Dream or Destiny and the Kindle
October 25, 2008 by Lillie
Dream or Destiny
When the Kindle was first introduced, I wrote a post about it: What Will the Kindle Do for the E-Publishing Industry? Since I hadn’t seen the device at that time, I based the article on information gleaned from a variety of sources. I concluded:
What I really like about the Kindle is the attention it is bringing to e-books. I believe that Amazon.com getting involved in the industry and Jeff Bezos personally promoting the product will have a positive impact on the future of e-publishing.
I believe the Kindle has had a positive impact on the e-publishing industry. Now that I have used the device for a few weeks, I’ll share my thoughts about the device from a reader standpoint. Although I will point out some things that take getting used to (some of which I’d like to see changed), my overall reaction to the Kindle is extremely positive. I love reading on it!
What takes getting used to:
- The position of the “next page” and “previous page” buttons. There are buttons along the side of the screen on both sides of the Kindle. This presented a challenge at first—many times I turned pages backward or forward unintentionally because I couldn’t find a comfortable spot to hold the device. I’ve found a good way to hold the Kindle, but I still occasionally turn pages accidentally. I would prefer the buttons be smaller or placed differently.
- The flash of the e-ink as each new page appears. The first few times I read on the Kindle, I found it disconcerting that the page flashes briefly before it fully opens. However, it didn’t take long to reach the point that I don’t notice the flash anymore.
- The tiny size of the keys on the keyboard. I can’t read the letters on the keyboard without a magnifying glass, so I had to learn the keyboard before it functioned well for me. Now that I know the position of the keys, I can use the keyboard.
- The lack of a backlight. I can’t read in the dark as I can with my eBookwise reader. This is offset by the wonderful reading experience in bright light and glare. I am keeping my eBookWise reader and will use it when I want to read in the dark. The rest of the time, I prefer the Kindle.
What I absolutely adore about the Kindle:
- The easy to read screen. The e-ink technology is amazing. It is much clearer and brighter than any other e-book reader I’ve seen, even than print. It’s absolutely the best reading experience I’ve ever had.
- The size of the font. I can adjust the text as large as I want and find it easy to see.
- The WhisperNet. The wireless connection is fabulous. All I have to do is select the Kindle store from the menu, shop on Amazon, select a book or a blog or a magazine … and it’s downloaded instantly to my Kindle. Unlike other devices, the Kindle doesn’t have to be connected to a computer—or anything else—to download content. I never have to worry that I will run out of reading material when I take the Kindle with me. If I finish all the books I have stored, I can just purchase a new title from wherever I am.
- The ease of adding personal content. The Kindle comes with a USB connection. If I want to read a work-in-progress or an e-book purchased for another device, I connect to the computer through the USB cable, then drag and drop the files from my computer to the Kindle. The device accepts several formats; I have found text files usually result in the best conversion. Although the Kindle doesn’t read PDF files, I copy and paste the content from PDF e-books into a text file and transfer to the device. This works well unless the PDF is encrypted.
- The convenient size and weight of the device. The Kindle is lightweight and smaller than a paperback—easy on arthritic hands.
- Features such as search, bookmark, and highlight. I haven’t even used all the features yet, but I really appreciated being able to find and bookmark the passages I wanted to read at my book launch party.
All in all, I love the Kindle and highly recommend it. Have you tried the Kindle? What is your experience?
$50 Discount: (added 10/26/08) In response to a question in comments about a discount Oprah is offering for the Kindle, I tracked down the offer on her Web site:
As a special offer for Oprah Show viewers, Amazon.com is giving $50 off the price of Kindle. Enter the promotional code OPRAHWINFREY during the checkout process at Amazon.com to receive the discount. This offer is valid through November 1, 2008.
Code for $50 off the price of Kindle: OPRAHWINFREY
Lillie, I have tried my best to help you to spread the words about your new novel releases in the forums. Hopefully, you will have more potential buyers flock to Amazon to purchase it!
wilson,
Thank you so much! I appreciate your support.
I’ve been wanting to get my hands on Kindle for some time now and really appreciate your blog post.
I’ve read somewhere that Ophra is offering 50$ OFF on Kindle, but haven’t found any link to it.
If anyone knows where I can get my hands on the 50$ discount, please let me know.
Thanks!
PJ
PJ,
I haven’t seen anything about the discount. Amazon is promoting Oprah’s love of the Kindle but I didn’t see any discount offer.
Keep watching, though, for some kind of special. When I ordered mine, Amazon was offering a $100 discount if you applied and were approved for an Amazon credit card and bought the Kindle with the credit card. There was another offer for a $30 rebate for getting the card. So I ended up saving $130. I had planned to write about the Kindle while the special was still on, but it went away between the time I ordered mine and the time it arrived.
PJ,
I found the discount—it’s on Oprah’s Web site.
I’m going to add a note to the post above as well.
That’s awesome how you have a Kindle edition! I’ve heard a lot of good things about that product, although it’s way too expensive for me at the moment. I’m waiting for the price to go down.
Justin,
I’ve been wanting one for a long time. I finally ordered it when I could save $130 (see my reply to comment above). I’m sorry I didn’t get the Kindle in time to evaluate it and write about it before the special expired. However, by the time I got my device (which took only a few days), the offer was already gone.
Hi,
Its good to hear the review about a product from some one who has bought and used it. Informative review and Good job.
Eugene´s last blog post..How to Fix Your Blogging Problems and Maintain a Healthy Blog
Eugene,
I’m glad you found the review helpful. I wrote about the Kindle before from the standpoint of its effect on the e-book industry, and I’m glad I finally have the device so I can talk from personal experience.
I’ve had my Kindle for a few months now and I love it. I also found a site where I can download thousand of free Kindle ebooks.
Free Kindle Ebooks´s last blog post..Free Kindle Ebooks
Glad to hear you love your Kindle as I love mine. Thanks for the post with links to free e-books. FYI: one of the sites has few free e-books but lots of great books.
Thanks for these wonderful tips. I’ve just looked into Kindle 2 too. Guess you’ll be posting another article for that, right?
Peter´s last blog post..Amazon Kindle 2.0 Review – Speed Reader’s Complete Thoughts on This Hot New Device
Peter,
I won’t be reviewing the Kindle 2 for awhile because I’ll be sticking with the one I have for now. I read your review and like that the new one has solved two of my major complaints with the original Kindle: positions of the page-turning buttons and speed of page-turning. However, I have gotten used to the one I have now, and I’m not ready to replace it after only a few months.
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