Amazon's third-generation Kindle 'temporarily sold out,' bookworms curse the universe
By Darren Murph 
posted August 2nd 2010 11:30AM
posted August 2nd 2010 11:30AM
[Thanks, Philip]
posted August 2nd 2010 11:30AM
A look back on popular stories from today in a specific year.
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Go to Barnes and Noble and buy a Nook!
@apbaseball Agreed. A much better interface, more open format and memory expansion, all for 10 bucks more. That and free book reading at B&N and free sharing with friends, which is pretty sweet.
@apbaseball ^^^^^ THIS!!!
@daftrok
I really want a nook but the kindle 3 just seems like it is a better e-reader purely for its own purpose. The geek in me wants an android powered device but the kindle is not exactly a crappy product and since they made the keyboard much less ugly I like it a lot more. Plus it doesn't hurt that is avaialble in something other than trendy apple white and it does the text to speech which seems really cool if you want to look away for a few minutes.. I can't believe that these things were pushing $400 a year ago.
@apbaseball:
I own neither a Kindle or Nook, but have played around with both. I would never buy a Nook. The interface is clumsy and hard to navigate compared to the Kindle.
@apbaseball
"Go to Barnes and Noble and buy a Nook!"
And if you don't live in America?
@Tes
I'm a fellow UKer and am really tempted by the new Kindle. A friend of mine imported a Kindle 2 and paid £230 including import taxes! This seems like a steal in comparison.
@Tes
Then, just get a real book made of paper. Easy, simple, and there's no need to recharge.
@apbaseball I've had a nook since release, and it has VASTLY improved to the point of being superior to the Kindle (I owned a Kindle and hated it).
Honestly, I don't see why people would buy a Kindle anymore, unless they really just want to save $10.
@Tes
Plenty more available. And no lock in to one shop. No constant reading over your shoulder, no deleting books from your reader without your permission.
http://direct.tesco.com/q/R.208-7258.aspx
http://www.whsmith.co.uk/CatalogAndSearch/sonyebookreader.aspx
http://www.whsmith.co.uk/CatalogAndSearch/ProductDetails.aspx?productID=34285626
A few quid more perhaps, but worth it. Especially as the Kindle catalogue isn't that great in the UK. Plenty of ePub though.
@apbaseball: the nook is trash. It's much heavier than the kindle and the interface, quite bluntly, is ass. The kindle excels is doing one thing: reading books.
I looked at both units for some time before deciding on the kindle and love mine. I managed to get in on the kindle 3 before they sold out as well :D
And those of you talking about reading on your cell phone or whatever simply don't get it. The kindle replicates the look of paper, at an accessible size.
@daftrok
Amazon has a free service that let's you convert just about any format into theirs. They also have the power of, well, amazon behind them.
@song of swords Agreed about the nook interface. While I am a 4 year long Barnes and Noble member, and do support open formats as a computer engineer, the Kindle seems to excel at what it does, to the point that I pre-ordered my Kindle 3 before they sold out. I have played with the Nook, Kindle, and Sony readers at stores and at friends' houses and I honestly think the Nook is so clunky with its touch interface, it might as well not be there.
Nook fans seem to discount how much damn heavier the unit is compared to the Kindle, Sony Reader, and pretty much all other devices.
It's amazing... is that custom Android firmware really that heavy?!
@apbaseball Agreed. I really like the Nook AND it works with my local library. Unfortunately for B&N, I've actually bought very few books for it.
For those who think it's that much heavier than the Kindle - really? It weighs like 3 or 4 ounces more. You guys are weak.
Really hoping the eInk sticks around, though, because I really prefer the sun readability and non-backlit displays for long reading.
@apbaseball
I am not buying one until it's color.
@daftrok I share my Kindle books with my friends and everytime my sister buys a books I can read read as we share an account. We can read them whenever-not just once for a two week period and at the same time and iour Kindles remember where each of is in the book.
They only produced 200 because they didn't expect anyone to buy it...
@VanNorden Why is that? The nook and kindle are 2 fantastic devices for e reading. A lot of people have bought them and I think they will continue to sell a lot more.
@VanNorden:
You know what, you're right. Especially when it's been the number one selling item on Amazon for the longest time now....
@VanNorden
So you just ignored the fact that they have sold millions of Kindles per Bezos. I have to wonder where people like you get those comments from.
i think its artificial. you know. create some hype, press coverage.
anyways, if they got rid of the physical keyboard, put a virtual one i'd buy one. its just taking up space. give me more screen area.
@ramchagol A virtual keyboard would require a touchscreen, which they don't want because it adds a layer of plastic or glass, adding glossiness and making reading more difficult. Right now the Kindle is easily readable in bright sunlight, and that's not true for most devices with touchscreens. It also means more battery life, which is why it can last a month.
@ramchagol I'm quite certain this is artificial in a way.
Amazon has a policy of not letting their employees show their new devices in public until the customer gets their changes to get one. This is a policy they copied from Apple.
So the date they are allowed to show them is related to the actual ship date of the product and it's usually a week or so after it ships. When the previous models were announced, the "show date" was set to about two weeks after announce.
This time, last week they announced the "show date" was near the end of August, one month out! So they clearly knew they wouldn't be able to ship any for a while. But they announced it early anyway.
In that way, the shortage is artificial. Although it's not like you could have gotten it any earlier if they had announced it later, it just wouldn't have had this awkwardly large "announced but not available" period.
I have to imagine the presence of this device for the fall school season is the key here. Announce it early and try to get college students (or even whole colleges!) to plan around it.
@spin cycle
This isn't a hype machine. No one said there was a shortage but Engadget readers. The Kindle page is just saying that the first batch comes out August 27th, and all units in that batch are already sold out. IF you want to get "in line" for the first available shipment after that, feel free to order. They have to put some disclaimer if the shipment date has changed because the initial batch is sold out.
@joeythehobo Whether it's a hype machine or not is up to individuals to decide for themselves.
I am merely stating they intentionally announced it with a long lead time on purpose. If you consider listing a product as available for order but "sold out" to be generating hype, then this is generating hype.
@spin cycle Gotcha. You do have a point that, intentional or not, this is causing even more attention for Amazon, even though it effectively doesn't mean much.
oh noes!
If only they made cell phones with bigger screens on them, like at least 4 inches.. and there was an app I could download that would give me at least SOME of the functionality of a Kindle!!
I read an e-book on my Droid X for the first time yesterday. It wasn't bad, but I wouldn't want to read for an extended period of time.
@LiveFromThe215
You might be being sarcastic but I'll assume you aren't.
The kindle app is now available for Android, Dell Streak has a 5" screen.
Doesn't change the fact that any lcd is going to hurt your eyes trying to read in bright sunlight.
@LiveFromThe215
The kindle app or ibook app work fine on the iPhone, but you miss the point of the ereader having the same look as paper when you look at it. Less eye strain is kinda the point here.
@LiveFromThe215
I read the lord of the rings trilogy on my ipod touch using stanza, which was bought by amazon. by return of the king I really wanted a kindle. now I'm trying to decide 3g or wifi version to order
@wack
I'd go with the Wi-Fi unless you really always want to download books when you're out. I have a 3G (only) Kindle II and while it's nice always having it, I'm always at a place that has Wi-Fi anyways, so I wouldn't have to worry about a connection if I wanted new stuff.
I pre-ordered the WiFi Kindle. Doesn't that mean I'm "in line," too?
The 3G Kindle is almost at the price point to make me seriously consider getting one. Just another $50 . . .
@Faceless Troll
Especially now that the browser is "Back" (iirc they removed it from Kindle 2 GSM)
I loved the browser on my Kindle 1. Sure it's laggy, but it did a great job of reading some web publications and gmail.
Same on Amazon UK aswell - thought I'd better say that as Engadget seems to forget that the Kindle is available in the UK (and not by importing from the US).
Never mind, I would prefer to wait for the one with the Mirasol display anyway.
I really want one, but I'm still concerned about the immaturity of the subscription platform. Sort out the adverts for magazines and newspapers - then I will feel better about spending £100+ on a device to read a magazine that cost me more than the paper version..
@darkshine
I feel the same. I would quite like one, but at the minute I don't think a lot of the books I'd want are on eBook format.
Are these feasible for people who don't "buy" a lot of books? My wife reads a TON of books and wants a reader, but she gets a lot of stuff from the local library. We maybe buy 1 book for every 3 or 4 that she gets from the library. She also swaps books with people from work or my sister. You're pretty much S.O.L. for that, aren't you?
@perpetual98
That's a decision you make. Is it worth it to you? Remember it's not just the raw cost of the book; you're also paying for the convenience of having so many books in such a portable and convenient form factor.
@perpetual98 Depends what she reads. There are a lot of free books (e.g. feedbooks.com) - perfect for stuff that's out of copywright. There are also libraries that 'lend' eBooks, but I don't see that working so well (and I don't think they work on the Kindle anyway)..
@perpetual98
You should take a look at the Sony Readers perhaps - they support Adobe Digital Editions ePub which a lot of libraries are now using. Starting with the Sony Reader daily edition and then so forth, Sony has been pushing this ability to use your local library card to get you access to the libraries' digital copies of ePub books. You can typically loan (a timed license) a book for 2-3 weeks at a time.
The only thing that's a bit lame is that libraries are limited to a number of licenses of a book - which means that like a real library, you have to wait in line / reserve / renew your copy.
@perpetual98 Check your libraries website and they may allow ebook rentals. Most libraries use a system called Overdrive, but i believe only the Nook and a Sony ereader support overdrive.
Thanks for the info guys/gals. I know that our library system in the area is pretty good with intra-library lending, so I guess I will have her check the site or the next time she's there. My personal feeling is that if we're buying a book, I'd rather have it to put on our shelf. When I finished our basement, I put a lot of built-in bookcases down there for the purpose of shelving books. Perhaps that was just old-school thinking and I could have saved time and money by just putting a Kindle dock on the wall. :)
Really glad I ordered mine almost a week ago.
I could go to Barnes and Noble to play with a Nook.. but, where does one go to test drive the Kindle? Seriously!!
How come people buy stuff like this without interacting with it first?
@TheMrE 7-day 'cooling off' period - http://www.oft.gov.uk/about-the-oft/legal-powers/legal/distance-selling-regulations/
@TheMrE I believe a lot of Targets are now selling the Kindle and people can test them out there.