Sure, Amazon could pit the Kindle squarely against phone- and PDA-based e-book apps, but why not play both sides? The company had previously mentioned its desire to
embrace non-Kindle devices in its digital delivery ecosystem, and the first fruits of that labor have now hit the iPhone App Store. The uncreatively-named Kindle for iPhone allows you access to all of your Kindle content right from the comfort of your iPhone or iPod touch, and if you have the good fortune of owning an honest-to-goodness Kindle,
Whispersync will kick in to keep your location synchronized between readers. It's a huge win for owners of both devices, considering that the Kindle's still just a little bit big to be carrying everywhere you go, but your phone -- well, if you don't have
that everywhere you go, you're just plain weird. [Warning: iTunes link]
[Via
The iPhone Blog]
posted Mar 4th 2009 12:26AM
Wow, one more reason not to get a real Kindle.
You actually needed a REASON not to buy the Kindle?
Who in the hell wants to read a freakin book on their iPhone? I have perfect vision and do not mind reading a small article on my iPhone but an entire book?...crazy people!!!
I started reading ebooks on a 160x160 B&W PalmOS PDA. For me, it was good enough. Having the screen on my iPod Touch for ebooks is just fantastic.
I'm with Trent... the iPhone, and all similar devices, are a joke compared to an e-reader when it comes to just reading plain text. I might use an iPhone to scan a work document on the road, but for serious recreational reading? Please... the idea is absurd at best. If I'm sitting at home for a couple of hours of reading why the hell would I want to look at a tiny LCD screen? I'd just rather have the book at that point.
I honestly used to think like some of you guys until we my wife actually got a Kindle. I was blown away at how much the screen looked like actual paper. We have both an iPhone and iPod Touch in our home as well and they are pathetic in comparison. I think that the vast majority of people that put down devices like the Kindle while singing the praises of a device like the iPhone simply don't have any direct experience with the Kindle. Once you can use them both directly it becomes painfully obvious which makes for a better reader.
@Trent-
I've actually read several books on the iPhone using the eReader app. It's not the BEST solution, but once you get used to it, it's not bad at all.
Actually, its MORE reason to get a real Kindle. People who get used to this app and e-reading on their iPhone will eventually see the benefit of the real Kindle and lust for the larger screen.
This app only exists to boost e-reading. By the time people feel they can't live without their e-books, they will want the full experience.
I still maintain that should you need them, free books from a library or much superior. They are just so booky!
this is great but isnt this gonna hurt kindles sales i mean if you can get a ipod touch for 200 and then this app you can save almost 160 bucks
Guess what: Amazon can live with you not buying a Kindle if you're buying books from them. The Kindle's a useful device because it helps solidify and shape the e-book market. But once you're committed to buying books from Amazon's large library and counting on its reliable customer experience, you're not going to stray.
Also, if Amazon can drive the Kindle brand, they can't lose. They'll be the go-to guys for real ebook readers by strengthening their brand with software for other mobile devices.
Their gamble is probably that e-ink readers will win out over a convergence device that sucks batteries to run the backlight.
If they're right, they win.
If they're wrong, and ebook readers never take off, well, they still win.
Still, I think Amazon will be a little chagrined when, in a few months, the number of people buying Amazon e-books to read on the iPhone outpaces book sales for their much-ballyhooed Kindle. Amazon may become the iTunes of e-books, but I think this spells the death-knell for any possibility of the Kindle becoming the iPod of e-books.
Nah, reading "books" on the iPhone will suck compared to the Kindle. It will be nice to use occasionally maybe but the battery life and eye strain will be way way worse than using a Kindle. I have the original Kindle, I have used the Kindle 2, I own an iPhone - this is just something nice to have for those of uis with multiple devices I think. Folks may read some on the iPhone but I think it will drive many of them to realize the Kindle itself is a way better device for this task in the long run.
spoiler alert
So amazon and kindle have signed a deal with add-on battery packs for the iPhone? Cause you know this is going to emphasize the "half-day" battery that is in the iPhone. Companies that sell battery extensions should be bowing to amazon and saying thanks......
Just plug it in mate!
ah yes - the evolution of mobile device usage - the power cord....
You still need a real kindle. You cant buy books on this, only read ones you have purcheses on your kindle.
Oh that just sucks.
Also it isn't on the Canadian app store, for those who it matters to.
No you don't. The app's App Store description says you can buy a kindle book from your PC or iPhone using a web browser and wirelessly transfer it to Kindle for iPhone.
Umm, you can buy Kindle books from Amazon's site using your Mac, PC, or Mobile Safari... No Kindle device needed...
So what it lacks is a browser? You've got to do the purchasing on Amazon.
Oh well, maybe that can be built into Version 2 of the App.
Been playing with the app and found that its easier to use the free Amazon Store iPhone app to buy books for this. The UI is lighter than trying to struggle with the hugemantic Amazon website in iPhone Safari.
actaully yes you can it will take you to amazons website and you can purchase books from the site and transfers the books over to iphone
Agh. Actually you can only browse them on the Amazon appstore app. You can't buy them too. Lame.
You don't need a real Kindle to view purchased content, however, you DO need a real Kindle to view your OWN content since you have to have a Kindle email address to convert them.
Not available in Australia either.
Bugger. I was hoping to mess with it.
Is this to do with the fun Copyright issues? Can't sell to Australia and Canada because they don't own rights for that?
Dude, its an iPhone. If you want to view your own content, why would you need to use the Amazon Kindle reader to do it?
Seems like you can only sync books for now, newspapers and magazines don't seem to work.
Yeah, I'm having the exact same issue. I don't think this will be seriously detrimental to Kindle sales because it is unbearable to read books on the iPod Touch.
@Andrew. Thank You. That is the simple matter of fact. Sure you can read a few Web pages at a time or browse through a few pictures. Though I have no interest in snuggling up to read a whole book on my iPhone. For one, its awkward to hold and 2) you would be constantly scrolling assuming you don't want to read in size 6 font.
Yes. I have found that there is no syncing of newspapers and magazines, which sucks, because that's all I use my kindle to read.
Actually, I read a few chapters from two books last night on the kindle program and thought everything was fine. Have been reading entire books on handhelds from my Tungsten T days, to by N80 days, to my treo, and now with the iphone. Never had a problem. I'd say it's a personal preference. No one can speak for everybody; no one, not even Amazon or Steve Jobs, I gather, has data that show what percentage of people can't stand reading on small screens. All i hear is anecdotal evidence and personal preference. All valid, true; but only for the people or groups being discussed. We've got to stop with the pointless generalizations.
@Andrew,
Actually I was there too, but I've been playing with this today, and I find that the font style and size makes it perfectly usable. I'd prefer more words on the page, but when your stuck someplace with nothing to do, it's very nice to have a novel to read.
Well, obviously what we really need now is a bigger iPod Touch that would be bearable to use as a eBook reader.
and get rid of the backlit LCD screen that sucks batteries and hurts your eyes.
Great. Now all we need is Blackberry, Windows Mobile, and Android versions and Amazon are set for domination. Which, TBH, I'd be quite happy with - if they get the reader right, I'd certainly be interested in reading on my phone.
Wake me when I can borrow ebooks with my library card.
You most likely already can.
Check your local library's website to see if they have it in place already.
For example Sacramento Public Library system lets you 'check out; eBooks, AudioBooks and more digitally.
http://www.SacLibrary.org (click on "Download Digital Books, Videos and Music" button on the home page for an example.)
See if your library has a system like "NetLibrary" or "OverDrive" in place already.
These systems don't support the Kindle.. yet.. I think it is a system that would be nice to see Amazon support in someway with the Kindle hardware.
OverDrive servers that deliver .mobi files are actually compatable with the Kindle....with a little hacking. Two guys created a program called KindleFIX which assigns your Kindle a valid PID number (that works with DRM'd .mobi files) based upon it's serial number....or something like that.
I've purchased a few books like this, that weren't available on the Amazon store, but were elsewhere.
You can already do that, at least here in Sweden.
Wow!! This changes everything. ebooks are now here to stay, just like the app. store made little applications accessable. This will make ebooks now available to a huge install base. This is the best decision Amazon could have ever made. My only question is why would anybody spend over $300 for a kindle?
Because I want to read books without letting my eyes tire from staring at a light bulb for hours on end.
For starters, a Kindle's battery life is measured in days. An iPhone's in hours. The other is just eInk in general. You have to see it in action to really understand.
Oh, also iPhones aren't available everywhere in the US. And an iPod Touch won't give you cellular wireless.
Somebody really should do a study on how many people actually read entire books on pda's. And despite all the putative advantages of the kindle over smaller screens, there's still the economic and convenience factor of having one device (to rule them all); and that's huge.
Didn't Amazon just render the Kindle obsolete with this move? It wasn't popular to begin with, and now its ebooks are available on the iPhone?
As everyone has already said, it makes Amazon the goto place to eBooks.
If they have a good app that's available everywhere, including for Windows and MacOS for all the laptop and netbook peoples, then Amazon will become even wealthier peoples.
No they didn't.
What they did is move the format of the Amazon e-book into a postion to grow to be the defacto cross-platform standard, and put the idea of 'the book I'm reading' into the cloud - you no longer have to wish you had brought your Kindle or paperback with you - the book you're reading is in the cloud, and now you can access it with two devices, one that easily slips in your pocket, and allows you to catch a few pages while waiting for the subway. Some people may now never need the Kindle hardware - this may be enough. For serious reading sessions, the Kindle is still easier on the eyes, and more efficient with the battery - but I don't always have mine with me. I am into this move, all the way.
To paraphrase/twist the old Gillette strategy: They're selling the razor blades - the razor you use is up to you. The Kindle is only what 'books' you put on it anyway.
People need to actually look at e-ink in real life.. I think many don't understand that the display doesn't hurt your eyes to stare at for hours.. It looks just like ink on a thick slab of paper
Hmmm...can you use it to just view PDFs and other documents?
I don't know why you people are calling this app a "Kindle killer", as the battery on the iPhone will make long term reading difficult,
Yeah, I agree. I'm a Kindle 1 owner and an iPhone owner, and am excited for this. It will never replace a real book or my Kindle (equivalent for me). What it will do is provide for something to do when I have random downtime without my Kindle. I'll read a few pages off of the iPhone, it will be great for that.
With this move, Amazon has become the iTunes of the Digital Print world, but with a slight difference... iTunes is a way for Apple to sell more iPods.
The Kindle is a way for Amazon to sell more eBooks.
In otherwords, Amazon's primary objective here is to sell more digital media, not more hardware. Where Apple's focus has been on hardware sales, Amazon is making it clear that its primary objective is to sell content.
This isn't a departure from what Amazon has always done, it's simply an evolution of its current service. This is why this latest application for the iPhone doesn't concern Amazon.
Its primary sales come from eBooks, not eBook readers.
This is made even more painfully obvious by the fact that the price differences between the digital and physical form of their books is negligible. Amazon doesn't WANT to sell you hardware, it wants to sell you content, and so it's creating a marketplace where there is currently none.
It will encourage competition because competition means industry growth which means more consumers. This means that Amazon wins.
And by the way, so do we.
As someone who worked in the ebook industry, I think Omar's right. Amazon's trying to create a de facto standard for ebooks which is why they released the iphone app. Why try to make money on hardware when you can collect royalties on every ebook sold? Smart move if you ask me. As for the Kindle, however, I still think paper is a better technology... it's much cheaper, resistant to heat, cold, sand, and withstands drops from heights that would obliterate the Kindle. That said, I do believe it's only a matter of time before some new technology eclipses paper.
You can't do conversion or anything, so this is just a Kindle book reader; don't forget Amazon's core business is selling books and this is what it does—sells books. Sure people will think this is a competitor for the Kindle itself, but I think of it as an advertisement for the Kindle; people can get read books for a week at a time without charging, etc.
Finally, you can't buy books on this application, but why reinvent the wheel? The iPhone/iPod touch already has a browser, why not just use that?
You can create and transfer your OWN book to the app. Just use “Auto Kindle” (Google it) to convert to the Kindle .mobi format, then transfer to your iPhone with the “iPhone Browser” app (no jailbreak required). You need to find the folder that Kindle is installed in under “var/mobile/applications” (you will have to look around for it. Put the .mobi book in the “Documents/ebooks” folder, and you are ready to go.
i could see this driving consumers to actually look into buying a Kindle. I have a hard time reading to many pages on the ipod/iphone. I know after buying a book and trying to read it on an iphone would make me buy a Kindle. Just not big on reading "books" that much
I agree. I've never thought the kindle was very useful since its too big to go in a pocket for on the go reading.
But if they made a reader for WinMo, I might actually buy a Kindle. Kindle for home, phone for on the go.
ah, optometrists around the world jump in glee as tech heads develop another means to cause eyestrain. I love the idea of e-readers but am waiting until they are book sized and flexible. 'Bout 3 years?
so? if people were reading NORMAL books all the time, they'd all be wearing glasses too.
why do you think 8 year olds in South Korea are getting glasses. Because they read all the time.
You know you can actually do eye excercises to avoid wearing glasses, right?
lolz. that's a bit of a generalisation! They all teakwondo champs too, or addicted to WoW? There are many people worldwide - students, professionals or simply avid bookworms that do a huge wad of reading. Not all of them need glasses. Requiring glasses has as much to do with expressed congenital(genetic) factors than with strain caused by reading or age related changes. Its a physiological fact that reading on a smaller page size place strain on the eye muscles to maintain focus. Any opthamologist will tell you that sensible reading and viewing practises are far preferred to 'beefin up' your eyes with exercises. Those type of interventions are predominately applied in people with conditions affecting the neuromuscular function of the eye.
But if people want to read a 500 page novel on their iphone, no ones stopping them :) Still, if they dont want to cart a proper sized book(or reader), they'd be better off buying the audiobook and listening to it with eyes closed and relaxed.
It didn't work...I installed everything, registered my Touch and tried to download the Wallstreet Journal...Amazon, even though it showed the ipod listed in manageyourkindle, claimed I had no ipod registered...oh well, it looked like a good idea -- if its this hard to use, who needs it. Maybe its their way to get you to just buy the Kindle.
You can't read newspapers or magazines on the iPhone...just books.
As the owner of an iPhone and a Kindle, I feel like I'm getting into the gadget geek equivalent of a menage a trois.
Also, I've installed this and it works like a dream.
With "WhisperSync", I should add that Amazon seems to simply be marketing a feature that's been available in the original Kindle since day 1 (and yes, all bookmarks and current pages from my G1 Kindle were immediately synched to the iPod App). Kindles have always stored the current page, bookmarks and notes on Amazon's cloud, probably anticipating the event that the user might want to temporarily delete (and then re-download) material at times. I had a Kindle break a few months ago and was pleasantly surprised when my replacement "remembered" my position in every book.
Now maybe they'll concentrate on getting a version for Windows Mobile? And maybe BlackBerry?
Got the new Kindle which is 100x better than version one, and just downloaded the app and synced my books... ONE PROBLEM, where the hell are the magazines and newspapers? I subscribe to Time, Newsweek and New Yorker and they are not on made available, only the books, why is that? It's not a huge deal but it would be nice to have them as well. Hopefully Amazon will fix this.
When you start your K2 it asks if you want to transfer your subscriptions to the new device. You can also enable this by going to your Kindle account management page on Amazon.
When will they release the version of the apps for Windows Mobile and Palm Pre? Does this app also read Mobipocket books?
To all who are billing the app as a Kindle-killer, you obviously have not used the Kindle. I love my iPhone AND I love my Kindle. The iPhone is great for quickly checking blogs, a news article here and there, or other light reading. But I recently came down with a nasty cold and was in bed reading on my Kindle 2 for about six hours a day while recuperating over the weekend. It was a delight, but if I tried that on my iPhone I would now be blind.
Also, WhisperSync works amazingly well! My Kindle 2 just became a much more powerful device now that of is coupled with my iPhone. I don't have to do a thing. I just read on my Kindle or iPhone and when I open up the same book on the other device I am at the same passage I left off of on the other. It is almost eeiry how seamless it is.
I also feel much better about Amazon's DRM now that I can read my purchases on more than one device.
Although I do agree With previous posters that with such a large number of iPhone owners, the release of the Kindle app is even bigger news than the release of the Kindle 2. Now every iPhone owner has access to affordable e-book versions of current bestsellers and the Kindle 2 serves as the killer iPhone reading accessory.
Well done, Amazon!
Pretty nifty move, kills several birds with one stone:
iPhone/iPod users get to think about buying a Kindle for easier and longer reading spells, many actually buy a Kindle, both sets of users however buy eBooks from Amazon.
Repeat the strategy for WinMo, Symbian, Palm and other Smartphone platforms.
Become the de facto eBook digital marketplace.
Profit
This is a really smart move. Unfortunately, I have neither device and want them so much more now.
You can use this to sample books. Actually anyone can sample kindle books for free with this app. Works great. Good for shortterm reading of purchased books too.
This is pretty big. I'm surprised it was free.
Well, it's a start. I downloaded it this morning and bought a cheap paperback that I wanted to read again. The buying and syncing process was flawless - not sure what else they could do aside from putting a store/browser directly in the app. But mobile Safari works fine to make the purchase. The app is fairly intuitive. I've never used a Kindle, but I imagine the navigation options it offers ape the Kindle software's offering, i.e. Cover, Table of Contents, etc. You can also adjust the font size for better readability. However, you can't escape the fact that the iPhone is a small device with limited battery life. Even at the smallest font size it's a few swipes per actual page, and all the time the battery clock is ticking down. So, it's a nice start.
The best part about this app, IMO, is that it opens the door for Amazon to sell e-books to the iPhone/iPod platform in the future, independent of device. In theory, apps that run on today's iPhone should run on tomorrow's. If Apple increases the form factor of the iPod, that might actually make it viable to read full-time on the thing (battery life excepted, of course). I was in the Sony store the other day looking at the Vaio P. It struck me as an incredibly useless device, or at least it didn't provide anything that I couldn't do on an iPhone or G1 that I would want to do on something that small. But I was struck by something - I would absolutely LOVE an iPod that was just the screen of the Vaio P, maybe slightly shorter. It would significantly increase the screen real estate, provide a much better movie/tv watching screen, allow you to reasonably read eBooks on the thing, and maybe do some more intensive tasks in addition to all you can already do on the current gen devices. So, Apple - please make a new iPod that is roughly the size of the Vaio P screen, all touch interface, with a beefier processor and a better battery (those last two aren't must-haves, it's the screen size that's key). I would gobble that up in a heartbeat.
Is it just me, or does this app not support switching to landscape mode?
I use the eReader app all the time (and have on Palms, and my WinMo phone for years) and it switches to landscape just fine; and has a lot of decent themes that make it very easy on the eyes.
I imagine a later version will have more features. So far, I like it.
-Matt
Folks, Amazon is in the business to sell content. That's why the Kindle includes a built in cell phone with no monthly fee. Adding the Kindle app for the iPhone expands the market for selling books. It's a win win for both Amazon and Apple.
I own and use both a Kindle 2 and an iPhone. In terms of the differences between the two, their very different products. The iPhone is always with you and can be read in the dark. Having your ebooks on an iPhone is perfect for those times when you get stuck waiting. I prefer reading newspapers on the iPhone - prefer the AP app as it has color thumbnails and video clips. The navigation is easier to drill down to a story on an iPhone than on a Kindle when reading a paper IMHO.
The Kindle on the other hand runs for days and days without re-charging and is easier to read in bright daylight. Try reading your iPhone on the beach or outside in direct sunlight. The Kindle shows a whole paperbook page and is quite readable. The Kindle is ideal for long reading passages in books.
We were introduced to the Kindle while in the Caribbean last month when we saw a husband and wife reading theirs at breakfast and on the beach. She had hers standing up on the table while she ate. Press a button to go forward a page. The wife handed us hers to try out and that was it, we ordered 2 when we got home.
This is significant. It could very well be the inflection point for the entire e-book industry. To all those saying this is going to kill Kindle sales, that the battery is too short, that the screen is too small... none of that matters. What matters is that the potential market for Amazon kindle books just got multiplied by a factor of 10. That means more potential customers, which means more publishers pushing content through Amazon, which in turn attracts more customers. More money for content means more money for hardware development, which means more devices at lower prices, which in turn attracts more e-book customers.
And Amazon definitely cares a hell of a lot more about becoming the default retailer for ebooks than it does about selling hardware.
My wife and I use our Kindles a lot. Actually she uses hers nearly every day. If you are sitting down to read for an hour or more, there is simply no comparison -- the Kindle, with it's e-ink screen, is optimized for reading. But I'm going to really enjoy the iPhone app for catching a few pages while away from my Kindle. This is a terrific match.
All those publishers of stand alone book apps for the iPhone are now screwed. Which is probably good, because they were clogging up the app store.
I was excited by this until I saw the prices for ebooks at Amazon. The SF ones I was interested in cost _more_ than the paperback version. Not acceptable. If they were a couple of bucks maybe, but definitely not worth a premium to read on the iPhone.
Personally, I don't mind reading a book on my iPhone. If I have 10 minutes to kill on the subway waiting for someone, and I don't feel like lugging around a Kindle or a regular book, this will do in a pinch, but sure—I wouldn't want this to be my only source for reading a book.
My question is, how will this work out with Kindle's proprietary format? I think Amazon's format days are numbered. Check out my blog post on this issue and leave a comment:
http://robpaterson.wordpress.com/
Rob
Amazon is really making some moves right now. Kindle on the iPhone/iPod touch, and Amazon Video on the Roku. They've obviously got their eyes on invading all parts of your home and being your defacto place to purchase media.
Good plan. Give away the software to play it, and then charge for the media itself.
pff, just from this 1 screenshot I can tell textonphone does a better job at this(at least for the G1, haven't seen what it looks like on the iphone)
I like this very much, because I have an iPhone and don’t want to buy another device. But I’ll need to get a fully adjustable stand for my iPhone so that I can read a book without having to get carpal tunnel syndrome. There’s one I saw at http://www.nimblesource.com/podium that I guess I have an excuse to buy now.
Amazon obviously thought hard about this. Why do people think if you can read books on your iphone/itouch that you need to read the ENTIRE book on it? Only a little bit of contemplation leads to realizing that you can, for example, read a book on a kindle on the train, then during the day when you're waiting in line or something you can whip out your iphone and read another few pages/chapters, then pick up reading on the kindle for a longer sitting later, etc.. This kind of scenario, I imagine, would be very common among avid readers. It's about the book being where you are at any given time without having to worry about carrying a particular device. Could it be that ebook readers have finally transcended the book in usefulness?
Also, I'm sorry to say, but if you have to ask why anyone would spend $300 on an ebook device, then you aren't the target market for it, or you can't afford it. Plenty of people fit this criteria.
I am disappointed that you can't read blogs, newspapers, or magazines on the iphone though.
Amazon understands that the future is not about hardware (shocker), nor is it about content for content’s sake (shocker two). The future is about pairing mass aggregation of content and mass distribution of content.
More on this here...
http://www.unboundedition.com/content/view/10983/50/
I made a quick video demo'ing the Kindle on iPhone app - if anyone wants to see. http://www.nerdgirl.com/2009/03/04/amazon-kindle-for-the-iphone-app-video/
In case there's any Microsoft Visio enthusiasts reading this, you might be interested in two free shapes for download:
Amazon Kindle 2 Visio Network Shape
http://www.visguy.com/2009/02/10/amazon-kindle-2-visio-network-shape/
Apple iPhone Visio Network Shape
http://www.visguy.com/2008/03/23/apple-iphone-network-shape/
I own a Kindle and I also own an iPhone.
Let me the first to tell you that I would NEVER think of reading a book on my iPhone. That is what I have a Kindle for. It goes with me everywhere. It is wireless. It's battery charge lasts three weeks. It remains cool to the touch. It is essentially always off except when you turn the page.
The object of the iPhone is ALWAYS to turn it off as soon as possible. Its battery has the lifespan of a mayfly. No way you can even read a short story let alone a novel.
I wish they had named the app "iStrain" :)
However, for my uses as a Kindle2 owner, this is a feature advantage of the iPhone over the Pre. Decisions, decisions...
My biggest concern about the Kindle, aside from it’s weird, book-buring-esque name, is that it compromises the integrity of the written word. A printed book may be unwieldy, but you know that once it’s on your shelf, not one letter is going to change. Can’t say the same for the Kindle: http://urbzen.com/2009/02/09/amazon-kindle-privacy-fail/
Also, when I spill coffee all over a book, I’ve only ruined that particular book :)
Well, after having messed with my co-worker's Kindle 2 for a while, and downloading a book to my iPod touch, I can say the e-ink/electronic paper is some damn cool stuff now. The last time I looked at it, it wasn't this cool. It really is just like looking at a printed page. You have to see it to appreciate it.
The Kindle 2 has a bigger page, and that's pretty nice, yet it's still quite small and thin.
The iPod touch version is much smaller, but looks good and functions nicely. The LCD screen will likely be a pain to look at for long periods of time, but on the other hand, it's backlit and that makes it ideal for reading in the dark (in the car at night, waiting in the movie theater for the film to start, in bed with someone who doesn't want a book light pointing at them...)
I like both, but I'm still leaning toward the Kindle 2 (or maybe even an original Kindle). I could see the iPod touch/iPhone version being a great supplement to the Kindle. I always have my iPod touch with me, so I can continue reading what I've been reading on the Kindle (once I have one)... That's pretty nifty.
I really wish the Kindle were cheaper, though.
not available in Canada? WTF eh?