Kindle News: Misleading info re a max monthly free-3G Browsing amount on Kindle Keyboard outside the US for some UPDATE

Headlines re any general Amazon crackdown on Kindle Keyboard 3G web browsing are misleading

UPDATE 7/31/12 8:06 am (Original post 7/26/12 7:14 pm) - Chamekke, the Canadian who made the first known report about receiving notification of the monthly 3G download limit, verified over the weekend that she lives outside the U.S. and was not out of her country (Canada) when she received the alert.

  She was then also unable to use the 3G for downloading of Kindle books or access to Wikipedia for the rest of the month, although from wording on the Amazon site, the limit is on 'browsing.'

  You can see the details at her post at Mobileread Forums if interested in puzzling out when this applies, but her experience seems to confirm the Amazon 3G browsing limit that is shown only for those living outside the U.S. and which 'may' apply (my theory is that it depends on carrier rates in the various countries, with some being relatively low and some involving expensive roaming charges with AT&T partners).

[Original post of 7/26 follows.]

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There are several stories about what would seem to some news writers to be Amazon's new limits on free (and slow) 3G web browsing in general.

This idea was started when a Mobileread Forum member, chamekke, posted on July 23 about receiving a message while she was browsing the web on her Kindle Keyboard 3G, which told her she'd "hit my 50 MB monthly limit of 3G Web access on my Kindle 3G.

  "When I clicked the 'OK' button (which was my only choice, really), I got a second message saying that I'd have 24 hours of grace to continue to use 3G for Web browsing, but that after that I could use 3G only for visiting Amazon.com, Wikipedia, and the Kindle Store.  Otherwise I will be obligated to use Wi-Fi."

  As you can see from the image above, chamekke lives outside the U.S., and roaming charges outside the US with AT&T partners are expensive.  The Kindle Keyboard's free 3G web access is so slow that it's not used that much, for the most part, except for more urgent needs such as quickly checking your email or getting step-by-step directions to another location.  chamekke later added that although she bought her Kindle from the U.S. Amazon Kindle store, she's in Canada.  The Kindle 3G terms are different for those living outside the U.S.

  Per DreamWriter, in the same message thread, a Googling of this situation brought up some reports that as of July 1 the Kindle Keyboard (Kindle 3) 3G web browsing limits had seen a change.  She found the one Amazon paragraph about this, on the "Using Kindle Keyboard if You Live Outside the United States" page (emphasis mine):

' Experimental Web Browser
The Experimental Web Browser is currently only available for some customers outside of the United States and may be limited to 50MB of browsing over 3G per month for those living outside the U.S.  This limit does not apply when customers are browsing over Wi-Fi.'

 So there it is.   And yet, news sites are showing stories along the lines of
  "The party's over" for free 3G.

  The limit is currently only for some who are living outside the U.S.  And 50MB is a LOT when you're using the e-Ink web browser, which could be called a web crawler, but it has come in handy many times for me, for the more urgent lookups (such as step-by-step directions to an address when in a car) and also for checking product reviews and competitive pricing when I'm in a store and trying to decide whether or not to buy something that is suddenly on a big sale.

  So, although the limit is stated only for those living outside the U.S., why is Amazon doing it?  As many had guessed, it's almost surely because some or someone used the free 3G of the Kindle Keyboard model to tether its free 3G to a faster device like a laptop.

  The US-based PC Magazine realized this may affect some living outside the U.S. after exploring the story but still headlined their article, in general terms: "Amazon Limits Kindle 3G Web Use."

  The Register, UK article by Simon Sharwood is written for those who would be more affected by it, although Amazon UK is actually fairly liberal in its handling of the free 3G web browser feature and also posts the countries in which the slow free 3G web browsing will work when UK residents (and US residents) visit outside the UK.

  Unfortunately, The Register starts its report with "The free ride is over...."  It's not of course, it's just a shorter free ride per month.
  At least the Register picks up the Amazon language that says the limit "may" be enforced (outside the U.S.), and maybe more likely where roaming charges are exhorbitant.

  But chosen headlines and opening lines will make it sound more severe than it is.  So far we've heard of just one person who has been affected.  It takes a lot of time to do 50MB on an e-Ink text-based e-reader because if you try to load a graphics-intensive website (as so many of them are these days), it would be beyond most human patience.
  Here's my downloadable mobile-device oriented file of faster-loading website links, which includes good umbrella sites that specialize in categorizing such links.

  So, why the limit?

What caused Amazon to suddenly apply the 50MB limit?  (So far, maybe once)
In February 2012, Brian Benhchoff, posted at Hackaday.com, in the "Tethering a Kindle for free 3G" entry, about a posting by excelangue aka "lickitung" aka Jason (to which Benhchoff links) on how he jail-broke his Kindle and applied a USB network hack to connect his laptop to the Internet through his computer via the 3G from the Kindle.  They both say that Amazon knows who is breaking the terms of use, as the key is tied directly to one's unique Kindle.
  The dueling perspectives of the target audience are interesting to me.  Example:

  "Is it possible if we take the GPS out Amazon won't know who we are?  Or maybe a way to mask our serial number?  I really want to do this but it is not worth bothering if I am just going to get caught."

  It's, in effect, stealing, because it's actually money for charges a cheater is accruing that Amazon would then have to pay the carrier.

  Some of the more long-range thinking commenters:
1. At Lickitung's World (where the hack guide is displayed)
 "(May 28, 2012) S... said:
  whilst I appreciate the intellectual fun in trying to get this to work you are effectively jeopardising the browser access they give us for free.  I really hope that Amazon doesn't end up terminating this service because you have released this information."

2. At Benchoff's Hack A day (which links to the guide and states that Excelangue/Lickitung is "looking into tethering to the Kindle over WiFi so Android and iOS devices can get in on the action," the very first commenter:
  E... says:
  February 27, 2012...
  I really wish this article had never been posted.  Kindle users enjoy free 3G access for our Kindles and I would really hate for Amazon to have a reason to take it away from us.

Then a commenter from Mobileread Forums, which is just a great forum for info and has very responsible moderators, writes, in part:

' R... says
This is a VERY bad idea! All of us kindle developers at mobileread.com are very much AGAINST this sort of information being distributed in public forums such as hackaday.

Amazon must pay the cellphone carriers for 3G traffic. I have seen information that said they paid 12-cents/MB for Sprint 3G used by the Kindle DX and earlier. The newer Kindles like the Kindle 3G mentioned here use AT&T, but it probably has a similar cost.

It is very nice of amazon to provide this EXPERIMENTAL service to us at no additional cost to us. When used on a kindle, it does not generate a lot of traffic because the web browser built into the kindle does not support downloading zip files, and does not do streaming media.

If we tether to an external computer, there is a large amount of extra traffic. Many programs “phone home” to see if they have new versions available. Antivirus programs download updates. Even Windows Update may download many large files when updates are available. In addition, your computer will generate a lot of unrelated traffic for internet protocols other than just web browsing...
...
The really BAD thing about 3G tethering, and we us [sic] kindle developers are so against it, is that this much publicity for this bad practice of stealing 3G bandwidth from amazon (which can cost them a LOT of money) may cause them to remove 3G service for ALL OF US!

I have been a long-time hackaday reader and poster... I am very upset that links are provided here to a web page that encourages people to STEAL 3G service from amazon, to the detriment of us all!

Please remove those links! Thank you. '

And he goes on to explain many other aspects of what goes on with all this, with Amazon and the user, and to ask "Please do not make it [the 'free 3G that 'works in a moving vehicle (unlike wifi)'] ... go away with your selfishness and thievery."

I find it a fascinating 50-50 conversation in that R. gets a lot of support for his position while the other half think Amazon is to blame for making this hack possible.  I'm detailing a bit too much here but thought some readers might be interested in what is going on with attempts to maximize what a device can do at a company's expense (against Terms of Service agreement) and the idea that the information itself should be available on the web and it's up to others to not use it, while some of R's supporters think it's a cool hack and are impressed but also "disgusted all the same from the ethical side of it."

HackJack brags:

' I’ve been tethered to my kindle for 6 months, using it as my main internet connection. With browsing and utorrent I’ve racked up over 46GB. No disconnection here! '

So, you can see what Amazon's up against when hoping to make their devices and services attractive but also have to think about things like the stockholders and its stock value.

In the meantime, Amazon is said to be working on the software update to prevent this kind of tethering of the Kindle Keyboard 3G.  I hope they can do it rather than need to apply new limits.

And they've applied a monthly limit to one hapless owner so far, who's living outside the US where the AT&T roaming charges can be sky high.

Kindle Touch's lack of free 3g web browsing
Just wanted to say that the KTouch has (1) Direct Access to links rather than making us use the 5-way button to slowly wend our way to a link and sometimes miss it due to directional oddities when multiple links are on the same line) and (2) a considerably faster processor that loads web pages much more quickly.  I do have a KTouch and a KKeyboard and I would use the free 3G web on the KTouch a lot more than I do on the KKeyboard if it were available on the KTouch -- which would make the free 3G for that model a bad business idea for Amazon.
  Keep in mind that currently competing e-readers either don't have a web browser at all now (Nook) nor a free 3G one (Sony, except in Japan) for anything.

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Current Kindle Models for reference, plus free-ebook search links

US: Kindle Fire  7" tablet - $199 Kindle NoTouch ("Kindle") - $79/$109 Kindle Touch, WiFi - $99/$139 Kindle Touch, 3G/WiFi - $149/$189 Kindle Keybd 3G - $189, Free, slow web Kindle DX - $379, Free, slow web

UK: Kindle Basic, NoTouch - £89 Kindle Touch WiFi, UK - £109 Kindle Touch 3G/WiFi, UK - £169 Kindle Keyboard 3G, UK - £149   Keybd: w/ Free, slow 3G WEB

OTHER International Kindle NoTouch Basic - $109 Kindle Touch WiFi - $139 Kindle Touch 3G/WiFi - $189 Kindle Keybd 3G - $189   Keybd: w/ Free, slow 3G WEB

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

TheKindleChronicle's Len Edgerly and Jeff Bezos sit down for an interesting interview on the Kindle, long-form reading, 3G, location numbers, multimedia ebooks and more

On The Kindle Chronicles blog Thursday, July 27, Len Edgerly offers some notes on his two very full days in Seattle, during which he met with Amazon's CEO Jeff Bezos for an 18-minute interview.

This marked the completion of the first four years of Len's weekly podcast which is now also a blog with written articles.  Len Edgerly's site is both informative and entertaining, quite addictive for many interested in the Kindle, other e-readers, and the e-reading publishing scene in general.  His interviews are with those heavily involved in all aspects of publishing.

The energy in this interview is more youthful than I'd expected, since neither of these guys is in his 20's but you'd not know it from their enthusiasm for books, reading in general, and for finding innovative ways to encourage long-form reading in a short-form world.

  Bezo's planning has always been the long-range type, and he took some intense criticism during the first few years of a non-profit Amazon despite his having said it would take years to build.  Now he's often characterized by publishers as a ruthless future monopolist while others wonder why he's allowing the company to show lower net profits this quarter due to a good portion of revenue being put back into growing the service and distribution areas as well as its ecosystem.  But enough people understand it and the stock went up after the results were announced.

  In the interview, Bezos says, re innovators, that if you need to be always understood, then don't do anything new.  His infamous laugh may not only break the microphone but comes from a businessman who thinks of his work as fun.

Multi-media books
  There's a section on the effect or place of multimedia books, which many had felt would be the 'new' e-book, replacing the traditional book, but much that interests people in a book -- the inner dialog for one -- can't really be caught in a multimedia approach, Bezos says.

  Multimedia additions can detract from the flow of the words that the author wrote without anticipating interruptions for a video or music.  With a straight-text book, the reader does much of the work, using the imagination with what the author presents, rather than passively taking things in as we do with multimedia.  I personally like the use of multimedia at the end of a book meant only to be read, where the added material can be optional and likely very useful.

3G use on Kindles
  He has interesting things to say about the 3G versions of the various Kindles, a popular option, and this includes his statement that "people who buy that Kindle are the people who read the most."  Edgerly asks him why, and you can hear the podcast interview for the response.
  He also mentions that the 3G works globally, roaming options and all (for Kindle book downloads, Kindle bookstore, and Wikipedia).

  Most know that any 3G data, at all, is expensive to just give away -- the 3G capability alone, before one starts paying monthly data fees, costs $130 to add the option to an otherwise WiFi-only Apple iPad.

  Currently B&N offers no 3G Nook e-Ink reader in its newer models and Sony doesn't offer 3G book downloads in the U.S.

  Yet Amazon offers, globally, on its new Kindle Touch (UK: KTouch) and older Kindles, free 3G data transfers for download of Kindle books, browsing the Kindle store on the device, and browsing Wikipedia 24/7 in countries outside the US where normal carrier and AT&T partners' roaming charges are very high.  It still offers free 3G for slow web browsing in the U.S. and 60 other countries on the older Kindle Keyboard (UK: KKeyboard) and Kindle DX models.
  Bezos does explain why they do it.

  They also discuss LOCATION numbers vs Page numbers and what customers have told Amazon about that and Amazon's thoughts on that.

Future Kindles?
Len Edgerly explains that we all know that they stay mum on future products, so that kind of question was not on the list.  Probably it would have been a waste of time.

The Kindle Mission
  Now, realizing Bezos and team are first and foremost, businesspeople with bottom-line goals, who too often feel they need to be hardnosed or not particularly forthcoming, and not always making decisions in our favor, I still like Bezos' stated philosophy or sense of mission:

' Yeah, absolutely! I think it’s the love of reading personally and it’s also that we on the Kindle team take it as an article of faith that reading is important for civilization.  So we feel this powerful mission, and it’s exciting...
...
  I think if people read more, that is a better world.  So I would posit that as an article of faith. '

  Their interest in reading IS shown in all the unusual features they've made for content, such as instant-translation (for understanding) and X-Ray, pre-packaging info that people would probably want to look up, from the book, as an associated file, including instant links to each appearance of a character's name in a book if you tap the character's name in the X-Ray menu for the page you're on.

  The team also made a personal annotations webpage on Amazon servers for each Kindle owner.  This webpage holds and displays the notes and highlighting made for any of your books in the order they appear in the Kindle book (unless you opt out of the feature).  You can then copy, edit, or print these, if making a book report, say, or when discussing pages with bookclub members, etc.

At any rate, the interview is fun to hear and I like Bezos' energy.  Again, the interview by Len Edgerly (who prefaces the conversation with his entertaining observations on trying to find the meeting place and preparing to meet with the CEO who is not known for doing interviews) starts at the 11:45 mark.  Of course the Kindle news and tech tips are worth hearing too.

There'll be a link to the transcript soon, which I read today in Stephen Windwalker's emailed Weekender for his Kindle Nation Daily blog, which gets some of Len's reports a day early.

  The transcript will be available on TheKindleChronicles site soon, and I'll update this with a link later.

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Current Kindle Models for reference, plus free-ebook search links.
NOTES on newer Kindles.

US: Updated Kindle Fire Basic  7" tablet - $159 Kindle Fire HD 7" 16/32GB - $199/$249 Kindle Fire HD 8.9" 16/32GB - $299/$369 Kindle Fire HD 8.9" 4G 32/64GB - $499/$599 Kindle NoTouch ("Kindle") - $69/$89 Kindle Paperwhite, WiFi - $99/$139 Kindle Paperwhite, 3G/WiFi - $179/$199 Kindle Keybd 3G - $139/$159, Free but slow web Kindle DX - $379, Free, slow web

UK: Kindle Basic, NoTouch - £69 Kindle Touch WiFi, UK - £109 Kindle Keyboard 3G, UK - £149   Keybd: w/ Free, slow 3G WEB

OTHER International Kindle NoTouch Basic - $89 Kindle Touch WiFi - $139 Kindle Keybd 3G - $189   Keybd: w/ Free, slow 3G WEB

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

Kindle News: DOJ describes Apple's response to eBook-pricing lawsuit as "self-serving"

US Department of Justice announces plans to move forward with the proposed settlement with some e-book publishers

ArsTechnica's Jacqui Cheng reports that, in a
64-page response (PDF) to the comments received on the settlement, the DOJ repeated its reasons for suing Apple and the Big5 publishers, characterizing Apple's proposed solutions as "contrary to the public interest."

The DOJ said again that it had conducted a "lengthy investigation" into the e-book price increases of 2010 that

' uncovered significant evidence that the seismic shift in e-book prices was not the result of market forces, but rather came about through the collusive efforts of Apple and five of the six largest publishers in the country '

Cheng writes that the DOJ's view was that "the only critical commenters were those with an interest in seeing people pay more for e-books."

  It's explained again that the lawsuit is not against any agency model despite Senator Charles Schumer's hysterical statement recently that if Apple had to adopt Amazon's traditional wholesale model (it's not being asked to do that], it could "wipe out the publishing industry as we know it."

  I kept the Betanews article on Schumer's statements for later-blogging because I was so beguiled by his set of arguments.

1. "The suit will restore Amazon to the dominant position atop the e-books market it occupied for years before competition arrived in the form of Apple...If that happens, consumers will be forced to accept whatever prices Amazon sets."

2. Betanews' Ed Oswald reports that "He further argues that allowing Amazon to sell books at rock-bottom prices makes it much more difficult for publishers -- especially smaller ones -- to survive in the ebook market."

Of course, the dissenters to the lawsuit and settlement will repeat that Amazon would continue to charge these "rock-bottom" sales prices (of the type you see in print bookstores for the bestsellers today) that the Big 5 had described as "devaluing" their print books only until Amazon monopolized the market and THEN they could charge whatever they really want, with no competition available.  They're already arguing that Amazon had 90% of the market and would have us believe Amazon would otherwise get 100% of it.

Amazon, the monopoly that would raise price levels above publisher-criticized "rock-bottom" prices
  The Big5 publishers' logic in all this is Beware: Amazon would SOME day raise the e-book prices, once all competitors are gone, to the price levels the Big 5 HAVE been charging for the last 2 years -- 30-100%+ OVER the prices in the past for new e-books.

  Imagine Amazon possibly doing later what the Big 5 are doing now.  In fact, Amazon's business strategy has never been to out-charge other stores.  And that's at the heart of why they're feared by the publishers who were so hostile to e-books at all in 2010 and who still won't, for the most part, allow them to be lent from public libraries.

  The beta-news comments-area focusing on e-book pricing is not friendly to Schumer's arguments.

  To be fair, the publishers are right to worry they'd not get the best deal from Amazon were if it were to become an actual monopoly, and the DOJ response explains what would be done IF that were to happen someday.

Jacqui Cheng, the senior Apple Editor at ArsTechnica links to her earlier article on Schumer's statement, a 100% regurgitation of the Apple position, which is inaccurate and misleading if you've followed the details reported by all sides over the last two years.*

  Also note her title for this DOJ-response story, which merely implies the DOJ feels Amazon was also in the 'wrong' which is not at all what the DOJ response says.  But she gives a balanced report otherwise although she stops to argue with the DOJ's assertion that B&N was more of a competing force than Apple, which claimed credit for saving us from Amazon via its iBooks.  Apple -- which kept Random House books out of its iBook Store because Random House would not agree to the Agency Model.

More Key sections from the DOJ's response to public comments on lawsuit
These are for anyone who wants to see quickly, but in more detail, the types of statements made in the DOJ response:

' The United States conducted a lengthy investigation into this steep price increase and uncovered significant evidence that the seismic shift in e-book prices was not the result of market forces, but rather came about through the collusive efforts of Apple and five of the six largest publishers in the country.
  That conduct, which is detailed in the United States’ Complaint against those entities, is per se illegal under the federal antitrust laws.
...
Critical comments generally were submitted by those who have an interest in seeing consumers pay more for e-books, and hobbling retailers that might want to sell e-books at lower prices...
...
Many critics of the settlements view the consequences of the conspiracy—higher prices—as serving their own self-interests, and they prefer that unfettered competition be replaced by industry collusion that places the welfare of certain firms over that of the public.  That position is wholly at odds with the purposes of the federal antitrust laws—which were enacted to protect competition, not competitors...
...
...But the reality is that, despite its conspiratorial efforts, Apple’s entry into the e-book market was not immediately successful.  It was, in fact, Barnes & Noble’s entry—prior to Apple—that took significant share away from Amazon; and many of the touted innovations were in development long before Apple decided to enter the market via conspiracy.
...
The United States, however, does not object to the agency method of distribution in the e-book industry, only to the collusive use of agency to eliminate competition and thrust higher prices onto consumers.  Publishers that did not collude are not required to surrender agency agreements [ab: important note there] and even the settling publishers here can resume agency, if they act unilaterally, after only two years ...
...
There is no mistaking the fear that many of the commenters have of the prospect of competing with Amazon on price.  No doubt Amazon is a vigorous e-book competitor...Of course, low prices, fierce rivalries, and innovation are among the core ambitions of free markets.  Contrary to the apparent views of many commenters, “the goal of antitrust law is to use rivalry to keep prices low for consumers’ benefit.  Employing antitrust law to drive prices up would turn the Sherman Act on its head..."
...
In addition, the e-book industry has attracted participation from the likes of Apple, Microsoft, Google, and Sony. The future is unclear and the path for many industry members may be fraught with uncertainty and risk.  But certainly there is no shortage of competitive assets and capabilities being brought to bear in the e-books industry.  A purpose of the proposed Final Judgment is to prevent entrenched industry members from arresting via collusion the potentially huge benefits of intense competition in an evolving market. [AB: All emphases mine.]
...
Finally, even if there were evidence to substantiate claims of “monopolization” or “predatory pricing,” they would not be sufficient to justify self-help in the form of ollusion...
...
Thus, whatever defendants’ and commenters’ perceived grievances against Amazon or any other firm are, they are no excuse for the conduct remedied by the proposed Final Judgment.
...
B&N also claims that “average” retail and wholesale prices for e-books have declined under the current, collusively-established regime, although it admits that the price of “some e-books” increased following Publisher Defendants’ collective shift to agency and the Apple Agency Agreement price points.  See B&N at 13-15.  The United States obtained evidence that demonstrated that the conspiracy led to price increases not only in Publisher Defendants’ most popular e-books, but also for “the balance of Publisher Defendants’ e-book catalogues, their so-called ‘backlists.’”

[AB note: And they're not fooled as Schumer is by the conflicting excuses given.  Cheng's chosen headline out of *all this* was that the DOJ said "Two Wrongs Don't Make a Right" - indicating that the DOJ felt Amazon was in the wrong as a monopolist -- in fact the DOJ says this is just speculation and unsubstantiated and if ever it became true they would deal with any actual monopoly... ]

Third, like other retailers with an interest in high consumer prices and protected distributor margins, Apple makes the argument that the ability to compete on price “will enable Amazon to charge monopoly prices into perpetuity.” ...
...
That argument assumes, without support, that Amazon could or would exercise such market power, even in the face of significant share erosion, which was already significant prior to Apple’s entry.  Further, the entire conspiracy alleged here was, for Publisher Defendants, about increasing the retail price of e-books.

As the Complaint alleges repeatedly, the shared goal of Publisher Defendants was to “act collectively to force up Amazon’s retail prices.” ... Publisher Defendants would have welcomed monopoly-like pricing with open arms; what they feared was the exact opposite—that the Amazon-led $9.99 price would stick, to the benefit of consumers and the perceived detriment of Publisher Defendants...'

* History and Timeline, from news articles, with sourcing
  . TIMELINE:  Ebook Pricing Wars - what DOJ would have seen.
  . History and Timeline of the Pricing Wars in News Articles, with Sourcing

Kindle News: Kindle Touch security update v5.1.2 - more info on it

Kindle Touch Software Upgrade to v5.1.2 - a security update

Commenter Todd yesterday reminded us about the new Kindle Touch software upgrade.  It was announced by the Amazon Kindle Forum's Community Manager, Kevin G., on Monday afternoon, although Mobile Forum members mentioned on 7/16 that it was available.

From the Amazon US update page
"If your Kindle Touch has software version 5.1.0 or 5.1.1 installed, there is an update available that addresses a known bug.  We recommend that you install 5.1.2 to bring your Kindle Touch software up-to-date.
  You must first have version 5.1.0 or 5.1.1 installed to install version 5.1.2.

Which Version do I Have?

 
1. From Home, tap Menu and then tap Settings.
 
2. On the Settings screen, tap Menu and then select Device Info. Your software version is listed under Firmware Version.

"

The Kindle Touch Software update page for both v5.1.0 and v5.1.2 (U.S.) then leads you through what to do, depending on which Firmware Version is showing for your KTouch.
  UK Kindle owners: UK-only page

After you've confirmed that you already have 5.1.0 or 5.1.1 installed, then download the v5.1.2 at that page.
  UK Kindle owners:(UK-only page)


The reason for the upgrade - Amazon wasn't specific, but Nate Hoffelder of The Digital Reader wrote on July 16 about a German Security firm's posting of "a proof of concept hack which exploits a security hole in the web browser on the Kindle Touch" which had been identified in late May in a Mobileread forums thread.  It was a serious security hole but was so complicated that few would use it.

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US: Kindle Fire  7" tablet - $199 Kindle NoTouch ("Kindle") - $79/$109 Kindle Touch, WiFi - $99/$139 Kindle Touch, 3G/WiFi - $149/$189 Kindle Keybd 3G - $189, Free, slow web Kindle DX - $379, Free, slow web

UK: Kindle Basic, NoTouch - £89 Kindle Touch WiFi, UK - £109 Kindle Touch 3G/WiFi, UK - £169 Kindle Keyboard 3G, UK - £149   Keybd: w/ Free, slow 3G WEB

OTHER International Kindle NoTouch Basic - $109 Kindle Touch WiFi - $139 Kindle Touch 3G/WiFi - $189 Kindle Keybd 3G - $189   Keybd: w/ Free, slow 3G WEB

  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 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

A quick note

The blog and I will be back Tuesday afternoon and I'll have a collection of news items I noted for a few blog entries while not having been here enough to write about them once there -was- worthwhile news as of Monday.  Thanks for your patience.

DroidTV Primetime app for KindleFire gets a price rise - is it still worth it?

DroiodTV Primetime is an Android app for Kindle Fire with not-clear pricing and a recent additional price-increase but said to be worth it

Amazon has not highlighted DroidTV Primetime but it is pretty big on Android sites when software is recommended.  It may be that it's a soft competitor to HuluPlus especially and to Netflix also.

While DroidTV Primetime is listed for $8.99, a price already high enough to deter purchase by most who prefer free or very inexpensive apps, it's actually $8.99 for 3 months now.  It's essentially a subscription of course, but it doesn't clearly say so.

  Furthermore, the history is that it started out as $1/mo. not long ago and then recently had become $8.99 for 6 months, which seemed okay for those who had signed up for it, at $1.50 per month then.

  In July, the price quietly changed, from $8.99 for 6 months, to $8.99 for 3 months.
  And nevertheless, people on the whole seem to feel it's still worth it at $3/mo., essentially. Why?

  Netflix and HuluPlus each costs $8.99 per month but
  1. HuluPlus has us watch ads even though we pay Hulu $9/mo. because, it's said (and I believe it) that CURRENT TV shows are expensive to rent and distribute.
  2. Netflix does not, for the most part, present current TV shows except for some educational PBS shows like Frontline, distributed not long after being shown.

  With Netflix and HuluPlus (I subscribe to each), you subscribe directly with those companies and the Android app itself is 'free' to use on the Kindle Fire for accessing of the subscriptions you've paid for outside Amazon.
  With both you can watch only when connected online via WiFi or 3G/4G.

  DroidTVPrimetime, though, is equivalent to a subscription VIA the Android app itself. For this, you can, they say (and users confirm) watch some of your favored TV Shows offline when  you're not connected to WiFi, and the product info on Amazon reads:

• Watch full HD TV episodes
• Record episodes to watch later
• Store videos on your device for anytime viewing
  
  
  Product Description
  Watch TV on your mobile device in full HD-480p resolution with DroidTV. Choose from hundreds of episodes of the most popular shows from the major TV networks. Watch whenever you want, wherever you want.
  
  With DroidTV, you can record and watch individual episodes or automatically record every episode for a show as they become available. Episodes are recorded from the Internet, stored on your own dedicated virtual DVR in our data center, and then transferred to your mobile device for viewing.
  
  Recorded episodes are played from your phone or tablet’s memory card, not streamed, so they are available anytime, even when you don’t have Internet access. Episodes play immediately, without buffering delays or reduced quality.
  
  You can store any number of episodes on the virtual DVR. The number of episodes on your mobile device is limited only by available memory on your [built-in] SD card.

Kindle Tip: Small text on web page when using Kindle Fire or Kindle e-Ink readers - How to read it

Browsing web pages on a Kindle Fire or Kindle Touch or Kindle Keyboard e-reader

Recently, a family member recently told me he was frustrated by trying to read webpages with tiny fonts, and I saw a Kindle news blog saying not much had been done to improve the Kindle Fire.

I replied that the new Kindle Fire feature, Reading View for web-article reading that isolates the article, is done VERY well, and it’s brought me back to Amazon's Silk browser from Dolphin HD (Android) web browers which I had far preferred until Amazon’s Reading View feature was added to its Silk browser.

  The new feature makes a huge difference for most who use the web browser on a 7" tablet if they know about it (and that’s the key, or at least one of them).  For those who don’t know about the "Reading View" feature, look for the reading glasses icon in the bottom status bar when at a web page article.

  Lightly press the eyeglasses icon and you'll get a specially formatted page for the web article you're on, far more readable with no ads or surrounding link and info boxes.

  I really enjoy this new feature despite the fact that in normal web-browsing on the Kindle Fire, a double tap on an article will usually raise the font size considerably and wrap the web article text within the width of the Kindle Fire, depending on your web settings and it's usually at a good size.

  But the instant Reading View is much easier and very effective.  No other eReader-based Android tablet web-browser or non-Kindle e-Ink eReader [I edited to correct the subject device type here] has this for browsing the web in full desktop mode (not limited mobile mode).  It’s like Instapaper or Readability, getting rid of ads and side boxes while displaying just the article in normal-sized text and supporting any article links.  But you also have access to the normal full webpage.

  And ANOTHER way to do this (on the Kindle Fire):
  Resize the column you want to read and then pinch zoom the display to enlarge the words until you have only what you want in the window (no side boxes or ads).
  Then double-tap, and that will keep the font size you are seeing while wrapping the rest of the article to the width of the window.
  My web browser settings are something like "auto-overview" and zoom in='Close'...

Remember that if you rotate the Kindle Fire 90 degrees, web browsing will be like reading on a 10" screen but only a half page at a time and the text on the page is easiest to read this way, with more room for it.  I do most of my web-browsing in landscape mode.

  The Kindle Touch ALSO has the pinch-zoom feature to enlarge the displayed text to the font size you want but it's hard to control the width of that as it doesn't wrap at the width so I don't consider it worthwhile except to raise the font size in an area you want to read, knowing it won't wrap.

  The Kindle Touch and Kindle Keyboard e-Ink readers offer ARTICLE Mode, which converts the layout of the web article you're reading to a simple isolated article-view with very readable text.  When finished with the article, press Menu--Web Mode to return to normal web browsing.

  The Kindle Touch otherwise allows, in normal web-browsing, only two auto-sizes -- the normal tiny, unreadable font when you're on a full webpage and a MEDIUM sized font if you double-tap the screen in the article box.  This isn't large enough for most though.  If you double tap it again, it reverts to smallest font and the double-tap acts as a toggle between the two sizes.

 (An oddness: If you double-click on an info box on the right, the Kindle Touch will sometimes raise the article font to a large size and then show you the article that way, but it's not worth doing because the KTouch gets confused and can crash the browser.)

Hope that helps.  I find that although I've written about this a couple of times, most people don't seem to know about the enhanced web-text reading features.

---

US: Kindle Fire  7" tablet - $199 Kindle NoTouch ("Kindle") - $79/$109 Kindle Touch, WiFi - $99/$139 Kindle Touch, 3G/WiFi - $149/$189 Kindle Keybd 3G - $189, Free, slow web Kindle DX - $379, Free, slow web

UK: Kindle Basic, NoTouch - £89 Kindle Touch WiFi, UK - £109 Kindle Touch 3G/WiFi, UK - £169 Kindle Keyboard 3G, UK - £149   Keybd: w/ Free, slow 3G WEB

OTHER International Kindle NoTouch Basic - $109 Kindle Touch WiFi - $139 Kindle Touch 3G/WiFi - $189 Kindle Keybd 3G - $189   Keybd: w/ Free, slow 3G WEB

  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 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

Kindle News: Lighted Kindle Touch may be delayed. Lighted Nook vs current Kindles. Updated for informational comments from readers.

     
DigiTimes says lighted Kindle Touch may be delayed.

(Original blog article dated 7/13/12 updated 7/14-15 for more information.)

Taiwan's DigiTimes has a report today by Sammi Huang and Alex Wolfgram that Amazon is "currently facing problems with mass production due to problems with the device's front light design, which may delay shipping of the device until later in the third quarter, according to industry sources."

There's an error in the article in that they say Amazon's been working on this 'since' B&N launched its Glowlight model, but Amazon acquired a company specializing in this technology quite some time before that and was reported to be working on a new Kindle model that would use a built-in front light.  However, they've still not produced one yet.

  "Recent reports" indicate to DigiTimes that Amazon has "stopped certain parts shipments" for that new e-Ink Kindle and these may be stopped "throughout July and August in order to tackle issues with the device's front light."


FRONT-LIGHTED E-INK DEVICES, NOOK GLOWLIGHT, AND KINDLE TOUCH
Information from an earlier article in May included here

  Includes an UPDATE for forgotten recent features added to Kindle Touch
  mentioned by blog commenter Tom Semple, plus some added details and comments.

Amazon may be trying to avoid some of the mild contrast issues mentioned.

  Oldtimers to this blog may remember that I did a few blog articles about the lack of sufficient contrast in the Kindle 2 screen display for many, and although my own Kindle 2 was okay, the Kindle 1 and the Kindle 3 were quite superior to it in darkness of font and contrast perceived.

  At one point, I talked about Kindle 2 screen contrast in connection with a Wired.com article, so I'm sensitive to a relative lack of contrast and had a problem with the original Nook Touch for that reason although I had bought the NookColor on sight and enjoyed that mode.

All reviews on the new Nook GlowLight are very positive.  More than a few mention, though, that some will see less contrast in the screen display relative to the older Nook Touch and the current Kindle.  But you never need to add a light attachment and many have been looking for that feature with E-Ink.

(I use the Beam N Read 3-Led light, as that works well with everything and not just e-readers.)

FROM REVIEWS
A fairly detailed review posted by Gotta Be Mobile's K. T. Bradford include many photos plus a video also
The positives presented include:
  Lights up screen evenly, doesn't drain battery too much, responsive touchscreen,
  speedy performance
The negatives include:
  eInk display contrast not as good as original Nook, doesn’t support documents other than PDF.

  [Note that the Kindle supports WORD docs, HTML, txt, Mobi, and Prc, as well.]
  Bradford writes:

' If you place them side by side, you can tell that the GlowLight version is a shade or two lighter.  Same with the Kindle Touch.  Even without the comparison, I noticed that the new Nook’s text isn’t as dark as I’m used to.  The lighter contrast isn’t as noticeable with the GlowLight on.

 It looks like Barnes and Noble made a choice to sacrifice the level of contrast in order for the best performance with GlowLight.  They also claim that the anti-glare screen protector is a best-selling accessory, so many Nook users already experience this.  The resulting quality isn’t a dealbreaker, but will be a consideration for buyers.
. . .
  Conclusion:
 It comes down to which is more important: the darkest text or the lighted screen?  If the latter is a bigger deal, then the Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight is for you. '

Some reviewers consider the Nook GlowLight the best e-reader, for the one feature, the built-in front lighting, as well as its being easy to hold.

  I've noticed that those who do this omit from the article the many other features that have become important to Kindle Touch owners such as audio, music, a very decent web browser, annotations kept for for each book on the owner's personal Amazon web page, very effective sync'g of reading between devices, and the ability to send Word Doc, Text, Mobi, Prc books or documents AND web pages direct to the Kindle for reading offline, while none of the above is doable with the Nook.  With the Nook, attempted sync'g between devices is notably weaker, per reviews.

  So, the oddly one-feature reviews concentrate only on the Nook light, although a few also mention the Nook never having ads (even though the Nook home page has 'recommended for you' books (which I personally consider ads and I often don't want to see those on my personal e-reader home screen).

  I haven't included a couple of those when they ignore (for the person reading) other important features in favor of just one feature while not informing readers of differences.

  I also saw that a CNN reviewer compared the current Nook to his Kindle 2 (from 2009!, from fully 3 years ago, and wished the old Kindle 2 were a Touch device ! and then said the Nook is definitely better than that.  That stood out.

TIME Techland's Harry McCracken at least mentions that Kindle has other features even if he minimizes them and he finds the Nook GlowLight the most useful for him.

  In their comments area, Adam Ritchie commenting via his Twitter ID, writes:

'just purchased a nook with glowlight, and am really hoping they do a firmware update that addresses the loss of text contrast.  it’s substantial.  it doesn’t have that “ink on a page” look you had with the basic nook, that made you forget you weren’t reading a real book.  i asked @NOOK_Care about this a few days ago and didn’t get a response. '

MacWorld/PCWorld's Melissa Perenson loves the new Nook Glowlight, and it's definitely 'the one' she recommends alhough she doesn't compare features at all otherwise.  Many do just want an e-reader to read a book and don't want to have to deal with a night light, especially one that annoys a bed partner.  Features like audio (for podcasts or audiobooks or music) don't matter to many nor does fairly easy web access to news and email.

  Even then, Perenson does mention the following also:

' One other nitpick: The contrast is not as good on the GlowLight version as on the plain Nook Simple Touch.  This problem appears to result from the antiglare protector on the GlowLight model; the background of the display is a darker gray than on the plain Nook, and that in turn causes black text on the GlowLight version to lack the same omph as on the ordinary Nook.

  I hold out hope that the contrast might be adjustable via a future firmware update.'

Digital Trends's Jeffrey Van Camp roots for the Nook ("Keep it up, B&N") while going for balance in his review although, like many, he believes the B&N marketing which claims that access to the scanned Google Books makes B&N richer in number of books, but the latter is available in multiple ways for Kindle too as are now, literally, millions of other free books.

  He points out that both e-readers have their advantages and includes this about the contrast concern that some have:

' There are a few tiny downsides to having the light. The tablet appears to have ever so slightly less contrast and E Ink consistency than the last Nook, though only geeks like us are likely to notice.  However, a new anti-glare screen should help its readability ever so slightly outdoors.'

The Verge's David Pierce also really likes the new Nook and writes what commenters say is one of the more thorough reviews they've seen, with one commenter saying, "Reviews on the Verge are amazing.  Love the quality and detail of video reviews."

  So check out the video review there as well as the written one.  His 'bottom line' is that the GlowLight is "incredibly comfortable to hold and use, even in one hand, and even after hours of reading my arm didn't get tired."

  He also mentions, that the glowlight is "a wonderful addition to the device" and prefers the Nook's hardware to the Kindle's.

  On the contrast issue (which is not an issue for most who much prefer the convenience of an always-readable e-Ink reader), he has this to say:

' The GlowLight Nook has a screen protector on top of the display, though, which makes text appear slightly softer and lower-contrast than on last year's model.  I didn't notice until I held the GlowLight Nook next to last year's Nook and a Kindle, and even though all three use the same display technology the GlowLight Nook's text didn't look quite as sharp.  It's a fine screen, but it's nothing remarkable anymore, and I'm starting to wish for a slightly higher-res display that renders text a little more sharply.

  I wouldn't describe the light as uniform, though.  It's really bright at the top, right next to the LEDs, then there's a dark stripe right below.  It evens out considerably by the time it's illuminating any text, but it's still inconsistent enough to make certain lines of text look slighty darker or lighter than others.  None of it really impedes the reading experience, but it's not as nice-looking as a cool, even glow would be.

  Still, all things considered, the light works really well.  Rather than a backlit screen that seems to glare out at you, the Nook's screen really does glow a bluish white, which is both easier on your eyes and just generally a nice effect.  The light's intensity is customizable, and will go from just-barely-on to blind-you-immediately levels of brightness.  Reading in bed, I was able to use the Nook with the light only slightly above the minimum level, and still read comfortably. '

He also does point out out something which isn't mentioned by the other writers who are reviewing primarily one feature rather than looking at the feature-set of each -- and that's the ability of the Kindle to work with personal documents and information from websites:

' The really frustrating omission, though, was something I didn't even consider until I started using the GlowLight Nook and not my Kindle.  My Kindle has a dedicated email address, and services like Instapaper and Readability make it easy to send an article (or your whole queue) to your Kindle for reading.

  It's also easy to send PDFs, ebooks from other sources, and just about any other document you can think of.  You can sideload content onto your Nook, too, but it's a much harder and kludgier process involving a lot of ePub files and card readers.  My Kindle is basically my Instapaper reader, and the Nook's not nearly as good a device for that kind of use.'

  His wrap up:
"The Kindle does better with outside content and syncing, but if you're buying an ebook reader to replace your huge paperback collection, the Nook does a great job.  The Nook Simple Touch plus a good, useful light is a pretty great combination — but we've heard Amazon's working on something similar, if Bezos and company already have their hooks into your collection."


MY OWN TAKE:
One thing The Verge's Pierce didn't mention was that the Kindle, with WiFi AND a web browser, can directly download non-Amazon books - and again, we're talking more than a 2.5 million available.  Also, the refresh only every 6 page turns has been a Kindle feature also, for awhile.

Amazon tends to be behind B&N Nook when it comes to hardware features, but its effective work on the many complex and very useful software features and special server-assisted connectivity of these e-readers is what has kept Kindlers enthusiastic about their e-reader, including trading info with other owners on their more unique or creative uses of the Kindle.

And, as you've seen, I've had one particular bias, and that's the relative clarity of e-Ink screens.  If there's a trade-off with clarity as has been expressed even by the enthused quoted above who are hopeful, in the reviews, for a future fix for less sharpness of display, I'm still more likely, as I said on April 8 about the probably-coming Kindle 'lit' screen, to continue to use my Beam N Read light, which I just wear around my neck at night for convenience.  It's also helped me when out at night, during outside walks, where light isn't great.

For those still wondering about differences in connection with other features
I list the long-time differences between Nook and Kindle touch e-readers.

  Since that last features-comparison in late March, Amazon has released Kindle Touch software update v 5.1 with new features that:

• allow web pages to be read on the Kindle with no website Ads or side-columns, showing instead just the article in readable fonts and with working hyperlinks
• provide language translation of words in a book or a personal doc
• added support for reading books or personal docs in landscape mode
    (especially good for PDFs on a small device)

  Reminders about the most recent Kindle Touch features, most of which I hadn't remembered, were added by Tom Semple in the Comments section for this blog article (along with Tom's additional thoughts as a Nook Touch owner):

' Since the 5.1 update, which added the 'missing and bonus features' (KF8, multilanguage support, landscape [orientation], [word] Translation, Report Content Error, multipage text selection, NCX navigation), I have been in ereader heaven. '

These new capabilities are gravy.

 Reviews don't mention (because almost all reviewers don't know) that

• Amazon Kindle customers have 5 free gigs for their personal docs (the space is for NON-Amazon media not rights-protected)
• have sync'g, between various devices, of even one's personal docs, and
• are provided another 5 free gigs for other non-Amazon data files.

Sending web articles to the Kindle
This is not doable with any other e-readers, and this week it became easier with the new feature added to SendToReader, which allows you to be reading on your pc OR your e-Ink Kindle, Kindle tablet, or Android tablet or smartphone, and just add 7 characters in front of a web-link, which will then send the web article you're viewing TO all your Kindles via Amazon's servers, which store and sync them in the same way they provide sync'd access to Kindle books.  It not only works from a desktop browser but sending of web articles to your Kindles or Kindle apps works with every mobile browser I tried on my mobile devices as well.

As Blackbeard pointed out in the Comments area, "... buying an e-reader is more than an investment in a particular electronic device.  It's an investment in an entire infrastructure."

If you don't need or want the extra features
  However, if you don't care about the other features mentioned and just want to read e-books and read them comfortably at night without having to worry about getting a light, you'll definitely want to look at the Nook GlowLight.  Many have delayed getting an e-reader at all until there was some kind of built-in lighting that would work with an E-Ink device, and the new Nook has it.
  If the other features attract, then you can weigh the differences and decide.

Gizmodo and TheDigitalReader on fragility of Glowlight light
Gizmodo's Kyle Wagner prefers the Nook Glowlight to any other e-reader but wrote a column titled, "You Really Don't Want to Drop the New Nook Simple Touch." After reading this, Nate Hoffelder of The Digital Reader did drop tests of keys onto the face of the Glowlight, and other devices, from a couple of feet and found it quite fragile relative to other devices.
  Some commenters to his site felt he was too harsh while others reported they'd had this problem also.  One Amazon review complains, "The slightest bump damages the inner screen allowing rays of light to shine from the screen in spots."
  On the other hand, I've read comments from extremely happy Nook Glowlight users.

---

US: Kindle Fire  7" tablet - $199 Kindle NoTouch ("Kindle") - $79/$109 Kindle Touch, WiFi - $99/$139 Kindle Touch, 3G/WiFi - $149/$189 Kindle Keybd 3G - $189, Free, slow web Kindle DX - $379, Free, slow web

UK: Kindle Basic, NoTouch - £89 Kindle Touch WiFi, UK - £109 Kindle Touch 3G/WiFi, UK - £169 Kindle Keyboard 3G, UK - £149   Keybd: w/ Free, slow 3G WEB

OTHER International Kindle NoTouch Basic - $109 Kindle Touch WiFi - $139 Kindle Touch 3G/WiFi - $189 Kindle Keybd 3G - $189   Keybd: w/ Free, slow 3G WEB

  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 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

Kindle News: WSJ says that Amazon is testing a smartphone with its suppliers

      The Wall Street Journal says Amazon's reportedly already testing its smartphone

The Wall Street Journal's Lorraine Luk in Taipei writes today that Amazon's working with component suppliers in Asia to test a smartphone (presumably their own).

  As always, "officials at some of Amazon's part suppliers" declined to be named, but they said that "mass production of the new device may start late this year or early next year."

  It's said that the screen of the phone currently being tested "measures between four and five inches."

Greg Bensinger in San Francisco contributed to the WSJ-Asia Technology report.

Kindle Tips: SendtoReader (for any Kindle-compatible device) has a terrific new feature. UPDATE

     
SENDTOREADER Update

UPDATE - 7/13/12.  I tested sending web articles to my Kindles and Kindle apps WHILE reading on the Kindle Fire and on my Kindle Touch.

  Adding the 7 characters, described below, in front of a web-link or URL worked with any mobile browser on my Kindle Fire as well. Not only does no other e-reader have the web-articles-send feature but it surprised me that it works when I'm browsing the web on my Kindle Fire  That is quite a boon.  I haven't tried to send an article from an e-Ink Kindle though.  
I was less successful when doing this on my smartphone.  No problems when using s2r.me/ in a URL from my Kindle Fire browsing though.

  One thing I forgot earlier:  Besides needing to register with SendToReader, of course, for the free service, you need to sign-in to SendToReader the first time you use the 's2r.me/' with a given browser.   I haven't had to sign-in again on the same browser (except when I want to look at my list of articles sent in case I want to re-send something later).
  When using it with a different browser the first time for that browser, I had to do the initial sign-in.

SENDtoREADER was very well received by Kindle users, in the many comments written to the original article on it here on March 29, 2011 when I asked readers to try it out.

 I noted in an update that "The feedback was extremely positive, with images coming through well, good general layout, and "a great feature: history of your sent articles (linked) in your account at sendtoreader.com with an option to resend. Thanks to phelcq and Elmo [for the mentioned features]."

After that, the author of the program, Sergey Pozhilov, notified us of a "Web to Kindle" browser add-on called "DroidToReader," which allows SendToReader's features to be used on a Kindle Fire.  He explained it in his comments to the blog entry of March 11, 2012.  It seems this addon, though, is no longer needed.  I'd love feedback on how the new feature described below works for you.

  Sergey's newest improvement is s2r.me which is a "very simple" addon to a link, he says, which allows you to just enter "s2r.me/" in FRONT of the URL or link to an article you want sent to your Kindle as a personal document.

  It would look like: http://s2r.me/[whateverlonglink]

  Of course you have to be registered at sendtoreader.com first, for this to work.  Be sure to read the original article about SendToReader and comments to it by author Sergey and readers of the blog (the article is linked above in the opening).

  Pesonal documents you choose to have sent to your Kindle (rather than file-copied from your computer to your Kindle) go through Amazon servers, where they are kept in the Personal Documents area -- and the access to and reading of these personal docs are sync'd across all your Kindle devices, in the same way that your Kindle books are.

  Example: I saw an interesting story from a press release by The Education World on the Kindle Fire for the Classroom, and I put "s2r.me/" in front of the URL or link on that page and, because I'm registered with a Kindle address at SendToReader, this small addition to the link sent that article to the Amazon servers, which placed a copy in my Personal Documents area and then sent me an email to let me know it was there (the email notification took about 5 minutes to arrive).

  I opened my Kindle Fire and my Kindle Touch, as well as my Kindle Keyboard.  The document was available on all three devices.  On the Kindle Fire, it showed up on the Carousel without my doing anything, ready to be downloaded if I want.  But if you don't see it, you can click on the 'Docs' category in the top menu.

  I never did install the 'DroidtoReader' add-on for Kindle Fire, and yet this new feature worked fine because it's treated by Amazon as a personal document that you want to read on any of your devices, so Amazon makes sure it's available on devices being sync'd.  It also arrived on my Samsung Galaxy S2 phone Kindle books archive  when I ran the Kindle for Android app to see my books and personal docs, and when I clicked on the title, it downloaded it.

 Here's the article on the Kindle Fire in classroom use.  If you click on the link, you'll be at the article of course.  IF you are already a SendToReader member, just put  s2r.me/  in front of the URL for the article (in the location field at the top of the web browser) and this will let SendToReader know you want that article sent to 'me'...

  While normally a URL or link has an "http://" to start the link, web browsers put that part in for you these days, so you can just start it with "s2r.me/" in front of the URL.
  HOWEVER, if the web browser URL already shows an 'http://' on the address line, then put the s2r.me AFTER the prefacing 'http://' and right in front of the URL/link.

  For me, this is a great new feature and I hope others of you will enjoy it too.

---

Current Kindle Models for reference, plus free-ebook search links

US: Kindle Fire  7" tablet - $199 Kindle NoTouch ("Kindle") - $79/$109 Kindle Touch, WiFi - $99/$139 Kindle Touch, 3G/WiFi - $149/$189 Kindle Keybd 3G - $189, Free, slow web Kindle DX - $379, Free, slow web

UK: Kindle Basic, NoTouch - £89 Kindle Touch WiFi, UK - £109 Kindle Touch 3G/WiFi, UK - £169 Kindle Keyboard 3G, UK - £149   Keybd: w/ Free, slow 3G WEB

OTHER International Kindle NoTouch Basic - $109 Kindle Touch WiFi - $139 Kindle Touch 3G/WiFi - $189 Kindle Keybd 3G - $189   Keybd: w/ Free, slow 3G WEB

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

Kindle News: Amazon quelling August 7 rumors for Kindle Fire 2?

Now more 'sources' choose AllThingsD to put out a new estimated shipping date for Kindle Fire 2.

AllThingsD's John Paczkowski wrote on Sunday that "Sources familiar with Amazon's plans" apparently made contact to make sure the news got out (and it did) that:

'... the company hopes to debut the next iteration of the Kindle Fire in the second half of this year; the current launch window is late in the third quarter.'

I had rumor-manipulation fatigue and the news mainly promised a later delivery date for any new Kindle Fire 2's.  Normally Amazon uses the word 'launch' to mean they *announce* or intro a product with information on estimated delivery dates, but news sites have started to use the word to mean *deliver* a product into the customers' hands, and a lot of confusion results from that.

"Debut" of the Kindle 2 in the 2nd half could mean anywhere from July to December 2012. "Current launch window" being "late in the third quarter" gives us a September expectation rather than the August 7 one which did the rounds due to other sources, and Amazon, little doubt, might have wanted to quash that rumor since it would mean they'd not meet the sudden expectations that came from talk by 'supply chain' reps.

This report from AllThingsD comes from "sources that have been briefed," by Amazon, of course, and then gives us information in connection with "developers familiar with the device" and what they've "been instructed to build" in the way of apps for the new higher-resolution display.

Developers and the improved display resolution
The information about the Kindle Fire 2 itself is not changed nor enlarged beyond CNet's information the week before, other than that the display's screen shape is changing just enough to give developers more work on their currently used apps.  DisplayMate President Raymond Soneira told AllThingsD that the "...shape is changing from an aspect ratio of 1.71 (tall and narrow in its standard Portrait mode) to an aspect ratio of 1.60."

While it's pointed out that this is a 'fairly common" aspect ratio with tablets, and the 1280x800 pixel resolution will make the display slightly sharper, this is a new width-to-height ratio. Apps that use the length of the current Kindle 2 for material that must be on a page (as in game screens and even menu information) would have to make some relative adjustments in their apps for this model in addition to designing for 1200x800 pixels vs 1024x600.

  I've liked the longer, narrower aspect of the Kindle for wide-screen movies, as both the current Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet just fill up the screen rather than show us letterbox-style black areas in a smaller area for the film.  Now the new tablet will be the same size and the display area would still be diagonally about 7", but a wide-screen movie would need to fit a shorter length while the sides are further apart.  Those who use tablets mainly to read will like the width to height change.

Will Amazon move fast enough and offer enough?
  At any rate, we all need to adjust the expectations from the many rumors.  And Amazon has to, however, move as fast as they can, as the Google Nexus is making waves, due to more current hardware specs for the same price, even if they don't have the strong ecosystem nor any record of direct customer service.

 I think Amazon could well lose the 7" tablet battle (due to the limited easy access to apps) now that Google's tablet has the full-store capability and a media ecosystem of sorts) unless Amazon adds something bold and very much needed, such as an SD card slot, and then they'd run away with it.  They need to put more faith in the customer.

  The Google Nexus doesn't have an SD card slot and even in late 2012 has only 8 gigs for storage for the $200 price.  B&N's Nook Tablet has an SD card slot but B&N doesn't allow customers to side-load, to the tablet, apps from unknown sources while the current Amazon does allow sideloading of apps from other sources for its Kindle Fire (but most customers won't know how to find the apps (in safe-site settings) and most don't know how to sideload and install these.


Unusual Kindle Daily Deal book
Today's Kindle Daily Deal, for Tuesday only, is 'Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Halberstam's brilliant chronicle of "America and the Korean War"' -- $1.99 (80% off Mondays's price).

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