Now that I’ve had my Kindle 1.0 for a week, I still love it. Nonetheless, I can see what I would like for the future:
1. Better resolution for graphics.
2. More font options, so that publishers can do a little typography.
3. Better h&j routines. The justification tends to do funky things to word spacing. Maybe it could come with some h&j routines it could do on the fly?
4. Waterproofing. I like to read while I walk from place to place. I can’t take my Kindle out in the rain, per the manual. (I’m in NYC and driving just isn’t an option for most errands.)
5. Slightly better searching and suggestions in the Kindle store. Right now, whether it’s because the selection is still light as we all rush to convert to the format, or what, it’s still not as good as the regular Amazon experience.
6. Longer battery life, or the option to upgrade to a longer battery life. I’m having to recharge after reading for a day or so. Not that it’s a real problem, but . . .
Color would also be nice, but not at the expense of resolution.
So, all the rest of you — what do you want in your Kindles? Better web brower? Better searching by tags? What?
And I just found yet another reason why publishing people ought to love the Kindle. Agent Kristin on Pub Rants tells how it’s making her life easier.
Good comments — and after only a week also. I’ve had mine for a month and three weeks, and I love it as almost all who have bought one does.
I like the comments. I recharge my Kindle every night since I prefer to leave the wireless switch on at all times. Also this is an easier habit to keep versis figuring out when I charged it last. I bought a second charger so I could have one by my bed for when I read in bed, and another one downstairs if I know I will sleep right away. They are really cheap too.
I would lilke better resolution — more than four shades of grey like some ebook readers using eink have — unless they are really lying about it. I would like color, but not at the expense of resolution as well, and not with backlighting — reflective reading is much easier on the eyes. But knowing the technology of eink, I don’t think this will happen with eink, and I don’t want the screen to require battery power when not turning pages, etc., like eink does so well today.
I don’t have a problem with rain — my Kindle fits nicely within my front pants pockets, so I put it there if there is a chance I will be rained on. And I always keep my Kindle in its case, although I have secured it with Industrial Strength Velcro since there is very poor protection with the case.
I don’t care about typography, although I see book ads on my Kindle which does have some — although I suspect it is done using an image, not type face. I just want to read with my Kindle, and not worry about being influenced by typography. But if it were there, it wouldn’t bother me.
I would like better directory searching, both in the Kindle store and for the files on my Kindle — I already have 33 pages in my home directory, and the two main choices of title or author, or the third choice of new, is just not enough. We have category on the web for the Kindle Store, so why not have it on the Kindle itself. I would also like main and sub grouping where yhou don’t see the subs unless you first select the main.
I havn’t used my Kindle to access the web yet — that’s why I have a home computer. But if I had to travel overnight, I would consider doing so. I see Web access is a different thing from reading a digital book, requiring different device support. I can’t cuddle up with my laptop in my bed, and hate to read on a computer screen in bright light like I preer to do with my Kindle. And I have no problem with the keyboard on my Kindle when used for the purposes it is mainly provided, but I am a fast typest and would be handicapped in using it for web access.
I have bought books from Amazon for years — I can’t cound the thousands of dollars I must have spent already. What I would like Amazon to do — since they have a record of all my purchases — is to give me a Kindle copy for free of all books I have bought from Amazon in the past if a digital version exists. And if not, put it on the fast track to have it, and then send me a copy. And do this in the future as well for Kindle owners who still sometimes buy a hard copy book. Why should I pay twice for the same book. And besides, I don’t read dead tree books anymore if I have a choice.
Charles Wilkes, San Jose, Calif.
Interesting comments, all. And thanks for leaving them.
Web access is indeed a different thing, but sometimes very useful when you want to check something while reading. Especially if you’re reading work-related material, which seems to be the bulk of the reading done by Americans today. (Not the bulk of MY reading, but I’m odd in so many ways!)
As for e- and p-book bundles, it’s a good idea, but they are separate rights, and the deal would have to be cleared with the rights owners (publishers and authors, depending upon contracts). Many rights holders don’t allow e-editions for very good reasons. Others will want some compensation for the non-trivial amount of work necessary to convert the p-book to the Kindle format.
Still, I agree, that I would like to get the ebook versions of many books that I already own p copies of.
One issue that I wonder about is what if my wife and I both get a kindle. Is there a clean way to pass a book between us (eg. Amazon could check that we are at the same address)? Paying 2x $9.99 is not much of a discount.
Hi all and Thank you. I’ve just been reading up on this. I have for a long time been using my laptop as my reading and storage device but I mean, come on! It’s kind of bulky compared to this.
Thanks for the info.
Joseph
7) not locked into Amazon and their format?
An excellent point. I’m guessing that you could use the experimental web access to download books eventually, but that you’ll have to pay for the cell service when that facility becomes available.
Perhaps we’ll also be able to handle email through it? If that were true, I’d be in heaven. SO much easier than what I do now when traveling!
Just came across your blog on Google. Interesting post, you bring up a few good things to think about. Good luck with the blog.
I bought a refurbished Kindle 2 few days back. I have no words to describe this product. First of all you must know I am a voracious reader and read more than 4 books a month. The problem I always faced was what to do with those books after I am done. Don’t get me wrong I would like to have them all in my collection but I have a job which takes me places and I can not carry all my books with me which is actually a lot. With Kindle I found a solution to the problem. Now I have a digital library instead of having a physical one.
Secondly, I take public transport from my home to office and it takes me more than an hour and a half one side. I would like to read on the way but my eyes get strained if I read on a bus. Along came Kindle…. now when I am on a bus I start text to speech and listen all the way to the office. This increased my reading time and I have started finishing a lot more books than before. This feature uses a lot of battery and the battery lasts for maximum 2-3 days but it is worth it.
Thirdly, I love the way it looks. Its sleek design and the way I can hold in one hand(any one) and keep reading.
Also there are a few books which are available on Kindle only by Amazon and believe me it is a great collection and don’t forget the free kindle books Amazon give as a promotion every few days. Its awesome.
Now the problems… Kindle is good for reading but not for browsing through the book. I like to quickly browse through a book before a start reading it but it is not possible here. Also when using the table of contents etc the 5 way stick is not very comfortable a way to go. Browsing web becomes problematic for the same reason.
If anybody likes to read books like I do, Kindle is worth every penny. The Nice to have and Great to have features of this device far far outweigh the problem with the 5 way stick. A must have device for every reader.
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