Kindle

[charlesr]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B002Y27P46?ref_=pe_1941_22367271

Apparantly the Kindle is the best selling product on amazon.co.uk at the moment
I don't know anyone who has one. Anyone here got any impressions?

[Dogg Thang]

I find that very difficult to believe. I know one person who has one but haven't yet seen one in the flesh. Supposed to be great though. For a reader.

Edit: Actually, I may have seen one in the flesh. My memory is failing me. One of the old white ones. Screen looked good, if I remember.

[Zaki]

They are lovely And so many free books available for download!

[Brats]

I haven't got a Kindle, but recently I've been completely converted to the idea of e-books. I read them on my iPhone 4 which I find perfectly fine. The Kindle has a bigger screen and e-ink so I would presume it would only be better.

The main benefits are the ability to buy a book in seconds depending on what you fancy from a huge library, books are cheaper (and sometimes free), form factor, the dictionary function (which is brilliant), no more issues about losing your page or the book mark falling out and best of all, no-one else has any idea what you're reading.

I'm reading Jonathan Frantzen's Freedom at the moment, but I could be reading The Cat in the Hat and not feel self conscious about it.

The only disadantage is that I wouldn't take a Kindle or similar in the bath for fear of dropping it, but I'm more of a shower person anyway.

[Kieran76]

Saw one the other week and I was impressed. The screen looks ace and it was a lot lighter than I thought it would be. My friends are big readers and when I have been on holiday with them they have always taken loads of books so I can see why they would want one.

[fuse]

Must admit, I think the new one looks very good for the price. Haven't played with one yet but the price point and the features are fantastic.

[Jaz]

Doesn't the iPad render the kindle irrelevant tho?

[smouty]

I have one. It is very good for its intended usage but the screen is a little smaller than a regular paperback (wait for new DX) and the interface is a bit clunky but overall it is OK for the price. I have most books in epub format which means they have to be converted for kindle but not too difficult with Calibre.

Doesn't the iPad render the kindle irrelevant tho?

Not at all. The kindle is a single use device which it does very well. The battery life is weeks long and you can read in bright daylight which is what you want for your holiday reading.

[Bort]

Kindle is our #1 bestselling item for two years running.

Spin spin spin.

Due to strong customer demand, current quantity limit is 5 Kindle devices per customer.

Only 5! So so popular.

I've been tempted to get a ebook reader but I've been holding back to see how the tablet market goes in 2011.

[abigsmurf]

I've one of the latest kindles. They're incredibly nice. Extremely light and very high contrast. Also are very very cheap.

It's not too unbelievable they're the best selling item at Amazon. It's the only place you can get them from and they were out of stock for something like a month after launch.

LCD screens simply can't compete with e-ink. It's just like reading on paper, you get very little eyestrain compared to an LCD. Then there's the battery life. The Kindle will last a week of fairly heavy reading.

[jimmbob]

I wouldn't take a Kindle or similar in the bath for fear of dropping it, but I'm more of a shower person anyway.

I wouldn't take one in the shower either tbh. Even the new slim model.


I think the advantage the kindle has over the iPad as a reader, is battery life. I'm yet to get mine, but I have used a Kindle and they are very good at what they do.
Also, Steven Fry loves them, and considering they aren't made by Apple that's praise indeed.

[egparadigm]

I'd like to have something like this to read PDFs on. I bought those Retro Gamer DVDs, but it's such a hassle to print them out and they look crap on plain paper.

A friend of mine has one. She was given it by the college she works for to test as a possible resource for students. I saw someone in a coffee shop t'other day with an e-Reader, not sure if it was a Kindle.

[wakka]

I have one of the new Kindles, it's awesome. I have to read lots and lots of literature for my degree and I can carry them all around in this tiny light device with about a month of battery life. The iPad is great and I'd love one, but I don't think it would actually be nearly as practical for e-reading.

[Brats]

I wouldn't take one in the shower either tbh. Even the new slim model.

I find the slim model can be held between the water drops.

Personally I find reading the IPhone's 4 retina display perfect for reading, even for long periods. Obviously the phones battery life can't compete with a Kindle, but as it's a phone I charge it every day anyway. The advantage I find is that I always have 'my book' on me, so if I suddenly find I have a spare 20 minutes and I can get reading.

[Mad Gear]

I bought one for the missus's birthday a couple of weeks ago and she loves it. It's very light, thin, the battery lasts forever and free 3G to download stuff.

The only downer was the specific cases are very overpriced.