Kindle DX - your mini-reviews!

[Leslie]

A family of Kindles....

Hanging out on the Peeramid...



Relaxing on the easy chair...

[Ann in Arlington]

Hmmmm. .  . .there's a 'three bears' parody in there somewhere.  Or maybe Three Billy Goats Gruff. 

[auntmarge]

I put mine next to each other and I agree with Jess, it seems slightly darker but the text is MUCH sharper

Jeez, it's darker?  And I thought the K2 was worse than the K1.  Guess I'll stick with K2 and the font fix.

[MagicalWingLT]

In anticipation of my DX arriving next week I already have a whole folder of pdfs of mangas, comic books and role-playing games to try, along with the paper originals of each for comparison. I'll be posting pictures and review then!

Cap'n Frank

I'm very interested in seeing pics of Manga on the DX... You gotta show us some lol...

[jazzi]

MINI-REVIEW 7:

The DX is impressive.  

I was busy when the box arrived, so I opened the box and plugged it into the electrical outlet until several hours later (fully charged).  The books from my K2 had already transferred over (set them up on Amazon website yesterday for download to DX).

The screen is huge compared to the K2, and sharper.  My first read was the Washington Post, and the pictures were amazing.

And yes, the unit is heavy.  I would imagine an Oberon accessorized DX is gonna be heavy!

The orientation could be a problem.  It tried to adjust a couple of times when I hadn't intended to change it.  After awhile, I went into the settings and changed it to stay at the portrait setting.  I may later change it back to automatic, but probably only when reading something where the feature would be helpful.  For most of my reading, the portrait setting will suffice.

The only real disappointment is the inability to make notes on pdfs.  I have several pdfs which are more than 100 pages.  Being able to make notes would be fantastic.  Unless I've missed something, you can create bookmarks, but only the page of the bookmark is recorded for later reference.  

Other than that, I like it a lot, and think it was a great purchase.  For the next couple of days I'll be trying to decide whether to keep or sell the K2.

[Patrizia]

first chance I have had to see this update and I couldn't stop laughing.. we are pathetic enablers.. no doubt about it.. three kindles in the pyramid !!!! I just started laughing.. you guys are so cute. 

Okay so how do we feel about the weight of the DX, I do love the screen situation but I found my arm really getting tired after a while.. can't wait until the platform gets here I can turn on the TTS on fast.. turn down the volume and let it change pages for me!!!

OH and FYI we can't get a screen saver hack fast enough, those dead authors at that size is NOT pretty.. skins too, must have skins...

... and so it begins..

[docjered]

Love the idea of sharper text and larger screen, but I am a "left thumb" reader. The only way I feel comfortable reading is with my Oberon cover folded back, my fingers of my left hand tucked inside the cover, and page change up or down with my left thumb. It appears that this would not be possible, even with screen rotation unless I wanted to actually mount the DX upside down in an Oberon cover, or am I misreading this???

[Leslie]

Love the idea of sharper text and larger screen, but I am a "left thumb" reader. The only way I feel comfortable reading is with my Oberon cover folded back, my fingers of my left hand tucked inside the cover, and page change up or down with my left thumb. It appears that this would not be possible, even with screen rotation unless I wanted to actually mount the DX upside down in an Oberon cover, or am I misreading this???

Yes, you could rotate the screen and read with the Kindle upside down. Then the buttons would be on the left. I did that yesterday while I was eating lunch, so I could press the buttons with my left hand and not have to keep putting my fork down in my right hand.

L

[brianm]

Will make this quick until I have much more time with the DX...... first thing you notice: BIG  2nd.: weight
After turning it on and loading book......LOVED the screen. Let me put it this way......the K1 / K2 are like reading
a paperback book, the DX is like reading a hardbound book.  Changing the size of the print and lines per is GREAT.
Folks with eye trouble will just LOVE it. More later..............

              Brian 

[Ann in Arlington]

OH and FYI we can't get a screen saver hack fast enough, those dead authors at that size is NOT pretty.. skins too, must have skins...

Mind you, I know nothing about screensavers , not having installed any alternate ones on my K1.  BUT it seems to me from all I've read that the underlying software of the DX is closely akin to that of the K2.  I wonder if the steps to install alternate images that work for the K2 would also work for the DX.  

[drenee]

I can only imagine how beautiful some of the screensavers we have here on the Boards posted by members are going to look on the DX.  Hope someone posts pics once they're able to load them.
deb

[Anne]

first chance I have had to see this update and I couldn't stop laughing.. we are pathetic enablers.. no doubt about it.. three kindles in the pyramid !!!! I just started laughing.. you guys are so cute.  

Okay so how do we feel about the weight of the DX, I do love the screen situation but I found my arm really getting tired after a while.. can't wait until the platform gets here I can turn on the TTS on fast.. turn down the volume and let it change pages for me!!!

OH and FYI we can't get a screen saver hack fast enough, those dead authors at that size is NOT pretty.. skins too, must have skins...

... and so it begins..

Patrizia: Did you order the platform form M-edge? I am going to need to order one. I still love my K2 and will use it when I travel and take it with me wherever I go. When I am home I will be using the DX. I got so much more read last night. Now all I need is a skin

[Anne]

Leslie I have the same family  LOL and I have the Peeramid Pillow book rest too.

[Ssnake51]

MINI-REVIEW 8:

As others have already noted, the screen on the DX is really big.  Also, the text is darker and easier to read than on my Kindle2.  This is a big plus in its favor.
I am a right-hander who prefers to use my left thumb in turning the pages, so my default screen setting is in portrait with the keyboard on top.  This seems to me to work quite well, perhaps even better than with the K2.
I have noticed a few more imperfections on the screen than on the K2.  Perhaps this is unavoidable with the larger screen size.
Am still on the fence as to whether or not I am going to keep the DX.  It really does seem quite a bit heavier and larger than I had expected.  Will give it a few more days to see if I can adjust to that.

[Forster]

Mind you, I know nothing about screensavers , not having installed any alternate ones on my K1.  BUT it seems to me from all I've read that the underlying software of the DX is closely akin to that of the K2.  I wonder if the steps to install alternate images that work for the K2 would also work for the DX.  

I'm waiting for some brave soul to try the k2 hack and report back.  You know it won't be long till someone tries it, lol.

[jaybird123]

argghhh....!  Some  lousy reviews would have been nice, now I'm ordering this thing to go with my Kindle 2. 

[Ethan]

It is nice to read everyone's thoughts and to hear of the good, the bad and the ugly.  For the basic reader who has no need for all this note taking stuff (whatever that is), pdf's, etc., etc., and etc., it is nice to see that us K1 users are not really missing out on anything earth shattering.  Unless something drastic changes, I think I'm sticking with the basic black Model A! 

[Ann in Arlington]

argghhh....!  Some  lousy reviews would have been nice, now I'm ordering this thing to go with my Kindle 2. 

I totally hear you!  I was thinking last night, "gee, didn't anyone really NOT like it?"  That would at least make my forced wait more endurable. . . . . .

(I know I can go to Amazon and read the reviews there. . . .but most aren't worth much and the negative ones just complain about no color/touch screen etc.  )

[lissylaine]

About the only thing I can add at the moment is that reading on my K1 really feels like reading a paperback, and reading on my KDX feels more like reading a hardback - size-of-the-screen-wise.

Melissa in Nashville

[ProfCrash]

I am trying to figure out how to justify ordering one when I know it will only be used in the house. My fiancee is going to think that I am nuts. The good news: It still doesn't have folders so it is easier for me to say "I can wait."

For that reason, and that reason alone, I hope that Amazon continues to fail to put folders on the new version of the Kindle. It is the one feature that would make me seriously consider upgrading.

[MarthaT]

love all the reviews, am really getting tempted 

[DawnOfChaos]

Thanks for the pics!  It helps to see that the screen of the dx appears to be the entire size of the k2 and a little extra.  When I saw the pics, I wasn't pleased they got rid of the left hand buttons, as I'm a left thumber as well.  But I have a question.  When you rotate the dx to read on the horizontal, can you turn pages, or is it just for viewing the page you are on?

[Leslie]

Thanks for the pics!  It helps to see that the screen of the dx appears to be the entire size of the k2 and a little extra.  When I saw the pics, I wasn't pleased they got rid of the left hand buttons, as I'm a left thumber as well.  But I have a question.  When you rotate the dx to read on the horizontal, can you turn pages, or is it just for viewing the page you are on?

You can turn pages and read with the DX rotated, yes.

L

[Jesslyn]

I'm wondering about the screensaver hack as the DX is version 2.1, not 2.0.3 like the K2.  Will we be getting an upgrade on the K2 since its the same 'family'? Or will Amazon be maintaining two versions.  Its pretty obvious that they don't plan on any more updates to the K1 since it has been relegated to a 'previous' version, but still hope on the K2   

[Greg Banks]

MINI-REVIEW 9:

The KDX isn't a replacement for the K2, it's just the big brother. So if any updates are yet to come (or not come), it won't be due to the K2 itself being outdated.

Let me write some quick impressions here. May expand on these a bit in a review for my website and Amazon later this weekend:

The KDX could as easily be called the Kindle Jumbo, or The Kindlenormous, because compared to my K1 (never owned a K2), it's huge! If I had to manually hold it, for me with my disability, it would be a problem. It's not really the weight itself, but as I saw reference to on the Amazon boards yesterday, it's the center of gravity. Basically, if you hold the device vertically near the bottom, it becomes top heavy. I don't know if I would recommend the KDX for the casual reader, especially one who hasn't owned a Kindle before. Sort of like buying a full-sized Hummer when all you want to do is run to the grocery store twice a week. Doesn't mean a Hummer isn't great, but it would be just a bit of overkill for your simple needs.

As for the KDX itself (and keep in mind that I've never owned or touched a K2, so some of the things that impressed me might be applicable to the K2 as well), it is amazing. I think this design, overall, is much improved over K1. Feels more sturdy, more polished, than the K1. I find that I like the 5-way controller much more than the K1's scroll wheel, which I used without qualms, but always felt it was a bit low tech for such an advanced product.

The display, mind blowing. The K1 always has looked great to me considering it's limited abilities, but the KDX shows just what eInk technology is capable of. Seeing this screen has gotten me excited for the first time about the prospect of a color eInk screen one day. I checked how a couple of my own books' covers looked, and they were very nice looking even at the larger size. The KDX screen is also more elongated than it's little brothers', so you get more text per screen not just because of the larger size overall, but because of proportionally having more screen real estate. Text is sharp and the interface differences from the K1 are also pleasurably improved.

Responsiveness is better overall, although I think that's relative since a large PDF or a page with images on it will take longer than a plain text page. I don't subscribe to newspapers, but the blogs look great. I also have several books (software reference, mostly) that were DX optimized, and seem as good as a PDF shown in its native format. I also loaded my software manual PDFs onto the KDX, most of them for Adobe software and therefore they are true PDFs with lots of imagery, and they seem to display almost flawlessly in their native format.

The KDX is too big for my Kindle stand from Octo, so I have to prop up against other stuff on my bed. Which is fine, and actually works well for the Godzilla of Kindles, except when I want to charge it while I read (which I generally do nightly), I have to turn it upside down because the charging plug is on the bottom. So for me the screen flipping technology is a godsend, although oddly enough, neither the screen savers nor the Kindle store will flip. Probably because neither could display properly in horizontal mode.

Overall, I REALLY like my DX, and while I'll always love my K1 as well, I just don't have the need for both, so I'm glad the K1 will have a happy new home with my sister.

If you're thinking of buying a KDX, or are especially debating between a K2 or KDX, I'd recommend you really assess your needs and uses for your Kindle, and use them to help make your decision. The KDX itself is amazing and expands on the promise and functionality of the original Kindles. But I just think some may be critical of it not because of the device's failings (which I see none yet), but because they would have been better served by a smaller Kindle.