Kindle 2 is released – Is it time?
“
New Features & Enhancements
Slim & Lightweight: Just over 1/3 inch and 10.2 ouncesBooks in under 60 seconds: Get books delivered in less than 60 seconds; no PC required
Improved Display: Reads like real paper; now boasts 16 shades of gray for crisp images and text; even reads well in bright sunlight
Longer Battery Life: 25% longer battery life; read for days without recharging
More Storage: Take your library with you; holds over 1,500 books
Faster Page Turns: 20% faster page turns
Read-to-Me: Text-to-Speech feature means Kindle can read every book, blog, magazine, and newspaper out loud.
No Wireless Bills: No monthly wireless bills, data plans, or commitments. Amazon pays for Kindle’s wireless connectivity so you won’t see a monthly wireless bill.
Large Selection: Over 230,000 books, plus U.S. and international newspapers, magazines and blogs available
Low Book Prices: New York Times Best Sellers and New Releases $9.99, unless marked otherwise
…”
It’s got me thinking… but $359 still seems very steep to me. And the books are more expensive than the paperbacks I usually buy. Cheaper than hardbacks, it’s true, but not paperbacks. Book price is the big thing for me. I’m a voracious reader, easily reading a book or two a week (sometimes more, sometimes less, but one to two a week is about my current average) so book prices are king for me. Hence my focus on paperbacks (and my local “Friends of the Library” bookstore where books are 50 cents each ;)
When book prices come down, say between 3 and 5 for electronic formats, then I think I’ll be sold.
Also I think I’d really like only one “media” device. If this were also a MP3 player (with online music purchase/subscription?) then I might persuaded. I have room for two portable devices in my life, one small form factor device, i.e. phone, and then another man-purse’able, i.e. media player, eReader, maybe a netbook. Maybe one day these will all merge into a single portable device, today I think there’s room for two, but only two (in my world at least).
Still I think the Kindle is pretty darn cool and given all I’ve said, I do have Kindle lust… deep sigh…
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7 comments:
I bought an Ipod Touch over Christmas to be basically just that .. a combo device that combined a media player along with the ability to be a really nice eReader (with the installation of various apps like BookShelf or Stanza). And a 8GB unit can be had for $200 - 250.
Sanjay
If 'book prices are king' for you, then why not use the actual library, and not just their 'friends' store? It's hard to find a price lower than 'free'.
Actually I do check out books, usually from the new release rack, but then I get lazy and forget to return them and so end up paying more in late fees than if I had just bought the darn thing... :/
Also I like owning the books. My son and I share them allot of the times and all to often I end up re-reading many of them. Fifty cents for older/used books is a very hard price to beat, and in my case sometimes beats free. :)
It actually is an MP3 player, but (like Audible.com books) you have to put them on the Kindle2 by way of the USB cable.
@Christopher Estep
Darn you!... ;)
LALALALALA I don't hear you... LALALA
...must... resist... must... control...
LOL
For me, the price of books on the store has little impact. I use an ereader for internal company documents that I have to read. Also there are plenty of public domain books available. And the thought of carrying any of those on a long trip is horrible. At double the price, these things would still be a bargain.
Oh, and comparing this to a Touch is just ridiculous...You get hardly any battery life on one of those. Sometimes I will travel for 30-40 hours to get to some wierd location without seeing a single power outlet. I can go for a month without charging (thats for the sony at least).
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