"5 reasons I don't have a Kindle"

[Harvey]

Blogger Jonathan Henderson gives a contrarian view of Kindle:

LINK: http://www.jonathanhenderson.com/2007/12/5_reasons_i_dont_have_a_kindle.html

5. It's Too Expensive. A book reader is, or at least should be, a single function product: You use it to read books. It's not a computer, it's not a web browser, it's not an MP3 player. It's a device to read books. And using the time-honored analogy of the razor and razor blades, the reader itself simply should not cost very much money. My Rocket eBook was $199.00. My Palm Tungsten was $179.000. An iPod is $149.00. A Blu-Ray player is $299.00. An Nintendo Wii is $249.00. And Amazon wants to charge me $399.00 for a device to read books? I don't think so. An electronic book reader should cost no more than $150.00 maximum, and should preferably be under $100.00.

4. The Books are Copy-Protected. DRM (Digital Rights Management) rears its ugly head yet again. I am especially disappointed to see Amazon taking this tact, since they have done such a nice job with their MP3 store. I've spent over $100.00 at Amazon's MP3 store since they started, and I'm going to be spending a lot more over the coming year now that they have 3 of the 4 record labels supplying them with content.

Books for the Kindle are in a proprietary, copy-protected format. It's such a closed format, in fact, that there is no way to simply copy your own material to the device - you have to email a document to Amazon, pay a fee, and then have them send the converted document back to you. A collection of books, just like a collection of music, is something I like to keep forever. Purchasing a book in some transitory, proprietary format that I cannot even back up is of no interest to me. An electronic book reader should use an open format and should not use any form of DRM or copy protection. Ideally, it should also read multiple formats, with PDF at the top of the list.

3. The Screen is Too Small. The Kindle uses exactly the same screen as the Sony Reader. The good news here is that the screen quality is excellent: it actually looks as good as a printed page. The high contrast black and white screen with very high resolution print is just the breakthrough that has been needed in order to make an electronic book reader a viable product. But after playing with a Sony Reader for a while, and after comparing it to a paperback book, a trade paperback, and a normal-size hardcover, it was clear that the 6" screen is just plain too small.

Here's my simple rule of thumb: Get a physical paperback edition and an electronic edition of the same book. Turn to a page. They should be identical. With the 6" screen the Kindle uses, that is not the case: there is always less text on the Kindle's screen. This means that a 300 page printed book ends up as a 400 page Kindle book, for example (I'm approximating, since I do not have a Kindle to do the actual comparison with). And the small size just doesn't feel like a book. Pick up a trade paperback or a hardcover book; an electronic book reader should have the same screen size as the printed page on any of those, including page headers and footers. Assuming the same screen technology used by the Kindle and the Sony Reader, an electronic book reader should have a screen that is at least 8" tall and 5" wide (9.5" diagonal), and should be able to support page-for-page matching between the printed version and the electronic version of the same book.

2. The Books are Too Expensive. I place this one a lot higher than the device costs, because if all the other issues were dealt with, I'd probably be willing to pay more for the device itself. However, an electronic book must always be cheaper than the paperback version of a book. And right now this is not the case.

Amazon is trying to get away with comparing the hardcover price with the Kindle version price, in order to justify their price range of $9.95 to $7.95 for electronic books. Sorry, folks, but that's not the comparison. Let's take The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini as an example. The paperback version of this book is $8.99. The Kindle version of this book is $8.99 - the same price. But - I can give the paperback book to someone else. I can keep it forever. I can make copies of it if I need to. I can re-bind the book in 20 years. I can re-read it 10 years from now just by pulling it off the shelf. I can't do any of these things with the Kindle version - and yet it's exactly the same price. Why would I ever bother with the electronic version? Books for an electronic reader should be priced well below the price of the paperback version of the same book - at least $2.00 cheaper, in my opinion, since there are no physical costs associated with it. And that's assuming that all of my other points have been addressed. If the book is copy-protectecd, it should be at least $4.00 less than the paperback!

1. The Kindle is Butt Ugly. This is the 21st century. We expected our devices to look like it. Look at an Apple iPhone, a Toyota Prius, a Panasonic plasma TV, a Samsung laser printer, an iPod Nano, even a single cup coffee maker. I expect smooth lines, smart design. I expect gadgets that are as beautiful to look at and as pleasing to the touch as the best of these. Asking me to pay $400 for something that looks like it was designed by a Soviet planning committee is not going to cut it. I mean, look at this thing! It's all sharp edges and angles. It's the same bland off-white color as generic PC's from the 1990s. The keyboard (and why the hell does a book reader even need a keyboard, anyway?) looks like it belongs on a Fisher-Price toy.

The whole look of the device is just wrong. It looks cheap and flimsy - even though it is neither. In an age of shiny piano black surfaces, aluminum finishes, aerodynamic shapes and streamlined edges, the Amazon Kindle is an orphan. I get the impression someone designed the shape and layout about 20 years ago, and has just been waiting for the technology to finally allow it to be built. Amazon should have hired a high-end industrial designer and made this product a beauty, something to show off, instead of something to keep hidden under a cover so that no one could see it. An electronic book reader should be attractive, sleek, and well designed.

So, Amazon, no sale to me. I thought for sure the Kindle would flop big time, and yet when I checked Amazon for information while writing this entry, I see that they are currently sold out. Obviously, quite a lot of customers don't have the misgivings that I do. I'll just keep waiting. My guess is it will take another 5 years or so until an electronic book reader appears that follows all 5 of my suggestions. I look forward to writing a glowing review of that product at such time as I can get one.

Sadly, however, the Amazon Kindle is not that device.

[Celeste]

I have to say that I agree with most of the points made -however- I think that in this case, it is not to their extreme benefit to make a high tech looking gizmo gadget. They are already fighting against the nostalgia of an actual book, so keeping it is as simple as possible would be best. After all, people associate reading as something contrary to technology (at least I do), so I don't want to be reminded of my Zune / iPod / Mac / lap top.
I do agree that the screen should be bigger.
I also want to mention how inconvenient it is to have a Kindle in a family format. Unless each family member owns their own Kindle, only one member can ever be reading at one time. Families often read together and this can't happen with Kindle. Perhaps a solution will arise . . . .

[Stacy]

This points are all make sense, but for me the biggest reason I don't have a Kindle, (besides the price) is that it takes away the sentiment of having a book. Reading seems to be one of the only ways to escape from the technology driven society that we live in. It's quite sad that now even that is going to be taken away from us. Who would have thought that we would have to make sure something is charged, just so we can read a book?

[Carol]

And besides, if I get my kids a kindle, I'd like to know that there are really reading a book, not browsing the web!

[Caution]

As a Kindle owner I can agree with points 5,2, and 1, though point 2 very much depends on the book.

Point 4 is incorrect, you can absolutely put pretty much anything on the Kindle with very little effort.  Kindle supports the Mobipocket format and the Mobi editor is free.  There are literally hundreds if not thousands of titles out there that you can get for free (legally) on your Kindle.  I've got about 100 titles on my Kindle now and have only purchased a fraction of those.

Point 3 is simply incorrect.  the screen is pretty much identical to a paperback.  There are multiple font sizes available as well.

[admin]

^ That means a lot to me, to hear that from someone who owns one!! Thanks for the insights.

[pomlover2586]

WOW! # 1 Is the ONLY reason why I didn't jump on the bandwagon and buy A K1. K2 has a much better overall look, sleep and stylish in design and I can't wait to start using it!

[ak rain]

I like my kindle. My family likes it enough that we (I) am getting K2. there is more to a book then its cover.
he lost me at
(I'm approximating, since I do not have a Kindle to do the actual comparison with)

It is expensive but everyone most eat.
sylvia

[Gruntman]

He states that an E-reading device shouldn't cost more than $150 yet he paid $199 for his?

[cat616]

Mr. Henderson should have thoroughly researched this subject before writing about it.

[ScottBooks]

Just so everybody is absolutely clear on this...

The article was written in Dec. 07.  That's 14 months ago. This is a very old thread that has risen from a dusty server to remind us of the Amazon boards.

[Vegas_Asian]

5. It's Too Expensive. A book reader is, or at least should be, a single function product: You use it to read books. It's not a computer, it's not a web browser, it's not an MP3 player. It's a device to read books. And using the time-honored analogy of the razor and razor blades, the reader itself simply should not cost very much money. My Rocket eBook was $199.00. My Palm Tungsten was $179.000. An iPod is $149.00. A Blu-Ray player is $299.00. An Nintendo Wii is $249.00. And Amazon wants to charge me $399.00 for a device to read books? I don't think so. An electronic book reader should cost no more than $150.00 maximum, and should preferably be under $100.00.

Did the palm come at that price straight off the bat...or did you have to sign a two year contract for it?
299 for a blue ray.....but one movies cost about 10-ish bargain book and 3-4 newer/best-seller books?

[KindleKid]

He brings up a lot of good points that are hard to argue. when i bought my K1 i was very close to saying "no way" when i learned the price, i just couldn't justify spending that much for such seemingly simple device. Luckily i went ahead and bought one anyway and never looked back. I would do it all over again in a heart beat.

[ak rain]

ooohhh! i got a second star how did that happen
sylvia

[Benjamin]

ooohhh! i got a second star how did that happen
sylvia

Well that was quite random lol.

[Just Wondering]

I agree with everything he says....yet, I am getting a Kindle 2. I used to have a Palm Pilot, but wouldn't go back to it after using a Blackberry. I had an original IBM PC and I loved it. Wouldn't think of using it now. The author is doing what we should all be doing, assessing where we want the technology to go. Doesn't mean we can't use what is here now and enjoy it.

[Kind]

hmm, yeah he does have some good points.  I especially agree with the price but I don't know, it's still a nice device.

[Bacardi Jim]

Just so everybody is absolutely clear on this...

The article was written in Dec. 07.  That's 14 months ago. This is a very old thread that has risen from a dusty server to remind us of the Amazon boards.

I'm glad somebody else noticed this.

Additionally, I lost all interest in anything the author had to say after the line "I am especially disappointed to see Amazon taking this tact..." in #4.  I assume he meant "tack," meaning a course of action. *shrug*

[Kindgirl]

5 reasons I don't have a Kindle:

1.  It's not February 25th yet.

2.  It's not February 25th yet.

3.  It's not February 25th yet.

4.  It's not February 25th yet.

5.  It's not February 25th yet.

[frojazz]

5 reasons I don't have a Kindle:

1.  It's not February 25th yet.

2.  It's not February 25th yet.

3.  It's not February 25th yet.

4.  It's not February 25th yet.

5.  It's not February 25th yet.

LOL! Me, too!!!!

[Angela]

5 reasons I don't have a Kindle:

1.  It's not February 25th yet.

2.  It's not February 25th yet.

3.  It's not February 25th yet.

4.  It's not February 25th yet.

5.  It's not February 25th yet.

Now those are reasons I can understand!! 

[Neversleepsawink;)]

I'm excited for those who are getting the K2....can't wait to hear all the good things. 

[stevene9]

5 reasons I don't have a Kindle:

1.  It's not February 25th yet.

2.  It's not February 25th yet.

3.  It's not February 25th yet.

4.  It's not February 25th yet.

5.  It's not February 25th yet.

Best post I've seen in a long time. 

Steve

[Veronica]

If that was originally posted in Dec 07, I'd be curious if this person still has the same opinions?

How much was the iPod when it first came out?  I remember thinking it was ridiculously expensive and absolutely not necessary.  Now, however, I have an 80GB iPod classic...

[k_reader]

I agree with the point about pricing of books... amazon still needs to do some tweaking to its pricing structure.  There should NEVER be a kindle book that is more expensive than paperback, and the kindle to hardcover price should be at least a 25% discount (in my humble opinion).

I think this poster missed a very important reason why a kindle isn't right for SOME people: CONTENT.  There are many genres that are still lacking in kindle content (Software/Technical books being one of them).  This isn't an issue for me, but for some of my friends. Like many of the tech reviews I've read out on the web, I find that the article was written by someone who isn't a "reader", but is instead a "gadget guy (person)".  I especially love it when these gadget reviewers say that it they iphone is better for reading than the kindle    I think that is funny...

[Ann in Arlington]

I think Amazon conceived the Kindle as an e-reader solution for the recreational reader.  That's also seems to be where they're pushing in adding content.  I expect eventually, though, that there will be versions more suited to more technical books and/or textbooks. . . .we need just be patient!

I will note that I downloaded the sample of the Nuclear book that costs over $6000.  It's got a lot of tables and charts and equations:  probably why it's so expensive. . .besides the subject matter, of course. 

Ann

[KindleMom]

I agree with the point about pricing of books... amazon still needs to do some tweaking to its pricing structure.  There should NEVER be a kindle book that is more expensive than paperback, and the kindle to hardcover price should be at least a 25% discount (in my humble opinion).

I agree completely!  I still buy DTBs because they are often less expensive than the Kindle version.  That's crazy!!!

[ak rain]

its the fluctuation in cost the makes me a bet crazy. Though i don't mind a sale    
Sylvia

[Chad Winters]

W

ooohhh! i got a second star how did that happen
sylvia

what do those stars mean anyway?

[worktolive]

To me, the Kindle is just like my Tivo. You have to actually own one to properly appreciate it. However, when you try to explain it to someone who doesn't own one, you can't find the right words to explain why it is so great. I'm sure there are a few people out there who were disappointed with the Kindle once they got one, but the vast majority of us fall in love with it and never look back.

Anyway, I don't understand all this complaining about the price. Don't people realize that the price is not just for the device, but for the Whispernet access?

[ScottBooks]

Wwhat do those stars mean anyway?

All right, everyone! Attention, please!

Your loyal band of moderators has emerged from our smoke-filled room, with the new Author-themed statuses. And they are:


1 - Status: Dr. Seuss                  (1 star - less than 50 posts)
2 - Status: Lewis Carroll              (1 star - 50 or more)
3 - Status: Madeleine L'Engle          (2 stars - 100 or more)
4 - Status: Arthur Conan Doyle         (3 stars - 250 or more)
5 - Status: Jane Austen                (4 stars - 500 or more)
6 - Status: Shakespeare                (5 stars - 1000 or more)


We are certain that this will not please everyone! But hopefully most of you will find it acceptable, and everyone will find it at least tolerable.

If you're interested, here's a glimpse into our rationale.

- Reading preferences vary from person to person, of course, and we did not try to name authors that would be on most people's 'favorite author' list. No consensus is possible there.
- We agreed to not use modern-day or living authors
- We did not want our list to cater too much to any particular genre
- We wanted names that were not too long, so it wouldn't clutter up the profile box in the forums.

With that in mind, we settled on the above mix of authors as meeting these general criteria:

  1. Well-known. These are all mainstream authors that are likely recognizable to our members and guests.
  2. Inoffensive. We believe that these authors are generally acceptable or tolerable to most.
  3. A mix of male and female authors
  4. The progression of authors from status level 1 through 6 roughly (and arguably) follows the age level of readers of these authors.
  5. All are dead
  6. We are tired of over-analyzing this. 

Also, to avoid confusion to our new members, we will display the word 'Status:' beside each author name - so that it doesn't imply that your profile is making a statement of your support for that author.

Our work here is done, folks. We can review this again after a while, but for now this is what we're going forward with. Thanks for all the great suggestions!

- Harvey and the Mods

[ak rain]

thank you
sylvia

[rho]

Well I am curious - so I Googled him - and found out that he actually got a Kindle and said that if you wanted to take it from him you would have to pry it out of his hands (I think that is a close quote) Who knows maybe he is even a member here  it sure sounded like he really enjoyed his Kindle - with basically the same wishes and complaint we all have. 

I love a happy ending 

[JetJammer]

You got me curious, Rho, so I followed up as well.  You are quite correct, this blogger is now a die-hard Kindle fan

Here's his followup report, from June 2008 (about 6 months after the first one).

http://www.jonathanhenderson.com/2008/06/eating_my_words_a_kindle_revie.html#000055

Almost 6 months ago I wrote a post here called "5 Reasons I Don't Have a Kindle". I got a surprisingly large number of comments on this post, mainly due to it getting a bit of popularity on Digg.com. However, as I pointed out over and over again in response to the comments, that article was not a review of the Kindle. It was, instead, a post about why I hadn't bought one. I had five specific complaints, and at the time, I stated that until and unless a new model came out that addressed at least some of my complaints, I wouldn't be buying one.

Well, I lied.

Or rather: what a difference a few months makes. Stuck in Las Vegas a month ago, I had a week to kill and had not brought enough books with me to fill the time. I was going to search out a bookstore (not exactly common in Las Vegas), when I noticed an article on Engadget stating that, for the first time since its introduction, Amazon actually had Kindles in stock for immediate shipment. No more waiting list. Right then and there, having a Kindle to wirelessly purchase some books and magazines seemed like the absolutely perfect thing to me. And, I figured, if I hated it, I could just return it.

So I ordered it from my laptop in the hotel room for next day shipping. And the next day it arrived, right at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center Business Office. And that night I stayed up until 2am, using the Kindle. I think I bought six things on that first evening: a newspaper, three magazines, and two books. I didn't hate it. And I didn't return it.

Now that I've had a Kindle for a little over a month, I figure it's time to sum up my thoughts. The Kindle is a lot better than I thought it would be. In fact, if you tried to take it away from me now, you'd have to pry it out of my hands.

What no one else was able to clearly communicate to me - and what Amazon itself does not adequately communicate, in my opinion - is that the Kindle is really a platform for reading. The device itself has a number of problems, no question about that. Some of those problems are maddening if you focus on them. But the overall software, the environment, the platform that is The Kindle - that's what matters. That is what makes the experience of using a Kindle so d*mn good. If you're a "Reader" - if you regularly read books and magazines - you will love a Kindle.

Wireless Purchase, Instant Delivery. This is the heart of the Kindle platform, right here. The Kindle gives readers instant gratification. Interested in a particular book? Go to Menu, select Kindle Store, find your book, and you've got it in under a minute. From anywhere. At anytime. Basically, if you're in an area that a cell phone will work, you've got immediate, constant, instant wireless access to the Kindle store. No charge, no wireless subscription, nothing. It's free and built into the device.

When I read about the Kindle, this seemed like a gimmick. Who cares, I thought. I could not have been more wrong. I was waiting in the airport, and wanted to read a newspaper. But, you know, you bring a newspaper on a plane, you've got to open it, unfold it, shove your elbows in your seat-mate's face, parse through the sections... it's a mess. With the Kindle, I bought that day's New York Times. And had it on screen in about 30 seconds. I also bought Newsweek, The Atlantic, Forbes, and Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine. All downloaded nearly instantly, right while I was sitting there.

And reading through the New York Times, I read a review of a book... and bought the book immediately, right then and there, while I was still reading the review. So, when I finished the review, I was ready to start reading the book.

Clear, Easy To Read Screen. Although I had seen e-Ink technology demonstrated, and had played with a Sony Reader in a store, the Kindle is the first time I've used it day in, day out. It's amazing. There is no real "off" state. Whatever the screen is at the moment, that's what it is. It draws no power to keep text on the screen - it uses power only when the screen refreshes with the next page of text. And the screen is the closest I've ever seen to the printed page. I mean, it looks almost like a laser-printed piece of paper. There are no "jaggies", no reflections - it does not look like a computer screen at all. In fact, the first time I showed it to someone else, they stared at it for a second, and then said, "Holy [crap]... is that the actual screen?" It turned out that they thought it was a printed cover of some kind that I was using to protect the actual screen.

The Screen Should Be Bigger. Although you can adjust the font size to be as large or as small as you want, to my taste there simply isn't enough physical space to put as much text on the "page" as I expect. Even at the smallest text size, it's still not the same amount of text as you would get on the printed version of the same book. This is the Number One thing I want Amazon to change in a future version of the Kindle. There are other book readers out there that are already using the latest 8" and 9" e-Ink screens, like the iRex Iliad. These readers are able to do a page-for-page match to the printed version. Amazon should follow suit as fast as possible. I would pay... well.... a good chunk of change for a Kindle with a 9" screen, that's for sure.

Magazines and Newspapers. As of this writing, there are 19 newspapers and 16 magazines available on the Kindle. Magazines are available either via subscription, or by purchasing just the current issue. I cannot emphasize enough how very, very cool this is. You can read Newsweek, Time, Fortune, Forbes, The Atlantic, and several others instantly, right away. Without the advertisements. Without the subscription cards falling out. And when you're done, you just delete it - no paper to through away.

Not Enough Magazines. In fact, the only problem I have with the Magazines feature is that there are not enough. I want The Economist, Entertainment Weekly, Wired, Rolling Stone. I want specialty academic journals. I want every magazine that has text articles to have a Kindle version. Since I got my Kindle, they've added a couple of additional newspapers, and tons of new books come out every week - but so far, not a single magazine has been added to the list. To me, this is one of the greatest features of the Kindle. For example, on my Kindle I've subscribed to both Slate and Salon. And every day, a new issue is waiting for me. I would subscribe to dozens more if they were available. I would cancel my print subscriptions and switch to Kindle versions for almost every magazine I read.

Blogs Don't Work Very Well. In addition to Newspapers and Magazines, the Kindle also offers subscriptions to a wide variety of current blogs - 341 as of this writing. However, for the most part, this isn't worth it. I tried a number of blogs, such as Ars Technica, Pharngula, Boing Boing, and Daily Kos. The main problem is that they aren't complete. Ars Technica doesn't contain the Articles section of the web site, which is where (in my opinion) the best stuff can be found. Daily Kos doesn't include all the Diaries, which, once again, are the best stuff. You can't see any of the comments sections in any blog. And Pharyngula actually crashed my Kindle for the one and only time, requiring me to open up the back and press the Reset button. After an initial spate of subscribing to a dozen blogs - it's so nice to read things on that great e-Ink screen - I ended up canceling all of them. I was missing too much. In their current form, the Kindle version of Blogs just does not match up to the web version of the same blog.

Highlighting. Ever want to remember a particular quote from a book? I sure do (especially when I'm writing reviews). The Highlight feature allows you to move the scroll cursor to the first line, select Highlight, move to the last line, click, and the selected "Highlight" text is then placed in quote format in a Kindle book called "My Clippings". With a full reference to whatever it's from. This was another feature that I thought was "so what" when I read about it - but the first time I used it, I immediately understood its value.

Dictionary Lookup. Every run across a word in a book that you don't know? Or one that you think you sort of know the meaning of, but you're not completely sure? The Kindle has a built-in dictionary. Scroll the cursor to any line on the screen, and select "Lookup". A popup window opens with the words in the sentence you've selected, with a mini-definition for each word in the sentence. Select the actual word you're interested in, and you get the full definition. And then a single click of the scroll cursor, and the definition vanishes, and you haven't left your book at all. I absolutely love this feature. It is simple and elegant. This is one thing that does not need to be improved on at all - it is just enough, and it works perfectly.

Other Sources of Books. I didn't realize that there are lots of sources for free books for the Kindle. Most books that are in the public domain (that means the vast majority of literary classics and books from more than 75 years ago) are available for free from a wide variety of sources. My favorite is feedbooks.com, which has a single document that you can download directly to your Kindle. This document, in turn, contains a catalog of all their books that are already formatted for the Kindle. Just select the book you want - The Great Gatsby or Gone With The Wind, for example - and that book is instantly downloaded to your Kindle, just as if you'd purchased it directly from the Amazon Kindle store. Only it was completely free.

This is an area that I hope gets expanded on a lot. It would be great if, for example, companies started providing their product manuals in Kindle format (they can use the openly available Mobipocket format, which works transparently on the Kindle). Or all kinds of documents. It is so much easier to read things on the Kindle than it is on even the best computer monitor. Amazon should evangelize this capability and encourage anyone and everyone to make all their documents available in Kindle format. I can tell you right now that one of my "side projects" at work is going to be converting some of our product documentation into Kindle format. Maybe I can start a quiet little movement in this regard...

You'll Need Light. One drawback to the screen is that it has no light source of any kind. Since the e-Ink display is not backlit , and since it does not draw power at all while you're reading a screen of text, it is no brighter than a sheet of paper is. Which means you need a light to read by. For future versions, I sure wish they would design some sort of socket to attach a little reading light to. I use an Itty Bitty Book Light, and clip it on to the leather case that the Kindle fits into. This works mostly OK, but it does feel rather jury-rigged. And it adds a messy cable to the whole situation.

This drawback became very apparent when I was flying back from Houston a few weeks ago, and the reading light for my seat was out (thanks, Southwest). The only thing I had with me was my Kindle. And with no light, you can't see the screen any more than you can see a book without light. So I had to sit in the dark, unable to read anything. Admittedly, physically printed books and magazines have exactly the same problem - but I expect an electronic device that costs almost $400 to be able to provide me enough light to read by as part of the bargain!

Turned Off During Takeoff and Landing. Here's another drawback. On the same trip (but going out, when I had a light) I was annoyed by the fact that the flight attendants demanded I turn off the Kindle until we reached 10,000 feet - and again a full 20 minutes before we landed. Since the only thing I had with me was the Kindle, I had nothing else to read. If you're in the middle of a good book or magazine, it's very annoying to sit there for up to half an hour waiting for the OK to turn it back on. I can understand (sort of) the need to turn off devices that have some sort of communication capability... but you can easily turn off the wireless function on the Kindle with a simple switch, without affecting any other feature. Although it's worth noting that because the wireless on/off button is on the back, you have to remove the Kindle from its leather cover in order to do that. The switch really should be on the top of the device, not on the back.

Why do the airlines require you to turn off these kinds of devices? I realize this is not Amazon's problem, but maybe they can help lobby the airline industry. I love the way they say "FAA regulations state..." when they state no such thing. Each airline could choose whether or not to allow these sorts of devices - there are no regulations at all. But they choose to take a One Size Fits All approach, because they don't want laptops flying through the air while a plane is landing. However, a 10-ounce Kindle that draws no more power than a watch is simply not in that category.

Previous and Next Buttons Are Awful. This takes a day or two to get used to. This is the one area where I really don't know what the designers were thinking. The "Next Page" button runs down almost the entire right side of the device - and it's angled in addition to that! So there is literally no way you can hold it on the right side without hitting the "Next Page" button by mistake. Your only option is to either hold it by the screen itself, or to finesse your fingers around the blank spots in the keyboard area. On the left side, the "Previous Page" button is almost but not quite as bad... at least it doesn't run the entire length of the device.

To me, this is the single biggest design flaw of the device. When I turn the page of a book or magazine, I reach up and turn the top corner. So why didn't they just put the Next and Previous buttons up at the top of the device, and leave the rest of it as a margin to hold on to - just like a real book? Instead, the entire margin area is eaten up by a giant Next button. This feature needs to be fixed right away. Even before going to a larger screen, Amazon needs to do a "1.1" quick fix redesign to change these buttons. It would be a trivial change, and yet would make a huge difference in ease of use. My guess is they expect people to rely on using the leather cover as the way to hold the device. Which leads me to my next point...

Leather Cover Is Poor. The leather cover - which thanks to the poor positioning of the Next and Previous buttons is an absolute requirement for reading - simply doesn't attach very well. In fact, it doesn't "attach" at all - it just sort of hangs on by use of a tab in the back that fits into a depression on the back of the Kindle. I found that by folding up a piece of paper and wedging it into the "clip" part of the leather cover, I could get the Kindle to stay attached to the cover most of the time. Unless you make a sudden movement, or try to read at an angle. This is another area where it seems strange that it doesn't work better. How about a simple piece of velcro, or a sliding notch? I remember I had an old Palm Tungsten device that had a leather cover that slid into a slot along its left side. An approach like that would work perfectly for the Kindle.

Zoom For Illustrations Would Be Nice. For books with illustrations, it sure would be nice to have some sort of Zoom or Enlarge option. I was reading Your Inner Fish by Neil Shubin, which has quite a number of illustrations, including some detailed biology specimen sketches. Unfortunately, they were just too small to be able to make out the writing. I am aware that text is the primary function of the Kindle, but it would be relatively simple to add some sort of enlargement function to handle this special case.

It Plays Music But I Don't Care. The Kindle is also able to play music - or so it appears. I've never tried it, and doubt I ever will. This seems pointless to me, and putting volume knobs and a headphone jack onto a book reading device strikes me as a waste of space and circuitry. It's never going to be an iPod, which is what all my music comes from these days anyway. I say pull out the audio stuff and free up the space and power for more reading.

DRM is Tolerable. One of my primary objections to getting a Kindle was its use of DRM (Digital Rights Management) "anti-piracy" protection on all books. I put that in quotes because I consider DRM in all forms to be an insult to every paying consumer. I've paid for the book (or song or movie), so why are you treating me like I tried to steal it? However, I'm somewhat mollified by accepting the fact that anything on the Kindle is not really purchased - instead, you're basically renting the book or magazine. If you want a permanent copy, go buy the physical book. I still think the DRM approach is wrong-headed, insulting, and detrimental to the long-term survival of these kinds of devices, but I'm willing to live with it for convenience's sake at the moment.

In Conclusion...

Amazon... I'm hooked. You got me. I love it and I can't live without it. But if you'd just put out a 2.0 version with a bigger screen, better Previous and Next buttons, and a decent cover attachment, I'd pay double what I paid for this one.

If you read for enjoyment with any regularity, you want the Kindle. Despite some of the criticisms I talk about here, this is a fantastic, wonderful machine. In fact, the only reason I've gone into such details about its mistakes is that the rest of the device is so d*mn good, the places where it falls down are that much more apparent. And let me reiterate again - focus on the entire experience, not just on the device itself. I hate to add to the hype... but the Kindle really does put a whole new spin on what "reading a book" can be.

Go get yourself a Kindle. They just dropped the price to $359, and they are in stock now. Happy Kindling!

[Gruntman]

Well It appears he was open minded enough to give it an honest try and it won him over.  I do agree with a lot of his complaints(it's the reason it took me a year to buy one).  I personally think the Kindle 2 addresses some big ones.

  Moving the on/off
  Changing the page turn buttons
  zoom
  longer battery life(I know he never said it but he hinted)


  I would still like to see them add folders.

[Veronica]

Well I am curious - so I Googled him - and found out that he actually got a Kindle and said that if you wanted to take it from him you would have to pry it out of his hands (I think that is a close quote) Who knows maybe he is even a member here  it sure sounded like he really enjoyed his Kindle - with basically the same wishes and complaint we all have. 

I love a happy ending 

I feel all warm and fuzzy inside.  With a fact-based, nonbiased review to go with the warm fuzzies.

[ProfCrash]

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/blogs/bizfeed/159243/will_the_iphone_kill_the_kindle_no_way.html

Here is something to make people feel better.

[Angela]

Very nice article!

[BambiB]

Good to see him reconciled to the Kindle!