The New Kindle

I was one of the test subjects for Amazon for this new product. I have been using it for approx 3 months before the launch. Its far better than the Sony (Now outdated version). Is it worth $399? YES. Plus its going to get better, I have already suggested using solar power, and I have been informed that they are already in the process and making this happen in early 2008. They are actually going to give it a solar cover, so it charges while your nou have it put away even indoors with electric lighting, just like a calculator. Where else can you get your daily paper for $9.99 delivered direct to you anywhere in the world??

The light attachment is great if you want to read in bed or on a dark train or plane. The compact size make its great for waiting rooms or just about anywhere. The big advantage is those who take 4 or 6 books away on vacation with them. the kindle you can take as many as you like and you do not have too worry about the weight. The amount of paper saved is huge, my recyclable has reduced as I now get my daily papers direct to my kindle. It looks just the same, you still get the adverts and TV guides, its just electronic.

The screen is easy to read, its not like a computer screen, its just like reading paper. Amazon has spent over 3 years getting this right and they have done a great job.

Product overview

Simple to use, no paper, no wires, no telephone cable. no computer.

Reads just like paper, and it allows you to increase the sixe of the print if you have poor eyesight.

Use in bed, Taxi, plane, Bus, train, Coffee shop or on the beach.

over 500,000 book titles and growing.

Buy new York times best sellers for just $9.99 and have them sent to you in seconds.

only 10 ounces in weight

It will hold over 200 books.

The battery needs 2 hours to charge and will last for 2 days.

No monthly fees or bills unless you want a newspaper.

It will save a rain forrest or two. This has got to be good news, when the solar powered Kindle MK11 comes out this will help save alot more.

The Keyboard: The Kindle keyboard is easy to use, you simple put in the title of a book, or keyowrd, or author and click find. You can search any book published and have it downloaded in seconds, you not not need a computer. It uses Whispernet with Sprints high speed technology and data network. Amazon pays for the network so you dont have to pay anything ever. There is no wireless setup, you are ready to shop and set up out of the box. Plus its has a built in dictionary, free access to Wikepedia.

Best part is there is NO eye fatigue.

Fakes/Replicas. (Update May 2008)

It did not take long for these to arrive. They are being sold here on eBay, Craigslist and some even turned up on Amazon. Not being sold by Amazon but by other sellers who sell on Amazon. This has been closed on Amazon, they no longer allow sellers to sell new or used Kindles on Amazon website.

The fakes do work and work very well, however they have no warranty, buyers are having trouble downloading books. (Thus it makes them useless) The major problem has been with the fakes is the battery. They dont hold a charge and some have overheated during the charge and melted the Kindle.

Where to buy to be 100% sure you have a genuine Kindle. (eBay and sellers will hate me for this.) Amazon.

If you buy from Amazon, you get free shipping. you get a genuine KINDLE. you get a full warranty, 24 hour helpline 1-800. Free updates. I would ONLY buy from here as you know its genuine. So Far buying direct is still cheaper and faster. However if you get offered one elsewhere and its brand new at a lower price than Amazon. You only have yourself to blaime.

Surprising facts about Kindle

What you knew: Kindle can access Amazon.com and the Web to search Wikipedia via it’s free wireless connection.

What you didn’t know: You can just surf the Web in general. Kindle comes with a Web browser called Basic Web, which supports cookies, JavaScript and SSL, but doesn’t support plug-ins like Flash or Shockwave or Java applets. Basic Web lets you type in a URL, click on links and generally surf the Web like you would on a PC.

What you knew: You can download and read any of the 88,000 books from Amazon.com — and the list is growing.

What you didn’t know: You can download a much larger selection of free e-books using the Kindle’s Web browser — many in Kindle-friendly .MOBI and .PRC formats. Text-based books are available, too. And if you don’t like how these look in text-format (which you won’t), you can convert to .MOBI and .PRC formats on your PC using free or cheap tools available online.

What you knew: Kindle connects free to Sprint’s EV-DO 3G network.

What you didn’t know: Where EV-DO isn’t available, Kindle connects via a second protocol called 1xRTT, which is an older 144Kbit/sec. standard. The addition of 1xRTT increases the number of locations where you have wireless access.

What you knew: Kindle’s Search feature lets you find words or phrases on Wikipedia, the Kindle Store and the Web.

What you didn’t know: Kindle gives you access to an experimental and free service called Kindle NowNow, which is a search engine powered by actual humans. You send any question, and a human being will research it for you, then send the best three answers, usually, Amazon says, within five minutes.

What you knew: Kindle’s wireless service works only in or near the U.S.

What you didn’t know: You can buy books from anywhere in the world from your PC, and sync to the Kindle.

What you knew: The Kindle can read only four text-document file formats: .AZW (Kindle-specific), .TXT, .MOBI and .PRC. In addition, every Kindle gets its own e-mail address for receiving Amazon-converted Word, HTML, TXT, JPEG, GIF, PNG, and BMP files for 10 cents per document. You send the original to your Kindle’s address and your device receives the converted document (only e-mail addresses you authorize can send to your Kindle).

What you didn’t know: If you have Amazon send converted documents to your regular e-mail account instead of your Kindle account, the conversion is free. You then have to download the attachment and sync via USB.

What you knew: Amazon keeps a copy of all your subscriptions online so, if you upgrade or replace a Kindle, you won’t lose purchased books, newspapers or magazines.

What you didn’t know: The Kindle also automatically and wirelessly backs up online all your notes, bookmarks, clippings and even “last location read.”

What you knew: Kindle is an e-book reader.

What you didn’t know: Kindle is also an audiobook reader and MP3 player, and has both speakers and a headphone jack. Amazon lets you buy audiobooks directly from Audible.com by going to a dedicated Web site where you can download and install Kindle-specific software for connecting to and buying from Audible.com. You can listen to music while reading, although only in “shuffle” mode.

What you knew: The Kindle comes with a built in dictionary — The New Oxford American Dictionary.

What you didn’t know: If you prefer another dictionary, you can buy it from Amazon.com, then tell your Kindle via an option setting that the new dictionary is now your “preferred” dictionary for instant lookups.

What you knew: You can subscribe to newspapers and magazines.

What you didn’t know: Your subscriptions arrive hours or, in the case of some magazines, days before print subscribers get theirs.

What you knew: Newspaper and magazines are not retained permanently by default on Amazon’s Your Media Library. Amazon’s contract with these content providers typically allows just seven issues, although the number varies.

What you didn’t know: You can download periodicals to your PC or Kindle and retain them forever. Amazon can’t retain them beyond seven issues, but you can.

What you knew: You can read for about two days on a single charge (which takes two hours).

What you didn’t know: If you turn off the wireless feature, you can read every day for more than a week on a charge.

What you knew: The Kindle is sold out already.

What you didn’t know: You can order now, and they’ll ship it to you after Nov. 29.

What you knew: You have to pay for books and magazines downloaded from the Kindle Store.

What you didn’t know: You can try before you buy. Magazines and newspapers come with a 14-day free trial and can also be purchased one magazine at a time without a subscription. You can read the first chapters of books free.

What you knew: Amazon charges $2 per month to subscribe to each RSS feed.

What you didn’t know: You can read any RSS feed, including those they charge for, free of charge via the Kindle’s Web browser by going directly to the sites.

What you knew: Amazon does not support PDF files for conversion.

What you didn’t know: Free PDF-to-Word converters exist, and Amazon will convert those to its Kindle format, so PDF files on the Kindle are merely inconvenient, not impossible.

What you knew: You can “dog ear” pages to bookmark them, save “clippings” (copies of entire pages) and notes on Kindle, all of which are backed up as part of your books.

What you didn’t know: You can also “highlight” text — like using a highlighter pen, but without the bright color. Highlights are also backed up.

What you knew: The Kindle Store is functionally similar to the Amazon bookstore.

What you didn’t know: You can use Kindle’s keyboard and wireless connection to write book reviews on the Kindle Store.

The Amazon Kindle isn’t perfect. It’s ugly as sin and needs a light for reading in the dark, and the Kindle Store could use a far greater selection of newspapers and magazines.

The review here is done on a voluntary basis, I hope it has been a little help.