Amazon are set to release an electronic book reader called the Kindle today according to NewsWeek.
The device sounds cool, in theory (built-in wireless over EVDO, email, long-life batteries, search, lots of storage, etc.) but do we really want another device to be carrying around?
Especially at the price point being talked about ($399).
I’m already carrying my phone, laptop, iPod and sometimes my dSLR camera. I say sometimes because at this point I often make a choice – which one can I manage without.
I can’t imagine forking out for a Kindle. Especially not when I can get much of the promise of the Kindle on my iPod (and more besides).
Having said all that, I think Tim O’Reilly makes a great point when he says:
I’m rooting for Jeff and the Kindle. I’m not sure that he’s going to win his bet that people will use a single-purpose device rather than reading on a multi-function device like the iPhone and its successors. But I’m also not sure he needs to. Even if some other device becomes the reader of choice, Amazon will still become one of the leading sources of the books that feed it. All Amazon needs to do here is move the industry forward, and I think that’s already been accomplished.
It’s an extra device but if it’s as good as Jeff claims then it would mean not having to carry a book(s) around with you
Sure Shane, but I can do that with the iPod already!
I don’t think I could read a whole book on an iPod screen though. Plus they aren’t physicaly large enough for easy reading. And then there is battery life, keeping that screen fully-lit for hours on end as you read. eInk is not just a bit more DPI, it is an order of magnitude better to read by. It isn’t great for moving images though.
I agree on the multitude of devices, can’t we just have two? One phone and one that does everything else?
I fully agree with you Tom, there are lots and lots of gadgets these days that can do what Kindle can do (iPod being one of the many). IMO, its just a waste of money. If they want to venture in the gadget industry, they might as well come up with one that competes with those that are currently available in the market, or they could provide one that have more features, uses, etc. Anyway, thanks for sharing this.
I can understand not wanting to carry around another device. Mobile devices are on a continuing converging path however, so I don’t think it will be too long before we have a PDA with Kindle’s features. Electronic readers do have the potential to save a lot of resources however, so it would be nice to see them become accepted.