How can the Kindle be improved?

[Ben White]

Non-English character support (specifically Japanese) and an up-to-down display option.

[kindlegrl81]

Am I the only one who misses being able to read a summary of the book without needing wifi? I download so many promotional freebies that I can't keep track of them; if they look remotely interesting, I grab them, figuring I can always delete them later. I would love to be able to read the equivalent of the back cover of the book without having to go into the kindle store.

This would be an awesome feature.

[Elk]

Am I the only one who misses being able to read a summary of the book . . .

A good summary feature would be wonderful.  Ironically, the data is often already captured in the file - all the Kindel need do is access it.

This is one of the reasons I use Calibre.  Highlight the book and the summary, review information, etc. is all there.

[BJHunter]

A touchscreen like the Sony has,  an option to have the time displayed at all times in one of the corners, and the same casing as the sony reader has, I think it is aluminum, so our casing will not crack.

[NapCat]

Now that I have "killed the dead authors", there is nothing else I would want to change.....fits my lifestyle just perfect.

[Toby]

I'll add this to the others. I have trouble seeing how low the battery is. I have to use a magnifying glass.  It's just too small, so either make the battery shown larger or add a percentage of how much battery is left or do both.
Also, make a white, wifi only kindle as well as the graphite.

[teralpar]

Also, make a white, wifi only kindle as well as the graphite.

That would be nice. Either that or make it so that the letters on the graphite one doesn't rub off.

[QuantumIguana]

I use the keyboard a lot and the letters haven't rubbed off for me. I just wish that they keys didn't have so much glare, it can be hard to read them.

I think the Kindle will go in multiple directions. The basic functionality - reading books - will be the core, but there will likely be "premium" readers that do more. You might have a barebones lowcost Kindle that you could give to kids. Or a more expensive one that is more like a tablet.

[Carl Ashmore]

Ahh, I wouldn;t want a touchscreen. I like buttons

[belfastbiker]

Allow it to connect to ad-hoc wifi networks, so that I can tie into my iPhones MyWi wireless...

[mattquinley]

Add the ability to display pages or locations remaining in the current chapter.

[Carl Ashmore]

Belfast, great idea

[violingal13]

This is one of the reasons I use Calibre.  Highlight the book and the summary, review information, etc. is all there.

Elk:

Do you mean that by using Calibre you can access all that information on your kindle? if so I would love to know how! Or are you referring to the information you can find while inside the Calibre program?

[Labrynth]

If touchscreen becomes my only option, I'd stop using Kindle.  I. hate. touchscreens.

I wish we could legally add our own screensavers.  I'm not asking them to give me something new, but being able to add them myself without the jailbreak would be nice.  I like seeing my puppies on there;)

[Elk]

Do you mean that by using Calibre you can access all that information on your kindle? if so I would love to know how! Or are you referring to the information you can find while inside the Calibre program?

Unfortunately the later; you can see the information only while on a computer running Calibre. 

[balaspa]

I think, for me, the only real improvement I would welcome would be color. As an author, I would also appreciate people being able to see the covers in color. 

I know a lot of people love the tablets and touch screens, but I am not that big of a fan.  I like a dedicated reader.

[Stu707]

I would like to be able to see illustrations, maps, etc. more clearly--in color if possible.

[Lorem Ipsum]

use the book cover as the screensaver when switched off while in the middle of that book. Switched off anywhere else (home, browser, etc), use amazon kindle screensavers.

[Trulte]

I would like that whenever I added a new book I was asked if I wanted the book cover added as a screen saver! That way every Kindle owner get their own, "tailormade" screen savers - kind of neat, I think! AND, - when (not "if") Amazon fixes this you just get the sw update next time you turn on your wi-fi

@loremipsum
Just now saw that you had kind of the same idea! Great minds think alike 

[StephenLivingston]

I would like the directional buttons to be a bit bigger.

[Carl Ashmore]

Agreed, Stu.

[balaspa]

I would also like to say I support buttons rather than a touch screen.  Even my phone has to have a slide-out keyboard for me to use.  Apparently my fat fingers and touch screens do not get along well.

[teralpar]

I would also like to say I support buttons rather than a touch screen.  Even my phone has to have a slide-out keyboard for me to use.  Apparently my fat fingers and touch screens do not get along well.

I prefer buttons as well. I have and iPhone and I am constantly wiping fingerprints off the screen. And when I type on the virtual keyboard my fingers tend to hit the wrong letters.

[mooshie78]

Touch screens on phones are tough to use at times as the screen is so small (so the "buttons" are small etc.).  I seldom have issues with my iPad.

I don't really have a preference on buttons vs. keys for simple things like page turns.  When reading on my iPad I just tap the side of the screen to turn the page rather than swiping, so it's really no different than pressing the button on my K3.

For typing, I definitely vastly prefer a physical keyboard.

[Chad Winters]

book cover viewing in the home screen would be cool