"Dear Kindle Owner," begins an e-mail received by anyone who owns one of Amazon's much sought after e-book readers earlier today, "We are excited to introduce Kindle 2---the next generation of our wireless reading device." As a current Kindle owner, it goes on---and this doesn't apply to anyone here the UK, where it isn't for sale yet, or indeed anyone in America who tried to buy it for Christmas, because it sold out---to offer a "special opportunity" to "be among the first to experience Kindle 2."
Having been chatting a lot about this for various reasons with my colleague Tom Chatfield here at Prospect Towers, I'm increasingly convinced that the Kindle is the real deal. People have been talking about e-books for donkeys years; its never happened. But last week i got to see one---a Kindle 1, mind you, not the sexier Kindle 2---and was completely won over. It feels like a book, it holds like a book, and people will use it like a book. My mother won't be won over, but i'm guessing within 5 years a good proportion of high end book readers---10%? 30%? More?---will have one. The choice between taking one book reader on holiday, or packing 10 books? Having all your magazines in one place, not all over the place? The fact that book and subscriptions are basically half price? While people won't stop reading books or buying (especially high quality monthly) magazines, this is going to have a seismic impact.
But, don't take my word for it. I got in touch with a friend---my partner's brother, who works for Disney, since you ask---in LA, who in turn put my in touch with a friend of his---Jennifer Freel---who send me an mail explaining why she liked it. She is a book lover as much as a gadget person. I reprint her message in full below---while it shows that these things are by no means perfect, in terms of the direction of travel for the book industry, I think it rather speaks for itself.
Hi James! I'm so happy to help--- Before deciding on the Kindle, I compared the Kindle to the Sony Reader (with touch screen). There are obvious advantages to the Kindle (for instance the "whispernet," of which more in a minute) but at the time, the Kindle was completely sold out, so I was exploring other options. When I was looking at the Sony, one thing became obvious---I hated the touch screen. The screen on the Kindle is much better---it's not glossy and really does look almost like paper. The Sony unit was shiny and the touch screen showed finger prints which added to an already bad screen making reading even more difficult. If/when Kindle comes out with a touch screen model I would not feel like I'm missing out on anything with my Gen 1 model. I read---and click the button to turn the page. A touch screen isn't going to make my life any easier. Before owning the Kindle, I read about one-two books per month. I'm reading on average two-three books per month now because I take the Kindle with me almost everywhere I go. I used to read a lot of hardcover books, and toting them around was not something I usually did. The Kindle is light and compact. I feel more comfortable reading it that a paperback. I can curl up on the couch and hold the Kindle with one hand. With a book, you always have to wrestle with it, holding it open. I know that might sound a bit silly. After all, it's just a book; but when you're reading a 1,000 + page volume, reading it on a Kindle is much, much easier. I don't really fear theft. Traveling over the Chirstmas holidays I was reading my Kindle while waiting for my flights. Many people would interrupt my reading to ask about the unit. I was happy to explain it to them; afterall, I'm a fan of the Kindle and you can't even look at it in any shop. Amazon had posted some kind of thread on their chat boards wanting folks to post where they might be on a Saturday (coffee shop) and invite people to come in and look at the Kindle. ("See a Kindle in your City") There was no incentive for Kindle users who signed up for this and most people replied with comments such as "steal a Kindle opportunity!" It was an outrageous request. I subscribed to The LA Times, but discontinued it. I was never a newspaper subscriber to begin with. I am an online news reader. I subscribe to two blogs (One is 99-cents per month, the other is free, Amazon Daily Blog). Honestly though, I rarely read them. I was never a bath reader so I don't miss that. The books are cheaper than cover price, and Amazon runs a few specials for "free" books and I always take advantage of that. I still rummage through the stacks at the stores once and a while - but then I'll go home to download it. I don't find the unit clunky at all - compared to most of the books I've read, it's smaller. The button placement could be configured a little better, but I am not unhappy with it at all. I do think the leather case it comes with needs some work. The unit falls out easily - and the notch that holds it in place can make the back cover slip off the Kindle exposing the battery and card slot. When the Whispernet is on, the Kindle's battery will run out fast. I leave this off and only turn it on to download new content or shop. The only thing I really don't like about the Kindle is that you really have no idea what "page number" you are on in relation to the paper book. Because you can change the font size on the unit, obviously this would not be the same - but I wish there was some reference of some sort. I am in a book club and when I want to discuss something with the group, I can only refer to the chapter number. The "highlight" function is handy to mark certain lines I like...but you can not highlight multiple pages - only whats visible on your screen at the time. I consider myself a gadget person and I have been very happy with my Kindle. It has made reading more fun---and I love having a book in my hands in under a minute without having to leave my couch! let me know if you have other questions--- jenniferThanks, Jennifer! Much appreciated. What do you think? Is this thing going to take off? Sceptical? If you have questions about it, especially we Brits who can't buy it yet, put them below, and I'll ask Jennifer to answer any, if she has a minute.
