4 ms·

Amazon: What are you hiding? (Kindle a failure?)

4 points by nickb 19y ago

Flemlord 19y ago
I have a Kindle and love it. It took a month to arrive, but works perfectly. I buy everything on the Kindle now, with the exception of technical books. I've lost count of the number of people who have seen me reading it, played with it, and walked away saying they were going to buy one. Amazon is not hiding a failure--it's a huge success and this marks the turning point for e-books.
- deleted 19y ago
  [deleted]
- anewaccountname 19y ago
  Thanks Jeff, I'm glad someone finally spoke up for the truth.
- silencio 19y ago
  Hmm, interesting. My boyfriend has a kindle and I've occasionally played around with it. I love books, so I've also checked out the sony reader, cybook, etc., and I've owned a couple of ancient ebook readers as well. I really love the idea of ebooks and so a physical reader only makes sense to me. The problem I've always encountered is that it's not really something I'd want to carry around with me all the time or that I'd probably end up using that often so I haven't even bothered to think about ordering one. I think the ultimate reason why is that I have a jailbroken iPhone with (among other apps) Books.app and unlike the kindle, it can do a lot more and it fits in my pocket and my purse for when I'm not lugging around my laptop. I obviously take it everywhere to make calls, to check email, to play Solitaire, to hang out in IRC. As a result, I have it with me all the time so I can read too - for example, I read most when I'm at a restaurant waiting for a takeout order that's taking forever or when I'm in line for some event or another. Sure, I can't get the latest books and magazines on there to read, but there are plenty of free ebooks to read and download e.g. from manybooks.net and textonphone.com. It's definitely not a dedicated device for ebooks, but that is exactly why I think it's so great for them. Finally, in just over half a year of having Books.app on my phone, I've read over 200 ebooks (well, some of those were short stories, but the vast majority weren't). Surprisingly enough that's more than I've read in the previous couple years, textbooks included. I suspect I wouldn't have even come close to that number with a kindle (etc.) just because the convenience is not there.
  - Flemlord 19y ago
    The Kindle is roughly the size of a paperback, and comes with a nice leather case so it's not awkward to carry. But it's the integration with Amazon that really does it for me. You can select books online, and have them sent to the Kindle. You can also browse a Kindle-only Amazon site directly from the Kindle over the wireless. With any book, you can download the first 5 chapters or so as a free sample. I have about 30 samples on the Kindle right now that I browse through when I'm ready for my next book. Plus, about 80% of new books I'm interested in have Kindle versions. I expect that number will be 100% soon.
    - silencio 19y ago
      The thing is, I know how small the Kindle is. In theory, it's pretty cool. But it is definitely not something that fits in my purse or in my pocket like the iPhone does..and even if it did it doesn't do everything the phone can (especially with the just-released sdk). The integration is the only reason why I would contemplate a Kindle purchase..and yet..isn't a very compelling reason for me to do so. There aren't many new books I am truly interested in that I don't want a dead tree version of (easier to share with family/friends) or that I can't find an online version of (e.g. safari books, books24x7). I suppose it's really a personal preference thing. If the cost were slightly lower than it is right now I may consider it for home use. Or maybe if more of my textbooks were available..I would definitely purchase it in a split second. But as-is..nah.
pg 19y ago
I've seen more Macbook Airs than Kindles, despite the fact that the Air only came out a few weeks ago.
- jyu 19y ago
  Maybe because Kindle is constantly out of stock? http://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Amazons-Wireless-Reading-Device/dp/B000FI73MA/ref=pd_bbs_1?ie=UTF8&s=fiona-hardware&qid=1205095341&sr=8-1 http://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Amazons-Wireless-Reading-Device...
  - silencio 19y ago
    http://www.apple.com/retail/macbookair/ http://www.apple.com/retail/macbookair/ In the beginning MBAs were also constantly out of stock and the quoted ship times from the online store weren't pretty. Not so much nowadays. The iPhone release was a lot uglier in terms of availability (and popularity).
- ivankirigin 19y ago
  The Air makes your data and system more portable. Things you want with you all the time, can come along more easily. The Kindle makes your books more portable. Things you don't really need after first read through, and never really urgently need, come along more easily.
cstejerean 19y ago
I'm disappointed with the waiting list, and more importantly with the fact that there is no estimate upfront for how it's going to take. I can't live with "we have no clue whatsoever when we can ship you one." I've ordered a Kindle in December and canceled my order after two weeks since I didn't get any emails with an update on how long it's going to take during those 2 weeks. I don't care if it takes 3 months, just be honest and tell me that before I place my order (or at least within a week of placing my order).
ajju 19y ago
Just a single data point but I've had a Kindle since the first week it came out and it rocks. It is VERY usable, books are almost always cheaper for the Kindle and being able to buy books with 1 click doesn't hurt (Amazon..certainly hurts my wallet :)

4 points by nickb 19y ago

I have a Kindle and love it. It took a month to arrive, but works perfectly. I buy everything on the Kindle now, with the exception of technical books. I've lost count of the number of people who have seen me reading it, played with it, and walked away saying they were going to buy one. Amazon is not hiding a failure--it's a huge success and this marks the turning point for e-books.

deleted 19y ago
[deleted]
anewaccountname 19y ago
Thanks Jeff, I'm glad someone finally spoke up for the truth.
silencio 19y ago
Hmm, interesting. My boyfriend has a kindle and I've occasionally played around with it. I love books, so I've also checked out the sony reader, cybook, etc., and I've owned a couple of ancient ebook readers as well. I really love the idea of ebooks and so a physical reader only makes sense to me. The problem I've always encountered is that it's not really something I'd want to carry around with me all the time or that I'd probably end up using that often so I haven't even bothered to think about ordering one. I think the ultimate reason why is that I have a jailbroken iPhone with (among other apps) Books.app and unlike the kindle, it can do a lot more and it fits in my pocket and my purse for when I'm not lugging around my laptop. I obviously take it everywhere to make calls, to check email, to play Solitaire, to hang out in IRC. As a result, I have it with me all the time so I can read too - for example, I read most when I'm at a restaurant waiting for a takeout order that's taking forever or when I'm in line for some event or another. Sure, I can't get the latest books and magazines on there to read, but there are plenty of free ebooks to read and download e.g. from manybooks.net and textonphone.com. It's definitely not a dedicated device for ebooks, but that is exactly why I think it's so great for them. Finally, in just over half a year of having Books.app on my phone, I've read over 200 ebooks (well, some of those were short stories, but the vast majority weren't). Surprisingly enough that's more than I've read in the previous couple years, textbooks included. I suspect I wouldn't have even come close to that number with a kindle (etc.) just because the convenience is not there.
- Flemlord 19y ago
  The Kindle is roughly the size of a paperback, and comes with a nice leather case so it's not awkward to carry. But it's the integration with Amazon that really does it for me. You can select books online, and have them sent to the Kindle. You can also browse a Kindle-only Amazon site directly from the Kindle over the wireless. With any book, you can download the first 5 chapters or so as a free sample. I have about 30 samples on the Kindle right now that I browse through when I'm ready for my next book. Plus, about 80% of new books I'm interested in have Kindle versions. I expect that number will be 100% soon.
  - silencio 19y ago
    The thing is, I know how small the Kindle is. In theory, it's pretty cool. But it is definitely not something that fits in my purse or in my pocket like the iPhone does..and even if it did it doesn't do everything the phone can (especially with the just-released sdk). The integration is the only reason why I would contemplate a Kindle purchase..and yet..isn't a very compelling reason for me to do so. There aren't many new books I am truly interested in that I don't want a dead tree version of (easier to share with family/friends) or that I can't find an online version of (e.g. safari books, books24x7). I suppose it's really a personal preference thing. If the cost were slightly lower than it is right now I may consider it for home use. Or maybe if more of my textbooks were available..I would definitely purchase it in a split second. But as-is..nah.

pg 19y ago

I've seen more Macbook Airs than Kindles, despite the fact that the Air only came out a few weeks ago.

jyu 19y ago
Maybe because Kindle is constantly out of stock? http://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Amazons-Wireless-Reading-Device/dp/B000FI73MA/ref=pd_bbs_1?ie=UTF8&s=fiona-hardware&qid=1205095341&sr=8-1 http://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Amazons-Wireless-Reading-Device...
- silencio 19y ago
  http://www.apple.com/retail/macbookair/ http://www.apple.com/retail/macbookair/ In the beginning MBAs were also constantly out of stock and the quoted ship times from the online store weren't pretty. Not so much nowadays. The iPhone release was a lot uglier in terms of availability (and popularity).
ivankirigin 19y ago
The Air makes your data and system more portable. Things you want with you all the time, can come along more easily. The Kindle makes your books more portable. Things you don't really need after first read through, and never really urgently need, come along more easily.

cstejerean 19y ago

I'm disappointed with the waiting list, and more importantly with the fact that there is no estimate upfront for how it's going to take. I can't live with "we have no clue whatsoever when we can ship you one." I've ordered a Kindle in December and canceled my order after two weeks since I didn't get any emails with an update on how long it's going to take during those 2 weeks. I don't care if it takes 3 months, just be honest and tell me that before I place my order (or at least within a week of placing my order).

ajju 19y ago

Just a single data point but I've had a Kindle since the first week it came out and it rocks. It is VERY usable, books are almost always cheaper for the Kindle and being able to buy books with 1 click doesn't hurt (Amazon..certainly hurts my wallet :)