A Kindle Appreciation
By Steve (aka Bookishdude) at Cravingbooks.com
This is how it happens: I'm sitting somewhere, perhaps in a coffee house, reading a book, otherwise minding my own business, and someone startles me: "Hey excuse me, do you like it?"
They are not referring to the book, or the coffee, but of course, to my Amazon Kindle, which I now use for the majority of my reading. I never know exactly how to explain my Kindle experience, not because I don’t have enough to say, but because I have more than can be contained in a quick “yes.”
I could mention this past summer at the beach, when I was sitting on the boardwalk, and, needing something to read, turned on my Kindle and within a minute had in my hands my desired hard-boiled mystery novel (Elmore Leonard, as I recall). I could talk about getting on the Metro in the morning on the way to work, and, on a whim, picking up an issue of The Washington Post for the commute. I could say that I like having 10, or 20, or 100 of my favorite books on hand at all times, highlighted and notated so I can always find my favorite passages.
To me, coffee and reading go together, and as long as I have my Kindle with me, I have a selection from a library that now numbers, according to Amazon’s web site, 360,000 books. I’m tapped directly into an endless cyber-stream of literary fiction, mysteries, science fiction, histories, and whatever else one can think of, and I like being able to turn on the electronic spigot and grab something out of that stream any minute I want.
I feel that I am entering a new world every time I read a book. Reading is one of the great joys of my life, and there is nothing better than not only have a book with you, but having almost any book with you at all times. It’s a piece of magic that you can hold in your hands. The Argentinean writer Borges wrote of an infinite library that contains all possible permutations of letters, and also of a “Book of Sand” whose pages are infinitely thin and so could contain infinite pages, and hence infinite books. Those stories were written long before the Kindle existed, but the Kindle makes real that great imaginative concept.
Of course, I can’t say all that to someone buttonholing me in a café.
I end telling them, “Yes, it’s like an iPod for books.” They want to know if it’s comfortable to read (yes), and how much books cost (less than their hardcover equivalents). I answer their questions. But those questions do not really get to
the essence of the thing, which is that the Kindle is any book, any time, anywhere, a reader’s dream.
Special thanks to Bookish Dude at Cravingbooks.com
for contributing this article. Our second review is after these videos:
This is how it happens: I'm sitting somewhere, perhaps in a coffee house, reading a book, otherwise minding my own business, and someone startles me: "Hey excuse me, do you like it?"
They are not referring to the book, or the coffee, but of course, to my Amazon Kindle, which I now use for the majority of my reading. I never know exactly how to explain my Kindle experience, not because I don’t have enough to say, but because I have more than can be contained in a quick “yes.”
I could mention this past summer at the beach, when I was sitting on the boardwalk, and, needing something to read, turned on my Kindle and within a minute had in my hands my desired hard-boiled mystery novel (Elmore Leonard, as I recall). I could talk about getting on the Metro in the morning on the way to work, and, on a whim, picking up an issue of The Washington Post for the commute. I could say that I like having 10, or 20, or 100 of my favorite books on hand at all times, highlighted and notated so I can always find my favorite passages.
To me, coffee and reading go together, and as long as I have my Kindle with me, I have a selection from a library that now numbers, according to Amazon’s web site, 360,000 books. I’m tapped directly into an endless cyber-stream of literary fiction, mysteries, science fiction, histories, and whatever else one can think of, and I like being able to turn on the electronic spigot and grab something out of that stream any minute I want.
I feel that I am entering a new world every time I read a book. Reading is one of the great joys of my life, and there is nothing better than not only have a book with you, but having almost any book with you at all times. It’s a piece of magic that you can hold in your hands. The Argentinean writer Borges wrote of an infinite library that contains all possible permutations of letters, and also of a “Book of Sand” whose pages are infinitely thin and so could contain infinite pages, and hence infinite books. Those stories were written long before the Kindle existed, but the Kindle makes real that great imaginative concept.
Of course, I can’t say all that to someone buttonholing me in a café.
I end telling them, “Yes, it’s like an iPod for books.” They want to know if it’s comfortable to read (yes), and how much books cost (less than their hardcover equivalents). I answer their questions. But those questions do not really get to
the essence of the thing, which is that the Kindle is any book, any time, anywhere, a reader’s dream.
Special thanks to Bookish Dude at Cravingbooks.com
for contributing this article. Our second review is after these videos:
Is the Kindle 2 Good Value?
The Kindle 2 is a very attractive device and noticeably improved cousin to the original Kindle. The design seems to be made with a nod to the Apple iPod and with the user in mind. The buttons are light and round, sensitive to touch and responsive but not too sensitive as was error prone Kindle 1.
We like the navigation, where you have to notch your way down the screen & through menus. The buttons also sweep horizontally as well as vertically (which helps when highlighting or coping/adding text)
The 6" screen is very sharp due to 16 shades of gray and a high contrast ratio, even better than Sony's Readers 8 shades. The page refresh (turning of pages) is very quick, 20% faster than the original.
How Amazon got 2 GB of memory and all the functions into such a device which is lighter and thinner than a typical fashion magazine, is beyond me. It is so comfortable to hold, carry or lie on your lap but lacks that old book feel.
The Kindle does not have an expansion memory slot but 2 GB is more than it's competitors and is equal to about 1,500 e-Books. It may take twenty or thirty years before you finish reading that many books so there is plenty of memory.
In the original Kindle, you had a dedicated search button which would bring up a text entry field, then transport you to a page to select how you wanted to search, then to your results. Now, you've got search tool in your menu that you can jump into from the home screen which gives you a load of options for how and where you want to look -- a slightly more familiar format. Additionally, searching your own content is handled much better, allowing you to begin typing in your query while you're on your home page -- the same goes for finding text while you're in a document.
Why the Kindle DX's big screen is worth the cost:
or stay with this article, continues below:
We like the navigation, where you have to notch your way down the screen & through menus. The buttons also sweep horizontally as well as vertically (which helps when highlighting or coping/adding text)
The 6" screen is very sharp due to 16 shades of gray and a high contrast ratio, even better than Sony's Readers 8 shades. The page refresh (turning of pages) is very quick, 20% faster than the original.
How Amazon got 2 GB of memory and all the functions into such a device which is lighter and thinner than a typical fashion magazine, is beyond me. It is so comfortable to hold, carry or lie on your lap but lacks that old book feel.
The Kindle does not have an expansion memory slot but 2 GB is more than it's competitors and is equal to about 1,500 e-Books. It may take twenty or thirty years before you finish reading that many books so there is plenty of memory.
In the original Kindle, you had a dedicated search button which would bring up a text entry field, then transport you to a page to select how you wanted to search, then to your results. Now, you've got search tool in your menu that you can jump into from the home screen which gives you a load of options for how and where you want to look -- a slightly more familiar format. Additionally, searching your own content is handled much better, allowing you to begin typing in your query while you're on your home page -- the same goes for finding text while you're in a document.
Why the Kindle DX's big screen is worth the cost:
or stay with this article, continues below:
The built in dictionary is easy to use, just move the curser to highlight the desired word, and a definition pops up at the bottom, move to another word & it's definition comes up.
The Kindle has two speakers on the back and a headphone jack so that you enjoy the MP3 feature on this device. Amazon has been heavily promoting it's "Read to Me" feature which allows a book's content read out loud to the listener. Great in theory but not in practice, the sound quality is robotic and monotone & not perfected to the point that a listener would want to hear an entire book read to them.
One of the best features is the wireless downloading of eBooks, magazines & newspapers via whispernet AT&T 3G network from Amazon to your Kindle. A few simple button presses and a new eBook will appear on screen even if you don't have a computer nearby. Avoiding complicated transfer of files from your PC to your Kindle with a USB cable will be greatly appreciated by nontechnical readers.
The Kindle has two speakers on the back and a headphone jack so that you enjoy the MP3 feature on this device. Amazon has been heavily promoting it's "Read to Me" feature which allows a book's content read out loud to the listener. Great in theory but not in practice, the sound quality is robotic and monotone & not perfected to the point that a listener would want to hear an entire book read to them.
One of the best features is the wireless downloading of eBooks, magazines & newspapers via whispernet AT&T 3G network from Amazon to your Kindle. A few simple button presses and a new eBook will appear on screen even if you don't have a computer nearby. Avoiding complicated transfer of files from your PC to your Kindle with a USB cable will be greatly appreciated by nontechnical readers.
Some rumors are out there that the Kindle only accepts e-Books from Amazon. Not True! The Kindle can read most formats and can take e-Books from other online stores and other sources on the net. Of course Amazon is the only source that does it wireless, all other file formats will require e-Reader Software & a cable download from a PC or Mac. The only glaring oversight is the lack of open ePub format which is a popular file for free e-Books.
There is no back light but then none of the e-Readers have a good back light. Lastly, our last complaint is that while the side left & right buttons near the screen are great, the navigation joystick buttons on the right side near the keyboard could be a little bigger.
You can't go wrong by buying a Kindle. It does everything a e-Reader needs to do & is a cute device to boot. It may not have a lending feature like the Nook but honestly, how often do you lend friends books and they don't like your choices or don't even read your books. Hundreds of thousands of titles from hundreds of e-book stores, easy navigation, a sharp quality 6" screen, high praise from Oprah & other users, the Kindle is a welcome addition to any family.
Kindle 2 Features & Specs here
Kindle DX Features & Specs here
Snapshot of all eReaders here
There is no back light but then none of the e-Readers have a good back light. Lastly, our last complaint is that while the side left & right buttons near the screen are great, the navigation joystick buttons on the right side near the keyboard could be a little bigger.
You can't go wrong by buying a Kindle. It does everything a e-Reader needs to do & is a cute device to boot. It may not have a lending feature like the Nook but honestly, how often do you lend friends books and they don't like your choices or don't even read your books. Hundreds of thousands of titles from hundreds of e-book stores, easy navigation, a sharp quality 6" screen, high praise from Oprah & other users, the Kindle is a welcome addition to any family.
Kindle 2 Features & Specs here
Kindle DX Features & Specs here
Snapshot of all eReaders here