Here it is…

First impressions are really good. Amazon Kindle was a good thing to begin with and they didn’t do anything wrong in the second version. In fact I wouldn’t call it v2 (nor does Amazon say so anywhere on the device itself) – it’s a nice evolutionary development of well engineered device:

• Photos and pictures look better with 16 shades of gray rather than 4
• 5-way button is a bit more convenient than scroller (but that’s just my opinion)
• The geek in me misses the SD card slot as it (the geek) would like to eventually stuff entire library of congress in the device but the rational part of me realizes that 1.4GB is quite enough given that device is almost always online.

These are just my first impressions. I’ll keep using Kindle 2 and will post on my impressions again in 2 weeks, than in 1 month, then in 3. Of course I’ll post about other related topics much more often… Stay tuned.

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From CrunchGear;

An insider let slip that two new Amazon Kindle models will hit stores this holiday season, with the first coming as early as October.

The first is an updated version with the same sized screen, a smaller form factor, and an improved interface. The source told us that Amazon has “skipped three or four generations,” comparing the old Kindle to the 1st gen iPod and the new version to something like the sexy iPod Mini.

The rendering to the right is NOT what the new Kindle will look like – we hope – it’s CrunchGears own rendering. However, according to the article, Amazon will be making the new Kindles available in a variety of colours to make the device more appealing to a younger audience, so buying a pink Kindle is not out of the question – yet.

Reportedly, the first model will be a smaller incarnation of the existing Kindle with the same sized screen and an “improved interface”. The source goes on to say that the newer smaller Kindle will have “skipped three or four generations” it will be interesting to see exactly what this means, a new eInk display perhaps or a new operating system? The second new version will be shaped like a 8.5 – 11 inch sheet of paper and will be noticeably larger than the current model, it will hit shelves early next year.

There is no word on the pricing structure, or indeed if it means that the existing Kindle will be reduced in price – we hope so.

We would advise that you take this news with a pinch of salt because Jeff Bezos said this at “D: All Things Digital Conference” back in May;

“There will be a second version, a third version, a tenth version. … but a second version is not that near.”

Was Jeff deceiving us? I don’t think he was, however I think the most likely reality is that Amazon is refreshing the product line – just like the Apple did with the iPod. First we had the iPod, then along came the iPod Nano, iPod Shuffle and iPod Touch, most likely that is what is going on. Amazon is offering different flavours of the Kindle depending on your reading habits, a “Kindle Nano” if you occasional reader, a “Classic Kindle” if your a major bookworm etc…

This rumour has thrown a gigantic spanner in the works if you were thinking of purchasing a Kindle any time soon.

Source: CrunchGear

Related Posts

• July 7, 2009 -- Kindle Books Coming to New Devices (0)
• February 25, 2009 -- Received my Kindle 2 (0)
• August 4, 2008 -- The numbers are in, Amazon has sold 240,000 Kindles so far (0)
• July 8, 2008 -- Dual-display e-book concept lets you flick through pages whilst reading (2)

Researchers from Maryland and UC Berkeley Universities have come up with an e-book prototype which could transform how next generation e-book readers are designed and used. The prototype — which you can see in the picture above — is still in the early stages of development, however the initial user reaction has been positive. The prototype e-book tries to address some of the usability issues that most e-book readers fail at – things like flipping through pages, comparing documents or folding pages. Every single e-book reader out there right now only has one screen, so the switch to dual-screen seem like a natural one.

Another interesting aspect about the prototype is that it is modular in design, meaning you could connect any number of devices together to create a large reading area.

The researches from the universities presented the prototype at the CHI08 conference, you can read the paper here. (1.6mb PDF)

The researches have also put together this video which highlights some of the features of the dual-display e-book prototype.

Source: New Scientist

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• February 2, 2010 -- Dual-Screen MSI Netbook Might Take A Shot At E-Readers (4)
• February 25, 2009 -- Received my Kindle 2 (0)
• July 16, 2008 -- New Kindle models possibly coming in October, Kindle v2 already? (2)
• July 15, 2008 -- Here come the iPhone/iPod Touch e-book readers (4)

Our old friend Walt Mossberg sat down with Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos this morning at the “D: All Things Digital Conference”.

Walt Mossberg gave the Kindle a luke-warm reception back in November calling it “mediocre” and “marred by annoying flaws”. He liked the idea and the shopping experience behind the Kindle, but thought that the device itself was where Kindle’s flaw lied.

Jeff Bezos does his normal sales pitch about the Kindle, but this time he throws in a bit of new information about Kindle sales. Walt asks point blank “How many Kindles have you sold?” Jeff politely refused to answer the question instead he gave us a new stat: “Title-by-title basis…Kindle unit sales more than 6% of total book sales”. So of the 125,000 titles available for Kindle, of all those 125,000 titles that were sold — digital and print — Kindle accounted for 6% of sales. Jeff also said he envisioned a time when e-book sales formed a substantial portion of book sales at Amazon.

Jeff Bezos also commented on a Kindle v2:

“There will be a second version, a third version, a tenth version. … but a second version is not that near.”

It may take a decade to get the product to where Amazon wants it, he said. So this has confirmed what many thought, that Amazon is committed to the Kindle and there will be a Kindle v2 release sometime in the future.

The interview wasn’t just limited to talk about the Kindle, Bezos also talks about the streaming video-on-demand service for Amazon, which will be released in the next couple of weeks amongst other things.

You can see the interview below in 2 parts.

Source: All Things D

Related Posts

• June 2, 2008 -- Business Like Bezos: Portfolio.com interviews Amazon founder Jeff Bezos about the Kindle (0)
• December 22, 2010 -- ‘Kindelized’ Christmas (0)
• July 15, 2008 -- Kindle on the rampage, book sales double since May hitting 12% (2)
• December 15, 2007 -- Walt Mossberg on the Kindle (2)

Then by accident the other day I stumbled upon this forum thread which explored the idea of what a next-generation ebook reader might look like. Whilst some of the designs are outrageous, others have obviously had a lot of thought up into them and could work. I have attached a few of my favourites designs.

Let me know what you think.

Source: core77

Related Posts

• February 25, 2009 -- Received my Kindle 2 (0)
• July 16, 2008 -- New Kindle models possibly coming in October, Kindle v2 already? (2)
• July 8, 2008 -- Dual-display e-book concept lets you flick through pages whilst reading (2)
• May 29, 2008 -- Jeff Bezos interview at the “D: All Things Digital Conference” (2)