It’s been a long time coming – at least it certainly feels that way – but Amazon has at last unveiled its new, upgraded and enhanced Kindle reader. Dubbed the third generation Kindle by Amazon, but more likely to be known as the Kindle 3, there are a number of changes in evidence.
The new features of the Kindle 3 seem likely to press all the right buttons for e-book reader fans. It retains the same 6” e-ink technology display, but the screen contrast has been improved by 50%, which should make reading an even more pleasant experience. Page turn speed, already good in the Kindle 2.0, is now a full 20% faster.
The overall size of the reader has been shrunk by 21% and the weight is now only 8.7 ozs – a 15% reduction. With the Wi-Fi turned off, the battery will now last for a month - even with the Wi-Fi on, a 10 day life is achievable. Memory capacity has been increased by a factor of 2 to 4 GB, sufficient for around about 3,500 books. So the new Kindle is smaller, lighter, easier to read, has a longer battery life and allows users to carry a small personal library with them wherever they go. What else could you ask for in a mobile electronic device?
For many, a color screen would have been one item on their wish list. However, although Amazon have been developing a color e-ink technology display, it is not yet ready for commercial release. Possibly this could be incorporated in the next Kindle 4 upgrade. There is no SD slot available for memory expansion - a feature which some users may have hoped for. Nevertheless, considering that the memory capacity is now at 4GB, most people won't suffer too much as a consequence of this.
As well as all the upgrades, Amazon have adjusted the price downwards and introduced a new Wi-Fi only Kindle for customers who don’t feel the need for a 3G connection. The entry level Wi-Fi only model sells for just $ 139, with the free 3G plus Wi-Fi version on sale for $ 189. The new Kindle 3 is also available in graphite, just like the new DX model, in addition to the original white.
Amazon has also opened a dedicated UK Kindle store on their British website. UK consumers will no longer require to have their Kindles shipped across the Atlantic. To begin with the UK Kindle store will have 400,000 Kindle books on offer. It seems quite likely that Amazon will also be opening dedicated Kindle stores for its other “local” websites in Germany, France etc. in the future.
Sales of the Kindle 3 are high. Potential customers currently face a wait of around about 4 weeks before their readers are shipped. It does begin to look as if reports of the Kindle’s demise, as a result of the launch of the Apple iPad, were somewhat premature. The latest upgrades, the reduced prices and the fact that there is no monthly connection charge, will appeal to many potential customers. It looks like the launch of the Kindle 3 may come as a timely reminder of just how influential Amazon are, and will continue to be in the future, in the world of books in general - and digital books in particular
Ingen kommentarer:
Send en kommentar