Friday, November 29, 2013

Amazon's storewide Black Friday Weekend and CyberMonday Week deals. Kindle 9.7" DX e-Ink eReader at $169. Office Suite Pro for Kindle Fire / Android on sale ($0.99 this minute). Adobe's unusual Black Friday deal on Photoshop CC and Lightroom 5. Excellent guide to Lightroom 5 for 35% off. Photography guide books at up to 50% off. Amazon's "sneak preview" of home and personal deals for CyberMonday Week. - Update2



Black Friday Deals
 While Amazon has been having the usual early Black Friday activity, it all started in earnest after midnight last night, everywhere.
  The links for Amazon: Amazon's Black Friday deals US, (UK also, as well as Canada)

There'll be new deals every 10 minutes, according to the business wires.

For Kindle Fire tablet users, Office Suite Professional, is $0.99 at the moment -- it's normally $14.99 at the Amazon Appstore,
  It'll be available at varying prices during the week, their press material says.

  The Kindle Fire HDX 8.9" has a limited subset of this productivity on the tablet.

A lower price agaih on the large, 9.7" Kindle DX e-Ink eReader again
We have a very quiet new reduction this week (originally said, 4 days ago, to be "for a limited time" but that statement is missing now -- yet, it shows both the $239 price (which prevailed the last 6 months until the recent change to $199) and the $169 which was said to be a limited-time offer.  That's probably so, judging by the two prices under the Kindle eReader family header for that model currently.

  The Kindle DX Graphite e-Ink eReader had been $239 for awhile after the price was lowered from $299 for the resuscitated e-Ink giant, and for a few days it was $189 before going back to $239 on Oct 15.  $199 seemed to be the new price on Nov 13 rather than a temporary number but they've lowered it this week while keeping the $239 tag on it as well.

This 9.7" e-Ink Kindle eReader, with more text on a 'page' and larger fonts that look as if they are etched onto the screen, had made a sudden re-appearance on Amazon's e-Ink family header in May 2013, at $299 (formerly $379 when new).

  You can see detailed information on what this device is like in the blog article from May 31 about the larger e-Ink eReader many have hoped would remain available.

I see no other Kindle items mentioned though, though I imagine they will have an older model on sale briefly during one of their "Goldbox" or "Lightning" deals that will be changing very quickly this week.


Adobe's Creative Cloud program for Photoshop and Lightroom
Before I list items for which Amazon plans to offer some heavy discounts during "Black Friday Week" (not detailed on their page this way but itemized on a press release), I want to draw attention to three Sales items (two of the three are not Amazon-related) for the Photography buffs in your fanily or circle, as the Adobe deal is an unusual deal for those who have never bought Photoshop before because it was unaffordable, and the other is a guide to Adobe's Lightroom 5. /
  The guide is an excellent (and beautiful) tutorial to the ultra flexible and powerful Lightroom 5 software that Adobe developed for customers working with just photographic images (no Illustrator, Dreammaker or designer features) and which is therefore less pricey due to its more concentrated focus.

First, Adobe has had a deal (for a little over a week now) which ends at midnight on Monday Dec. 2.  Their more than controversial Creative Cloud program had changed Adobe's distribution method from Package Sales to Subscription Plans, with subscription pricing that was rightly met with tremendous hostility from the photography-inclined, as it was too costly and, as with car rentals, you don't keep the car if you stop leasing it.

  The current and final boxed edition of Photoshop is Version 6.  They will support updates for new cameras and bug fixes but won't be adding new features.  Instead they now offer 'CC' (Creative Cloud) versions of Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Illustratork and 36 or so other Adobe programs.  In an attempt o mollify the photographer mobs, in September they made a special-priced subscription of $19.95/month for Photoshop CC and Lightroom 5 users who had previously purchased Photoshop 3 or later versions.  But that was still too high for software you don't keep if you stop your subscription and also for those who have avoided Photoshop due to its overly high pricing (for example, the now older Photoshop 6 Box package is $700).

As of last week and until Monday night at 11:59pm, ANYone (whether or not you previously purchased an expensive Photoshp package) will be able to join the "Creative Cloud" program and have unlimited access to full Photoshop and updates as well as to Lightroom 5 -- for $9.99 per month for the first full year  Remember that the last Photoshop box package is still $700 to purchase and its software updates have cost $130 to $150 or so each time.

To learn more about this or to take Adobe up on this very unusual limited offer, here's the article that alerted me to the $10/mo offer and and here's the Adobe's info and sign-up page with a link to their FAQ on this.  They've told two workshop leaders (Scott Kelby and Michael Frye) that they don't plan to raise the pricing the 2nd year but one can't rely on that.
  Update There are some assurances given on Adobe's site in its blogs with a Question & Answer area:
"By Julieanne Kost - 12:14 PM on November 21, 2013
The difference is that this is a limited time offer for those who do not have a copy of Photoshop CS3 or newer.
For both offers, Photoshop. $9.99 is *the* price – not a first year promo – so the price won’t go up to $19.99 after a year.  All the memberships carry that disclaimer because we can’t say the price won’t ever go up in the future to account for things like inflation.  We also can’t say the price won’t go down in the future either.  For example, Lightroom’s price was cut in half between Lightroom 3 and 4 – and Photoshop’s price has gone both up and down over its 23 year history."

That Adobe thread is interesting reading and answers a lot of questions people have had on their special temporary deal, including whether people can switch their previous subscription plans to the lower one or not (the answer is yes).

http://blogs.adobe.com/jkost/2013/11/photoshop-photography-program.html
  It looks as if previous owners of Creative Suite 3 or above have until December 31 to take the deal, while others have a deadline of December 2.
  Kelby, the prolific photography book author and Photoshop adherent, points out, impatiently, misinformation about the deal


  Here's info on the Black Friday special for Michael Frye's excellent Step by Step guide to Lightroom 5 in PDF format.  He's a wonderful photographer who writes some of the best, easy to follow tutorials around.  Normally his guide to Lightroom 5 is $14.95 but it's 9.95 until Monday night, Dec. 2.

  Anazon also has a sale on photography and camera guides.  Most of the discounts are on printed versions, at up to 50% off.


Amazon's deals will come every 10 minutes during Cybermonday week
  These start Sunday night st midnight, running for 7 days and including "50% off select top toys and 50% off a 46-inch Samsung LED HDTV."  This immediately follows Black Friday (links at the top), and the Black Friday pages have CyberMonday links on them, as the idea is to of course Sell, and all the stores are aggressively doing that.  Watching this on TV, I wouldn't know we are in the middle of a slow economy.

Here's the sneak preview listing of the "CyberMonday" items going on sale after Midnight Sunday, from their press releases.
Electronics
Samsung 46-Inch 1080p 60Hz LED HDTV, $477.99
Samsung 46-Inch 1080p 240Hz 3D Ultra Slim Smart LED HDTV, $1,297.99
40% off a Panasonic 47-Inch and 55-inch 1080p 240Hz Smart 3D LED HDTV (Includes 4 Pairs of 3D polarized glasses with built-in camera)
Touchscreen laptop, $199.00
Roku HD streaming media player, $39.99
Canon PowerShot point-and-shoot, save 46% off
Canon EOS Rebel T3 DSLR (18-55 kit) for $399
Nikon COOLPIX P520 with bag and memory card for under $300
Nikon D3200 Digital SLR Camera and 2 lens kit, under $500
Save up to $150 on select Sony Handycam camcorders
10% off select Beats and Bose headphones
57% off a Philips speaker dock for iPhone5
40% off a TomTom 6-inch GPS navigator with lifetime traffic & maps
50% off a Sony portable Bluetooth wireless speaker system
$100 Amazon.com gift card plus free SONOS BRIDGE with the purchase of a SONOS PLAYBAR
Toys

Up to 50% off select top toys
50% off Barbie 3-Story Dream Townhouse
40% off Lincoln Logs Redwood Junction - Amazon Exclusive
Razor Spark 2.0 Kick Scooter, $44.99

Pets
20% off Ruffwear dog apparel and accessories
Aquarius Glofish 180 3-1/2-gallon aquarium kit, $26.35

Home and Tools
Dyson multi floor compact canister vacuum cleaner, $179
More than 65% off select DEWALT tools
Get a $40 Amazon.com gift card with purchase of a Nest Learning Thermostat - 2nd Generation
GreenWorks 40V 16-inch DigiPro brushless chainsaw, $239.20
Hoover FloorMate SpinScrub wet/dry vacuum, $89.99
Custom Leathercraft Tool Backpack, $49.99
Fiskars Ultra Blade Power Gear Bypass Lopper for pruning- 25-Inch, $24.96
Rayovac LED flashlight, $19.99
Grill Daddy Pro grill brush, $15.98

Books, Movies and Music
Up to 50% off popular books including Guinness Book of World Records 2014
Save up to 58% on over 7,000 movies & TV shows on DVD and Blu-ray including Homeland: Season 2, Rise of the Guardians, and Indiana Jones: The Complete Adventures
Save on popular CDs including Eric Church “Chief” $5.49, Imagine Dragons “Night Visions” $5.49 and Celine Dion “Loved Me Back to Life” $7.49
Over 60 superhero movies and TV shows including Superman, Smallville and more available at Amazon Instant Video, up to 60% off

Kitchen
Cuisinart 10-Piece premium grilling set, $40.95
More than 50% off select Circulon, Anolon and Cuisinart copper cookware sets
Marcato pasta machine, $59.99
Peugeot Elis U'Select electric 8-inch salt mill - Stainless Steel, $55.96
Save 15% with purchase of $50 or more on Chef’n kitchen items
Save 20% with purchase of $100 or more on Paderno World Cuisine kitchen items

Sports and Outdoors
Up to 70% off New Balance clothing
Up to 70% off ASICS running clothing
Up to 45% off Adidas golf apparel
50% off TaylorMade Burner Plus Irons
Up to 35% off top golf GPS units by GolfBuddy

Fashion
30% off $100 shoes for the family – boots, slippers and more
Up to 65% off men’s and women’s cashmere
Up to 70% off jewelry
Rubber and silicone watches, starting at $59.99

Baby
30% off Graco baby swings
20% off Philips AVENT gift set

Automotive
Up to 70% off select car floor mats
Up to 40% off select car care products
Stanley 500-amp jump starter with built-in air compressor, $60

All prices available at select times and while supplies last.



For reference, here is the Current Global Listing of available Kindle devices.


Check often: Temporarily-free recently published Kindle books
  Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources.  Top 100 free bestsellers.  Liked-books under $1
UK-Only: recently published free books, bestsellers, or £5 Max ones
    Also, UK customers should see the UK store's Top 100 free bestsellers.

  *Click* to Return to the HOME PAGE.  Or click on the web browser's BACK button
Below are ways to Share this post if you'd like others to see it.
-- The Send to Kindle button works well only on Firefox currently.

Send to Kindle


(Older posts have older Kindle model info. For latest models, see CURRENT KINDLES page. )
If interested, you can also follow my add'l blog-related news at Facebook and Twitter
Questions & feedback are welcome in the Comment areas (tho' spam is deleted). Thanks!

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

New Kindle Paperwhite-2 Tips: Update v5.4.2 brings long-awaited CLOUD Collections, GoodReads integration (US), Personalized Freetime profiles for parental control


NEW KINDLE PAPERWHITE 2 Software Update v5.4.2 with long-awaited feature enhancements

Kindle Paperwhite Software Upgrade to v5.4.2

  REMINDER: Even when here is no startling news, I respond to questions in the Comments areas of the blog entries -- and the Q&A entries are always shown in summary form and linked to, latest first, on the blog's right-hand column (used for information that's ongoing or for reference materials on topics of interest to many who visit the blog.  So check "Latest Comments" (in the info/reference column on the the right of the page whenever you're curious what people are asking and the responses made.

On to the latest Paperwhite 2 (the newest Paperwhite model) update 5.4.2 eff. Nov. 19, 2013.

  Devices involved: See Paperwhite 2 (US),   UK Paperwhite 2: here; Global Paperwhite: here.

Tne new, free software update available for Kindle Paperwhite 2 can be found [here] [U.S.]

    [Here's the UK-only software update page]

The software page explains how to check the software version currently on your Paperwhite 2.  I'm usually one of the last to receive software updates, so sometimes I do follow the instructions to do a manual download and install to my Kindle if the change is important to me.

This update automatically downloads and installs on the applicable Kindle Paperwhite 2 eventually; however, as mentioned, you can also manually download the software and transfer the update to your device via USB cable.

Here's what they describe for update v5.4.2 [Emphases mine]
* Kindle FreeTime
FreeTime lets you create personalized profiles for kids, and give them access to titles from your collection of books.  Kids can keep track of their personal reading progress and earn achievement badges. To learn more, go to Kindle FreeTime (US) or for UK: here).

* Goodreads on Kindle
    [For customers in U.S., Canada, Australia, and
     Int'l customers registered to an Amazon.com acct]
Connect with the world's largest community for readers from your Kindle Paperwhite. See what your friends are reading, share notes, and rate the books you read. To learn more, go to Find and Share Books with Goodreads on Kindle.

* Cloud Collections
Use Cloud Collections to organize titles in custom categories and store your collections in the Cloud. To learn more, go to Organize Your Content with Cloud Collections (US) or for UK: here.

As ever, note that keeping your Kindle always connected to a Wi-Fi network can drain your battery faster.  So, once you've got the update "over the air" or manually, put the Paperwhite back to "Airplane Mode ON" via the 'Settings' option on the Menu -- the option lets you toggle Wireless Off with the "Airplane On" choice.

  Amazon has not put the "Wireless Off" and "On" back on the front menu as they did earlier this year for the Kindle Touch, removing the confusing-to-many 'airplane mode' icon, which many of us wish they would do, as it is very inconvenient to have it on a secondary menu and many don't even know about the wireless-off feature, causing more battery drain and confusion over that.  Amazon: please do this someday; the Kindle Touch team has the right problem-avoiding idea.

  I realize Amazon prefers Wireless 'On' due to delivery of Special Offers but the battery-drain problem can occur when circumstances involve subscriptions that are downloaded regularly or due to a weaker connection that results from the distance from the router (or even due to a weaker router), in which case the device keeps trying to connect when a download is due (and that can be for the special offers that Amazon regularly needs to send for those who choose to opt for the less-expensive special-offers feature, or for chosen subscription deliveries.)

Only if you'd rather not wait -- DOWNLOADING and transferring the Update via USB
US:  Go to the Kindle Paperwhite Software Update v5.4.2 download section to get the instructions for the download and transfer to your Kindle via USB:
UK:  Go to the update and download area for the UK-only page

That's it for the latest software update from Amazon.




Current Kindle Models for reference, plus free-ebook search links.
US:
New Kindle Fire HD 7" 2nd Gen - $139/169
Kindle Fire HDX 7" 16-64GB - $229/269/309
Kindle Fire HDX 8.9" 16-64GB - $379/429/479
- with 4G added: $479/529/579
Kindle Fire HD 8.9" 16GB - 1st Gen $229
- 32GB w/ no special-offers: $314
Kindle NoTouch ("Kindle") - $69/$89
Kindle Touch WiFi - $99
Kindle Paperwhite 2, WiFi - $119/$139
Kindle Paperwhite 2, WiFi+3G - $189
Kindle Keybd 3G - $139/$159, Free web
Kindle DX - $379 $199 (*New* price)
UK:
Kindle Basic, NoTouch - £69
Kindle Paperwhite 2, WiFi
£109
Kindle Paperwhite2 3G, UK
£169
Kindle Fire Basic HD 8/16GB, UK
 from £119
Kindle Fire HDX 7" 16-64GB, UK
from £199. 4G/3G
Kindle Fire HDX 8.9" 16-64GB, UK - from £329. 4G/3G

CANADA - Kindlestore, CDN-$
Kindle Basic, NoTouch - $79
Kindle Paperwhite 2 - $139
Kindle Paperwhite 2, 3G - $209
KFire HD Yr 2012 7" $214,  8.9" $244.
Yr 2013 KFires: HD Gen2, HDX line

*OTHER Int'l pages*
Kindle NoTouch Basic - $89
Paperwhite 2 WiFi $139, 3G/Wifi $209
KFire HD Yr 2012: 7" $214,  8.9" $244
Yr 2013: HD Gen2 + HDX line

Australia Kindlestore
France Boutique Kindle
Deutschland - Kindle Store
Italia - Kindle Store
Spain - Tienda Kindle
Brazil - Amazon Brazil
China - Amazon China [?]
Japan - Amazon Japan

  For daily free ebooks, check the following links:
Temporarily-free books - Non-classics
USA: by:
   Publication Date  
   Bestselling   High-ratings

UK: PubDate   Popular

The Kindle Daily Deal

What is 3G? and "WiFi"?       Battery Care

Highly-rated under $1
,  Newest: $1-$2, $2-$3
Most Popular Free K-Books
U.S. & Int'l (NOT UK):
   Top 100 free
UK-Only:
   Top 100 free

Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources.

USEFUL for your Kindle Keyboard (U.S. only, currently):
  99c Notepad 1.1,   99c Calculator,
  99c Calendar,   99c Converter

  *Click* to Return to the HOME PAGE.  Or click on the web browser's BACK button


Below are ways to Share this post if you'd like others to see it.
-- The Send to Kindle button works well only on Firefox currently.

Send to Kindle


(Older posts have older Kindle model info. For latest models, see CURRENT KINDLES page. )
If interested, you can also follow my add'l blog-related news at Facebook and Twitter
Questions & feedback are welcome in the Comment areas (tho' spam is deleted). Thanks!

Monday, November 18, 2013

Kindle Fire HDX and HD2 Tips: Software updates adding some promised features for the new tablets are here - v11.3.1, v13.3.1, and v14.3.1. Details added. Also, a Miracast adapter recommended by Amazon. And new customization of personalized Kindle covers announced.



SOFTWARE UPDATES for promised additional features for the KINDLE FIRE HDX's and the new 7" HD 2nd Gen

Amazon has made a software update available as of today for the new HDX line and for the new Kindle Fire Basic 7", which is called "HD 2nd Gen" (which replaces last year's basic Kindle Fire that had no HD, no camera, and no HDMI-out and which sold, retail, for $159).

Most of the new features added in this update group are described below, and they also include the usual general improvements as well as the mentioned feature enhancements.

  One neat feature not mentioned in the software-download pages, but noted in the press release, is the addition of Voice Dictation.
  "Voice dictation converts your speech to text -- available in all languages when online; offline support available in US English"

  In addition to the Voice Dictation feature, some other features mentioned in Amazon's press release but not detailed on the update pages include the following:

  "New accessibility enhancements that enable blind and visually impaired customers to save a separate accessibility profile for children in Kindle FreeTime, scroll lists automatically when swipe navigating, hear enhanced sound feedback and screen orientation changes announced, and have more control when editing text and navigating web content."

  "Dozens more new features, performance and battery life improvements, and bug fixes."

These updates will be delivered wirelessly as usual in a distribution over a few weeks -- but if you'd rather get them now, you can do a manual update by downloading the software and updating your device via USB cable.  Here are direct links to the software-update pages for the 3 tablets involved (emphases are mine):

  Update Page for Kindle Fire HD 7" 2nd Gen
  Update Page for Kindle Fire HDX 7"
  Update Page for Kindle Fire HDX 8.9"

The main added features described on the update pages (shown below) are the same for all three tablet models except that the sentence under the "Enterprise" category on the HDX 7" update page inadvertently omits "Protect secure data on your Kindle Fire with device encryption tools" although the feature IS included in the described features for the lower cost HD 7" 2nd Gen tablet.  So, that would just be an oversight.
* Find and share books with Goodreads
Goodreads on Kindle lets you connect with the Goodreads community to follow friends and see what they are reading, and share and rate books on your Kindle Fire.

* Organize your content with Cloud Collections [Long requested]
Organize your content library into collections like "Favorite Books" and "Sports Apps" that are synchronized with compatible Kindle devices and reading apps.

* Watch movies and TV shows on another device with Second Screen
Fling movies and TV shows from your Kindle Fire to your 2013 Samsung Smart TV or PlayStation 3 using Second Screen.

* Learn more about books with Smart Lookup
With the Smart Lookup feature, you can quickly look up words in the dictionary or Wikipedia or translate text in a book.

* Print from your Kindle Fire [Built-in support instead of dependence on an external app]
Print Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents, photos, e-mails, calendar events, and contact information from your Kindle Fire to a printer that supports mobile printing.

* Free up storage space with 1-Tap Archive
With 1-Tap Archive, your Kindle Fire groups all content that has not been used recently so you can move it to the Cloud with just one tap.

* Enhanced enterprise features [See Note above]
Protect secure data on your Kindle Fire with device encryption tools, manage security certificates, and connect to your company’s Wi-Fi network—whether you’re at home or at work -- with remote VPN capabilities.

* Set alarms and view additional time zones with the Clock app
Use the all-new Clock app to check the date and time, set an alarm clock, and more.

The press release adds a larger explanation of Second Screen
"Fling TV shows and movies from your tablet to your big-screen TV.   Second Screen turns your TV into the primary screen and frees up your Fire HDX to provide playback controls, a customized display for X-Ray, or simply a place to email, browse the web, and more while you watch a movie.  Second Screen is available for PlayStation 3 and Samsung TVs, and will be available starting later this year for PlayStation 4."

  This is in contrast to Miracast, which -- like the cabled HDMI-out, in last year's HD models, will "only" MIRROR what is on your tablet (whether a movie or web-browsing) HDTV without using cables from your tablet to the TV.

  Here's a recommended Miracast adapter (seen mentioned positively in the Amazon Kindle Forums based on a recently added recommendation by Amazon as "Certified" at its tablet Miracast help page) -- The Netgear Push2TV PTV3000 --
-- BUT NOTE that Amazon says it requires a Firmware-update for the adapter before using it.
 The update likely fixes a main reason for some '1' ratings in earlier customer reviews on the product page).  The adapter is $60 but Amazon has its 30-day refund policy on this Prime shipping product shipped and sold by Amazon.

  Here are two recent comments given on the Amazon Kindle Community forums when I asked if anyone had found a Miracast adapter without notable lag time:
' Steve Z. says:
I have read the reviews of the miracast adapters sold on Amazon as well. They all seem to have a lag problem. Then I read the reports by several here in the forums that they had had good luck with the mirroring technology with their HDX's. I also did a search in Amazon help and see that Amazon recommends the Netgear Push2TV adapter. This happened to be the same one others in these forums have suggested. I purchased one figuring I could return it if it didn't work. It arrived last Monday and the first thing I did was update the firmware. ( the newest firmware is dated in November.) I hooked it up to my TV and it immediately worked. Turning on mirroring in the HDX is very simple. I detected no lag or stuttering. It mirrored well with pictures, video (youtube), and simple games. (Have not tried a graphics intensive game yet.) Last night we watched an entire Amazon Prime movie with no hiccups or errors. Works for me.


Jules Nichols says:
I agree with Steve Z, I got my Netgear Push2TV adapter on Monday, I didn't update the firmware, but went straight to try it out. Worked fantastic. No lag or stuttering. I'm using it with the 7"HDX. '

Note that the recommendation (and certification) is by Amazon and not by me, as I haven't bought the product yet.

For MORE DETAILS on the new feature enhancements on this update, see the earlier HDX/HD2 articles with far more thorough descriptions of what they do:

  1. Overview of New Features
  2. Things to Know about the new features

  Those articles have clarifications for some points that have puzzled some.

ADDED TIP on a tablet cover + a new "Personalization" feature
The first tip is for those who find the Origami cases more pricey than wanted.

  1. The Poetic Slimline cover is notable for having 65 customer reviews currently, with 63 of them 5-star and the other two, 4-star, while being inexpensive ($9.95 currently for the 8.9" model) -- and while this page highlights the 8.9" HDX model, the bordered TEXTBOX under Availability at the top of that product page gives links for these covers for the 7" HDX and HD 2nd Gen models as well.  They all carry the same ID number for links.  Each headlines a 3-year manufacturer warranty from Poetic.

  A new Customization or Personalization feature for Kindle covers was announced, and you can read about that on the "Create your own Kindle accessories" page but from what I see it has to be ordered at the same time you order the case.  You can upload your own photo or image design or choose from several pre-designed ones offered by Amazon.  This is all I know for now, though.

  Probably enough info, overall, for one day?  Am still working on a report on the 8.9" HDX 64GB I bought and have been putting through the mill (and it generally has exceeded my expectations).




Current Kindle Models for reference, plus free-ebook search links.
US:
New Kindle Fire HD 7" 2nd Gen - $139/169
Kindle Fire HDX 7" 16-64GB - $229/269/309
Kindle Fire HDX 8.9" 16-64GB - $379/429/479
- with 4G added: $479/529/579
Kindle Fire HD 8.9" 16GB - 1st Gen $229
- 32GB w/ no special-offers: $314
Kindle NoTouch ("Kindle") - $69/$89
Kindle Touch WiFi - $99
Kindle Paperwhite 2, WiFi - $119/$139
Kindle Paperwhite 2, WiFi+3G - $189
Kindle Keybd 3G - $139/$159, Free web
Kindle DX - $379 $199 (*New* price)
UK:
Kindle Basic, NoTouch - £69
Kindle Paperwhite 2, WiFi
£109
Kindle Paperwhite2 3G, UK
£169
Kindle Fire Basic HD 8/16GB, UK
 from £119
Kindle Fire HDX 7" 16-64GB, UK
from £199. 4G/3G
Kindle Fire HDX 8.9" 16-64GB, UK - from £329. 4G/3G

CANADA - Kindlestore, CDN-$
Kindle Basic, NoTouch - $79
Kindle Paperwhite 2 - $139
Kindle Paperwhite 2, 3G - $209
KFire HD Yr 2012 7" $214,  8.9" $244.
Yr 2013 KFires: HD Gen2, HDX line

*OTHER Int'l pages*
Kindle NoTouch Basic - $89
Paperwhite 2 WiFi $139, 3G/Wifi $209
KFire HD Yr 2012: 7" $214,  8.9" $244
Yr 2013: HD Gen2 + HDX line

Australia Kindlestore
France Boutique Kindle
Deutschland - Kindle Store
Italia - Kindle Store
Spain - Tienda Kindle
Brazil - Amazon Brazil
China - Amazon China [?]
Japan - Amazon Japan

  For daily free ebooks, check the following links:
Temporarily-free books - Non-classics
USA: by:
   Publication Date  
   Bestselling   High-ratings

UK: PubDate   Popular

The Kindle Daily Deal

What is 3G? and "WiFi"?       Battery Care

Highly-rated under $1
,  Newest: $1-$2, $2-$3
Most Popular Free K-Books
U.S. & Int'l (NOT UK):
   Top 100 free
UK-Only:
   Top 100 free

Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources.

USEFUL for your Kindle Keyboard (U.S. only, currently):
  99c Notepad 1.1,   99c Calculator,
  99c Calendar,   99c Converter

  *Click* to Return to the HOME PAGE.  Or click on the web browser's BACK button
Below are ways to Share this post if you'd like others to see it.
-- The Send to Kindle button works well only on Firefox currently.

Send to Kindle


(Older posts have older Kindle model info. For latest models, see CURRENT KINDLES page. )
If interested, you can also follow my add'l blog-related news at Facebook and Twitter
Questions & feedback are welcome in the Comment areas (tho' spam is deleted). Thanks!

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Kindle News: 9.7" e-Ink DX Graphite, w/ free slow 3G web lookups, now $199. Paperwhite 2 with 3G back in stock in 2-3 weeks. Kindlestore launches in Australia, HDX's arrive in the UK. Pricing drops updated. Amazon and USPS beginning Sunday deliveries in two cities.

The 9.7" e-Ink Kindle DX Graphite is now $199.

This one doesn't carry language about a "limited time" offer.  It had been $239 for awhile after the price was lowered from $299 for the resuscitated e-Ink giant, and for a few days it was $189 before going back to $239 on Oct 15.  $199 seems to be the new price rather than a temporary deal.

This 9.7" e-Ink Kindle eReader, with more text on a 'page' and larger fonts that look as if they are etched onto the screen, made a re-appearance on Amazon's e-Ink family header in May 2013, at $299 (formerly $379 when new).

  You can see detailed information on what this device is like in the blog article from May 31 about the larger e-Ink eReader many have hoped would remain available.

  Alert: The current e-Ink family header with the discounted DXG price has an oddity on it, still: The 3G Kindle Paperwhite picture is linking to the previous Paperwhite 3G model at $179 rather than to the current and "New" 3G Paperwhite 2 3G model that is $189.
  If you click on the header link to the previous 3G model, note that the newer one will be back in stock in about 2 weeks.

NOTE: While the newer 6" touch-based e-Ink eReaders with 3G cellular network capability have 3G access to just the Amazon store and (few know this) 24/7 free access to Wikipedia from almost wherever you are as long as a cellular AT&T tower is nearby, the older keyboard (non-Touch) e-Ink eReaders work (with no-added-cost) for slow, 3G web browsing whereever an AT&T smart phone would.

  The 9.7" Kindle's 3G is the connecting mechanism for this device with a keyboard -- there is no WiFi capability on this model.  Amazon still gives, on this device, slow but free 24/7 access to all websites that offer mainly text content with few images.

  An image-heavy site should be avoided because all the images would not load in your lifetime, so you'd use the 'm' or mobile version of a website, which normally sends fewer images and focuses on text.

  Many find this slow 3g-web-lookup useful on trips abroad, where very expensive 'roaming' charges would apply, to check email, text-based news, or to get driving directions from one place to another.

  To check what countries' residents can use the 3G web-browsing feature for the e-Ink Kindle DX eReader, see the web Countries page in connection with e-Ink keyboard models with 3G.

  This larger eReader can be shipped to customers outside the U.S. also.


Amazon launches a Kindlestore in Australia.  Australians wondering whether to make the switch (from the U.S. store) should read these articles:

  * BRW report on where Kindle HD and HDX's will be sold and Australian Kindle book pricing vs U.S. prices.
  * Lifehacker's Amazon Australian Kindle Store: Everything You Need To Know
  * Lifehacker's How Do Amazon's Australian Kindle Book Prices Compare?.


Amazon's new Kindle Fire HD/HDX line in the UK
See parcel2go.com's article.  I've verified the product pages and updated the Full global Kindle list for these changes and for various pricing drops.


Amazon partners with the U.S. Post Office for Sunday delivery in two cities
Starting this weekend with the metropolitan areas of Los Angeles and New York City, Amazon will offer Sunday delivery via the U.S. Postal Service and the company plans to expand the service in 2014, with Dallas, Houston, New Orleans, and Phoenix mentioned so far.

  There'll be no extra charge for Sunday delivery, which will be for both Prime shipping members (free 2-day delivery of most Amazon-sold products) and non-Prime members, who can get free 5-8 day delivery on orders of at least $35 (up'd from $25 recently).

  An interesting factoid from the USA Today article: "...the USPS is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation – 152 million homes, businesses and post office boxes.


I received my Kindle HDX 8.9" tablet with 64 GB storage and have been making notes while enjoying it even more than I'd expected and am doing a follow-up report on the HDX line and its reception and features that have been given a lot of press recently.

 It should be done by Thursday night, but I've been experimenting with a lot of the features and changes that show Amazon was listening to its customer base.




Current Kindle Models for reference, plus free-ebook search links.
US:
New Kindle Fire HD 7" 2nd Gen - $139/169
Kindle Fire HDX 7" 16-64GB - $229/269/309
Kindle Fire HDX 8.9" 16-64GB - $379/429/479
- with 4G added: $479/529/579
Kindle Fire HD 8.9" 16GB - 1st Gen $229
- 32GB w/ no special-offers: $314
Kindle NoTouch ("Kindle") - $69/$89
Kindle Touch WiFi - $99
Kindle Paperwhite 2, WiFi - $119/$139
Kindle Paperwhite 2, WiFi+3G - $189
Kindle Keybd 3G - $139/$159, Free web
Kindle DX - $379 $199 (*New* price)
UK:
Kindle Basic, NoTouch - £69
Kindle Paperwhite 2, WiFi
£109
Kindle Paperwhite2 3G, UK
£169
Kindle Fire Basic HD 8/16GB, UK
 from £119
Kindle Fire HDX 7" 16-64GB, UK
from £199. 4G/3G
Kindle Fire HDX 8.9" 16-64GB, UK - from £329. 4G/3G

CANADA - Kindlestore, CDN-$
Kindle Basic, NoTouch - $79
Kindle Paperwhite 2 - $139
Kindle Paperwhite 2, 3G - $209
KFire HD Yr 2012 7" $214,  8.9" $244.
Yr 2013 KFires: HD Gen2, HDX line

*OTHER Int'l pages*
Kindle NoTouch Basic - $89
Paperwhite WiFi $139, 3G/Wifi $209
KFire HD Yr 2012: 7" $214,  8.9" $244
Yr 2013: HD Gen2 + HDX line

Australia Kindlestore
France Boutique Kindle
Deutschland - Kindle Store
Italia - Kindle Store
Spain - Tienda Kindle
Brazil - Amazon Brazil
China - Amazon China [?]
Japan - Amazon Japan

  For daily free ebooks, check the following links:
Temporarily-free books - Non-classics
USA: by:
   Publication Date  
   Bestselling   High-ratings

UK: PubDate   Popular

The Kindle Daily Deal

What is 3G? and "WiFi"?       Battery Care

Highly-rated under $1
,  Newest: $1-$2, $2-$3
Most Popular Free K-Books
U.S. & Int'l (NOT UK):
   Top 100 free
UK-Only:
   Top 100 free

Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources.

USEFUL for your Kindle Keyboard (U.S. only, currently):
  99c Notepad 1.1,   99c Calculator,
  99c Calendar,   99c Converter

  *Click* to Return to the HOME PAGE.  Or click on the web browser's BACK button


Below are ways to Share this post if you'd like others to see it.
-- The Send to Kindle button works well only on Firefox currently.

Send to Kindle


(Older posts have older Kindle model info. For latest models, see CURRENT KINDLES page. )
If interested, you can also follow my add'l blog-related news at Facebook and Twitter
Questions & feedback are welcome in the Comment areas (tho' spam is deleted). Thanks!

Saturday, November 9, 2013

Kindle Tips: Another Kindle Paperwhite 1 software update, v5.3.9


KINDLE PAPERWHITE 1 Software Update v5.3.9

Kindle Paperwhite Software Upgrade to v5.3.9

Reader Peraino sent another tip (yesterday) that yet another software upgrade for Kindle Paperwhite 1 is available, though not with the new features of the Paperwhite 2 yet -- that would normally take months to happen.

I've still not been around lately, but when I am, I'm now working on setting up my new, main computer, which is a Microsoft Surface Pro 2, which is a spectacularly capable "TabTop" -- essentially a very fast, smooth, can-do-anything 2-lb laptop with a separate 1/2 lb Type keyboard cover (which, when the keyboard cover is detached, also functions as a super fast, though relatively heavy, tablet -- but it's most notable for being able to run, easily, full Windows programs of the most graphically-complex types like Adobe Photoshop's latest and Lightroom 4 or 5 and the full Office Suite, if you get a model with sufficient storage space and 8 GB of RAM.  I'm really loving it.

  So, I'm on my way back to Kindle productivity after dealing with that and finishing a couple of other projects that kept me mostly away from the blog.

  NOTE: Even when not actively blogging (when there is no startling news), I respond to questions in the Comments areas of the blog entries -- and the Q&A entries are always shown in summary form and linked to, latest first, on the blog's right-hand column (which is used for information that's ongoing or for reference materials on topics of special interest to many who visit the blog.  So check "Latest Comments" (in the info/reference column on the the right of the page, whenever you're curious what people are asking and the responses made, even when I'm not actively blogging.

On to the latest Paperwhite 1 (previous Paperwhite model) update v3.5.9 eff. Nov. 8, 2013.

  Devices involved: See Paperwhite (US);   (UK Paperwhite: here; Global Paperwhite: here.)

Tne new, free software update available for Kindle Paperwhite 1 can be found [here] [U.S.]

    [Here's the UK-only software update page]

  The software page explains how to check the software version currently on your Paperwhite 1.  Mine still has v5.3.8.1 on it rather than v5.3.9 -- I'm usually one of the last to receive software updates, so sometimes I do follow the instructions to do a manual download and install to my Kindle if the change is important to me.

This update automatically downloads and installs on the applicable Kindle Paperwhite 1 eventually; however, as mentioned, you can also manually download the software and transfer the update to your device via USB cable.

Here's what they describe for update v5.3.9 ...
' The software update includes general improvements and the following feature enhancements:

* Hide Reading Progress Option
While reading, tap the bottom left of the screen to switch between four reading progress options, including Location in book, Time left in chapter, Time left in book, and None, which hides your reading progress from the bottom of the screen.  To learn more, go to "View Your Reading Progress" at the Amazon "Reading Basics" help page.

* Improved PDF Performance
General performance and stability improvements for PDF files.

* Improved Homonym Lookup in Chinese and Japanese
When you look up a word that has multiple meanings for the same spelling (homonym), you can view a full list of the available definitions from within the dictionary definition window. '

As ever, note that keeping your Kindle always connected to a Wi-Fi network can drain your battery faster.  So, once you've got the update "over the air," put the Paperwhite back to "Airplane Mode ON" via the 'Settings' option on the Menu -- the option lets you toggle Wireless Off with the "Airplane On" choice.

  Amazon has not put the "Wireless Off" and "On" back on the front menu as they recently did for the Kindle Touch, removing the confusing-to-many 'airplane mode' icon, which many of us wish they would do, as it is very inconvenient to have it on a secondary menu and many don't even know about the wireless-off feature, causing more battery drain and confusion over that.  Amazon: please do this someday; the Kindle Touch team has the right problem-avoiding idea.

  I realize Amazon prefers Wireless 'On' due to delivery of Special Offers but the battery-drain problem can occur when circumstances involve subscriptions that are downloaded regularly or due to a weaker connection that results from the distance from the router (or even due to a weaker router), in which case the device keeps trying to connect when a download is due (and that can be for the special offers that Amazon regularly needs to send for those who choose to opt for the less-expensive special-offers feature, or for chosen subscription deliveries.)

Only if you'd rather not wait -- DOWNLOADING and transferring the Update via USB
US:  Go to the Kindle Paperwhite Software Update v5.3.9 download section to get the instructions for the download and transfer to your Kindle via USB:
UK:  Go to the update and download area for the UK-only page
http://bit.ly/kpw-v538-uk



Current Kindle Models for reference, plus free-ebook search links.
US:
New Kindle Fire HD 7" 2nd Gen - $139/169
Kindle Fire HDX 7" 16-64GB - $229/269/309
Kindle Fire HDX 8.9" 16-64GB - $379/429/479
- with 4G added: $479/529/579
Kindle Fire HD 8.9" 16GB - 1st Gen $229
- 32GB w/ no special-offers: $314
Kindle NoTouch ("Kindle") - $69/$89
Kindle Touch WiFi - $99
Kindle Paperwhite 2, WiFi - $119/$139
Kindle Paperwhite 2, WiFi+3G - $189
Kindle Keybd 3G - $139/$159, Free web
Kindle DX - $379 $239 (New price)
UK:
Kindle Basic, NoTouch - £69
Kindle Touch WiFi, UK - ~£89 Refurb'd
Kindle Paperwhite 2, WiFi
£109
Kindle Paperwhite2 3G, UK
£169
Kindle Fire 2, UK
 £129
Kindle Fire HD 7" 16/32GB, UK
£159/199
CANADA - Kindlestore, CDN-$
Kindle Basic, NoTouch - $79
Kindle Paperwhite 2 - $139
Kindle Paperwhite 2, 3G - $209
KFire HD Yr 2012 7" $214,  8.9" $284.
Yr 2013 KFires: HD Gen2, HDX line

*OTHER Int'l pages*
Kindle NoTouch Basic - $89
Paperwhite WiFi $139, 3G/Wifi $209
KFire HD Yr 2012: 7" $214,  8.9" $284
Yr 2013: HD Gen2 + HDX line


France Boutique Kindle
Deutschland - Kindle Store
Italia - Kindle Store
Spain - Tienda Kindle
Brazil - Amazon Brazil
China - Amazon China [?]
Japan - Amazon Japan


Check often: Temporarily-free recently published Kindle books
  Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources.  Top 100 free bestsellers.  Liked-books under $1
UK-Only: recently published free books, bestsellers, or £5 Max ones
    Also, UK customers should see the UK store's Top 100 free bestsellers.

  *Click* to Return to the HOME PAGE.  Or click on the web browser's BACK button


Below are ways to Share this post if you'd like others to see it.
-- The Send to Kindle button works well only on Firefox currently.

Send to Kindle


(Older posts have older Kindle model info. For latest models, see CURRENT KINDLES page. )
If interested, you can also follow my add'l blog-related news at Facebook and Twitter
Questions & feedback are welcome in the Comment areas (tho' spam is deleted). Thanks!

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