Just ordered the Amazon.com Kindle

[larryhead]

So I finally bit the bullet and ordered an Amazon.com Kindle... unfortunately they are all totally sold out (thanks Oprah!) and it won't ship for 7-9 weeks, hmmmph!!! :drumfingers:

There are other negatives too of course.. like DRM and the fact that version 2.0 will probably come out the week after mine arrives (wouldn't surprise me!), but I figure between all the books that the girl and myself read, this thing will pay for itself soon enough, and really unless the new one is color I won't care too much :)

FYI a new Kindle costs $359, and folks are already selling them used from $400-$600 (!)... it sorta reminds me of trying to buy the Wii a few months ago.. speaking of DRM, (and that argument exists, certainly), but isn't the Wii just a DRM gaming system if you really think about it... so I figure if I'm gonna throw in my money for a reader, it'll be with Amazon since they already have over 200,000 eBook available for ten bucks a download.

Anyone else thinking of getting one?

[mrjohnchimpo]

i want one, but am going to hold off for a bit more to see what they come up with in the next 6 months to a year.

LH, you're such an early adopter! :D

[slam]

i'm not sure i'll ever be sold on ebooks. i like owning a library! i like being able to lend books out to friends!

[Soul Queen]

i'm not sure i'll ever be sold on ebooks. i like owning a library! i like being able to lend books out to friends!

Speaking of which, you should send some to me randomly! I'll read anything and am currently without something to read. (haven't figured out what I'm in the mood for, again...). hmmm maybe I shouldn't put I'll read anything...

That could be fun, randomly swapping books.

I like having the library too.

[larryhead]

i'll have to write up my review when i get the damn thing in two months! :upsidedown:

being able to download any book instantly without a computer is a pretty nice feature too (only works in the US though, on Sprint's EVDO network - otherwise you gotta d/l to your computer and transfer via USB coord). i'm always hearing about good books, but i can never remember them when i goto a book store, so maybe this will help with that too having a virtual bookstore with me always.

[paul]

I can see how international jet-setters like you could take advantage of lots of books in a small package. Without a need for that, doesn't really seem like a deal to me at $10 per book, let alone the ~$359 starting price. It's easy for me to find what I want used online or at a used book store for that price or less per book. That, and paper is nice to read and hold, plus books are a good break from the computer.

[larryhead]

HOORAY! We just got our new Amazon Kindle 2 here in Geneva.. dayuummmm... I really think this thing is gong to be a game-changer :hyper:

So far I've just unboxed it and am charging it up now. It's about the size and weight of a small magazine.. extremely light. Even the packaging is impressive.. check out some pics:
http://www.engadget.com/photos/kindle-2-unboxing-and-hands-on/1382926/ :eek:

http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2009/02/kindle2_unbox14.jpg

At first, I was kinda annoyed that the new version 2 came out during the two months I was waiting for my order to arrive.. but luckily Amazon was cool and upgraded everyone's pre-existing orders to the new version :thumbsup:

Will be testing it out on the road while we head to Amsterdam this weekend :)

[slam]

i hear that those come with free cellular data access, so you can browse wikipedia for free no matter where you are.

is that true? does it work with the cell data access over there?

[False Alarm]

larryhead i hope you use that fancy keypad to write cuss words in the margins. i gotta use a pen to do that with my books.

been a bit of controversey lately in the publishing biz over the text-to-audio function of the kindle. the authors guild feels it's an infringement on audiobook rights. amazon actually kinda backed off on it IIRC and are allowing copyright holders to choose whether to make the function available with a given book.

[Soul Queen]

I consider myself to be an amateur body language expert."
--JVO Nice signature FA! :pokefun:

[False Alarm]

Nice signature FA! :pokefun:
:D thanks!

[larryhead]

i hear that those come with free cellular data access, so you can browse wikipedia for free no matter where you are.

is that true? does it work with the cell data access over there?

yep, you can browse wikipedia and purchase and download books from the Amazon store anywhere in the US where there is Sprint cellular service for free. it doesn't work overseas though since Sprint is on a different cellular band than the rest of the EU, but i can just drag the books to my Kindle via USB cord without any issues :)

i think you can also use it to subscribe to daily newspapers and magazines from the Amazon Kindle Store too, and it just downloads them to your device each morning.. kinda cool.

[larryhead]

larryhead i hope you use that fancy keypad to write cuss words in the margins. i gotta use a pen to do that with my books.

been a bit of controversey lately in the publishing biz over the text-to-audio function of the kindle. the authors guild feels it's an infringement on audiobook rights. amazon actually kinda backed off on it IIRC and are allowing copyright holders to choose whether to make the function available with a given book.

hrm, not sure but i *think* you can type in notes and stuff with the keyboard.

that's interesting about the audiobook controversy.. i'm sure if demand is high enough, perhaps you can choose to buy books + audio version for a couple extra dollars. the device does have a headphone jack and is ready to go.

so far the gir has been trying it out over the weekend, and she seems to like it so far :cool:

[paul]

Cool to hear from you about this.

Speaking of the audio/voice reading part... Have you tried it? How is the computer voice? Does it pronounce things correctly?

[matty]

http://www.penny-arcade.com/images/2009/20090309.jpg

[slam]

Book works with the shelves you have at home

nice post, thanks Matty :>