Kindle DXG will get same functionality as new Kindle - Page 2

johndoesecond · 07-29-2010, 03:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zetareticuli

I agree there are arguments for and against the firmware being available for the older devices. From a pure customer service and loyalty standpoint, choosing to upgrade these devices would make Amazon look great in the eyes of many people.

I agree.

Let's hope they see the light.

(After all, that might well prove to be good economics, too

)

ConstantineXVI · 07-29-2010, 03:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zetareticuli

I agree there are arguments for and against the firmware being available for the older devices. From a pure customer service and loyalty standpoint, choosing to upgrade these devices would make Amazon look great in the eyes of many people.

On the flip side, if they don't update the K2, they're going to magically convert all their new customers from the price cut into angry mobs swearing off the Kindle because they've been ditched barely a month after they bought in.

JSWolf · 07-29-2010, 03:11 PM

deleted

zetareticuli · 07-29-2010, 03:14 PM

Yes, I agree. When I was still in college I used to be the head of technical sales for a large corporation. My experience always has been that the most satisfied customers and the most loyal customers are those who feel they are getting the same from the company they are doing business with. It will be a good move for Amazon to release these firmware updates for the older devices. Something like that would show appreciation for those who trusted the company and purchased an early generation device.

jswinden · 07-29-2010, 03:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

Great. I called last night and they couldn't tell me anything. The customer service rep actually commented that the K3 had been announced 2 hours earlier.

Now it would be really great to find out that the DXG has a WiFi capability that they can activate.

My educated guess is it does NOT have a WiFi radio. I looked up the FCC ID on my KDXG (XDZ-1013). The FCC database only shows the original Kindle DX in the paperwork associated with this FCC ID and everything is dated from 2009. That tells me that the radio and related hardware in the KDXG is essentially the same as the that in the original DX, otherwise they could not have used the same FCC ID. Had the DXG been different, they would have needed to go through the FCC approval process for it and apparently they did not do this, instead they piggy-backed on the approval of the original DX in 2009. At least that is what appears to have occurred.

zetareticuli · 07-29-2010, 03:50 PM

In that case, then the higher probability is in favor of the hardware not being there at all. I still think if we could find a card that has both WiFi and 3G, it would be simple to replace the existing card with this one. I have done extensive search and have found nothing. However, a friend of mine who designs hardware components told me he might be able to find one in China, where he lives. We'll see.

Anarel · 07-29-2010, 04:17 PM

Just curious, I called KCS to see what I'd get and of course the answers I got were... varied.

The first man I spoke to was very clear that (any) version of the DX would NOT be getting the new pdf functionality... though from the way he spoke to me I felt he was just having a bad morning and didn't feel like looking up what I was talking about or finding a supervisor.

The second man I spoke to, said he didn't know, but he guessed that since it was a software thing, the update should be made available, sometime around the launch of the Kindle 3's in August.

The third and last rep I talked to was a woman who didn't know but also didn't see any reason why it wouldn't be made available to older devices.

That's Kindle CS for you ^^; can't blame em, just hope for the best.

zetareticuli · 07-29-2010, 04:46 PM

Interesting. The gentleman I spoke with did seem very knowledgeable and, after putting me on hold for 20 minutes, came back and said he was told from reliable sources that the updates would be on the DX Graphite. I did not feel any reason to distrust this person. This is all third-party information that can be changed, manipulated, etc, so there is no way to know with 100% certainty right now. I would think that Amazon recently released the DXG and the new features would be released for it as well. We will just have to wait and see.

SpeckledJim · 07-29-2010, 05:42 PM

Well I'd feel a bit aggrieved if I'd just paid the considerable premium for the DX/DXG only to find out that it wasn't getting the updated software.

Personally I really don't know which way to go. A K2 was never on my radar, I always wanted a larger screen, but frankly a price of £109 is hard to pass up, compared with £375 for the US import DXG+Amazon cover.

Sridhar · 07-29-2010, 05:46 PM

Cross posting this...

I bought my Kindle DXG less than a month ago. Now that the new Kindle has come out, I am not sure if I should keep it - I have a few more days to decide if I want to return it. I need a larger sized screen (I use it to read pdfs of technical papers/articles, which would be hard to do on the regular Kindle) but am concerned about whether an updated DX is in the works, leaving me with a much lower spec'ed DXG.

So do you guys think a new DX is on its way, with
1. Better battery
2. Wifi
3. Higher capacity drive (say 8GB instead of 4GB)
4. Faster page turns
5. The new 5-way controller

Of these, the one that I care about most are 1-3.

What makes me think a new DX is not in the works, at least within the next few months, is that they released the DXG only a month ago. But then, why would they have a product at more than twice the price, which is better only in one respect (larger screen) but is significantly inferior on multiple counts?

Sridhar · 07-29-2010, 05:49 PM

Add to this the possibility, (though I think it is unlikely) that they won't update the firmware for the DXG. Given that the DX is touted as a reader for pdfs, I can't think of why they would leave it inferior in terms of pdf capabilities compared to the regular Kindle.

zetareticuli · 07-29-2010, 05:55 PM

I don't think there is going to be a new DX reader from Amazon any time soon. I would say it would be at least 6 - 8 months before a new DX comes out. And I honestly do think that the new PDF features will be added to the DX/DXG. These features are not limited by the hardware. With a few differences, of course, the hardware of the new Kindles can't possibly be that different from the old Kindles (K2, DX, DXG). I can guarantee that whatever software enhancements are on the new Kindles will run just fine on the second generation Kindles. The question is only whether Amazon wants to do it or not. There is nothing technical limiting that.

jswinden · 07-29-2010, 06:00 PM

And since the DX and DXG are targeted for students to read textbooks, it is strange that they didn't put the WiFi in the DXG. I realize that students reading textbooks is just one targeted group of many for the DXG, but still students would have had a lot of WiFi access at school/college. It seems like Amazon would want to encourage WiFi usage to keep their 3G costs down. But maybe I'm missing something in their logic.

jswinden · 07-29-2010, 06:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zetareticuli

In that case, then the higher probability is in favor of the hardware not being there at all. I still think if we could find a card that has both WiFi and 3G, it would be simple to replace the existing card with this one. I have done extensive search and have found nothing. However, a friend of mine who designs hardware components told me he might be able to find one in China, where he lives. We'll see.

Here is a link to the FCC website showing all the docs for submitted for the DX. One link is to internal photos and shows some of the parts and their IDs.

https://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/oetcf/eas/...='XDZ-1013'

SpeckledJim · 07-29-2010, 06:47 PM

The DXG refresh is quite puzzling in light of the K3 specs. Only a month apart from the K3, and yet the only upgrade in the DXG is the screen. Sure it got a $110 price cut as well, but you have to assume there was rather more margin for price cutting in the DX to start with.

The DXG now looks to be way overpriced to me. No more storage than the K3, less connectivity options. I guess I'll be waiting a little longer.

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07-29-2010, 03:11 PM	#18
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 79,763 Karma: 145864619 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	deleted

07-29-2010, 03:14 PM	#19
zetareticuli Addict Posts: 367 Karma: 228 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: Aztak Mentor	Yes, I agree. When I was still in college I used to be the head of technical sales for a large corporation. My experience always has been that the most satisfied customers and the most loyal customers are those who feel they are getting the same from the company they are doing business with. It will be a good move for Amazon to release these firmware updates for the older devices. Something like that would show appreciation for those who trusted the company and purchased an early generation device.

07-29-2010, 03:50 PM	#21
zetareticuli Addict Posts: 367 Karma: 228 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: Aztak Mentor	In that case, then the higher probability is in favor of the hardware not being there at all. I still think if we could find a card that has both WiFi and 3G, it would be simple to replace the existing card with this one. I have done extensive search and have found nothing. However, a friend of mine who designs hardware components told me he might be able to find one in China, where he lives. We'll see.

07-29-2010, 04:17 PM	#22
Anarel Evangelist Posts: 424 Karma: 61399 Join Date: Dec 2009 Device: K1, GKDX, K3	Just curious, I called KCS to see what I'd get and of course the answers I got were... varied. The first man I spoke to was very clear that (any) version of the DX would NOT be getting the new pdf functionality... though from the way he spoke to me I felt he was just having a bad morning and didn't feel like looking up what I was talking about or finding a supervisor. The second man I spoke to, said he didn't know, but he guessed that since it was a software thing, the update should be made available, sometime around the launch of the Kindle 3's in August. The third and last rep I talked to was a woman who didn't know but also didn't see any reason why it wouldn't be made available to older devices. That's Kindle CS for you ^^; can't blame em, just hope for the best.

07-29-2010, 04:46 PM	#23
zetareticuli Addict Posts: 367 Karma: 228 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: Aztak Mentor	Interesting. The gentleman I spoke with did seem very knowledgeable and, after putting me on hold for 20 minutes, came back and said he was told from reliable sources that the updates would be on the DX Graphite. I did not feel any reason to distrust this person. This is all third-party information that can be changed, manipulated, etc, so there is no way to know with 100% certainty right now. I would think that Amazon recently released the DXG and the new features would be released for it as well. We will just have to wait and see.

07-29-2010, 05:42 PM	#24
SpeckledJim Enthusiast Posts: 47 Karma: 18 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: K3 WiFi	Well I'd feel a bit aggrieved if I'd just paid the considerable premium for the DX/DXG only to find out that it wasn't getting the updated software. Personally I really don't know which way to go. A K2 was never on my radar, I always wanted a larger screen, but frankly a price of £109 is hard to pass up, compared with £375 for the US import DXG+Amazon cover.

07-29-2010, 05:46 PM	#25
Sridhar Member Posts: 23 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2010 Device: iPad 3	Cross posting this... I bought my Kindle DXG less than a month ago. Now that the new Kindle has come out, I am not sure if I should keep it - I have a few more days to decide if I want to return it. I need a larger sized screen (I use it to read pdfs of technical papers/articles, which would be hard to do on the regular Kindle) but am concerned about whether an updated DX is in the works, leaving me with a much lower spec'ed DXG. So do you guys think a new DX is on its way, with 1. Better battery 2. Wifi 3. Higher capacity drive (say 8GB instead of 4GB) 4. Faster page turns 5. The new 5-way controller Of these, the one that I care about most are 1-3. What makes me think a new DX is not in the works, at least within the next few months, is that they released the DXG only a month ago. But then, why would they have a product at more than twice the price, which is better only in one respect (larger screen) but is significantly inferior on multiple counts?

07-29-2010, 05:49 PM	#26
Sridhar Member Posts: 23 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2010 Device: iPad 3	Add to this the possibility, (though I think it is unlikely) that they won't update the firmware for the DXG. Given that the DX is touted as a reader for pdfs, I can't think of why they would leave it inferior in terms of pdf capabilities compared to the regular Kindle.

07-29-2010, 05:55 PM	#27
zetareticuli Addict Posts: 367 Karma: 228 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: Aztak Mentor	I don't think there is going to be a new DX reader from Amazon any time soon. I would say it would be at least 6 - 8 months before a new DX comes out. And I honestly do think that the new PDF features will be added to the DX/DXG. These features are not limited by the hardware. With a few differences, of course, the hardware of the new Kindles can't possibly be that different from the old Kindles (K2, DX, DXG). I can guarantee that whatever software enhancements are on the new Kindles will run just fine on the second generation Kindles. The question is only whether Amazon wants to do it or not. There is nothing technical limiting that.

07-29-2010, 06:00 PM	#28
jswinden Nameless Being	And since the DX and DXG are targeted for students to read textbooks, it is strange that they didn't put the WiFi in the DXG. I realize that students reading textbooks is just one targeted group of many for the DXG, but still students would have had a lot of WiFi access at school/college. It seems like Amazon would want to encourage WiFi usage to keep their 3G costs down. But maybe I'm missing something in their logic.

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07-29-2010, 06:47 PM	#30
SpeckledJim Enthusiast Posts: 47 Karma: 18 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: K3 WiFi	The DXG refresh is quite puzzling in light of the K3 specs. Only a month apart from the K3, and yet the only upgrade in the DXG is the screen. Sure it got a $110 price cut as well, but you have to assume there was rather more margin for price cutting in the DX to start with. The DXG now looks to be way overpriced to me. No more storage than the K3, less connectivity options. I guess I'll be waiting a little longer.