Amazon Kindle slimming down in August?
By Ross Miller 
posted May 28th 2010 10:41PM
posted May 28th 2010 10:41PM
Color might still be out of the question -- both now and far into the future -- but Amazon seems fit to take out some of the Kindle's fat. Bloomberg has it on word that the company will debut a thinner version of its e-book reader in August, and the new workout regiment will also enhance its screen sharpness and responsiveness. No word on if this'll apply to current models or be an entirely different variant, but in addition to no color, we do hear it lacks a touch screen. Bummer, but if the price is right, we'll bite.
There is no idea in Amazon trying to compete with the iPad. The only thing they can do is try to make the kindle as cheap as possible.
I'm using the Irex DR1000S which renders pdf's beautifully but was slow until the latest firmware v2.0 beta. The battery life sucks but compared to my kindle, the Irex is way better with pdf's. 10.2" screen with 1024x1280 16 grey-scale resolution. I wouldn't recommend it to people because of price but for me it's great because I use it strictly for pdf's and don't pay for my books...
People- Amazon will not he lowering the price anytime soon. Remember that the Kindle has free unlimited 3G? $260 Isnt a bad deal for something with free Internet.
@APV
Free.. black and white... internet... um...
*weeps
@Oldarney
The only thing I keep hearing about e-ink is how it can be teas in the sun. I don't know of anyone who intentionally tries to read in the n
bright sun, even with a book. The bright glare hurts the eyes. If I do read outside, i read under a shade. People making a big deal over e-ink without paying attention to how people actually use products and technology in daily life.
You ,know you really don't want a touch screen. I have a Sony touch, and my wife has a nook. I like my Sony, but there is glare which is generally ascribed to that touch technology. I really rearely use the touch features while reading, though it is nice not to have a quarter of the device dedicated to a keyboard.
For those doofuses continually complaing about not having a backlight, neither do books. Just go buy an iPad, or any other tablet with a backlite LCD, and go out on your deck or to the beach and read it. I can read my Sony anywhere I have enough light I could read an actual book.
@sejohannsenearthlinknet
Indoors, the iPad is an excellent e-reader. Outdoors, not so much. I still prefer it over my Kindle because of the screen size and the fact that you can do so much more.
Could this be the Kindle 3 everyone's talking about? There's an interesting article discussing speculations about the possible release date of future Kindle:
http://www.best-ereaders.com/2010/04/14/guessing-the-amazon-kindle-3-release-date/
At least to me, this device doesn't sound like the one I was expecting. Where's the touch screen and the lendme features like the nook has?
I think Amazon should seriously think about an upgrade that will give the Kindle more features than it currnetly has.
Glad to see they're not just hoping the Kindle 2 and DX will carry them until next year against all their competition, because it sure as shit wont at this point. Props to Amazon for that realization and initiative.
@WigPoo: How do you "mean seriously"? If you want to be serious:
The vast majority of books are black & white and I don't think I've ever seen one that's backlit. Sounds comparable to an actual book to me...
I was debating moving to a DX from my Kindle 2 this month, but I figured something was in the pipeline.
Contrast and responsiveness would be good things to tweak, but what I would like to see:
1) Color would be nice, but not needed. As I replied above: Most books are black-and-white. However, it would be nice to be able to read digital comic books on something like the DX (that's just a personal preference).
2) I wouldn't mind touchscreen navigation solely because I do find highlighting books with the joystick nub to be a chore sometimes (and I do it a lot), but I really don't want to see glare increase on the screen (or have to pay a premium) because of adding a touchscreen.
3) Unless there is a nice, responsive touchscreen (I'm looking at you, Nook, and your laggy response time!), I want to see the hard keyboard stay in-place. I can't imagine trying to input notes one character at a time using just the joystick nub.
4) Lastly, I think the next Kindle needs connection options. A model with USB only (nice, cheap for home, office, and or school), a model with just WiFi (what most people would use), and then a model with WiFi and 3G and an optional (pay-for) 3G data plan (probably what most travelers would use). That would bring the pricing on the hardware down to much more reasonable levels for a lot of folks.
I love tablet pcs and netbooks (typing this on my Eeepc 900ha) but I could never read a full novel on one. Once you've experienced reading a novel on an eink display you'll see.
I have a Sony PRS-505 and I'm surprised how well it stands up to the newer devices, even Sony's latest are rather so-so.
As a Kindle user since v. 1, I don't care much about it being thinner. Lighter would be nice; so would a little more screen real estate. I'm glad they aren't going with a touchscreen -- I try to keep my reading screen fingerprint-free, and there's no way to do that with a touchscreen.
I do question the choice, if the graphic is accurate, to remove the buttons from the left-hand side. Being able to hold the Kindle with either hand is definitely a plus.
I am glad that Amazon is continuing to develop the Kindle, but IMO, all the stuff about competition with the iPad is overblown. They serve different purposes. I fully plan on getting some kind of tablet/slate device in the next year, but I will still use the Kindle as my primary reading device.
@teab Wouldn't polarized sunglasses reduce the glare?
No Bezel. Or at least have text fill the display to the edge and make the bezel the margin.
@teab It's not only direct sunlight that makes regular screens unreadable.