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[JzeroT1437]

I'm looking into getting one of these whereas I travel a lot and it would be most convenient to have all my books stored in a little device like this rather than lugging 3-5 books along on every trip. It kind of looks like a ripoff though--Amazon even charges you to convert your own documents into kindle format and transfer them to your kindle, and the device itself still costs $350, which feels insanely steep. Also, I can buy used books for about $4.00 with shipping or $.75 at flea markets/used book retailers. With this, everything is $10.00 or more.

How do you guys feel about this little e-book device?

 

[backflip10019]

Yeah, I feel the same way. It's a really neat idea but it just seems too expensive to be practical.

 

[Darko]

$350 or carry a few books.... hmmm.

 

[reggieandTFE]

Buy an iPod touch, download Stanza for free, download books. Win.

 

[VGChampion]

I've been interested in the Sony version. I always liked the look of it better.

I think I read some reviews that the Kindle wasn't as good as the other electronic books.

 

[Liu Kang Baking A Pie]

Buy an iPod touch, download Stanza for free, download books. Win.

This is laughable after looking at a Kindle screen for even a second.

 

[akachan ningen]

library: paper and ink. large selection. free.

 

[Javaman]

Not being able to flip through pages quickly will always be an issue for me, one big enough to skip out on the whole E-book thing.

 

[TGateKeeper]

I was going to create the same thread yesterday...
what makes the kindle better than the sony is easy access to content on the amazon store. the kindle design imo is ugly.

 

[Grug]

Reading large amounts of text on a screen makes me a sad panda.

Paper and ink 4 life.

 

[TGateKeeper]

the kindle uses e-ink so its a lot easier on the eye.

Here are some video reviews
http://thekindle.wordpress.com/2008/11/05/amazon-kindle-video-reviews-top-kindle-reviews-youtube/

 

[RubxQub]

I don't get everyone's problems with reading off of screens.

I've read books through the Stanza program on the iPhone and it doesn't bother me.

 

[Liu Kang Baking A Pie]

Reading large amounts of text on a screen makes me a sad panda.

Paper and ink 4 life.

Actually look at a Kindle screen in real life. The quality is far beyond a computer monitor or any other portable device you may have.

BTW, I can't believe no one has mentioned it yet: Kindle 2 is being revealed on Monday, so talking about buying a Kindle for the Kindle 1 features right now is dumb.

 

[beelzebozo]

Actually look at a Kindle screen in real life. The quality is far beyond a computer monitor or any other portable device you may have.

yeah, the screen quality is incredible. i was standing around scoping one out at a display in borders one day, and it totally blew my mind that an electronic screen could be that pleasant to look at. i mean, i've never had any problem with the clarity of computer screens, but kindles have this clarity and softness of image or something that just makes it seem very natural to look at for a long time.

if they weren't so damn expensive, and if i traveled more and wanted to read a lot, i'd be all over one.

 

[ChoklitReign]

Reading large amounts of text on a screen makes me a sad panda.

Paper and ink 4 life.

You're posting on the Internet.

 

[digita1alchemy]

My wife has one and she absolutely loves it. It's not unusual for her to read a book a day, so no matter where she is when she finishes one she can jump right into another. I think she really likes the immediacy of it as well, since she can buy a new book off of it pretty much anytime, anywhere.

 

[snacknuts]

If I traveled a lot I would probably buy one in a heartbeat. The screen is amazing on them, and the ability to download newspapers and the like over a cellular network (and not having to find wifi) is a pretty nice feature.

 

[kaching]

Yeah, defer this conversation until Feb. 9, hopefully that's when they're revealing Kindle 2.

Amazon even charges you to convert your own documents into kindle format and transfer them to your kindle

I thought I read that there was a way around this, so you didn't have to pay Amazon's conversion fee...?

and the device itself still costs $350

True, but that essentially includes a lifetime EVDO network subscription.

 

[Slizz]

You're posting on the Internet.

LAWL

 

[Macam]

Actually look at a Kindle screen in real life. The quality is far beyond a computer monitor or any other portable device you may have.

BTW, I can't believe no one has mentioned it yet: Kindle 2 is being revealed on Monday, so talking about buying a Kindle for the Kindle 1 features right now is dumb.

Quoting it again because he's right on both counts.

 

[cjdunn]

You're posting on the Internet.

Zing! But a great point that's also made in this long piece that knocks down myths about "e-books" one by one.

 

[ThatObviousUser]

If they get the price down to $200 and add color I'll be all over it. Maybe a clamshell design too...

That said, the leaked Kindle 2 pics look really hot. Problem is it's more than a Xbox 360 or a Wii, and almost as much as a PS3.

 

[mattiewheels]

Actually look at a Kindle screen in real life. The quality is far beyond a computer monitor or any other portable device you may have.

BTW, I can't believe no one has mentioned it yet: Kindle 2 is being revealed on Monday, so talking about buying a Kindle for the Kindle 1 features right now is dumb.

sony released their e-reader 2.0, and nobody wants it because they messed up the screen quality and the touch screen interface is pretty poor. not saying kindle 2.0 is going the same way, but you can't dismiss buying a 1.0 in these cases.

 

[leroy hacker]

The quality is far beyond a computer monitor or any other portable device you may have.

Except for a Sony e-reader, iRex Iliad or other e-ink device. You probably knew that, but I wanted to mention those devices in this thread since too much of the media coverage of the Kindle has given the impression that it was the first e-ink device ever.

 

[ThatObviousUser]

sony released their e-reader 2.0, and nobody wants it because they messed up the screen quality and the touch screen interface is pretty poor. not saying kindle 2.0 is going the same way, but you can't dismiss buying a 1.0 in these cases.

Touch screens were made for these types of devices... It's too bad they messed up the interface on the e-Reader, otherwise it could have been spectacular.

 

[mattiewheels]

Touch screens were made for these types of devices... It's too bad they messed up the interface on the e-Reader, otherwise it could have been spectacular.

it's pretty sad that sony made the 1.0 model look even more desirable with 2.0. The layout, the footprint, the screen quality and interface...everything's better on the first model.

 

[Bboy AJ]

if they weren't so damn expensive, and if i traveled more and wanted to read a lot, i'd be all over one.

:lol

What does this even mean?

 

[beelzebozo]

:lol

What does this even mean?

that i'm poor, sit in one dark room for 99% of my life, and watch reruns of MASH

 

[Minsc]

I prefer reading without the need to turn pages or hit buttons to turn pages.

 

[VistraNorrez]

if they weren't so damn expensive, and if i traveled more and wanted to read a lot, i'd be all over one.

If you factor in the cost of bookshelves, it's really not expensive, plus you save space. It's just intimidating.

 

[Evlar]

I prefer reading without the need to turn pages or hit buttons to turn pages.

Scrolls FTW.

 

[half a moon]

Scrolls FTW.

:lol

 

[JzeroT1437]

Do kindles have their own format or do they just use e-books? If I hook it up to my comp via USB can I upload my e-books onto my kindle without having to pay amazon $10 for them again?

 

[Verdre]

Do kindles have their own format or do they just use e-books? If I hook it up to my comp via USB can I upload my e-books onto my kindle without having to pay amazon $10 for them again?

According to wikipedia:

Kindle supports unprotected Mobipocket books (.MOBI, .PRC), plain text files, and Amazon's proprietary, DRM-restricted format (AZW). It does not fully support Portable Document Format (PDF), but Amazon provides "experimental" conversion to the native AZW format.[13] Amazon will also convert Microsoft Word files and structured HTML files through the same e-mail based mechanism. Users may also convert PDF files, to supported formats using third-party software.

 

[Phobophile]

My coworker at my last job bought a Kindle.

She was buying books for less than $1.

What are you looking at that's $10? Best sellers? Are you gonna buy Twilight or something?

 

[DJ_Tet]

http://money.cnn.com/2009/02/06/technology/ebooks.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2009020612


Article on CNN.com about the new Kindle, doesn't have that much info. I look forward to hearing more on Monday though.

I've never seen one but I bet they are fairly impressive, and only getting better. I imagine in 2-4 hardware revisions they might be enough to replace what we've lost with magazines. Could you imagine a FMV version of EGM, with good articles, high-resolution screenshots and ads, and perhaps if you tapped the screenshot it would turn into a moving gif or avi? The possibilities are endless.

What if you could browse internet forums on your ebook reader? Blogging from your ebook reader instead of a bulky laptop? Visual paper could be the next big thing in our lives, but Kindle will likely be long gone by then.

Anyone ever used a Kindle? It's a pretty cool idea, especially the idea of reading a preview chapter from a novel and then buying it right on the spot. The only thing is novels are such a small subset of people's hobbies that it's not enough to drive this thing into people's hands. Newspapers and magazines need to start investing in this technology to save themselves.

 

[Joe]

kindle 2:

features a metal back, stereo speakers and supposedly $359 releasing feb 24th

 

[BioHazard]

Must..resist..purchase...

 

[Liu Kang Baking A Pie]

Could you imagine a FMV version of EGM, with good articles, high-resolution screenshots and ads, and perhaps if you tapped the screenshot it would turn into a moving gif or avi? The possibilities are endless.

Yeah, right now, on the Internet.

 

[deadbeef]

I have a Kindle, but I don't use it enough to justify the purchase. I just wanted a new gadget. Make an offer, and I'll sell it to you.

 

[neight]

I want most of my book reading to be digital distribution but this thing is too damn expensive. A shame Amazon locks all their e-books to Kindle. Once the price is down to $200 I'll definitely consider it. At $100 it's a definite buy.

 

[blindrocket]

What about the Sony E-Reader? It uses the digital paper tech too, IIRC.

 

[Zero Hero]

My wife wants one of these.


Thanks Oprah.

 

[giga]

At $360, that shit isn't going to sell. Especially when people are not spending extraneously...

 

[Suburban Cowboy]

rather get a DS and 5-6 games.

 

[yoopoo]

Foxit pdf guys have their own reader too http://www.foxitsoftware.com/ebook/

 

[Shinz Kicker]

the e reader has "technically" more content than the kindle but kindle has more actual novels and cheaper books faster than the sony store, and all new releases are 10bucks.
E-reader can read more formats natively like pdf. i havent found away to convert kindle format to pdf or another e book format the e-reader could use. as soon as that happens ill

probably get an e-reader.version 1 or ver. 3 (if 2 is as messed up as they say)

 

[ThatObviousUser]

It's almost like these companies deliberately make a hideous first gen device so they practically have to hit one out of the park with the next one (Kindle, Nintendo DS, T-Mobile G1)...

 

[hateradio]

Kindle 2 looks much nicer and totally slick, however they need a proper LCD w/Color. Kindle 3.

 

[neight]

Kindle 2 looks much nicer and totally slick, however they need a proper LCD w/Color. Kindle 3.

The point is to make them as readable as paper not to have PDAs.