Will you buy the Kindle 3G or Kindle WiFi?

[TenaciousBadger]

wi-fi only because... well, it's cheaper, basically.
plus shipping it goes to 160$ (yeah, i live in the kingdom of far far away)
i'd love the 3G but i'll settle for downloading on my PC

[norti]

I will buy the Wi-Fi only version for Christmas (or for my birthday), because I have two 3G contracts (for netbook/office and for smartphone), so I won't use the Kindle for browsing but mostly for reading during inland travels. If needed I can make my netbook to an infrastructure Wi-Fi access point to use with the Kindle.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Harmon

That's a no brainer for me, even though I probably have a brain. The K3 will sync with my iPad & iPhone, so I can buy the book once, read it on all my devices, and be on the last page I read no matter which device I'm using.

Sony lacks an app for Apple. Dunno about Pocketbook, but even if it has one, the ease of use for Amazon store is the trump card.

The only problem I'm having right now is all these rumors about a 7 inch iPad. If there were verification of those rumors, and a timeframe I could consider, it might be a hard choice...

But do you know of the major flaw in whispersync? If you and someone else are reading the same book at the same time, then you have all kinds of mess going on. Say you and I are reading the same book on two devices authorized to the same account. I read some first. You go in and pen the book, you'll start where I left off. You then go to the beginning and read. I go to read and I'm now where you left off. Whispersync is all or nothing.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by rapidblue

That's like saying - do you want to get an iPod now or rather wait and see what MP3 player Samsung and LG are bringing out??

No brainer here man

Speaking of MP3 players.. here's a good example...

Do you want an iPod because it's shiny & flashy or do you want an mp3 player that actually sounds good? iPods don't actually sound that good for playing music. Apple has forgotten what the iPod was originally meant to be and are focusing on other features and letting the music playback be filled with poorly made components.

It won't hurt to actually wait a month or two to find out what the other guys are going to be doing. You might find you like what it is they are doing.

[ZenRunner]

Originally Posted by Harmon

So if there's a wifi network around, the K3 will not allow 3G to be used? At all?

No, the mere presence of Wi-Fi networks doesn't determine whether your Kindle will use 3G. What matters is whether your Kindle is connected to a network that you've configured for use with your Kindle - if it is then 3G will not be used.

Here is the explanation from the Kindle User's Guide:

For Kindle models that include free 3G, connectivity to Whispernet is automatic, so if you see one of the 3G network indicators (3G, EDGE, or GPRS) in the upper right corner of your Kindle screen, your Kindle is already connected to Whispernet using 3G. Your Kindle automatically turns 3G coverage off when you connect using Wi-Fi. If you disconnect from a Wi-Fi network or if you move out of Wi-Fi range, Kindle automatically switches back to 3G coverage. If you want to turn off 3G coverage, you can turn Whispernet off. Keep in mind that turning Whispernet off also disables Wi-Fi connections.

[Solicitous]

Wifi only here for me. I don't travel for long periods of time to work or are out and about for periods of time long enough to value the use of 3G, and I have Wifi running here at home anyway. Besides, if I do go away and desperately need to get the Kindle on the net to download books (doubt it will happen as my TBR list is huge) I can pull into a Maccas car park and use their free wifi.

That said, if I was travelling like some Aussies do and spend 1+ hour one way to work on public transport to work each day, I'd probably get the 3G for periodicals.

[rapidblue]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

But do you know of the major flaw in whispersync? If you and someone else are reading the same book at the same time, then you have all kinds of mess going on. Say you and I are reading the same book on two devices authorized to the same account. I read some first. You go in and pen the book, you'll start where I left off. You then go to the beginning and read. I go to read and I'm now where you left off. Whispersync is all or nothing.

Actually, when you access the same book from another device it will ask you if you would like to go to the last page read from the previous device. You can then just say no. Or, you can then turn the last page read sync option off on Amazon's site

[rapidblue]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Speaking of MP3 players.. here's a good example...

Do you want an iPod because it's shiny & flashy or do you want an mp3 player that actually sounds good? iPods don't actually sound that good for playing music. Apple has forgotten what the iPod was originally meant to be and are focusing on other features and letting the music playback be filled with poorly made components.

It won't hurt to actually wait a month or two to find out what the other guys are going to be doing. You might find you like what it is they are doing.

Or do you want an iPod because that's the most popular MP3 player on the market and clearly what the average person is looking for (thus the best sales)...
Same with the Kindle

[Harmon]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

But do you know of the major flaw in whispersync? If you and someone else are reading the same book at the same time, then you have all kinds of mess going on. Say you and I are reading the same book on two devices authorized to the same account. I read some first. You go in and pen the book, you'll start where I left off. You then go to the beginning and read. I go to read and I'm now where you left off. Whispersync is all or nothing.

Yeah it's a problem, but there are simple workarounds. In my case, it consists of telling my sons that they have to deauthorize once they've downloaded a book from my account. Another would involve the judicious use of notes & bookmarks.

I also wonder how WS works when people have separate accounts. If A buys a book, then B - who has a separate account - links to A's account, downloads the book to his iPhone & iPad, then deauthorizes, will B's account then sync the book for B's devices?

[Harmon]

Originally Posted by ZenRunner

No, the mere presence of Wi-Fi networks doesn't determine whether your Kindle will use 3G. What matters is whether your Kindle is connected to a network that you've configured for use with your Kindle - if it is then 3G will not be used.

Here is the explanation from the Kindle User's Guide:

But reading closely, this does not actually answer my question: if I manually turn on 3G (assuming I can) will it stay there even in the presence of an authorized wifi network? Or is wifi the dominant mode, & 3G operable ONLY if an authorized wifi network is not available?

[daroga]

Originally Posted by Harmon

But reading closely, this does not actually answer my question: if I manually turn on 3G (assuming I can) will it stay there even in the presence of an authorized wifi network? Or is wifi the dominant mode, & 3G operable ONLY if an authorized wifi network is not available?

Most devices have wifi take priority if available. I'd imagine the Kindle will be the same.

[TallMomof2]

Originally Posted by daroga

Most devices have wifi take priority if available. I'd imagine the Kindle will be the same.

That's how every smartphone I've owned operates. As long as WiFi is turned on and configured for a particular available network it holds precedence over 3G. Until I learn differently my assumption is that is how the K3 with WiFi + 3G will operate.

[ZenRunner]

Originally Posted by Harmon

But reading closely, this does not actually answer my question: if I manually turn on 3G (assuming I can) will it stay there even in the presence of an authorized wifi network? Or is wifi the dominant mode, & 3G operable ONLY if an authorized wifi network is not available?

If both 3G and Wi-Fi connections are available, Wi-Fi will be used. 3G is only used if no Wi-Fi connection is available.

Also, you can't manually turn on 3G independently of Wi-Fi. They're turned on and off together.

[Skydog]

Originally Posted by rapidblue

Or do you want an iPod because that's the most popular MP3 player on the market and clearly what the average person is looking for (thus the best sales)...
Same with the Kindle

It may be the "most popular" but it certainly is not the best for sound quality. The majority of the general public do little research.

[TomF]

Originally Posted by Harmon

So if there's a wifi network around, the K3 will not allow 3G to be used? At all?

The K3 will default to a Wi-Fi connection but you have to accept an available network and connect to it first. So you could just never connect it to a Wi-Fi network and then it will not default to that Wi-Fi network, but as I said before, why would you want to do that when Wi-Fi is so much faster than 3G?

You seem somehow to think that the 3G is going to be the preferred way to connect and that you're going to do it that way regardless. But if your at home in your own Wi-Fi environment why wouldn't you connect to your own Wi-Fi network and leave it that way and get faster speed?

It's all in the K3 manual on the Amazon website, maybe you should just download it and read it for yourself. That's what I did.