Kindle News: The Kindle e-reader among "best tech when going off the grid"

Ars Technica highlights the author's cousin's use of the Kindle Keyboard 3G for keeping in touch while away with the Peace Corps in a remote area of the world

  The article by Ars Technica's Cyrus Farivar, about his cousin Martin do Nascimento's use of a Kindle to keep in touch, doesn't make clear that it's the Keyboard version (UK: KK-3G) rather than the Touch version of the Kindle.  The old keyboard version's 3G can be used in about 60 countries for things like very slow web browsing and e-mail.

  So, I did want to clear that up while also linking to the story, as it's a good example of what Amazon has kept available in the slower keyboard Kindle3 e-reader (and 9.7" DX) since 2009 when they first allowed Kindles to access 3G in the rest of the world (where it is available with Amazon's carrier agreements) for more than downloading Kindle books or accessing Wikipedia at no add'l cost.

  Besides the usual (for Amazon) free cellular network usable for 3G Kindle books downloading that is so convenient when you don't have to go look for WiFi (something Penguin Group found too convenient for public library borrowing), the free Wikipedia access is still part of the newer Kindle Touch models as well -- and 24/7 free 3G access to Wikipedia can be very useful for students and other curious people.
  However, 'Touch'  can definitely be more 'cool' than a not-easily-used physical flat-keyed keyboard and a 5-way button for up/down/sideways.

 But the special 3G e-mail and web capability featured in the story is available only on the old Kindle 3G keyboard model.  It's clunky but it works.

'...this little, relatively cheap device has been a godsend for him in 2012, with its worldwide 3G Internet. Even though Martin lives in a remote area, I hear from him nearly every day by e-mail.

"Most of my e-mails I write on my Kindle," he told me recently (by cell phone this time). "I use it to stay in touch with friends, even [through] Facebook. The Kindle’s not fantastic by any means, but I can read my e-mail reliably... '

Farivar mentions he can't gift his cousin in Nicaragua a Kindle book because e-mail attachments are not possible, and I think that the Kindle book-gifting feature isn't available for people currently located outside the U.S. (due to world-wide digital rights problems).

  He does mention the battery life being excellent and we've seen this in events such as earthquakes or other disasters when smartphones had short lives and some were able to get through with their longer-battery-lived Kindle keyboards instead.

The article is about how to keep in touch when away, generally, so there are tips for iPhone user and Android handset users too, with software recommendations and a unique website for paid text-to-email service recommended if necessary.  The image they use for the article is of someone using an iPhone but I linked to their article and included a smaller version of the image they are using.  It's so much nicer than seeing yet another image of a gadget!  ;-)

I have an ongoing article about the countries in which this feature works for the Kindle Keyboard (K3) model, and the countries-table highlighted is used by Amazon UK on their website to make it more clear for their own customers (the table applies to Amazon in general).

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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.

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Amazon Kindle Team ANSWERS on the Kindle Touch 3G web-browsing in 3G Question - Update

Kindle Team responds at the Amazon Kindle forum thread. At the link, you'll see the now clear answer to the questions asked over the last 3 days:

'Posted on Oct 2, 2011 4:42:59 PM PDT

The Amazon Kindle team says:
(AMAZON OFFICIAL)

We apologize for the confusion. Our new Kindle Touch 3G enables you to connect to the Kindle Store, download books and periodicals, and access Wikipedia - all over 3G or Wi-Fi.

Experimental web browsing (outside of Wikipedia) on Kindle Touch 3G is only available over Wi-Fi.

Our Kindle Keyboard 3G will continue to offer experimental web browsing over 3G or Wi-Fi. '

All bolding mine, of course, to emphasize the most salient points.


  Finally! Thanks, KTeam.  I do appreciate the confirmation, too, that the Kindle Keyboard 3G model (UK: Kindle Keybd 3G) will continue to allow the experimental free web browsing.

Update - To see which countries or areas have the experimental free 3G web browsing enabled on the Kindle Keyboard 3G (Kindle 3 3G-model), see the Listing of Countries with free 3G web-browsing enabled, which references an always-updated table put online at Amazon. UK.

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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 3G 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

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.

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(Older posts have older Kindle model info. For latest models, see CURRENT KINDLES page. )
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Consumer Reports releases new ratings report on E-readers - Update

Consumer Report has released its latest survey of e-readers, and they have the Kindle at the top again.
  Click the image at the left to see the video.

 The video linked to at the left explains that the iPad was not included because they were testing the category of dedicated e-readers and the iPad is essentially a multimedia tablet and computer that also functions as an e-reader.
  They add that it's considerably more expensive while having an LCD screen which "is fine, though it is slightly less crisp than that of the best e-book readers" and is also quite a bit heavier than the dedicated readers they test and portability was a feature important to the set.  "Consumer Reports recommends buying the iPad for e-books only if consumers are willing to compromise to get a multifunction device."

Consumer Reports has its full story and ratings behind a paywall, but KABC's story on the CR report has a few quotes:

' "I'd say the color screens are almost impossible to read outdoors," said Rich Fisco, Consumer Reports.  "On the other hand the e-ink screens are almost like reading a real book."

In the end, Consumer Reports gave top ratings to the 3G Kindle, which costs $189.

"It's the best reader we've ever tested," said Paul Reynolds, a tester with Consumer Reports. "The type is crisp and easy to read. The battery life is outstanding, as is the speed of the page turns."

But you can save money buying the $139 Kindle, which is identical to the 3G except you can only download content via Wi-Fi.'

  Amazon Kindle forum regular Fool for Books points out that the Amazon Kindle Community Forum has had many notes from customers who had to upgrade their $139 WiFi only models almost immediately because they had not understood that in order to use 'wireless WiFi' in the home when one doesn't have the 3G cellular wireless feature (which all past Kindles have had), they had to have set up a WiFi network in their home -- which itself also brings expenses, while the top model with 3G cellphone-type wireless carries no additional costs for even the added feature of looking up info on the web, in about 61 countries) from almost anymore.

  See the blog article on differences between 3G/WiFi and WiFi-only access.

  Consumer Reports also recommends the Barnes and Noble Nook. "It doesn't score quite as high as the Kindle, but you can use it to download free library books.  The Kindle doesn't accept library books," said Reynolds."

I subscribe to Consumer Reports online and it's really worth the $26 or so per year as you can search it.  On the Recommended readers, there were these interesting comments and scores (excerpted):

' Best choices for use everywhere:
Amazon Kindle 3G + Wi-Fi -- 72
The best e-book reader we've ever tested, and one of the lightest and slimmest.  Superior page turns and the most readable type we've seen.  A jumbo font size and text-to-speech capability are boons for the sight-impaired.  Among the few models that doesn't support library rentals, however...

Barnes & Noble nook 3G + Wi-Fi -- 56
Though among the more challenging devices to use, due in part to its dual screens, it's also among the highest-scoring models that allow e-book rentals from public libraries, a potential cost-saver...

Best values
...you can load new content wirelessly only via Wi-Fi. These versions are better buys than their pricier siblings, unless you expect to frequently need new content when you're out of range of a Wi-Fi network.

Amazon Kindle Wi-Fi -- 68
[Same description as for the 3G-included model above]

Barnes & Noble nook Wi-Fi -- 53
[Same description as for the 3G-included model above] '

Consumer Reports always neglects to mention that the 3G on a Kindle allows you to use Wikipedia or to look up info anywhere on the Net, from your book, when on a bus or at the park or beach or at the dentist's office :-) etc...and that the now 3-yr experimental Free 3G Web Browser that does not confine you to the company store (nor carries a charge for web lookups) differentiates it from the other models to a considerable degree ... not to mention that it's WebKit based and faster than the earlier browsers.

  Also, this 3G instant downloading of Kindle books is available to you in other countries when you're traveling -- in about 100 countries -- a unique feature of the Kindle since no other e-readers offer this -- and allows you free web access in over 60 countries.   I suppose this is considered a non-feature.  It amazes me that a serious comparison of e-readers is done without mentioning this.

' If you need a big screen:
This newest DX is suitable mostly for those with a large budget who plan to read a lot of textbooks, with large diagrams etc. it's a fine performer, with very readable type and page turns are only slightly slower than its fleet 6-inch sibling.

[Other e-reader scores in descending order]
    [The new Sonys were "In testing"]
enTourage eDGe -- 54
Pandigital Novel -- 50
BeBook Neo -- 50
Spring Design Alex -- 49
Aluratek Libre eBook -- 46
ViewSonic VEB620 -- 44
Kobo eReader -- 40
Augen The Book -- 40 '

The Kindles are the only ones with full red-circle 'Excellent' ratings for Readability.   For Navigation, they share that with the Pan Digital Novel.

From what I've seen in the news, the new Sonys will, after testing, wind up with best marks for Navigation due to its touch screen --  also, for flexibility of annotations, except that the Kindle annotations are backed up, and all your highlighting and notes are available to you on a private, password protected Amazon webpage, ready for not only viewing easily but also copyable for editing in a separate text file on your computer.

  That's invaluable for those studying a subject and needing to make reports.  It's also great for just reviewing the aspects of a book that were important to you or for use in discussing the book in a book club.  (You can also choose to disable backups of annotations.)

  The Sony with comparable features (though not free 3G web lookups) and the touchscreen carries a price about $100 more than the Kindle and Nook and is said to be very well made.


Kindle 3's   (UK: Kindle 3's),   DX Graphite

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Check often: Temporarily-free late-listed non-classics or recently published ones
  Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources.  Top 100 free bestsellers.
UK-Only: recently published non-classics, bestsellers, or highest-rated ones
    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.

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(Older posts have older Kindle model info. For latest models, see CURRENT KINDLES page. )
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Staples to sell Kindle 3's and DXG this Fall in 1500+ stores

Staples will carry the three current Kindle models starting this Fall, which is just about here, and there is one store about 3 blocks from where I am.

  It's all over the news but I first heard it from an anonymous commenter at this blog, and I think it's great news.

  They have knowledgeable computer and electronics staff there, which will be a benefit for customers.

  In other news, Borders' Kobo reader has lowered its price to $129.  You can search 'kobo' at the top right here to get previous articles here about the Kobo reader.

  Wall St. Journal story on Borders and Kobo is here.


Kindle 3  (3G/WiFi or WiFi-only) (UK: Kindle 3),   DX Graphite

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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.

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(Older posts have older Kindle model info. For latest models, see CURRENT KINDLES page. )
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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

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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!

New Zealand gets the Kindle. Non-Amazon e-books for Kindle - how to get them

New Zealand is finally getting the Kindle 3, according to this report by Stuff in New Zealand and the linked Amazon product page.

 The Kindle will be meeting Whitcoulls' Kobo e-reader head-on there, and the Stuff news reporter believes the company PR that the Kobo "appears to have a much larger range of e-books available; more than two million [books]," but this includes the 500,000 free Google Books and the 30,000 Project Gutenberg books.   The free Google Books are also available for the Kindle in two ways - see:

1. How to get a free Google book converted to Kindle format (for free, by the Retroread site, or with the flexible free utility Calibre), and also

2. check out how to download to the Kindle the Project Gutenberg Magic Catalog of 30,000 free e-books which allows Kindle owners to browse and search the catalog and then click to download what they want in Kindle's "MOBI" format (with no download charges in both cases).

  A thorough review of the Kobo is at Laptop Magazine, and what is unusual is that it will be more expensive than the Kindle while having no 3G or WiFi features, no built-in dictionary, no Search feature, no highlighting and notes and it is much criticized for being unusually slow, even for an e-Ink reader.  How this unit stays at all competitive now unless the company upgrades the unit is a real question.  Its website has a comparison chart that has not modified the Nook or Kindle pricing though they've been lowered for about 3 weeks.

Stuff has some good news for New Zealanders in that Martin Taylor, the director of the Digital Publishing Forum says the group expects to launch a digital warehouse that would let publishers manage and distribute e-books in the next few months.
  "We're working with about 40 local publishers who have put their hands up and I would guess hundreds, possibly a thousand, New Zealand books will be available [through the warehouse], {which will} broker with e-book distributors on behalf of publishers and the forum is in talks with several e-book retailers now, including Amazon and Whitcoulls.

Many other sources for free e-books direct to the Kindle at no charge are also mentioned at the Finding Free Kindle Books and Sources page, which I'll redo soon, as it's not well-organized for all the info that's there.  That info is on most footers of the blog articles here.


Kindle 3   (UK: Kindle 3),   DX Graphite

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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!