone, iTunes, AT&T only, Locked down. I would just rather choose who I marry and perhaps not make such a big commitment. This is what the Kindle looks like to me - a one stop shop without choices. Don't get your jockeys in a bunch I'm just making a comparison of the Amazon marketing plans with that of Apple.

PCH

PHugger · 11-26-2007, 07:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rlauzon

Fees up the wazoo to use the wireless

I don't believe you have to pay anything additional to use the WLAN features. It's covered by Amazon as a part of your purchase price. It seem like a great way to funnel people into their store. Not many folks would buy it if you had to pay each time you connect.

PCH

rlauzon · 11-26-2007, 07:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PHugger

I don't believe you have to pay anything additional to use the WLAN features. It's covered by Amazon as a part of your purchase price. It seem like a great way to funnel people into their store. Not many folks would buy it if you had to pay each time you connect.

From what I understand, if you have an eBook delivered via EVDO, you pay a fee for it. If you download the eBook yourself and put it on your Kindle via USB, you avoid this fee.

Alisa · 11-26-2007, 07:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rlauzon

From what I understand, if you have an eBook delivered via EVDO, you pay a fee for it. If you download the eBook yourself and put it on your Kindle via USB, you avoid this fee.

For an ebook you didn't purchase through Amazon, yes. For an Amazon ebook, that's included in the price.

Barcey · 11-26-2007, 07:48 PM

Overall I'm impressed with it. They've done a lot of things right with it and have some innovative new features. I'm still disappointed because I feel they're a couple of bonehead decisions away from creating a product that would appeal to a much larger market. I like all the marketing buzz they've done and I love what seems to be happening to the price of ebooks. I think $9.99 for new releases is fair and other book retailers seem to be matching it.

gteague · 11-26-2007, 08:15 PM

slow. sluggish when next or prev page has a graphic. can't enlarge graphics. no place to hold it, needs options for long press or double click so buttons won't activate by accident. amazon may charge for http in the future. very few tech books from reputable publishers and such titles, even if offered, would be useless unless you can enlarge charts and table and drawings. titles are mostly too expensive at $9.99 (considering the cost of delivery) and some non-bestsellers and tech titles are outrageous at up to $200. otoh, virtually instantaneous downloads from virtually anywhere. text looks fantastic, even bad eyes can read at smallest font size in order to have more words on a page. can sample nearly a hundred thousand works absolutely free. can hold hundreds of works internally and can offload titles to amazon for storage.

you might be able to tell i still haven't made the keep/send back decision.

/guy

igorsk · 11-26-2007, 08:26 PM

My Kindle didn't arrive yet -_-.

Zoot · 11-26-2007, 08:55 PM

I love mine. It replaced the Sony 500. It's much faster than the Sony so I'm a bit perplexed by the people who complain about the page-turning speed as it seems pretty zippy to me. The case could be better but it only mostly sucks. The wireless delivery is awesome and will almost certainly result in my buying more books than I would have with the Sony, and probably significantly more than I would buy in paper form too (buying an ebook seems like less of a commitment than a pbook in a family where we tend to keep books forever). The DRM issues seem identical to the Sony to me.

There are many gadgets out there (the iPhone is probably not a bad example) that have lots of flash and sex-appeal and do lots of cool things, but they're things that you probably don't need to do for more than a few minutes at a time so they may only change your life so much, and after a while the newness wears off and it's just last-year's model at that point.

The Kindle (and really all the other e-ink book readers) do one thing really well, which is delivering the written word in a form that's virtually identical to ink on paper in terms of the reading experience. So ultimately it's not about the device and its bells and whistles, but about the content delivered by the device. An e-ink based reader really does get out of the way and become invisible, leaving you with just the book you're reading.

I think the Kindle has a number of nice advantages over similar devices (the main one probably being the Amazon name and what that implies) but it's quite similar to the competition in terms of its ability to deliver that basic e-ink reading experience. The wireless delivery, shopping, and reference are really cool, but they aren't things one must have in order to get the full ebook experience.

I'd highly recommend a Kindle to someone who doesn't already have something like the Sony, but someone with a Sony Reader or equivalent should not feel like they're missing some grand revolution if they decide not to "upgrade".

Z.

rijker · 11-26-2007, 09:46 PM

I'm a librarian, so when the topic of reading or e-books comes up, I'm usually in with both feet. To tell truth, I'm rather the budding e-book snob and when my partner ordered a Kindle the day they appeared (and sold out) I tried vehemently to pooh-pooh the decision: horrors, the drm! the proprietary format! It's just ... simply f-ugly! We had a Sony reader which he didn't really like - and I couldn't blame him really. A geek like me willingly performs any number of weird conversions and technical steeplechases to hopefully achieve the 'perfect' reading experience, the ueber-ebook.

He just wanted to read. (sigh... go figure)
Sony's byzantine software / web store, scarce supply, and non-existent customer service made that very difficult indeed for the ordinary mortal.

I chuckled to myself: but just you wait, mister. Just see how disappointed you'll be with this limited excuse for a reading device. Why, it'll be on the next UPS truck back to Amazon. You'll see!

It arrived - I was there. He opened the package, the device displayed "hello Kenneth" and already listed the books he'd pre-ordered. I knew it was over then. This wretched thing and its slinky version 2.0 grandchildren will no doubt be part of our lives for a long time to come.

We took it along for Thanksgiving and the clan loved it. Weird. It was passed from hand to hand as the younger folks eagerly downloaded the free first chapter of any book they wanted (out of 90,000 +), trials of the New York Times and Le Monde. No computer or wi-fi needed. No one , *no one* said it was ugly. No one asked about drm. Kenn's dad said, "why, you know this will probably change the publishing world forever!". Right.

In the last few days I do find myself playing with it more. There are lots of things I would improve but I feel like some corner has been turned. Maybe in its own way, it is as revolutionary as Amazon.com was in its early days. Anyway, more thoughts later, but for now, while not a convert, I'm certainly an interested observer.

11-26-2007, 05:48 PM	#16
AintLDS No soliciting Posts: 55 Karma: 505122 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Utah Device: Kindle Voyage and iPhone 8 Plus	I like mine a lot. Some things that could be improved: 1. Case color - make it charcoal grey or black - having a few choices on color would be nice 2. Right side next page button - don't need it or make it half the size 3. Left side prev page button, make it the same size as the next page button 4. Lower volume knobs - put on the front - an Alt+some button like the sleep mode - the way they are now they rattle 5. All books shouldn't cost more than $9.99. Tom Perkin's autobiography is $16 and I'd love to read it, but not at that price 6. I'd love to be able to gift books to other Kindle owners and have them download automagically to their Kindle with a little note 7. A $299 price point would make it easier to justify the purchase to your spouse 8. Need more books - but they are off to a good start 9. Oh yeah, and include a decent sleeve or cover already! But otherwise, I've had a lot of fun using mine. I hope this catches on! Last edited by AintLDS; 11-26-2007 at 10:28 PM.

11-26-2007, 06:48 PM	#21
Lov2Read Book Connoisseur Posts: 71 Karma: 53 Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: U.S.A. Device: Sony Reader 505	Have a Sony PRS-500 and have no intention of getting a Kindle. It is too locked down for me, and the price too steep considering how locked down it is. Just not impressed with anything about this Amazon e-adventure. I'll revisit it if and when a newer model comes out

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11-26-2007, 06:14 PM	#20
pilotbob Grand Sorcerer Posts: 19,832 Karma: 11844413 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Tampa, FL USA Device: Kindle Touch	I own the Sony reader. If I didn't and I had to choose it would be the Kindle, due to the content available. Yes, I don't love DRM, but you have to take the bad with the good. That said, I will not be compeled to get one. After spending $350 for the Sony reader (got it when it was first released) I can't see spending another $400 at this point. OF course, if someone outside of my wallet (not wife) wanted to get me one... I would happily accept it! BOb

11-26-2007, 07:48 PM	#26
Barcey Wizard Posts: 1,531 Karma: 8059866 Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Canada Device: Kobo H2O / Aura HD / Glo / iPad3	Overall I'm impressed with it. They've done a lot of things right with it and have some innovative new features. I'm still disappointed because I feel they're a couple of bonehead decisions away from creating a product that would appeal to a much larger market. I like all the marketing buzz they've done and I love what seems to be happening to the price of ebooks. I think $9.99 for new releases is fair and other book retailers seem to be matching it.

11-26-2007, 08:15 PM	#27
gteague Zealot Posts: 104 Karma: 5658 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: dfw Device: kindle v1.0	slow. sluggish when next or prev page has a graphic. can't enlarge graphics. no place to hold it, needs options for long press or double click so buttons won't activate by accident. amazon may charge for http in the future. very few tech books from reputable publishers and such titles, even if offered, would be useless unless you can enlarge charts and table and drawings. titles are mostly too expensive at $9.99 (considering the cost of delivery) and some non-bestsellers and tech titles are outrageous at up to $200. otoh, virtually instantaneous downloads from virtually anywhere. text looks fantastic, even bad eyes can read at smallest font size in order to have more words on a page. can sample nearly a hundred thousand works absolutely free. can hold hundreds of works internally and can offload titles to amazon for storage. you might be able to tell i still haven't made the keep/send back decision. /guy

11-26-2007, 08:26 PM	#28
igorsk Wizard Posts: 3,442 Karma: 300001 Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Belgium Device: PRS-500/505/700, Kindle, Cybook Gen3, Words Gear	My Kindle didn't arrive yet -_-.

11-26-2007, 08:55 PM	#29
Zoot Connoisseur Posts: 89 Karma: 34 Join Date: Nov 2006 Device: Amazon Kindle	I love mine. It replaced the Sony 500. It's much faster than the Sony so I'm a bit perplexed by the people who complain about the page-turning speed as it seems pretty zippy to me. The case could be better but it only mostly sucks. The wireless delivery is awesome and will almost certainly result in my buying more books than I would have with the Sony, and probably significantly more than I would buy in paper form too (buying an ebook seems like less of a commitment than a pbook in a family where we tend to keep books forever). The DRM issues seem identical to the Sony to me. There are many gadgets out there (the iPhone is probably not a bad example) that have lots of flash and sex-appeal and do lots of cool things, but they're things that you probably don't need to do for more than a few minutes at a time so they may only change your life so much, and after a while the newness wears off and it's just last-year's model at that point. The Kindle (and really all the other e-ink book readers) do one thing really well, which is delivering the written word in a form that's virtually identical to ink on paper in terms of the reading experience. So ultimately it's not about the device and its bells and whistles, but about the content delivered by the device. An e-ink based reader really does get out of the way and become invisible, leaving you with just the book you're reading. I think the Kindle has a number of nice advantages over similar devices (the main one probably being the Amazon name and what that implies) but it's quite similar to the competition in terms of its ability to deliver that basic e-ink reading experience. The wireless delivery, shopping, and reference are really cool, but they aren't things one must have in order to get the full ebook experience. I'd highly recommend a Kindle to someone who doesn't already have something like the Sony, but someone with a Sony Reader or equivalent should not feel like they're missing some grand revolution if they decide not to "upgrade". Z.

11-26-2007, 09:46 PM	#30
rijker curiouser and curiouser Posts: 12 Karma: 328 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Seattle, WA Device: Kindle DX, K1,K2, iTouch 16gb	I'm a librarian, so when the topic of reading or e-books comes up, I'm usually in with both feet. To tell truth, I'm rather the budding e-book snob and when my partner ordered a Kindle the day they appeared (and sold out) I tried vehemently to pooh-pooh the decision: horrors, the drm! the proprietary format! It's just ... simply f-ugly! We had a Sony reader which he didn't really like - and I couldn't blame him really. A geek like me willingly performs any number of weird conversions and technical steeplechases to hopefully achieve the 'perfect' reading experience, the ueber-ebook. He just wanted to read. (sigh... go figure) Sony's byzantine software / web store, scarce supply, and non-existent customer service made that very difficult indeed for the ordinary mortal. I chuckled to myself: but just you wait, mister. Just see how disappointed you'll be with this limited excuse for a reading device. Why, it'll be on the next UPS truck back to Amazon. You'll see! It arrived - I was there. He opened the package, the device displayed "hello Kenneth" and already listed the books he'd pre-ordered. I knew it was over then. This wretched thing and its slinky version 2.0 grandchildren will no doubt be part of our lives for a long time to come. We took it along for Thanksgiving and the clan loved it. Weird. It was passed from hand to hand as the younger folks eagerly downloaded the free first chapter of any book they wanted (out of 90,000 +), trials of the New York Times and Le Monde. No computer or wi-fi needed. No one , no one said it was ugly. No one asked about drm. Kenn's dad said, "why, you know this will probably change the publishing world forever!". Right. In the last few days I do find myself playing with it more. There are lots of things I would improve but I feel like some corner has been turned. Maybe in its own way, it is as revolutionary as Amazon.com was in its early days. Anyway, more thoughts later, but for now, while not a convert, I'm certainly an interested observer.

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