Kindle News Roundup: AT&T Kindle Fire 8.9" for $249 w/ 2-yr data plan. Amazon Cloud gets File Sync. Amazon's new Kindel, Director of mobile-something.

AT&T is offering, "for a limited time," starting April 5, the Kindle Fire HD 8.9 4G LTE (cellular network access) tablet for as low as $249 (rather than $399) if you agree to sign a two-year contract for an AT&T data plan.

  This is to clarify a bit what you get and what you agree to, for that price.

The lowest cost option for this is $10 per month to connect the tablet with an AT&T Mobile Share plan, which requires a smartphone with a data plan.

 As their press release states:
  "With Mobile Share, new and existing customers can share a single bucket of data across smartphones, tablets, and other compatible devices. Customers can select Mobile Share or choose one of AT&T's individual or family plans."

  As quickly as tablets are upgraded these days, a 2-year lock-in is something to ponder though.

  As mentioned -- for the Mobile Share plan, a smartphone with data plan is required.  And if you already have one with a data plan, it would cost you $10/mo. to share its 4G LTE (4G where it's available and 3G otherwise).

  I pay $20/mo. to do that tethering, using the cell phone as a modem, giving the Kindle Fire WiFi capability that way when no WiFi network is available.  It uses the smartphone battery at the same time of course.  And there is a limit to the amount of 4G data on the smartphone plan.

  According to their description you can get $100 off any tablet if you agree to a 2-yr wireless agreement with data for a minimum $14.99/mo.* or the Mobile Share plan.
  "...An additional $50 activation credit is available for customers who purchase their device at AT&T retail stores."  And that's how you arrive at the $249 figure.

  Once you've used the max data alloted for a month on any plan, it's "$15 per GB for add'l data."


* Currently, AT&T's normal $20/mo. plan covers only 300MB/mo and that's only enough to do some email and text reading (not so much web browsing and certainly not movies).  In January, AT&T's $20/mo. plan replaced their $15/mo. plan that offered only 200MB/mo.

  Amazon's own $399 price comes with the option of 4G/LTE for one year at 250MB/mo. for $50 per year the first year and there's no requirement to be on a data plan the 2nd year.
  That's a total of $449.

  That's important because with the cheapest, smartphone-sharing plan at $10/mo. that's $240 over the $249 price, or $489 total required.  For the $15/mo. individual plan for a tablet, it's only 300MB~ data/mo. and that would be $360 above the $249 cost, for a total $609 total price over two years.

  If you want that 4G data, 300MB/mo. won't be enough if you use it for web browsing, and it will cost another $15 per GB of add'l data in a month.

  If you do want 4G for your tablet (and why else would you buy the 4G model, except that it does offer 64GB storage space) and you already have a data plan on your smartphone, then that $120/yr to share your phone's data plan is worthwhile but they require a 2-year sign-up for that, so consider the $240 additional in your price comparisons.


"Amazon turns Cloud Drive into a Dropbox rival with file syncing."
  ArsTechnica's Jon Brodkin writes:

' "The new app for Windows and Mac now includes File Sync, which lets users easily store and access files in the Amazon Cloud from a folder on their computer," an Amazon spokesperson told Ars in an e-mail. "Files in this folder are automatically stored in Cloud Drive and can be accessed from a computer or the Web.

  When you install the app on a second computer all of your synced files are available there as well. The updated app makes it simple for users to put files in Cloud Drive and to access them from any of their computers, ensuring that they always have access to the latest version of their files from home and on the road."

... The desktop application supports all Windows versions from XP to 8 and Mac OS X 10.6, 10.7, and 10.8. '

Unfortunately, unlike Dropbox and Google Drive, it doesn't provide syncing to Android, iOS or other mobile platforms and apparently Amazon has "nothing specific to share" when asked about their future plans on that.


Kindle's Kindel
redOrbit's Enid Burns reports that Microsoft's former GM for their Windows Phone, Charlie Kindel, coyly updated his LinkedIn profile to post his new position at Amazon as "Director, Something Secret," per Mashable.  Burns wrote that Kindel added that he's working on "something wonderful" at Amazon.

  In her round up, Burns adds that GeekWire quotes Kindel's added description: "I’m building a new team going after a totally new area for Amazon.  I’m hiring cloud and mobile developers and testers, program managers, and product managers...”

  Burns points out:

' As mentioned in his LinkedIn profile, Kindel’s hire list suggests the secret project is related to a mobile product but also mentions cloud computing.  It is undetermined whether this could be a smartphone with cloud capabilities or a cloud-based service for smartphone users. '

That's the roundup for today.
(The photo used is of Google Earth on my Kindle Fire HD.)

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Kindle and Sprint/AT&T coverage / A borrowed Nook? UPDATE

UPDATE 11/6/09 - Original posting 11/3/09.
I have time to do only minimal reading when I get a connection, but I did get on just now and saw a new article re the Nook's problems with more details. I had not read about the more recent meetings between B&N and Spring, which I think is difficult for B&N while trying to release this product. It's from The Examiner. (San Francisco).  The newer information described this:

' Court documents state that Spring Design shared its design for its upcoming Alex ereader with a Barnes and Noble consultant on February 17 of this year, five days after both companies signed a non-disclosure agreement. On March 20, representatives from Spring Design met with the head of Barnes and Noble’s software development department, Ravi Gopalakrishnan. During the meeting, Mr. Gopalakrishnan allegedly stated that Barnes and Noble wanted a product that would compete with Amazon’s Kindle.

Spring Design alleges that a series of meetings between the two companies were then held in April and May, with several Barnes and Noble executives in attendance. During one of the meetings, representatives from Spring Design allegedly gave a product demonstration and showed a Powerpoint video of its Alex ereader to B&N.com president William Lynch and B&N CFO Kevin Frain. Spring Design alleges that Mr. Frain warned the company to avoid partnering with Amazon for content, due to the concern that Amazon would steal Spring Design’s idea for its ereader.

Spring Design alleges that Barnes and Noble made contact in July, requesting a summary of Spring Design’s product development. Barnes and Noble then held a meeting with Spring Design’s CEO on October 1 in order to discuss the possibility of revenue sharing for the Alex in the university textbook market. In its court filing, Spring Design alleges that Barnes and Noble “made no mention during that meeting or any other meeting with Spring that it was actually in the process of developing a device with many of the product features contained in the Spring design.” '

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I'm still on vacation, this time near Petra in Jordan and won't be back at the main computer for another week and there's not much time to get on, even if I can.  BUT I got on tonight and did some reading.

1. A PC World article proclaimed the current Sony Touch Edition superior to the Kindle without knowing that the Kindle has free 24-hr web access to sites everywhere, for U.S. residents, though it is far better to access mainly-text sites, since it is slow otherwise, and the writer assumed one can buy books only from Amazon, which regular readers of this blog know is completely untrue.  A Gizmodo reviewer who actually has used the Kindle and the Sony has good detail in his write-up, which I included a link to within an earlier blog entry.

  International customers now get Wikipedia free 24/7, which no other e-reader is offering, very useful for students or people who like to look up info.

2. Barnes & Noble's Nook e-reader won't exist as an actual useable product until December, and yet some writers consider it preferable to the Kindle, without ever seeing how it functions -- the attraction is based almost entirely on its looks, with a color LCD screen (battery drainer) for browsing books (or ads) below the b&w e-ink reading screen, although the fact that it will read ePub direct is a big plus.  The Kindle requires a conversion for that.

  Library rentals may be possible, but there is conflicting information from B&N on that. Loans to friends for 2 weeks will be a feature though some publishers have resisted this.

  It definitely will not have free 24/7 web access for U.S. residents (and Japan, Hong Kong, Mexico) as the Kindle does (worth at least $30/mo.).   Nor will it read books, articles, documents, etc., to you (though some would prefer it didn't).

  In the meantime, a company is suing Barnes & Noble for what it considers theft of the color LCD feature, as they showed it to B&N last January and B&N signed a non-disclosure agreement on that.

3. Getting to the first subject of the title, some have worried that our Kindle 2's and DX's will be negatively affected by the AT&T contract but assurances have been given to some customers that Sprint converage will continue for these domestic models.   Some comments to forums and to this blog in some of the entries indicate that if AT&T access isn't available in your area it will try to get another connection for you.

A US resident currently in Germany found she could use her web browser there.  We don't know if that was intended since wireless rates are higher there.

Others in the U.S. report that AT&T may not be available in their area while Sprint is, and vice versa.  When I get back I'll be looking into this.  In the meantime, here's one interesting thread with a lot of different experiences reported. Below are ways to Share this post if you'd like others to see it.
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(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!