Kindle for the Kollege Kid

I was going through my computer and found the Kindle review I start but never finished. So I sorta...kinda re-did and finished it. Still needs a LOT polishing up:

My Kindle Review. Title: Kindle for the Kollege Kid

I made it a point to have at least three months to explore and come to know my kindle before writing this review. So as of this week I have had my kindle for three and a half months. Despite the fact that I am one of the kindlers (kindle users) that gave into buying a kindle when Oprah debuted her 50 dollar discount for the kindle, I didn’t base anything of my consideration towards this purchased based on her recommendation. The Oprah recommendation did provoke my parents’ interest in the product, which eventually led to purchase of the device for my use (academically and leisurely). After a year of kindle-lust, the discount was my chance to jump at the opportunity to finally obtain this device.

My First Impression (The box/the unwrapping/the oh’s & aww’s)
The Kindle came in the usually brown box…of course. Within the box is another box, which is white, book-shaped, and nicely decorated with cascading grey text. It nice enough that I still have the box and use it to store receipts for kindle related purchases. Opening this nicely decorated kindle box I found it included the following: the Kindle, USB cord, the charge, faux leather Kindle cover, and a little pamphlet (consisting the basic Kindle knowledge, one must know). On the screen of the Kindle is a sticker giving you quick information on what to do before you start Kindling. (Charging and so forth). Immediately, I plugged in my Kindle (came nearly fully charged), turned it (& the whispernet) on, and thus starting a new reading experience. Within less than a couple of minutes, the books I had order during my Kindle’s delivery were downloaded to my ereader via whispernet, ready to introduce me to new worlds. The only negative thought about my Kindle during our first few minutes together the plain appearance it had. The plain white was something I was not and am not fond of, but that was anticipated. This was resolved by ordering skins for my kindle. (Skins, whose number of designs continue to slowly increase. My skins also came with a bonus skin for my kindle charger)

The Cover
The cover is made out of faux leather and holds two of the four corners of the Kindle. The Kindle is held in place with the help for the two corner huggers and a plastic tab that grabs onto the indent in back of the Kindle. Before receiving my kindle, I frequented the discussion forums where I found several people complaining about the cover, which the K comes with. The most common complaint is the fact there is the possibility of the K slipping from the cover’s grasp thus falling (sometime resulting in a tragic kindle situation). If one acknowledges this factor ahead a time, you can condition yourself develop habit of holding your kindle (while in its cover) in a means that avoid slippage from the cover. Then real problem you have to worry about are other people holding the kindle. If you don’t like the Kindle cover, you can always order one that suits your needs. (There are several brands available) I, personally, use the cover that came with my K. I have covered the faux leather with a material that I like and bought. Generally, I use the cover when I am not reading from my K or I use it as a shield from other objects that may be in my bag with my kindle during transport.

The Screen & Font
The screen does appear to look very much like paper. As a student, I spend a lot of my time in front of screen for one reason or another, and the biggest issue I have is the eye strain. With my K, I have not had any issues with eye strain and so forth. The Eink technology is what I have to thank for that lack of eye strain. With a screen appearing as paper, the colors used for the K is limited to black ink. I never understood this until I took the time to wiki “Electronic Paper”, but once I did I realized why we are currently limited to the monochrome display. The usage of the Eink is ideal to avoid eye strain. Meanwhile, the ability to change the font size is great feature, which allows me to read without my glasses from time to time.

Wireless:
Love the wireless capability. It was the feature that really pushed me to get this device. Stick to mobile sites and avoid picture heavy sites, you’re good with the web browser (an experimental feature).

Button Placement:
The next and previous page buttons are quite large, but I have no complaints about it. Just grab the kindle near the keyboard and you are good.

Dictionary:
If I didn’t know the meaning of a word in a book, the odds were I would not look it up. Now with my kindle and after a couple of clicks, I know the meaning of whatever questionable word I come across. This is an excellent additional feature.

Music Player:
The music player on the Kindle is an experimental feature. It works like an iPod Shuffle and plays songs at random. I don’t recommend this for serious music listening. It would be best to upload a couple of favorite mellow songs to read to.

Downs
Not being able to charge via USB cord. Folders for files.

I would recommend this device to any college student (or any person, in general) that loves to read. This doesn’t add much to the heavy book load I already have to lug around. Adding my notes to my kindle has saved me space in my binder and money for printing paper & ink. No need to bring my USB cord to campus, too. Just send my notes to my kindle at the end of class via whispernet.

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