Kindle News: Kindle DX Graphite quietly available again while Kindle Keyboard ("K3") is not shown available anywhere

...When what to my wondering eyes should appear...

...but a miniature eReader that's not so miniature, on the Kindle Family product page banner.

  Alongside the 6" readers suddenly redisplayed is the 9.7" Kindle DX Graphite E-Ink Kindle with the Pearl Screen with more contrast (resembling etched text) that was released in late 2010 and the disappearance of it lamented by those who want a larger screen for easier reading and fewer page turns, even though it was far more expensive than a 6" device and still is.

  I was alerted to these changes by the ever-watchful Nate Hoffelder and his The Digital Reader site.

At the right are my own Kindle Keyboard (KK or K3) next to my DX Graphite to show the size differences in the real world.

  If you click on it, you'll get enlarged, zoomed-in versions of the photos plus some other photos when pressing 'previous' or 'next' on the right of those pages or using the keyboard left and right arrows (sometimes).

  The image is apropos because the Kindle Keyboard, aka Kindle 3, shown has, on the other hand, quietly disappeared from availability for U.S., UK, and Int'l areas.

  I'd read a news site report that there were rumors that the Kindle Keyboard would not be continued as a new-purchase reader (with refurbished or used ones available) but didn't think more about it.
  It seems to be an unnoted discontinuance as there is no wording to encourage people to wait for any to be in stock.  They do not know if they'll become available again for new purchases.

  The larger DX, now that it's back and even showing in the 'Kindle family' banner, may fill a need for an eInk reader with audio capability and larger storage space as well as the larger display of text and a long battery life relative to LCD color tablets.

It is NOT 'touch' though - there's a physical keyboard on the Kindle DX although I'd never call it easy to type on.  I always have to watch what I'm typing when I do annotations or searches.

The Graphite model, at the time of its release received International 3G.  As with other e-Ink Kindles, the 3G is used for downloading of books, magazines and and for free 24/7 access to Wikipedia).

 Here's some info I added late last year when they were having a sale on the DX, for $299, the current pricing they are showing in red letters.

The Kindle DX Graphite

For more on what the DX Graphite model is like, here are Day 1 reports on it in the Kindle forums after it was released

  Also, here are reactions to the DXG by the tough-minded Mobileread Forum folks, a crowd which tended to favor the Sony display before the Kindle Graphite DX was released.

A 6" Kindle? Or the largish 9.7" DX?
This was a common question I was asked at the time.  I wrote a blog article, when the first Kindle DX was released, about questions you should ask yourself before deciding between a smaller, more carryable Kindle and the larger, more readable one.

  The advice would be the same for the current 6" models and the DX Graphite Kindle though, except that the current 6" Kindle Keyboard, Kindle Touch and Paperwhite have considerably darker fonts than the old Kindle 2 had.

Screen examples of older DX model (White) with fewer features, showing PDFs, landscape mode, sheet music
Here are examples of material (PDFs and sheet music) as displayed on my older Kindle DX before they improved the model with the DX Graphite which has darker fonts and higher contrast.
  These will still give you an idea.  Click "next" at upper-right of the image page to get more examples as you go.

I've no idea why the Kindle Keyboard is being phased out (if it is -- you never know, as they suddenly bring back older models, as with the DX this week), but the following may be factors in the disappearance of the Kindle Keyboard and the return of the DX Graphite keyboard.

  1. Too many models of the same size confuse prospective customers
  2. Less demand, on the whole, for 6" e-Ink displays (with the Kindle Paperwhite being such a hit with everyone I know, at least locally), leaving EInk Holdings with fewer mass orders from other makers (pure conjecture on my part), leading to more competitive pricing.
  3. Economies of scale that make it less expensive to produce the larger display now.

Nevertheless, the DX at $299 is more expensive than the 16 GB Kindle Fire HD tablet, but it offers the ability to read text outdoors and has a battery life 25 days or so longer.  I tend to ask people to look at the pricing for 32GB LCD tablets (rather than the 16GB ones) when comparing prices, because 16 GB is not enough comfortable storage space now when dealing with multimedia files.

These are different animals (eInk vs LCD tablets) but $299 ($300) is not trivial.  It'll all depend on personal needs or wants.  It's timely, as many who already own one have asked on forums how they can ever get another one if their current DX should meet its maker someday (I'm not talking Taiwan).  It's a niche device though.  Personally, I'm glad it's back though mine is still going strong, since I revolve use with a 6" Paperwhite and HD tablets.


  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

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!

Kindle News: Kindle DX Graphite $299 on the product page ($80 less)

Amazon has quietly changed the price on the DX Graphite from $379 to $299 - at least for today.

The DXG is back in the 'Kindle Family' header (where I haven't seen it since September 5, although it has been in the comparison table on product pages).

  Commenter QZA reported seeing the lower pricing at the "Caribbean Amazon" and I checked the U.S. page, and sure enough, it's $299 with no wording on the drop from $379, although it's no surprise they'd ultimately reduce the price now that LCD tablets of similar size (~10") are more economical than they were two years ago when the DX Graphite was released.

  I don't see it in Amazon's Gold Box or Lightning deals today, so it's probably more than short-term, but I have nothing to go on.

Kindle DX has 3G access but not WiFi
Kindle DX includes Free 3G wireless that works globally, like the Kindle Keyboard.  It does not have WiFi.  Here's Amazon's wording on the product page [emphases mine] :

' Wireless Access to Wikipedia
Kindle DX also includes free built-in access to the world's most exhaustive and up-to-date encyclopedia--Wikipedia.org. With Kindle DX in hand, looking up people, places, events and more has never been easier. It gives whole new meaning to the phrase walking encyclopedia.

Search
Kindle DX's keyboard makes it easy to search within a book, across your library, in the Kindle Store, or even the Web.  To use the Search feature, simply type in a word or phrase you're looking for, and Kindle finds every instance in your book or across your Kindle library. Looking for the first reference of a character in your book? Simply type in the name and search.  You can extend your search to the Kindle Store to find related titles you may be interested in.  Explore even further by searching Wikipedia and the Web.  Web access is not currently available for some customers outside the U.S.  Check your country '

Bear in mind that the web access is ULTRA slow on e-Ink and can tax anyone's patience, but it is useful when you have a need for it to quickly check mobile versions of email webpages or to do lookups that are primarily text-based.

 Amazon UK has a page on the countries in which the 3G can be used when UK (or US) residents are traveling there.  I just updated it as it's now 59 countries rather than 61, with Russia and the Ukraine not included in that table now.

The Kindle DX Graphite
If you click on the image at the top of today's blog, you'll get the larger image.  Then if you click on "Next" while there -- at the top-right while viewing, there's a zoomed in version of that photo so that you can see the font display better.

For more on the DX Graphite model, here are Day 1 reports on it in the Kindle forums after it was released

  Also, here are reactions to the DXG by the tough-minded Mobileread Forum folks, a crowd which tended to favor the Sony display before the Kindle Graphite DX was released.

A 6" Kindle? Or the largish 9.7" DX?
This was a common question I was asked at the time.  I wrote a blog article, when the first Kindle DX was released, about questions you should ask yourself before deciding between a smaller, more carryable Kindle and the larger, more readable one.

  The advice would be the same for the current 6" models and the DX Graphite Kindle though, except that the current 6" Kindle Keyboard, Kindle Touch and Paperwhite have considerably darker fonts than the old Kindle 2 had.

Screen examples of older DX model (White) showing PDFs, landscape mode, sheet music
Here are examples of material (PDFs and sheet music) as displayed on my older Kindle DX before they improved the model with the DX Graphite which has darker fonts and higher contrast.
  These will still give you an idea.  Click "next" at upper-right of the image page to get more examples as you go.

I use the Kindle Fire more, but for many PDFs, I reach for the DX Graphite, as it's easier on the eyes for more sustained reading.  The words look etched on the screen and fewer page turns are needed, but it's also heavier.  I've used it only in the house but brought the DX with me on a 3-week trip to Egypt where I wanted to be able to check the many diagrams I'd saved from web articles.

---

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!

Black Friday Week Deal - Kindle DX Graphite 9.7" $259

THE 9.7" KINDLE DX DEAL FOR NOV.24-28

This is normally $379, so it's a $120 savings.  It's a favorite of some of us who use it for PDFs and books with complex illustrations with small print.  It uses the same Pearl screen as the Kindle 3 and Kindle Touch but my entire Kindle 3 fits into the screen area of the DX, so it's easier on the eyes, though obviously it'll weigh more.

  It has NO WiFi capability and uses only 3G (Cellular network access), with which you can download books just about anywhere without looking for a WiFi spot -- and the experimental web browser through that 3G capability is still usable, free, for U.S. citizens and customers in about 61 countries, which Amazon UK lists and I reference at this page, which has more information and the link to the Amazon UK table.

  With a discount this big, I don't know what the future of this particular model is, but many of us have depended on it for comfortable e-Ink reading of PDFs (which can be fully rotated and zoomed using rectangular areas).

  Here are working images of my own DX (I had the DX US only and now have the DX Graphite US/Int'l).

Reaction to DX Graphite by tougher MobileRead forum's Sony stalwarts at time of release last August.


Kindle DailyDeal
While I'm at it, here's today's Kindle Daily Deal book
  Raising Jake, by Charlie Carillo, 139 customer reviews, 4.5 stars
  Wednesday's price: $8.69,  Thursday's discount: $7.70
  Thursday's Kindle Daily Deal Price: $0.99 (89% off)
"...In this coming-of-age tale, there's often a question of who is parenting whom.  Carillo, a former reporter for the New York Post, has an easy way with breezy prose and likable characters." -- Publishers Weekly


If books won't do it, a more general special Amazon has is their Holiday Toy List through Dec. 24. 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!

Video Comparison of 4 E-readers + another Nook and Kindle Face-off

Len Edgerly's whimsically titled Wolf Hall Tournament of Ereaders video is a comparison of features and functioning of four e-readers and is the newest feature at his The Reading Edge site, which has interesting reports and interviews in connection with the many e-readers available currently.  Here's the direct link to Len's blog report with embedded video.

 To get the larger version of the video, click on the top left image or the link at the left.

 Len loves e-readers and buys them to try them out, not waiting for review copies.  In this case, he also bought 4 copies of the "Wolf Hall" book because the alleged 'standard' of ePub between books with digital-rights-management added to the book files is not quite standard yet.  Nooks can read Sony books sometimes but not vice versa, Adobe holds the DRM reins, and the book vendors tend to add something a bit different to theirs.  Despite talking to customer support at a couple of e-book stores, there was no support given to Len for using other vendors' files on the e-readers.

The 4 e-readers reviewed for effectiveness of functions are the Sony Pocket Reader, the Kobo Reader, the Barnes & Noble Nook, and the Amazon Kindle 2.   The Sony PRS-600 has known glare and contrast issues due to an additional layer for a touch screen, and Len did not keep his, so it's not included.  Also, it doesn't have wireless at all, for the higher price.  The Sony Pocket Reader and the Kobo are on a more equal level as they both have no wireless to speak of and no basic study features such as inline-dictionary, searches for a character, highlighting or notes.   The Sony Pocket reader has long been popular for its "pocket"ability and easy-to-read contrast-ratio, but the Kobo has a slightly larger screen.

Seldom do online gadget reviews go into how the advertised features actually function and even tend to not mention basic ones like the dictionary, search, and annotations many like to use with an e-reader.  The few I have seen that do discuss functioning include the recent Laptop Magazine report on the Kindle DX Graphite and one on Sony readers by Willson Rothman of Gizmodo.
  A favorite for its description of how Kindle features work, in general, is by boygeniusreport.com, done for the Kindle 2, which Len uses for the video comparison.  And there's one by Jacqui Cheng at Ars Technica actually describing how the new software update's features work.

  That's especially what I like about the video.  Len lists features important to him and shows HOW each is implemented on the two e-book readers that have screens unimpeded by an extra layer of glass and which happen to be the two leading e-readers in sales today -- the Nook and the Kindle 2.

  There'll be a new Nook soon (Nook 2 and the new Kindle 3 (and UK Kindle 3) in late August.  We know what the Kindle 3 will have but have no idea what the new Nook 2 features will be.  In this video, you'll see how each handles (1) dictionary look-ups, (2) searches for a character's name or mentions in a book, and (3) highlighting and note-taking as well as how to find a highlight or note you made.

  These are key differences and most reviewers have not gone into the functioning of these features vs other e-book readers at all.  So Len has done quite a service here.   It's 28.5 minutes long, so set aside some time to watch it if you're curious about the differences between these models.

  The one thing I'd like in the future is Len using a tripod behind him and showing the full model or full screen as he shows the functioning, because the close-ups can take you out of context, and often the video-camera doesn't focus fast enough when going close-up anyway.  The actual words are not as important as the actions with the screen and sometimes keyboard in full view. Closeups could be added as needed later.

  But I've seen no one else do such a clear comparison of book readers before, showing how features are implemented on each.  And Len Edgerly's presentation is devoid of the 'seller' characteristics you often see with video reports.  He likes what he likes, with reasons given, and is enthusiastic, but he's also fair-minded and open and an e-reader/gadget addict who cannot have enough of them :-).

  The surprise for many is usually the password-protected, private webpage we have at Amazon (if we approve server backup of our annotations) that shows all our highlighting and notes for each book we download from Amazon, in chronological order and copyable to a text file so we can edit the notes in a separate document, and of course is printable.
  It's really an amazingly helpful private webpage which I never saw mentioned in college pilot studies feedback.  In fact, students in those studies reported difficulty with just highlighting (which I find easy to do).  What i like is you can UNhighlight too :-), something hard to do with a physical book.  But notes typed in are slow-going with that keyboard.  However, I prefer it to a hard, flat-surfaced virtual one.

  Now that the annotations webpage has been modified by Amazon to include the Facebook and Twitter features, I should add that the most useful first page there is the one listing your books, showing which ones have or don't have annotations, etc.  Here's a sample of a page showing a selected book and annotations for it.

Len has written about the Wolf Hall video in conversations on Twitter and in comments at Youtube and feels he should have mentioned the Nook's "Lend me" feature, which is better than no lending feature but, if the publisher allows the feature, the loan of a Nook book is restricted to one loan ever, for each book, for 2 weeks max.

  Kindlers compare that with how the account-sharing plan is implemented at Amazon, in which a book can be shared among 6 devices on an account, with no mention of 'household' or 'family.'  Kindle Customer support helps with the how's of registration and deregistation of other individuals' Kindles on your account, and many spouses use the feature, so that one book can be read at the same time by both for one purchase.  One would have to put a lot of trust in anyone who uses that account as the account owner is responsible for all the charges.  There is a long-running Amazon Kindle forum thread on how Kindle-owners use the feature.

  Where the Nook and Kobo shine is the ability to borrow public library e-books - a rich feature for a city with a large collection of these (New York City) but less exciting in many other areas.  Check with your local library.  I wish Amazon had the fortitude to work out arrangements with libraries.
  That's a primary factor for some, but if it's not very important on a personal level then how an e-reader works will be key.  And Len's video will give you a very good idea.


E-reader Faceoff: Kindle or Nook? Here's a Written Comparison
Also appearing last night is a short article by Mark W. Smith for Free Press (freep.com).  An excerpt:

' The big difference here is the Nook's small color touch screen at the bottom of the device. The Kindle features a physical keyboard and a handy five-way rocker button for navigation. The Nook's color touch screen is nice, but the navigation can feel disjointed as you touch one screen to move the cursor on another. And the bright color display can be distracting while you read. '

He has good advice on choosing wireless options and lists unique advantages of each e-reader over the other.


Kindle 3   (UK: Kindle 3),   DX Graphite

---

Check often: Temporarily-free late-listed non-classics or recently published ones
  Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources.  Top 100 free bestsellers.
    Also, UK customers should see the UK store's Top 100 free bestsellers. 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!