Take this one with plenty of salt, but
CrunchGear has it that not one, not three, but exactly two
new Kindle models are destined to go on sale to the
adoring indifferent public within the next 6 to 12 months. Reportedly, the first model is simply a revamped version of the existing Kindle with a smaller form factor, the same sized screen and an "improved interface." The second new version will purportedly be shaped like a 8.5- x 11-inch sheet of paper and should land early next year. Both Kindles will be available in a variety of hues, though pricing information remains a mystery. Hang tight bookworms, we've still got awhile yet before figuring out just how legitimate this is.
[Via
The Boy Genius Report]
posted Jul 16th 2008 9:40AM
all they have to do is add pdf compatibility to make this thing great imho
Needs to be paperback sized, native pdf support, and cost around $100. Do not want wifi or internet. Either USB cable and/or sd card for getting text on the thing.
It's the integrated EVDO access that has made the Kindle such a success. You can take it with you on vacation and get access to plenty of new material (books, magazines, blogs, newspapers, etc) without the need to bring a laptop along to feed it material.
Integrated EVDO is probably the biggest single strength of this device over cheaper comparable e-readers.
The Kindle DOES have pdf support. When you want to view a pdf, you send it through amazon who will convert it to their proprietary format. Not a perfect solution but it does work.
Converting something from 1 form to another isn't the same as supporting something.
That's like saying, my store accepts US dollars, but first you have to go to the bank and convert it into some currency that i accept.
Kindles won't be needed as much anymore. There's already the iPhone with e-reader capability that can handle 90% of what the Kindle can do and still fit in a pocket. Yes, I'm an Apple fanboy, and although I'm not downplaying the Kindle's ability, I didn't make this up. That's what the media has been saying this morning. Hard times ahead for Kindle. This e-book reader is a niche product and it's niche just got smaller. $400 might seem to be a bit much to pay for a single purpose device in today's economy.
And don't forget ansible connectivity, I wanna see that in the next version.
The problem is that PDFs and e-books are different concepts. A PDF has the page dimensions, font size, etc., hard coded into the file. E-books need free flowing text (such as HTML, DOC, TXT) to allow the reader to present a full page of text at your selected font size. The only way to render PDFs natively on an e-book reader is to take away a big part of what makes them great for reading books. On a monitor you can zoom and shrink a PDF to get the right size, but that isn't possible on a 5x7 screen.
Sporkinum, your list of demands makes it pretty obvious that the Kindle is just not for you - YOU may not want the whispernet, but for most of us that actually own Kindles, it's one of the best features. You might as well just go with a Sony 500 - it's the older model of their eReader, still has e-ink display, is pretty darn close to paperback sized (but then, so is the Kindle), and supports PDF's so long as they're sized correctly.
It's as close to your list of demands as you're going to get, except for the fact that it will still cost you around $200. That $100 wish of yours is going to be a deal breaker, I'm afraid.
The Kindle will never be right for you, I'm afraid. Best of luck finding the eReader that is.
Hopefully they fixed the shortcomings of the first-gen...and much cheaper and more features of course
Is this whole rumor a spin-off of the Fujitsu ebook rumor from 2 days ago? Just cycle the rumors around and switch the names around.
http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/14/fujitsu-to-launch-flepia-color-e-ink-e-books-in-the-fall/
haha yeah the only thing I thought was cool about the first one was the fact that it could access wiki wirelessly.
The book were expensive, the kindle was expensive but in the end it was sold out for a while.
I'm pretty sure the street bois are working hard to get an open source platform out for this nice device... it is only a matter of time... :-)
Actually the books for the Kindle are pretty reasonable compared to what I've seen from other e-readers.
While it's not free software, you can load your own files onto it. If you send a file to your Kindle e-mail address, it will e-mail you back with a converted file that you can load onto the Kindle.
I started reading some of the texts from Project Gutenberg.
There also seems to be a large number of free or low-cost books on Amazon. I think they are promotional, but I picked up three novels for free. I also found a book I was looking for that was only $.80. It was $13 US for the paperback.
My biggest gripe is that there isn't a monospace font, so it doesn't display computer programming manuals that well. The code snippets aren't readable. The main reason that I bought the Kindle was to replace the armload of computer manuals. Even though it didn't work out with the computer manual, I'm still satisfied that I bought the Kindle.
Why create a new device, when you can just improve the current set of software on PDAs, and smartphones? The problem is that the software out there now, doesn't have a standardized format, or at least software that can provide the same functionality across formats. Locking people into ANOTHER device, that simply gives you more of the functionality in the form of specifically made buttons does not improve my reading experience. It just clutters my bookbag.
If only Microsoft did something right for once, cross polinated with Amazon and Sony you might get somewhere. All they would have to do is improve Microsoft Reader.
PDAs & smartphones have absolutely nothing to do with eBook readers.
It's not the software, it's the technology. A lot of people cannot read on an lcd comfortably for hours. Maybe short spurts of news and RSS feeds. Reading on an E-ink device is as comfortable as reading on paper.
Very good
*sarcastic clap*
That's the point of my comment. You shouldn't need an ebook reader when improving the software on current devices gets you to the same place.
As for E-ink, cut the bullshit. I've read a number of books on a pda using microsoft reader with zero eye strain. One thing is the painful LCD screen of a computer, another thing is a smartphone or pda. If I can finish Atlas Shrugged on a pda without a problem, why the hell do I need a $300 kindle? I'd recommend people actually try it instead of breaking out the credit card so quickly.
The only remaining problem is dealing with the myriad of formats and the loss or gain functionality depending on the format and software.
Maybe you don't feel the eye strain on a PDA, but I assure you, I do. That would be the reason I haven't used my Palm for serious reading/writing in over a year. From my own experience and the number of people who have a Kindle and have commented on the screen, I would say a LOT of people notice the difference with e-ink. Have you actually tried reading on an e-ink screen? Or even looked at one in person?
nice,I like
"If only! If only! All they have to do is blah blah blah."
Just read the news.
Color screen?? It looks like something from the 1980's.
Have you actually ever looked at one? You can see the screen very well, even in sunlight. It's designed to look like paper, not give you hi-def visuals.
...and it looks beautiful. You really can't judge it until you hold one. Then you will buy one (like I did).
iphone sux
I'm tired of Engadget's gratuitous use of strikethrough text. It's quite annoying and seldom amusing. Give it a rest, Engadget.
D
It's also almost always used incorrectly. You strikethrough the gag, then rewrite the spin. Get it... the joke is that the editor has whitewashed the truth with a visible strikethrough.
Ex: The proofreaders on this site are worthless invaluable.
hopefully they lower their prices also, I love the concept, I just don't have 500 dollars to drop on the kindle.
Has Amazon ever said how many of these they've sold. I know they sold out of them initially, but I don't recall them ever actually telling us if that meant 100,000 or 10,000,000. (My guess would be somewhere in between those two numbers.)
I did extensive research on sales for the last 365 days, and came up with a total of.....wait for it.....
17.
Why does it have a keyboard? Makes it much bigger than it needs to be?
The keyboard is very useful (for internet, kindle store, etc) but it does take up a lot of space. Basically the kindle is already very small so there isn't much of a need to make it smaller.
Compelling argument.
Now where did I set those 80,000 books published in the U.S. last year...
Another terrible implementation of an electronic book concept. The iPhone/Touch is the correct and modern approach for electronic books.
Oh yes, because a 3.5 inch screen clearly makes reading a book easy and enjoyable.
@bartoron
"Oh yes, because a 3.5 inch screen clearly makes reading a book easy and enjoyable."
Glad you agree. When reading for an hour or so, the iPhone/Touch light weight is perfect to keep your posture in proper position. Do I need to explain that for you also?
@bartoron - take your iHate somewhere else - nowhere did he say "The 3.5" iPhone/Touch" is the correct approach. If you weren't so quick to bash the iPhone, you'd realize he/she probably meant the concept, not the size.
Of course, your "let's remove the keyboard" statement was much more valuable. Who needs a way to order books, or make notes, or anything like that.
That's 17 more than they should of sold IMO.
It may have a clear screen but say I want to view some graphics or maybe photo's to illustrate something?? Even print newspapers print in color these days and they use technology that's several hundred years old now.
When you invent a technology that offers the same battery life, resolution, and readability of e-ink in color let us know. I'm sure it will make you a billionaire.
I'll consider a Kindle when they are not so proprietary. Allow me to put my own content on it without having to go through Amazon's service and it might actually be useful.
Sracer: "I'll consider a Kindle when they are not so proprietary. Allow me to put my own content on it without having to go through Amazon's service and it might actually be useful."
Amazon sells books in a version of .MOBI which is the most common commercial ebook format. You can directly add your own mobi files. You can also add your own .prc ebook files (also very common) and you can also add your own txt files.
If you want to put any pdf, doc, rtf, html files on your Kindle, you can use the free mobipocket sofware and do you own.
Oooh, this actually gives me a little more time to save up for a Kindle then. Was considering getting one very soon, but now I'm glad I've waited. Curious to see the smaller form factor. Wonder how much it'll affect the pricing, if at all.
I think that if they want to make it better, they should completely get rid of the keyboard. The majority of people who use this device are using it to read books, newspapers, and other normally printed materials. You don't need a keyboard to read a newspaper, and if they got rid of the keyboard then they could put in a bigger screen (which would make it a lot easier to read newspapers, which display a lot of different stories at once), and you could even make the body slightly smaller.
How many of you actually own a kindle or used one? I own one and have bought two more for friends. It is a great device to read books on. I love to read books for hours on end and there is just no way I can stare at a LCD screen for that long and not get some kind of eye strain. The keyboard is great because I can perform search functions and browse the kindle/amazon store to quickly buy a book. I love how I can also read my doc and txt files on my Kindle for free. After a couple of minutes you forget you're reading on a electronic device.
The best part of it that it just plain works as an E-book. It does what it is meant to do...for your reading pleasure. It's not meant to be a computer.
Wow, I really love how people who have clearly never even seen a Kindle, and apparently have never looked at comparable ereader options, comment on or review the device with what is obviously uninformed, biased opinion. A couple of clarifications from someone who HAS seen a Kindle, and researched the other options out there before buying:
~ I see over and over again how people want the Kindle to be $100 or some ridiculous low price. The Kindle's main competition is the Sony eReader, or the iRex iLiad, which sell for $299 and $799 respectively (no that is not a typo). How, exactly, is Kindle's $359 price tag too high? It's quite competitive with the Sony, which doesn't offer the Whispernet connectivity.
~ an iPhone is NOT an eReader. Not a good one, anyway. One of the things that makes the Kindle and other similar models special is the E-Ink "looks like ink on paper" screen. PDAs, phones, and computers are all hard on the eyes. E-ink is not. I also see people complain over and over how they want it in color. Well sorry, guys, the E-Ink technology just isn't there yet. Not good enough, and not cheap enough. Someday, a couple of years down the road, I'm sure we'll see this option. But really, this isn't a deal break for an ebook reader, anyway. The Kindle isn't designed for pictures, it's designed to read text on a page, and it works very well for that.
~ Proprietary is a problem? Really? Because most ereaders are. It's the way the book industry tries to protect itself from copyright infringement. Have you ever noticed that your iTunes downloads are only playable on a maximum of five computers unless you resave them as mp3s, burn them to disc, and reload them into iTunes? It's the same concept of the company protecting itself, and not likely to change anytime soon. I personally don't use Amazon to convert my docs to their proprietary format - I use the free Mobipocket Creator and convert them myself to prc. Works like a charm.
~ The Kindle IS the same approximate size as a mass market paperback. I took a picture of mine beside one when I got it. It's maybe half in inch different, but also thinner and lighter. And not nearly so ugly, by the way, as everyone makes them out to be.
~ The whispernet (EVDO) is incredibly convenient. I can be practically anywhere on vacation, finish whatever books I brought with me, and d/l my favorite author's new release, or the next book in a series, or whatever else I want to read, in approximately 30 seconds. Don't knock it as useless until you've actually tried using it.
And that goes for the Kindle itself, too.
Heh. CV said "hard on".
It needs to be $100'ish if it is going to be mass market. You can make it $100 if you do away with all of the extra features that the Kindle has. Yes, it should have some sort of DRM for purchased reads, but it should natively support common file types like pdf. The only extra feature it should have is scalable fonts for when you get old like me and need reading glasses.
having the keyboard is crucial--I would never buy an ebook reader without one. I need to annotate text (write notes in the "margins," as it were) or it is pointless.
The only thing holding me back from buying the Kindle is the fact that the vast majority of books I need in my life (I'm a grad student in an obscure field) will probably never be turned into Kindle versions. Does anyone else have this issue? I wonder if there will ever be a way to request kindle versions of books or something...
But, especially for those of us in academia, the Kindle comes closest to being a miracle invention. Being able to have 200 books--books you can write on, just like normal books--on one tiny device is CRUCIAL. I know people who spend a thousand bucks shipping their books overseas when they get year-long jobs but are writing a book, etc. etc. The Kindle would be amazing if it ever got to the point where every book had a Kindle version.
Not to mention the environmental aspects. I have fantasies of the future where class readers are simply emailed to students who read them on ebook readers, instead of the current situation, where you make an 80-page reader for each one of your 40 (or 400) students, and then most of them just throw it in the garbage when the class is over. Same with textbooks.
One thing I wonder about is: could you get a book from Google (you know how they are scanning the world's entire library) and put it on your kindle? Are the kindle versions of books much much smaller than normal pdfs? I mean, if you got a book in pdf form off google and tried to stick it on your Kindle, would it take up tons more room than a kindle version you bought on amazon?
The proprietary thing is lame. I understand why it exists, but it's still lame. Books themselves aren't proprietary. You can get used versions, you can find them out on the street, you can trade them, you can buy them from all kinds of different stores. Amazon doesn't have a lot of the stuff I want. And also it would be sad to lose the excitement of finding some used book for a quarter---now every book for kindle is the same 9.99 price.
I don't know.
Engadget,
Can you please explain to me why you mention Crunchgear in the story, but your link leads to BGR, which likewise mentions Crunchgear, but links to some other blog, which then finally links back to Crunchgear? Should we just scratch Engadget (and BGR) out of our bookmarks because it's derivative of a derivative of a derivative?
Reporting news from other folks is fine, as is getting a story from another blog (though this isn't ideal), but for pete's sake link to the original post, if you would, please?
The REAL news is the 8 1/2 by 11 size. That means I can finally read PDF's of textbooks and magazines! I have the SONY Reader, and have read dozens of books and find it better than a paperback but not quite as good as hardcover (except that it is a lot easier to hold!).
I would love to take a book and create a PDF of it with scanning then read it on my E-ink reader.
8 1/2 by 11. Killer app for textbooks and magazines.
I actually have a Kindle and have been using it every day for at least the last three months and I love it. I understand that if you do not like reading you probably do not care about the kindle because you can not watch video on it or make phone calls or whatever random reason people give for not liking kindle. Kindle is for reading books and it is dame good at it. I have already got my money back by the amount I saved on the cheaper kindle books vs paper books.
Everyone keeps talking about how the iPhone is going to be the new ereader. However, everyone I have heard making those comments hasn't taken one thing into consideration....battery life. What kind of battery life will the iPhone get if you use it as a reader? I for one dont want my phone dying because I have been using it for a few hours to read on.
CV Wrote "...A couple of clarifications from someone who HAS seen a Kindle, and researched the other options out there before buying:
~ ...How, exactly, is Kindle's $359 price tag too high? It's quite competitive with the Sony, which doesn't offer the Whispernet connectivity.
~ an iPhone is NOT an eReader. Not a good one, anyway. One of the things that makes the Kindle and other similar models special is the E-Ink "looks like ink on paper" screen. PDAs, phones, and computers are all hard on the eyes"
Wow, obviously someone who has a chip on their shoulder.
I've been a reader of "ebooks" since the early 90's. I've seen all sorts of screens come and go. From dedicated devices, PDAs, phones, PMP, etc.
There is NO practical reason to have to pay even $300.00 for an eInk reader. The only reason is that the manfs refuse to lower the price. They would sell many times more of them if they took out all the extra features and simply made them a reading device (with usb/storage card).
The majority of people wanting an ebook reader want the following.
1. BACK LIGHT!!!! It is totally unacceptable that ANY hand-held display device not have some type of built-in lighting.
2. Sized to fit the hand comfortably. Anything larger than the size of a paperback is too big. Large screens are NOT needed as since the display is digital, the text can scroll. One doesn't need to think in terms of page count anymore, nor worry about only X-number of words fitting on the screen. It doesn't matter. More pages are only an issue when they make the thing in your hand bigger and heavier. This is not so with any digital reader.
3. Multi-format. PDF is not great for an ebook format. It is for mags, tech books and things like that. Not for just book reading which is the vast majority of the market. Simple formats like txt, rtf, lit and palmdoc are really all that's wanted by the masses.
Things NOT needed.
1. LARGE screen. (see above)
2. Keyboard.
3. Internet browser.
4. Cell service. Understand, I'm a Sprint cell phone users. Since Sprint does not guarantee residential coverage (I know this because I get crappy service within 20' of my house and after many calls and emails, Sprint said tough luck, you'll have to stand out in your yard, we don't guarantee residential coverage). So, why would I buy something where there's no guarantee of service for me to use the download feature. What happens when I'm outside of Sprint's area and I want something new to read?
5. COST. The current cost is too high.
I do all my reading on my 5 year old Tapwave Zodiac. I bought a spare for less than $100us. I can put books on there in whatever format I choose. I have lit and pdf readers. It fits in the PALM of my hand and has an hourglass shape instead of a rectangular brick shape. It fits in my pants and shirt pockets. I get 15 hours of BACKLIT, autoscroll reading. It weighs about what my cell phone does (I use that for internet access when needed).
Oh, and the 480x320 color screen is just as clean as every eInk reader I've seen. Better than most. It even handles 30 smooth frames per second of video.
The tech for less expensive readers is already available.
So, you tell me. Why should I buy a Kindle?
I'm waiting to see if this is true. Don't give me the 'oh, the iPhone is just as good', because I DON'T WANT an iPhone. They charge too much for that stupid service.
I read...a lot. A lot of fiction. I like to keep books, but have a storage space issue. Kindle is a perfect solution. I do read ebooks on my computer, love the mobi format, but would like portability. I wish it was cheaper, but that's because my budget is very small. Amazon has a lot of the books I want to buy in Kindle format, and Fictionwise/Mobipocket/every other ebook store sells more. Unsecured Mobi can be uploaded directly to the device, so no issues there.
And if they do keep the price high, they need to lower the price of the books. Or lower the price of the reader and make all their money on the books (which is much smarter - more people will buy more books if they could afford a reader).
I was looking at the Astak reader, which is supposed to have a mobi-only version, but they keep on pushing back the release date.
Someday I'll have an e-ink reader!